The Baby News Librarian
1st day on the job. Many introductions, followed by a small tsunami of guidelines. Sat in on a newsroom meeting and watched the jargon fly over my head like acrobats at the circle.
After lunch, I got a badge (with a really cheesy--Camembert, to be exact--grin) and a tour of the building. And then ... for my last hour and a half, they put me to work with a microfilm reel. I think my online searching teacher would weep with the irony. (Actually, I'll be getting extensive training in Factiva and LexisNexis soon).
The newsroom is tuned into CNN (only 2 blocks away!), but the Features area has soap operas playing on the televisions. Not that it has anything to do with my job, but it makes me smile.
I still need to find a source of quality coffee in immense quantities that's not Starbucks. Many would argue that the first qualifier automatically leaves out Starbucks, but I'm not sure I'd take Dunkin Donuts coffee over the Seattle Mermaid (no slight on DD ... I haven't had it in years; if it's the same quality, then I don't think I'm being unfair).
Hey, coffee is very, very important for information retrieval, analysis and dissemination. Crucial, even. That's what I learned in 3 years of library school ...
Comments
Actually, in all seriousness, I hear Dunkin Donuts has added free-trade shade-grown latte coffees to their menu recently. This was at least true in Rochester, NY last Thanksgiving. So you might want to give it some serious consideration.
Posted by: Vera | June 7, 2004 06:47 PM
Eli, what have you got against Starbucks?
Posted by: Jack Stephens | June 7, 2004 07:26 PM
Jack, 1) I like buying from local businesses or small regional chains whenever possible, especially if they sell fair trade coffee and 2) I'm honestly not that crazy about the taste of their beans. Starbucks is okay, but there's coffee out there that appeals more to my palate.
I don't drink wine, so I save all of my potential wine snobbery for coffee.
Thanks for letting me know about DD's coffee, Vera. Not that I need an excuse to go into a DD ...
Posted by: misseli | June 7, 2004 07:42 PM
Starbucks says they are "one of North America's largest roasters and retailers of Fair Trade Certified™ coffee."
I also wonder whether Dunkin's matches Starbucks benefits package for its employees.
Also, I'm sure you saw that Starbucks is even part of the "commons"!
But hey, if you don't like the taste of their coffee, then who's to argue with that?
Posted by: Jack Stephens | June 7, 2004 07:58 PM
Our newsroom is devoid of televisions at the moment (ahhhh renovations) but we usually have 5 TVs tuned to free to air stations, a world movie cabel channel plus APTN so at any time there could be Pr0n or war on screen. Nothing like working in news. :)
As for coffee, buy a jar and make your own! It's a major money saver. People ask me all the time why I bring my own tea and when I tell them that I can buy a whole box of 50 organic bags for the price that they are paying for one cup, they soon switch.
Posted by: Fiona | June 8, 2004 01:37 AM
Many locals seem partial to either Aurora or San Francisco Coffee (despite the name, it too is local). I'm actually a fan of Dunkin' Donuts coffee myself, but I used to live in Boston so...
Posted by: carol o | June 8, 2004 01:17 PM
If you want really good stuff, you could always order in beans from these folks. This is truly Seattle's best coffee, despite trademarks that might imply otherwise. (From a former Seattle resident, where the usual objects of connoisseurship are transferred to coffee and salmon, currently librarianin' in CA).
Posted by: Spag | June 11, 2004 04:24 PM
Thanks, Spag ... although I have to admit that I left my french press at home and have no plans to buy one for Atlanta. A friend of mine ALWAYS packs her favourite brand of coffee and a coffee filter with her whenever she's travelling, whether it's L.A. or Milan. I just don't have that level of dedication ...
Posted by: misseli | June 15, 2004 06:23 PM