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news.library.ualberta.ca
  • BLOG HOME
  • About
    • Author Profiles
    • Five Things You Need to Know About the Library
    • Cinq choses à savoir sur la bibliothèque
  • Collections
  • Community
  • Wellness
  • Français
    • Cinq choses à savoir sur la bibliothèque

Staff

    De-Stressing Tips from Library Staff | Part I

    by Junelle Mah December 3, 2020
    written by Junelle Mah
    One of my favourite de-stressing activities when I lived in BC’s Lower Mainland was to visit the Vancouver Aquarium; especially visits to the sea otter habitats and the jelly fish tank. These days, I visit my marine-dwelling friends through the aquarium cams!

    First, a giant shout-out to everyone for all the hard work done thus far in our Fall 2020 semester. We are truly proud of you! We invite you to take some time to rest, relax, and focus on a little self-care before you battle on to end this term on a strong note. Our lovely library staffers offer up their de-stressing tips in Part I of a two-part special!


    Elisabet, Information Services Specialist

    My de-stressing tip is simply making lists! They take the worry out of my brain and I can focus on one at a time.

    LISTS:

    • Write a list of everything you HAVE to do
    • Write a list of everything you SHOULD do
    • Write a list of what you would LIKE to do

    Take care of the “must dos” then be sure to cross off at least one of the things on your like to do list. You will feel lighter for having taken care of at least some of the necessities and feel better for doing something that makes you feel happier!


    David, Academic Librarian

    Fingertip reflexology for the brain and pituitary – aka, playing guitar. 

    In non-pandemic times, a sing-along was a common occurrence in the Rutherford Library south office. It’s also super handy to have a bunch of talented folks in-house like David, Carmen, Lucinda, Doris, Elisabet and more whose lovely voices fill the seating area with lovely holiday melodies. I can honestly say, these are the things about office life I miss the most…


    Katherine,

    “How do I best manage stress? I head out to the cross country ski trails!  This photo was taken at Strathcona Wilderness Centre.”

    Katherine’s passion for the trails is contagious! During our time together at Augustana Campus Library, it was Katherine’s eagerness that kept us warm during the chilly celebratory ski to open the Dr. Garry and Dorothy Gibson Nordic Ski Library. She speedily led the pack with the student-athletes close on her heels…and while I was puffing to keep up, I could still see the joy on Katherine’s face from the back of the pack!


    Eric, Information Services Specialist

    My suggestion is two-fold: Sound therapy, and Anticipation versus Expectation!

    For sound therapy, I suggest an ambient, soft, and wordless piece like Songs for Lonely Rainy Nights. Throw a blanket over your head, crawl into a small space, do whatever it takes to just step away for a little while, and watch/meditate/rest your eyes for 15 minutes to an hour every day.

    Anticipation versus Expectation is a little more complicated – set yourself hard limits on how much personal screen time, or reading, or whatever you are doing for low energy entertainment, and stick to it. This forces you to adjust and take a more active approach to your days, and also causes you to schedule when you will have these low energy entertainment times, and anticipate them rather than expect them all the time, and feel stressed when they don’t happen.


    Mireille, Information Services Specialist

    My favourite way to de-stress is to rewatch a favourite movie (so comforting; never fails to lift my mood). Best in Show always does the trick for me!

    Pro Tip from Mireille: binge watch the great offerings from the U of A Library’s Criterion on Demand database, where she linked her movie above. If you’re eager for more details on the Criterion database, check out our blog!


    Trish, Head, Collection Strategies
    Definitely cat cuddles for me. Often cat cuddles while reading a book (under a cozy blanket with a hot cup of tea nearby). I also find baking to be good for de-stressing. Kneading dough and/or using rolling pins can be very therapeutic!

    As the photo shows, my gingerbread cookies are complete! I just use the Betty Crocker recipe, though I roll them out a little thicker because I prefer a softer gingerbread (Admittedly, I was also following the book version of the recipe which says to roll to 1/4 inch!).

    Trish’s kitties Darwin [up close] and Katie
    Trish’s gingerbread

    We wish you the best as you near the end of this unique Fall 2020 semester. Our Library staff are here to support you as you find those final bits of information for your term papers or need advice on where to find a citation guide. Just Ask Us!

    Thanks for the view! Love us on the blog? Chances are, you’ll love us on social media! Follow us, @uofalibrary, on Instagram & Twitter!

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  • LIBRARIANS WORKING FROM HOME: MEET DALE, PART II: LOOKING AHEAD TO 2021!

    by Eva Romanick November 24, 2020
    by Eva Romanick November 24, 2020

    This is a special two part interview with our Vice-Provost (Library & Museums) & Chief Librarian, Dale Askey. Part One (posted yesterday) reflected back on 2020 and how it changed UAlberta Library. Today’s Part Two is looking forward to 2021 and beyond. Do you have any ‘hot-takes’ about what libraries will look like in the future? Looking fairly far out into the future, say a generation from now, I think we will…

  • LIBRARIANS WORKING FROM HOME: MEET DALE, PART I: REFLECTIONS!

    by Eva Romanick November 23, 2020
    by Eva Romanick November 23, 2020

    This is a special two part interview with our Vice-Provost (Library & Museums) & Chief Librarian, Dale Askey. Part One reflects back on 2020 and how it changed UAlberta Library. Part Two (coming tomorrow) is looking forward to 2021 and beyond. How has working from home changed the way you work and interact with U of A and UAL staff? Profoundly. I’m a social person who enjoys conversation and interacting with a…

  • Happy World Hello Day!

    by Junelle Mah November 19, 2020
    by Junelle Mah November 19, 2020

    A simple greeting can open connections and communication between people. It can be a one word, a smile, a nod. Today, along with our University of Alberta community, we celebrate World Hello Day (a little early, we know). Taken from the University’s Days of Action site, “World Hello Day—is a global event with 180 countries taking part—created in 1973 to respond to the conflict between Egypt and Israel. Using communication instead of…

  • LIBRARIANS WORKING FROM HOME: MEET ALLISON!

    by Eva Romanick November 12, 2020
    by Eva Romanick November 12, 2020

    With the majority of students and staff being advised to work and study from home, this is how our librarians are supporting online learning… Our Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation Librarian, Allison, has students asking her all kinds of questions. How to refine their searches so they don’t get overwhelmed with citations? Where they can go to find the information they need? And, whether she can help create sophisticated searches for comprehensive reviews…

  • Seasoned Advice from Seasoned Pros

    by Junelle Mah October 15, 2020
    by Junelle Mah October 15, 2020

    Is hindsight the best sight? For staffers seasoned in the library sciences, the answer is yes! We polled our multi-disciplinary team of library whizzes and asked, “What one library resource did you wish you knew about/had access to when you were a student?“ Almost immediately, David Sulz (Academic Librarian) replied back with the Oxford English Dictionary. While our holdings include physical copies, the most up-to-date edition is our online version. It contains…

  • Finding Connections in Community and Space | An Alumna Looks Back

    by Junelle Mah September 24, 2020
    by Junelle Mah September 24, 2020

    Happy Alumni Week to one and all in our green and gold community. When you work on the campus of your alma mater, you can’t help but be surrounded by the nostalgia of your (now seemingly) carefree days as a student. Sure the faces and some of the buildings change, but the feelings of familiarity and good memories remain. As a proud Human Ecology alumna (with ALES, back when it was AgForHE),…

  • LIBRARIANS WORKING FROM HOME: MEET KARA!

    by Eva Romanick September 22, 2020
    by Eva Romanick September 22, 2020

    With the majority of students and staff being advised to work and study from home, this is how our librarians are supporting online learning… Augustana’s First Year Seminar courses involve interdisciplinary research. Each section of the course has a different focus–for example, smell, dinosaurs or surveillance. Recently, there have been a few students who were all researching the importance of smell. Their specific topics included petrichor (the smell of rain), the smell…

  • Stitching the Curve: An Update

    by Hanne Pearce July 28, 2020
    by Hanne Pearce July 28, 2020

    It has now been well over five months since a group of us University of Alberta Library staff began a data physicalization project to stitch Covid-19 data in Canada. It’s a project that we called “Stitching the Curve”. This is a little update on this data physicalization project’s progress.  To quickly recap the project, members of our team have all selected provinces to either knit or crochet. Our colleague and fellow knitter,…

  • LIBRARIANS WORKING FROM HOME: MEET SARAH

    by Guest Author July 14, 2020
    by Guest Author July 14, 2020

    With the majority of students and staff being advised to work and study from home, this is how our librarians are supporting online learning… Sarah Shaughnessy, librarian from the Bibliothèque Saint-Jean (BSJ) mostly enjoys working at home, although her computer’s camera gives her a constant reminder that her home office needs painting, cleaning and repairs. “My BSJ colleagues say this giant drywall patch looks like a cloud.  I’ve thought about putting a…

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The University of Alberta is situated on traditional Treaty 6 territory and homeland of the Métis peoples. Amiskwaciwâskahikan / ᐊᒥᐢᑲᐧᒋᕀᐋᐧᐢᑲᐦᐃᑲᐣ / Edmonton


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