Summer, Cicadas, Coming Out Of My Cocoon

Today is the next to the last day of my safe and secure job that has been a huge part of my identity for 10 years. I have left it to quickly advance to the end of my MLS degree. So many people comment on how nice the summer will be, "You can get a tan this summer!" I am working an unpaid 120 hour internship, taking two classes, and keeping a part-time job at the library. Free time is still not in my vocabulary. But why do I feel so bereft? My work has been my identity -- no matter how stressful it might be, there is a tremendous sense of pride in being able to juggle administrative balls in the air. Who will I be now?

It is fitting that this is the summer of the cicadas. My plans to take my laptop outside may be thwarted by droves of large winged noisy critters. But I do feel a kinship. These bugs have stayed "safe and secure" for 17 years. Now they are bursting out of their shells and taking on the world, trying to achieve all they can as quickly as possible. I have stayed in the safe mode of worker/student long enough. This summer it is time to shed the shell, try out my wings, and make some noise!

So -- how will I spend my summer? Trying to advance my skills even further in the Library 2.0 era. I will master the "digital libraries project", further examine MySpace, YouTube, and Facebook so I can better help the youth and librarians in the library make good decisions about public social forums, and spend time at a library that has a mission of serving its public in a progressive fashion! And about that tan -- I might just squeeze in some gardening and farmer's market time to get a healthy glow!

For now I am off to read a book recommended by a colleague, Passages: Predictable Crises of Adult Life by Gail Sheehy. I could use an "advisor".