An Update on My Work/COVID-19 Life
This recap will be a little more personal than usual, as ‘personal life’ has been pretty hectic these past two months.
In February, Cybils judging and an internal work interview preoccupied me. I didn’t want to talk about my work situation until the chips fell into place, so to speak, so here’s an update on that front: I did one interview for three FT children’s librarian positions in mid-February. This was my first time going through my organization’s infamous internal interview. I had been anticipating that interview since the beginning of December. So it was a relief when it was over! However, because of my status in the org, I didn’t expect to secure any of the positions. And I didn’t. I had one gloomy weekend where I accepted I would be out of FT work at the end of March. Then I was asked if I would like to fill in as a teen librarian until at least October :O So, I was looking forward to sharing yesterday (March 30) that I was starting in a new position. My two blog posts in early March also hinted that I was ready to slip back into blogging mode.
But COVID-19 concerns took off on March 12 (for me, in my area, that is). That day, I realized there was a good chance that a concert I was meant to attend the following weekend would be called off. My family was meant to reunite at a show by our favourite band with the Minnesota Orchestra. A few hours after I messaged my dad with “Hey, what do we do if the concert is cancelled?”, it was cancelled. And we’ve all been on a wild ride since then. We cancelled our trip to Minneapolis. I was temporarily laid off on March 24, so now I’m back in that place of having no work come April, lol. Who knows when I will be able to step into the teen librarian role. March, hey. Good riddance!
I have been making the best of my time so far. I’m grateful to find focus in reading, blogging, and blog hopping. I have been trying to stay active with a walk and yoga each day (though between Thursday and Monday, I only went outside on Sunday). I’ve enjoyed video chatting and colouring with my sister. I don’t know how long I can comfortably keep up these habits, but so far I’m doing alright. 😊 I know things are tough right now for a lot of people, especially for my American friends. I hope your loved ones are safe and that you’re able to take the time you need to look after yourself. 🧡
Books Finished
- The Dark Lord Clementine by Sarah Jean Horwitz
- Homerooms and Hall Passes by Tom O’Donnell
- Cog by Greg Van Eekhout
- Sal & Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez
- Silence: In the Age of Noise by Erling Kagge
- Anything You Can Imagine: Peter Jackson and the Making of Middle-Earth by Ian Nathan
- The Republic of Birds by Jessica Miller
- What We See When We Read by Peter Mendelsund
- Chasing the Light: The Cloud Cult Story by Mark Allister
- A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat
- Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake
- One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake
- Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death, and Hard Truths in a Northern City by Tanya Talaga
- The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan
- J.R.R. Tolkien edited by Peter Hunt
- I’m Afraid of Men by Vivek Shraya
- The Buy Nothing, Get Everything Plan by Liesl Clark and Rebecca Rockefeller
Posts Written
- Took a unique look at my bookcase with the “Do I Have That Book?” tag
- Reviewed The Republic of Birds by Jessica Miller (middle grade fantasy)
- Shared my collection of The Hobbit for Tolkien Reading Day
- Reviewed A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat (middle grade fantasy)
- Brought back “I Can’t Believe I Haven’t Read That Yet”, featuring books to reread (vote until April 3!).
Goals Check-In
- 7/24 posts written (in February and March)
- well, I didn’t factor in a pandemic lol… hopefully I can count February as my ‘month off’, though I wasn’t expecting to use up my one month break so early in the year.
- 6/8 middle grade novels read (in February and March)
- 4/10 rereads (+1 since last update)
- 4/10+ books with queer rep (+2 since last update)
- 3/10 graphic novels (+3 since last update)
- 1/10 works by Indigenous writers (+1 since last update)
- 1/7 books about/by Tolkien (+1 since last update)
- 1/5 books with 500+ pages (+1 since last update)
- 4/60 books on my TBR that I don’t own (+4 since last update)
Shared on Twitter
Upcoming in April
- 7 Apr. – Release of Ghost Squad by Claribel Ortega (spooky middle grade) and Into the Tall, Tall Grass by Loriel Ryan (magical realism middle grade)
- 14 Apr. – Release of The Buy Nothing, Get Everything Plan by Liesl Clark and Rebecca Rockefeller (non-fiction)
- 21 Apr. – Release of The Deck of Omens by Christine Lynn Herman (sequel to creepy YA The Devouring Gray) and Rick by Alex Gino (contemporary middle grade with an ace MC)
- 25 Apr. – Dewey’s 24 Hour Read-a-Thon. Not sure if I’ll be participating because I anticipate doing lots of reading throughout the month of April even without the motivation of a readathon 😜
How was your March? What new books, or bookish events, are you looking forward to this month?
![A Wish in the Dark [MG Review]](https://i0.wp.com/fallingletters.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/a-wish-in-the-dark-2.jpg?fit=1688%2C2400&ssl=1&resize=245%2C150)
![A Collection of Hobbits [Talkin’ About Tolkien]](https://i0.wp.com/fallingletters.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/hobbits-facsimile-1-1.jpg?fit=1280%2C1280&ssl=1&resize=245%2C150)
![Do I Have That Book? [Tag]](https://i0.wp.com/fallingletters.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Do-I-Have-That-book.png?fit=560%2C315&ssl=1&resize=245%2C150)