Lisa A. Raney

Hello world! My apologies for the lack of updates the past few months. I have finished out my Homework Help Aide position for the school year, have been interviewing a lot, and have been helping my best friend plan her wedding (which is just two weeks away!). 

My big news is that I will be starting a new position in a week. I’m very happy to be staying with the library system I have been with since last year – but will now be working with genealogy and local history collections. The position is right up my alley, owing to my undergraduate degree in history, experience working with archival collections, and experience conducting genealogical research in my free time. I’m excited about the opportunities for collaboration with other departments and organizations throughout the city, special projects (the big one is the Veterans History Project), and increased responsibility that come with this position. I’ve also been hearing great things about the department as a whole and look forward to writing more about this position and projects in the near future.

I have been focusing a lot on my career and professional interests lately. I left my weekend retail position in order to look for a part-time job where I can utilize my reference and research skills since my new position in genealogy and local history is part-time. I started volunteering for Radical Reference, and am working with another SRRT member in an effort to resurrect the now-defunct Alternative Media Task Force. I won’t be able to make it to ALA Annual due to the aforementioned wedding, but will be at Midwinter 2013 in Seattle. It is my hope to have something for AMTF planned for MW13. 

I’ve taken a much-needed “staycation” this past week aside from wedding-related outings. This has consisted of doing some of my favorite things: catching up on reading, cooking, yoga, jogging, painting, playing guitar, and spending time with friends and family. My next projects to tackle are working on my portfolio, adding more projects to this site, and compiling information on best practices in reference services – especially applying critical theory to information services.

photo credit: me, edited in instagram photo app.