Week 5 Journal - LIB 5060

It's the last journal!!!!! Last week of class, here we go.

Tonight, we have the final presentation for the class. I'm really excited to share what my group has come up with to benefit our selected library.

More than that, I'm excited to share the results of my retake of the quiz we took at the beginning of the summer session!

My new score: 50

31-60
 

You are a culture sensitive person, and people will recognize you as one.  If your score is above 50, however, you are probably sensitive and broad-minded in some areas only.  Actually it is easy to be culturally sensitive if one does not hold very firm beliefs about anything.  Look through the questions again and note where you picked up high rather than low scores.  Were these questions in which personal comfort was directly concerned, or in which convictions or very strong ideological beliefs were touched upon?

Now, before, my score was in the 60s. I've grown a lot over the course of this class, I think. I feel like the presentations have really opened up my mind to a lot. I don't know if my mind has been changed or anything like that, but I do know that I'm much more sure of what I believe, if that makes sense. I know that I'm still very anti-censorship, but I understand why some people think it's ok. I'm not ok with dating or marrying someone of a different race, but it makes some people happy, so good for them. I'm a religious person, but I get that some people are not, and that doesn't make them bad people. It's just made me more open minded, I think. I also believe that librarians have to be open minded because they are going to serve people from all sorts of cultural backgrounds, and it's unfair to not be as helpful just because you don't agree with someone's personal choices/history.

What a great thing to have realized! :)

As far as our group goes, I hate to grade each person in my group. I'm never a fan of doing this (who is?)

Audra was absolutely phenomenal. She took charge of the group and helped everyone stay on track and organized. She also worked really hard on putting all of our ideas into words on the papers and helped us stick to deadlines. I love working with her in class, because her paper writing is very similar to mine, so we usually do well together. Audra truly deserves an A in this class. She's a great person to work with.

Rebecca is just a great person. She kept things lighthearted and was definitely a great group member. She and Tiffiny made sure we had a great understanding of the Mooresville library, since they lived close to it, and she always did her part with the research of everything.

Tiffiny worked so hard on our BlendSpaces for the presentation. She is the technological one of the group. She would get the BlendSpace going, add pictures, and share it with all of us so that she could really contribute to the group. She isn't as much of a paper writer, so she was very excited to be able to contribute in this way (and I was happy that I had someone in my group who truly enjoyed creating presentations, because this is not my strong suit).

Rachel always did everything that was asked of her. She helped Tiffiny with the BlendSpace and did a great job during the presentations. She always knew exactly what she was supposed to present, and she did a great job of encouraging the rest of us while we presented.

My job was a combination of it all. I always helped and contributed with research by adding my thoughts and findings onto a Google Doc. Then, I would help edit down the papers into something smoother that we could turn in. I checked grammar and turned things into more academic writing (that's my specialty - editing!). During the presentations, I thought I did a decent job conveying information to the class.

Anyway, thank you so much for a great summer semester! I will see you in class tonight, Dr. B! Thanks for everything!

Week 4 Journal - LIB 5060

This week, we were supposed to go and check out everyone's space that was created for Part 3 of the Culture Project.

My group decided to create a very simple, streamlined space where everything was labeled in English and Spanish. We created posters/flyers in Spanish and English, labeled each section, and used selection criteria that allowed us to choose titles that would be appealing to Hispanic/Latino patrons, whether that meant the book/media was about current issues, written by a Hispanic author, etc.

One of the spaces that I really liked was the LGBTQ library space. I think this is a really hard group to serve, especially without getting any flack from outside community groups. I think a neat way to make sure you include books/resources for this group is to have them cross-referenced as LGBTQ but also as whatever else they are: adult fiction, young adult, and children's. That is exactly what this group did. I especially liked the videos section. I think videos are really helpful for this group, in particular.

I liked the space created for Seniors, but I still feel like it was a bit stereotypical of your traditional elderly person. It was very creative, with sections on travel, retirement flyers, grandchildren, etc. But what about those elderly patrons who don't care about any of that? What about elderly patrons who are still working, have no grandchildren, and are looking to the library for other resources? Shouldn't there be a fiction section that highlights literature about people their age? I know that, personally, I identify more with literature about people my age....so there have to be seniors that feel the same way, right?

The homeless space was one of my favorites, if not my absolute favorite. I loved the wall with mirrors and the poetry hung on the wall. I liked that they included recreational reading as well as resources for the homeless AND books about homelessness. That was really awesome. Include a little bit of everything because these people are not just homeless; they're also real people. I loved the posters. It just made this feel like a really welcoming space. Bravo.

I wanted so much more from the teen space. I loved the idea of including books written by teens. I think that was really neat. I think a lot of research went into creating this space, but I was missing the technology that I think a library needs to include to really reach teenagers these days. E-books would be great to incorporate here. Something about Overdrive access? I don't know. I just felt like it was lacking.

As I see these other libraries, I'm thinking of what else I could've added in our library. I feel like everyone kind of went with just the stereotypes of what they thought each culture would like, and they didn't think of these people as more than their culture. I know the point of the project was to really think about how to serve the culture, but can't you get so caught up in their culture that you miss who they are as a person? It makes me think back to the personal cultural narrative. There were so many things that make me who I am. I don't think trying to serve one aspect of my culture would be beneficial for me. I don't know (just spitballing ideas).

Week 3 Journal - LIB 5060

Another week of presentations are done!

This week, we had to present on the best practices for our culture in the library. My group presented based on research that we found that would make the Mooresville (or any) library better serve the Hispanic/Latino population. Overall, I think we could sum it up by saying we need to incorporate more bilingual signs, bilingual books, books that are written by Hispanic authors, and we need to reach out into the community to partner up with a liaison from their culture. Simply advocating for their culture will do wonders!

Next week, we have to design a space that shows how we would support our cultural group. I'm really excited to build out a library. I love projects like this. They let us get creative and design our own libraries the way that we would want them!

We also were supposed to read the article "The Culture of Comfort" by Annette de Faveri. This was quite eye opening, honestly. The whole article talked about how librarians themselves are a barrier in the library. And then, the last paragraph was just fantastic:

"We need to make ourselves and our institutions inclusive and accessible. We need to create policies, programs and services that are committed to equitable communities. To do this we must shed our culture of comfort. We need to emphasize ideas over tasks, and processes over solutions. We need to insist that experiences and effects are as significant a measure of our success as counting heads at a library program. Collectively we can debunk the myth that the current definition of the library and librarian is complete and needs only to be reproduced to be successful. This is not a "them or us," or an "old versus new" split in our profession. It is simply the recognition that if we are indeed society's most egalitarian institution we must become egalitarian." 


Yes. All of this. This is perfect. Not often do I read an article where I passionately agree with something that someone else has said. This article, though, summed up exactly how I feel about the library. I love the ideas of putting ideas above the tasks themselves. That librarians have the power to make the library truly equal for everyone. This was just perfect.

Week 2 Journal - LIB 5060

This week, in class, we had to present on the specific culture that we chose for our project. My group has chosen to focus on the library in Mooresville, NC. We are specifically focusing on the Hispanic/Latino population because they are greatly underserved in this area.

We've done some research and we found out that this group is 16% of the area's population, which correlates with the national population of Hispanics and Latinos. Even though they are a good chunk of the population, they are still not being served like they should. This is partially due to lack of awareness about how to actually serve their community and partially due to a lack of caring, I believe. I think libraries forget, sometimes, that their job is to serve the community - including minority cultures.

In class, after presentations, I realized that there are other populations out there that are being underserved. A group presented on the elderly and we had to immediately have a conversation about stereotyping. It's not something I think about in relation to the elderly, but after the conversation we had, it's absolutely true. We tend to just assume that the elderly population in an area are helpless. That they don't know how to use technology and they won't know how to do anything for themselves. This just isn't true. The elderly just aren't a population that I have ever really thought about in any other way. That's interesting though, because my dad is officially a Senior Citizen. He's one of the most technologically inclined people I know. That presentation really opened my eyes to a lot of stereotyping.

Another interesting presentation was the one on teenagers. Before this presentation, I wouldn't have considered teenagers to be an underserved population anywhere. Now, I could see how they would be underserved in any public library. They have one small section in my personal public library, and past that, they don't have anything. They need more access to technology. They just don't get what they need in the traditional public library setting.

I can't wait to keep going with these presentations and learn more about each population. This has already opened my eyes up so much, and it's just the first week!

Week 1 Journal - LIB 5060

Testing my cultural sensitivity:

I've always thought of myself as relatively sensitive to other cultures. Then, I took this cultural sensitivity test. These were my results:

Score: 67

That put me in this category:

61-89 
 

You are not as culturally sensitive as many people, and if your score is higher than 80 you are basically an insensitive type of person.  This will lead to clashes and short-term friendships.  It will also mean that little things trouble you far more than they should and that you may waste emotional energy on what is really rather insignificant.  It is very likely that you count yourself as someone with high principles, who tends to stick to important things rather than trivia.  If you can get a wider experience of life and greater genuine contact with people, however, your will be more culturally sensitive, and in the end you will feel happier for it.

Not as sensitive as most people. Wow. I do like the part of this that says "you count yourself as someone with high principles, who tends to stick to important things rather than trivia." That's definitely me. 

But wow. I really thought I was more sensitive than that.

Hopefully, throughout this class, I'll grow as a person a little. I know we have to retake this quiz in 5 weeks, so we will see.

Culture in the library:

There is a stereotypical culture in the library, specifically the public library: Cold, quiet, not welcoming, unfriendly, stuffy. That's not a good thing. People don't typically go to the library around here. It's a place that I love going, but people only tend to go there if they need to.

I want to be the kind of librarian that works to change that culture. I remember how excited I used to be when I was a little girl about going to the library. I want all kids (and adults) to be that excited about it. I've learned so much about how to accomplish that in my time at ASU. I just can't wait to implement it all.

Advocare 24 Day Challenge - Cleanse Phrase Wrap-up

As you know, I've been doing the AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge.

The first phase of this challenge is the Cleanse Phase. In this phase, you use the products below and work on ridding your body of toxins that will prevent the effective absorption of key nutrients.

Advocare Spark - I used Fruit Punch and Pink Lemonade

Herbal Cleanse - Fiber Drink, Probiotics, and Herbal Cleanse Pills

OmegaPlex - Essential Fatty Acids (like fish oil, but better)

Catalyst - Supposedly, it's like "liposuction in a bottle," or so I have read.

Ok, so those are the products you need during this phase of the challenge. It lasts from Day 1 - Day 10 of the 24 days you're on the challenge.

A few things made me nervous about this challenge:

1. Lots of products to remember to take at different times of the day.
2. I read a ton of horrible comments about the fiber drink.
3. The cost.
4. Clean eating when I don't like vegetables. 

Addressing the concerns:

1. Well, clearly, I decided the cost was worth it. I just wanted to give something a try. I knew I needed to boost my metabolism and reset my body. This was the way I chose to do it. I had seen how well it worked for a friend of mine and I knew that, if she could do it, I could do it too.
2. The challenge comes with a handy Daily Guide. I leave this out on my counter at all times and check things off when I do them. There is also an app on my phone that will remind me to take products at certain times (like, when I'm at work).
3. The Fiber Drink.....ugh, I'll explain more on that in a second.
4. Clean eating..........ok, this was the hardest part of the challenge. I already meal plan, but I had gotten so lazy about cooking. As a matter of fact, when I told my boyfriend that I was going to cook at home for 24 straight nights, he laughed at me. So far, so good, but it was hard getting the motivation at first. Also, I'm addicted to coffee. With the exception of my pregnancy, I've had coffee every day (multiple cups of coffee) since I was 17. I'm 24, almost 25 now.

So, here's how the cleanse went for me:

Day 1: 

• 5:30 AM - Advocare Spark and Catalyst first thing. Ok, Spark is really good. I'm not kidding. The fruit punch kind of tastes like Koolaid. I can handle this for 24 days.
• 5:35 AM - AM Yoga
• 6:00 AM - Breakfast. The dreaded fiber drink (and yes, it really is disgusting. I'll give tips for getting it down below) and food. I chose to drink a protein shake for breakfast for the first three days, just to make sure I was getting good nutrition first thing. 
• 9:45 AM - Snack time! I ate a banana.
• 12:00 PM - Lunch time. Salad with chicken. Lite Raspberry Vinaigrette dressing. Delicious
• 4:00 PM - Snack time! I would eat fruit or veggies with hummus. Just depended on what I had on hand. Sometimes, I would eat a rice cake or two.
• 6:00 PM - Dinner time. Omegaplex (2 capsules) with food. I'm going to include my dinner meal plan for the first 10 days below.
• 8:00 PM - PiYo, day 1. Hello, Chalene Johnson. I've missed you.
• 9:30 PM - Bed. Yes, this is early but I was exhausted. I took my crazy pills with the herbal cleanse tablets and passed out.

Water intake for the first day was about 12 cups. I peed all day long. I had to get someone in to watch my class twice so I could go pee.

Nothing happened on the "cleansing" end. Not to worry. It's just day 1!

Day 2:

Went through the exact same process as Day 1. Same breakfast, same lunch, different food for dinner. Same products. Easy!

Bad caffeine headache today. It went away around 3:00 PM...but I had to teach all day long feeling like someone was cutting my head into pieces.

Day 3:

Went through the exact same process as Day 1-2. No headaches. No cleansing. My body is starting to get adjusted to the water intake.

Day 4:

• New product today! Adding in the probiotic at breakfast. No more Fiber drink either! Thank the Lord.
• Finally cleansed a little today. Nothing major. This cleanse is definitely gentle, as promised.

Day 5 - 7:

Same as Day 4. Body is starting to become more regular, which is something I've always struggled with. Didn't exercise at all this weekend. Way too tired.

Day 8:

• Return of the dreaded fiber drink. Three more days of this crap. I can do it.
• No more herbal cleanse pills at night.
• Everything else is the same!

Day 9 - 10:

Same as Day 8. My body has definitely become more regular throughout this process. No more bloating. I've been quite gassy though (TMI, sorry!). I looked it up, and this is a side-effect of all of the extra fiber I've been taking in. Remember, 6 of these days started with the fiber drink, AND I'm eating fruits and veggies...something my body is not used to doing.

Dinner Meal Plan:

1. Lemon Chicken with Herbs, Salad.
2. Baked Swai, Green Beans
3. Grilled Italian Chicken, Corn
4. Grilled Tilapia, Salad
5. Roasted Garlic & Herb Chicken, Green Beans
6. Olive Garden for my sister's birthday - I had Baked Tilapia and Shrimp with a side of steamed broccoli. Salad, of course, which was sad because I really wanted Chicken & Gnocchi soup. The saddest part of all? No breadsticks. This was depressing and very difficult.
7. Garlic & Herb Chicken, Green Beans
8. Baked Swai and Tilapia, Corn
9. Turkey Meatloaf and Light Mashed Potatoes (I really needed the extra carbs at this point)
10. Leftovers from the night before.

At this point, I'm about salad-ed out. I've had a salad 8/10 days for lunch AND sometimes with dinner. 

Now, for the best part of this whole cleanse - THE RESULTS:

Over the course of these 10 days, I lost:

• 6 pounds!
• 5 inches!

Average weight loss on the challenge is anywhere from 5-15 lbs. I've already lost 6 on the cleanse! That's exciting!

Do I think the products alone caused the loss? No. I'm a realist. I changed the way I was eating, completely.

Do I think the products helped a lot? Yes, absolutely. Without them, I wouldn't have gotten off of coffee/soda. Without them, I wouldn't have been inspired to make these lifestyle decisions. The strict schedule of this cleanse pushed me to do things that I normally wouldn't have done.

Hopefully, I'll see even more results with the rest of this challenge. There are a lot of pills that go with the next part of this challenge. I might have to set alarms on my phone to remember to take them all at the appropriate times. I'm hopeful!

Starting the AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge

Losing weight sucks.

Like, no joke. It sucks.

A friend of mine has recently done the AdvoCare 24 Day Challenge. She lost 15 lbs with the challenge. I was so impressed with her before and after pictures and results that I decided I would give it a shot. I have tried just about every fad out there, just to see what the hype is. Call it a natural curiosity, if you will. I've done Body by Vi (which, to be fair, I loved) and Plexus Slim (not a fan, honestly).

I received my package in the mail yesterday. Pretty quick turn around, actually. I ordered it on Wednesday and received it Saturday around midday. Not too shabby!

Here's what it looks like:

It was a nice sized package, about 6 lbs total. I went ahead and unboxed it (and of course, took the obligatory photo of the products stacked up way nicer than they will be for the next few weeks):

With the 24 day challenge, you get 5 products:

1. Spark (two boxes - enough for the whole challenge) - kind of like their energy drink. This is what I am most excited for.
2. Herbal Cleanse - for the cleanse phase (days 1-10) - contains probiotics, herbal cleanse pills, and the dreaded fiber drink (the part that I am least excited about)
3. MNS C - vitamins and other supplements that you take during the Max phase (days 11-24)
4. Meal Replacement Shakes - for breakfast during the Max phase (days 11-24)
5. Omegaplex - you take this during the entire challenge.

I added on another product - Catalyst. Supposedly, this product is amazing. I've even heard it called "liposuction in a bottle." I'm skeptical, but we will see. I start taking that tomorrow morning and take it for the whole challenge.

The package also came with an insert that explains the challenge and tells you exactly what to do each day. It's laid out nicely. Pretty simple, I think.

After I got all of the products, I realized I needed a plan. Now, I'm usually pretty good at meal planning, but I have sucked beyond the telling of it here lately. Boyfriend is always teasing me about how little I cook. When I told him I meal planned and went grocery shopping, he laughed. Now I have to do it, just to prove him wrong ;)

Here is my meal plan for the week:

Currently, I'm baking chicken for the salads every day this week. We will see how that actually turns out.

I'm also starting PiYo again tomorrow. The farthest I've ever made it is Week 3. I love it; I'm just lazy. Sigh.

I have a plan. I have the products. I have the correct mentality. I have everything I need. I will be posting regularly to keep track of how I'm doing on the challenge. Part of me really doesn't think it will work. The rest of me really wants it to work. It takes 21 days to make a habit. This is 24. Hopefully I will form some good habits that I can take with me long after the challenge ends.

I'll keep you posted ;)

--Andi