Day 28: A Month of Birthday Gratitude

And if we are talking about work - we have to talk about co-workers.

I have been lucky to have many wonderful co-workers during my years at the library. 

When you are in the customer service field, you bond with your co-workers. 

Especially when you are in cubicles in one big room. 

We help each other. 

In a variety of ways. 

We celebrate when someone completes a call with a difficult patron. 

We commiserate when someone has had to deal with a difficult patron. 

Even though we rarely get to meet our patrons, we still grieve when they pass away.

We tag team on certain requests - often when technology is involved. 

We'll scribble on a post it note and run to someone's cubicle - "I talked to her yesterday - check the notes field!" "Transfer him to me; I know what he wants" "Let her know I mailed her a packet last week"

We also have fun times at work 

Patron bingo

Games during the lunch hour

Making Valentine cards

Holiday luncheon with games and a white elephant gift exchange

Having the opportunity to work from home is one of the few benefits that came from the pandemic. 

But I am also happy on the days I'm in the office because I enjoy the camaraderie, support, and sense of purpose I share with my co-workers. 

Customer service / librarianship can be challenging. 

But also incredibly rewarding. 

librarianintx

Day 27: A Month of Birthday Gratitude

"When you love your job, it doesn't feel like work."

I went to library school intending to work with children, either in an elementary school or public library setting. 

But for nearly twenty-five years I have worked for a regional library for the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled. 

Helping people who are older, disabled, or have a chronic illness is my purpose. 

Connecting people to the information and resources that they need makes me fulfilled. 

And as a person with a disability, I am so fortunate to work for a state agency that values and supports people with disabilities. 

I am very proud of  where I work, and grateful for the opportunities my job has my afforded me.

librarianintx

Day 26: A Month of Birthday Gratitude

 Well, I fell short of my goal. 

I did not blog every day during the month of March. 

I am grateful for my interest in and my ability to write. 

But I struggle with writing. 

When you have a chronic illness or disability, too often your energy gets spent getting through the day. 

Sometimes I'm too tired or overstimulated to organize my thoughts. 

I'm a night owl, so occasionally I'll get the urge to write late at night, but if it's a week night I know I have work the next day. 

If only I could get myself up in time to write in the morning. 

Sometimes writing is cathartic for me. 

Other times I want to pull my hair out. 

But I'm always grateful to have that outlet. 

librarianintx

Day 25: A Month of Birthday Gratitude

I am also grateful for curiosity. 

Again, sometimes I struggle with fatigue and health issues. 

It can take mental energy and concentration to learn something. 

Life long learning is important. 

It keeps you engaged.

Focused.

It's good for your emotional and physical well-being. 

Curiosity and learning are important to keep your brain healthy. 

Learning Spanish is something I am doing to keep my brain active. 

I am also trying to sight read braille.

I still want to learn sign language. 

My current main reading interests are the British Royals, especially the Tudor era. Also the Romanov family in Russia. 

I do Wordle and Blossom pretty much daily. 

Sometimes Sudoku.

A new interest of mine is cryptograms. 

Also word puzzles and regular puzzles. 

Sometimes the games make my brain hurt. 

But in a good way. :) 

It might be cliche, but it's true: You are never too young to learn something new.

librarianintx

 

Day 24: A Month of Birthday Gratitude

Today I am grateful for my persistence. 

I guess I've always had a certain amount of persistence.

I graduated from high school, college, grad school. 

I live independently and have a job. 

But when I was young, if I didn't know how to do something, or didn't think I could physically do something, I wouldn't even try. Someone else, usually my mother, would do it for me. 

Now, I try on my own first. 

I've learned how to read directions (mostly).

I know how to google. 

YouTube is a great resource. 

And if it's something physical, I try a few times, and sometimes I can actually do what I'm trying to do. 

And that feels fantastic. 

Persistence is great.

It makes you feel proud of your accomplishments. 

But you also have to be realistic. 

And make sure you don't hurt yourself trying to something physical. 

A few examples:

I can't open pop top cans. Even with the gadgets that supposedly make that easier. I just don't have the arm strength. 

I don't use ladders. I know it's not safe for me. I'll use a one step stepstool, but that's it. No climbing. 

Don't get me started on child proof medicine bottles. 

And bottles of milk. 

And salad dressing.

And olive oil with the inner seal you have to pull off.  

Anyway... 

A few weeks ago I put together a holder for my phone. 

It was very simple, only three parts. 

Still, I struggled. 

But I did it!

Last night I needed a new nasal spray.

One of those where the container is ensconced in a tomb of heavy plastic. 

I pulled and tugged and cut the plastic with manicure scissors. 

Took me awhile. But I did it. 

Persistence can take energy and concentration that sometimes I don't have. 

I'm also grateful to have a roommate who will help me when I can't do something. 

Important point: Needing help and asking for help is absolutely FINE.

Everyone needs help sometimes.

But it feels awesome when I can do it myself.  

librarianintx

Day 23: A Month of Birthday Gratitude

Before butterflies, I had another favorite animal. 

I still love elephants. 

You can love more than one thing at a time. 

When I was young, my mom, sister, and I each chose something to collect. My mom picked turtles, my sister decided on clowns, and elephants were my choice. I'm not sure why, really. But they are still close to my heart. 

I've been fortunate to have some close encounters with elephants. 

I have ridden on an elephant twice, at the Renaissance Festival. Short rides both times, just a meander around an enclosure, but still very exciting. Their ears and trunks flapped, I could feel their wrinkly skin, and I remember shutting out my fear of heights and reveling in the experience. 

Then in 2022 three friends and I went to the elephant experience at the Preserve in Fredericksburg. We helped give an elephant a bath, learned about their care, watched them paint and eat, and took pictures with them. It was one of the coolest things I've ever done. I recommend it and I would do it again. 

The elephant in the photo painted the picture that I'm holding. 

librarianintx

Day 22: A Month of Birthday Gratitude

I'm not a fan of insects. 

But I love butterflies. 

They are my spirit animal. 

They are so beautiful. 

So delicate. 

But they know how to soar. 

A butterfly undergoes a lot of changes during its very brief life. 

That cycle is a metaphor for the metamorphosis that humans experience. 

"You do not just wake up and become the butterfly. Growth is a process" Rupi Kaur 

“Butterflies can’t see their wings. They can’t see how truly beautiful they are, but everyone else can. People are like that as well.” — Naya Rivera

llibrarianintx

 

 

 

 

librarianintx

Day 21: A Month of Birthday Gratitude

This is Trish.

I still don't understand why the pictures are sideways. 

I lost the first post I wrote trying to fix it.

Anyhow - Trish is my Trilogy ventilator.

Thanks to her, I have more energy, less fatigue, better concentration, and I get sick less.

I used to wake up with morning headaches and have fatigue and brain fog. A sleep study showed that my oxygen dipped down to dangerous levels during sleep.

Unfortunately Trish is a hefty, bulky girl, which makes travel more difficult. But she also has an 8 hour battery that helps when the power goes out.

I am grateful for her.

Some of you might be wondering if I have a gender bias when it comes to my medical equipment. But I don't. I have an oxygen concentrator named Oliver. And a cane named Cobalt. But we are hoping if Trish can keep me well-ventilated at night, we can send Oliver off to help someone else.

librarianintx