Weekly inspiration ~ 29 April - 3 May

Encouraged to lead: Our fabulous youth librarian Fiona Kerr's ( @ukulelefi) interview with Cath Sheard (@kiwilibrarian) about leading in New Zealand libraries

http://www.lianza.org.nz/feature/encouraged-lead?utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer:%2Bsallyheroes%2Bon%2Btwitter&buffer_share=5a141

Social media types: I thought this article that my manager ( @vanzijlp)  forwarded to me was quite funny ( not sure if it was meant to be!)

http://myscienceacademy.org/2013/04/26/a-new-breed-of-social-media-personalities/

Pinterest: Still obsessed with Pinterest! There are just so many awesome ideas and pretty photos and DIY ideas! It's also an excellent form of procrastination from my study :) You can follow my account here:  http://pinterest.com/juliaderuiter/

I'd love to hear what's been inspiring or motivating you this week, comment here on the blog or send me a tweet @JuliadeRuiter

Julia 

Weekly inspiration ~ 15- 19 April

Another busy week gone past! Hopefully next week slows down a little bit. :)
I had a fantastic time last night at an Aoraki LIANZA event in Rangiora. It was awesome to network with other librarians- I forgot how refreshing it is to meet people that have a similar mindset to you and that you don't have to explain every aspect of being a librarian to!

 I've also been finding lots of great articles and ideas on Twitter this week- here are my top ones :)

1: 20 Ways Libraries Are Using Pinterest Right Now: Being a massive fan of Pinterest I thought this article had some really exciting ideas and ones that I can use for my personal account too :)
http://edudemic.com/2012/03/20-ways-libraries-are-using-pinterest-right-now/


2: Re-reading my favourite books from high school. I've been feeling nostalgic lately and decided to re-read this fantasy series by David Eddings. I'm not a fan of fantasy anymore but I'm still devouring these books!


3: This Joy of Reading board on Pinterest: I love these quotes and pictures!
http://pinterest.com/castatelibrary/the-joy-of-reading/
 

My favourite libraries

Since libraries are all so different in layout, design and purpose ( academic, public etc) but so similar in that they are all places of knowledge and community,  I thought I would compile a list of my favourite libraries, big or small. 
Note: I haven't personally seen every one of  these libraries in person. Some I have come across in my virtual travels :)

1: Law Library of Munich, Germany.

Sci-fi/futuristic at it's best! Love the groovy chairs and modern lighting. Munich, here I come!

 2: Upper Riccarton Library, Children's area, Christchurch, NZ

This library has a great vibe. My colleague Fiona and I visited it after a conference and were blown away at the level of service offered and how resilient the librarians were after a period of really tough events. Some librarians at other Christchurch City Libraries had changed libraries nearly six times since the first earthquake! Props to everyone who works there- you do a fab job :)

3: Library from Beauty & the Beast, fictional France

I wish I could find a picture of it, but anyone who has seen the Disney movie 'Beauty and the Beast' will know how AWESOME the library is! Seriously, its about 5 stories high and has ladders to get up and across- the whole shebang. Oh, to be a millionaire beast! And, yes, I am a little kid at heart who stills likes revisiting my favourite Disney movies :)

4: Biblioteca Geral University of Coimbra, Portugal

 Wow, just wow. 

5: New York Public Library, USA

Any library with chandeliers and I'm so there! This part of the building is probably as big as our whole library!

6: Oamaru Public Library, New Zealand:

Lucky last- how could I leave out my fantastic local library + work place?! This picture is of some pupils from a local school performing kapa haka routines for Maori Language Week 2012- just some of the awesome things our library is involved in :)

Thanks for reading- I'd love to hear/see some other libraries that you think are pretty snazzy! Just leave a comment here or tweet me @JuliadeRuiter

Julia