Author Archives: Sonya Schryer Norris

13: Planning parties on the struggle bus

After my first two semesters, I accurately assessed my work/school/life commitments and realized I could either work full time and a) take two classes in town or b) commute to one class out of town. I later discovered that if I took an entire day off of work due to banked leave (a budget savingsContinueContinue reading “13: Planning parties on the struggle bus”

Ramadan 2020: On having everything I need

I converted to Islam when I was 16. You can read my conversion memoir at The Other Journal out of the Seattle School of Theology and Psychology under “Other Publications.” If you’ve followed along for awhile, you know that I’ve spent the last five years pursuing a spiritual path. This year I’m not fasting Ramadan,ContinueContinue reading “Ramadan 2020: On having everything I need”

12: Ye shall inventory your highlighters

During the last class period before a final exam, my sorry-ass highlighter died. This was not a surprise. It had actually been dead for a long time. That night, though, that night I was going to do something about it. I had developed an action plan for just such an eventuality during my first semesterContinueContinue reading “12: Ye shall inventory your highlighters”

11: Cataloging fact #4: Spirit communications

This is a pin given to me at Beginning Workshop by a librarian with A LOT more social media followers than me! Anglo-American Cataloging Rules 2 Revision 2002 21.26: Spirit Communications! Enter a communication presented as having been received from a spirit under the name of the spirit. Enter the name of the medium orContinueContinue reading “11: Cataloging fact #4: Spirit communications”

10: Cataloging fact #3: Job security

Almost all public libraries use the Dewey Decimal system to shelve their non-fiction books. And almost all academic libraries use the Library of Congress (LC) system. Do you want to know how academic libraries saved their staff during the Great Depression? They convinced academic administrators that the new Library of Congress system was not onlyContinueContinue reading “10: Cataloging fact #3: Job security”