Ahhhh. Today is graduation day! I could not make the ceremony unfortunately. I am graduating... wait... let me correct that tense... I graduated from the University of Leicester in the UK. I cannot wait to hold that magic piece of paper in my hands. I think I'll ask Nick from Amazing Frames in Orlando, Florida to frame it for me. He always did such a fantastic job on the framing at my previous museum, Titanic: The Experience. Likewise, his cases and shadowboxes grace Starbillas at Walt Disney World.
I spent today listening to BBC online (I wish that the local, non-BBC British stations were allowed to stream outside of the UK. But, alas, licensing forbids it). I ran a couple of errands before treating myself to a yummy sushi lunch and an episode of a favorite tv show. I have a caramel cake and some wine for later as well.
This was a hard fought victory for me. Despite having to write my dissertation while uprooting myself from Florida and unexpectedly transplanting to Colorado, I still aced that dissertation and graduated With Merit (the British vernacular for With Honors). The celebration continues over the next few days. Tomorrow, I will be assisting some friends in a fundraiser for a new community center downtown. Sunday, my parents and I are going out to Bonefish Grill for a dual celebration: my graduation and their wedding anniversary. Monday, we are going to Breckenridge for the Snow Sculpture competition. Tuesday, we hit the slopes (weather permitting). Later in the week, we will cap off the celebration by seeing Red Tails. Since the P-51 figured in significantly in my dissertation, it is appropriate.
And through all of that fun, I have resumes constantly going out, and I am still working my night job (I sell cruises as a way to make ends meet while I am in between museums). I am looking forward to hearing from someone out there who is willing to let me help their establishment be the best it possibly can be.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Volunteering
Volunteer: (n) "1.: a person who voluntarily undertakes or expresses a willingness to undertake a service: as a : one who enters into military service voluntarily b (1) : one who renders a service or takes part in a transaction while having no legal concern or interest (2) : one who receives a conveyance or transfer of property without giving valuable consideration" (source: Merriam Webster at m-w.com)
Hmmmmm. A more modern definition can be found at urbandictionary.com:
"1. Being forced to do something you don't want to do, on your own time, without any compensation, because some one can force you to do it. A form of forced labor,or slavery. 2. To perform or offer to perform a service of one's own free will. This action can be with or without compensation. 3.
Hmmmmm. A more modern definition can be found at urbandictionary.com:
"1. Being forced to do something you don't want to do, on your own time, without any compensation, because some one can force you to do it. A form of forced labor,or slavery. 2. To perform or offer to perform a service of one's own free will. This action can be with or without compensation. 3.
Those individuals dedicated to performing tasks that could have otherwise provided jobs to those that need them."
Or you could take my definition: someone from Tennessee. But, I digress.
As someone who has both volunteered and been a paid volunteer coordinator in the museum community, I see a lot of what should and should not be done. This experience is both valuable and not found in my grad school text books.
A volunteer should:
1) Treat the position as a job. You were interviewed, background checked, and hired. The difference is that you are being paid in experience.
2) Maintain active communication with your coordinator. Finding someone to cover a call out by a volunteer at the last minute is next to impossible. Also, the communication is vital in knowing what is expected at the job site.
3) Never do anything that would put you at risk without being backed by extensive liability forms.
4) Never do anything that the establishment is not fully licensed to do. If a license is there due to requirement (such as cooking), NEVER do what the license is meant to cover without documented training by an official of the establishment.
5) If you decide to risk your well being for the establishment, it is your neck and your responsible for any liability.
6) Never assume that they are a spokesperson for the establishment.
7) Follow instruction and time restraints.
8) Have fun!
A volunteer coordinator should:
1) Make it a point to introduce the volunteer to the other paid staff. The volunteer is one of your most valuable assets and often an untapped resource. Do not play "upstairs/downstairs" with their time.
2) A volunteer is giving up their time and resources so that you have someone on staff that you are not paying. There is a certain layer of respect that should be automatic with that. While a ticker tape parade is not expected or warranted, a smile and hello do wonders. Never walk by a volunteer with your nose in the air.
3) Communicate, communicate, communicate! The volunteers are your front line employees. They are the first thing your paying guest sees.
4) Always monitor what is legal and ethical versus what is not, right down to minutiae.
5) While they do not receive a paycheck, they are still your work force. They are expected to be on time and perform to the levels explained to them in training. They are employees, represent your establishment, and should be held accountable for their actions.
6) Your volunteers are often an untapped resource of information, value, and talent. They would not be volunteering for you if they did not love something about what you and your establishment are doing. Find out why they are there and use that reasoning for both of your benefits.
7) Never ask a volunteer to do something that you would not do yourself. They are just as much guests as they are workers. They are not slaves.
8) Have fun!
Both the coordinator and the volunteer should always remember two key phrases: Please and Thank You. Being a volunteer is usually a rewarding and pleasurable experience. However, the moment that volunteering becomes a chore is the moment that the whole purpose behind volunteering dies for all involved. While no one expects a volunteer to be treated like royalty, there needs to be a heightened level of respect given to those who are willingly working without the benefit of pay. Conversely, establishments should not rely on volunteers as the bulk of their work force. As the old saying goes, money talks. Loyalty has a price. Pay, on the other hand, is not always in the form of money. A volunteer will always pick which one will benefit him/her the most. The volunteer coordinator needs to make sure his/her establishment has the best value. One of the best ways to do this is to ensure that the staff is enhanced by the volunteer work force, not rely on it to do all the work.
To wit:
My worst experience as a volunteer - One of the paid staff members came barging through one of my presentations to paying guests carrying an empty and smelly carry out container with her lunch in it right as I was discussing one of the more tragic moments of the story. No apologies, not even eye contact, and, the worst, NO acknowledgement of the guests that I am entertaining for free while their entrance fees pay her salary.
My worst experience as a coordinator - One of my volunteers decided, rather loudly, to try and convince the other volunteers that his religion was right and everyone else was wrong. I hate having to fire anyone. This was an example of when a volunteer had to be fired.
My best experience as a volunteer - I was an "artist runner" at an outdoor visual arts festival. It was a brutally hot day. I had so much fun speaking to the different painters and sculptors while taking care of their most mundane needs the time just flew. Even during challenges, everyone was in fine spirits.
My best experience as a coordinator - After a long, hard, and late painting session, the exhibit looked absolutely pristine and my volunteers got the job done ahead of schedule. I asked the boss if I could treat them to breakfast. He agreed. It was a meal more than well deserved. The pride I felt for everyone pulling together and everyone walking out all smiles has lasted through the years.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Reading is fundamental
It is. It really is. Hello. My name is Kelly Everitt and I am a book-aholic.
I am the type that reads several things at once. Online zines, newspapers, traditional magazines, books, booklets, reference, cd liner notes, fiction, non-fiction, comics, instructions on the back of the oatmeal canister, everything.
Usually I only have one or two books going at any given time. Right now, due to my job search, I am sticking to one. I am over half way through On Writing by Stephen King. I write off and on for pleasure. I have three fiction stories I am working on at present. I am a published non-fiction author as well. I find some of my best inspiration from what I read. This time, I am finding encouragement.
As the first half of the book unfolds, Mr. King goes on about how he kept honing his craft and finding inspiration in the oddest of places, such as cleaning a girls locker room as the sole inspiration for Carrie. He wrote the entire novel around the scene where Carrie is taunted in the showers. One scene as the foundation, the rest of the story builds on that..... and sold for $400,000. What would he thought of if he didn't go in those showers that day? In other words, pay attention. Inspiration and ideas can strike at any time. When they do, you had better have something on which to write them down.
Reading Mr. King's book couldn't have come at a better time. This morning, I awoke to no less than six rejections for my career search. Three more came in the afternoon. Three resumes went out today.
Two things have latched into my head as a result of reading this far into the book:
1) Never give up. When a rejection letter comes, impale it on the nail in the wall and keep writing. When that nail is full, buy a spike instead. Never throw them away. Like the bassist of one of my favorite bands tweeted yesterday, "There are so many people out there who will tell you that you can't, what you've got to do is turn around & say "watch me."" (Ashley Purdy) Take any negativity as a learning point, even if the wording is brash. Sometimes, like the bulk of the rejections I've been getting, it's all in the timing. Five of the six rejections was because I was up against PhD's for a position that only required a Bachelors.
2) Always lug around your toolbox even if all you need is a screwdriver. You may just be going to fix the screen, but maybe the ties on the tree need to be tightened as well, there's a Frisbee on the roof to be fetched, that shipment of tulip bulbs came early and needs to get in the ground, and the irrigation system is clogged as well. Maybe not. Maybe it is just the screen. Either way, you're prepared for anything.
All of my stuff is boxed up, ready to move, ready for anything. It has been since April. All I need is a place to go, even if it is in my backyard. I have a map of North America with stick pins in every city and town I have applied. One of them will turn into an address for me to go to eventually. When it does, I'm ready to roll with my toolbox, and I'm keeping my spike of rejections.
I am the type that reads several things at once. Online zines, newspapers, traditional magazines, books, booklets, reference, cd liner notes, fiction, non-fiction, comics, instructions on the back of the oatmeal canister, everything.
Usually I only have one or two books going at any given time. Right now, due to my job search, I am sticking to one. I am over half way through On Writing by Stephen King. I write off and on for pleasure. I have three fiction stories I am working on at present. I am a published non-fiction author as well. I find some of my best inspiration from what I read. This time, I am finding encouragement.
As the first half of the book unfolds, Mr. King goes on about how he kept honing his craft and finding inspiration in the oddest of places, such as cleaning a girls locker room as the sole inspiration for Carrie. He wrote the entire novel around the scene where Carrie is taunted in the showers. One scene as the foundation, the rest of the story builds on that..... and sold for $400,000. What would he thought of if he didn't go in those showers that day? In other words, pay attention. Inspiration and ideas can strike at any time. When they do, you had better have something on which to write them down.
Reading Mr. King's book couldn't have come at a better time. This morning, I awoke to no less than six rejections for my career search. Three more came in the afternoon. Three resumes went out today.
Two things have latched into my head as a result of reading this far into the book:
1) Never give up. When a rejection letter comes, impale it on the nail in the wall and keep writing. When that nail is full, buy a spike instead. Never throw them away. Like the bassist of one of my favorite bands tweeted yesterday, "There are so many people out there who will tell you that you can't, what you've got to do is turn around & say "watch me."" (Ashley Purdy) Take any negativity as a learning point, even if the wording is brash. Sometimes, like the bulk of the rejections I've been getting, it's all in the timing. Five of the six rejections was because I was up against PhD's for a position that only required a Bachelors.
2) Always lug around your toolbox even if all you need is a screwdriver. You may just be going to fix the screen, but maybe the ties on the tree need to be tightened as well, there's a Frisbee on the roof to be fetched, that shipment of tulip bulbs came early and needs to get in the ground, and the irrigation system is clogged as well. Maybe not. Maybe it is just the screen. Either way, you're prepared for anything.
All of my stuff is boxed up, ready to move, ready for anything. It has been since April. All I need is a place to go, even if it is in my backyard. I have a map of North America with stick pins in every city and town I have applied. One of them will turn into an address for me to go to eventually. When it does, I'm ready to roll with my toolbox, and I'm keeping my spike of rejections.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Getting Started
Hello there! Welcome to my blog "Field Notes".
This is to be my professional blog. I plan on journaling my search for a career in the museum field, discussing various things pertaining to the museum profession, and reflecting on my experience as it pertains to my future. I am using this tool as a method of inviting potential employers and colleagues to have a glimpse into what I am as a professional person beyond my resume.
I chose this background, layout, and color scheme because it invokes a desire of discovery within mystery to me. Quite frankly, it looks like something out of a British mystery. I like that. My love of museums dates back to when I was very young. At one interview, I was asked, "What was the first museum you remember and why did it impact you to want to be a museum professional?" The interview was for an historic house in upstate New York. My answer came straight out of It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown.
Rocks.
No, seriously! The first museum I remember visiting was as a child of about 6 or so. It was the Burke Museum at the University of Washington while spending time with my Seattle-based extended family. It was a geologic exhibit that was heavy on geodes. Being a child of that age, anything that sparkled had my immediate attention. But, that wasn't why it impacted me such that I remember it decades later. It was this little section in a dark corridor featuring stones that glow in the dark. I had never seen such a thing! This was the very early 80s, so the popularity of anything glow in the dark or neon was on the upswing, and I was the target demographic. If I had a talent for drawing, I would be able to sketch it still from memory.
The wonder of that exhibit that such things existed in nature without the use of paint or special effect trickery enhanced my natural sense of wonder. I have had a love for science ever since.
Prior to that, I developed a love for the theater and stories. I remember when The Muppet Show was still in first run episodes. Alice Cooper was a special guest around the time I was 4. I remember telling my mother that I wanted to do that when I grew up. Meaning to tell a story to an audience and gain a reaction. I love ghost stories. I always have, especially when the story is based on history. Growing up in the Great Smokey Mountains, the area was filled with historical ghosts. Those were the stories we told each other around the camp fire.
I tried my hand at being an actor. While I do love it, I could never make it as a professional actor. There are elements of what an actor needs to do off-stage in order to stay relevant that I really don't care for. I am still, at heart, an actor however. Because I love to tell a story.
Ok, so let's marry the love of telling a story, spice it up with some theatrical elements (such as a lighting effect or some background music), solidify that story with an object or three on display and voila! You have a museum exhibit.
Every object has a story. It doesn't matter if it is a painting, a sculpture, a musket, or a glow in the dark rock. The museum professional's job is to convey that story to guests of all ages and backgrounds. It is a challenge that I accept. I now have a Masters Degree and 13 years of experience. If you do not have my resume and would like one, please let me know. I'd be happy to send it.
Until next time....
This is to be my professional blog. I plan on journaling my search for a career in the museum field, discussing various things pertaining to the museum profession, and reflecting on my experience as it pertains to my future. I am using this tool as a method of inviting potential employers and colleagues to have a glimpse into what I am as a professional person beyond my resume.
I chose this background, layout, and color scheme because it invokes a desire of discovery within mystery to me. Quite frankly, it looks like something out of a British mystery. I like that. My love of museums dates back to when I was very young. At one interview, I was asked, "What was the first museum you remember and why did it impact you to want to be a museum professional?" The interview was for an historic house in upstate New York. My answer came straight out of It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown.
Rocks.
No, seriously! The first museum I remember visiting was as a child of about 6 or so. It was the Burke Museum at the University of Washington while spending time with my Seattle-based extended family. It was a geologic exhibit that was heavy on geodes. Being a child of that age, anything that sparkled had my immediate attention. But, that wasn't why it impacted me such that I remember it decades later. It was this little section in a dark corridor featuring stones that glow in the dark. I had never seen such a thing! This was the very early 80s, so the popularity of anything glow in the dark or neon was on the upswing, and I was the target demographic. If I had a talent for drawing, I would be able to sketch it still from memory.
The wonder of that exhibit that such things existed in nature without the use of paint or special effect trickery enhanced my natural sense of wonder. I have had a love for science ever since.
Prior to that, I developed a love for the theater and stories. I remember when The Muppet Show was still in first run episodes. Alice Cooper was a special guest around the time I was 4. I remember telling my mother that I wanted to do that when I grew up. Meaning to tell a story to an audience and gain a reaction. I love ghost stories. I always have, especially when the story is based on history. Growing up in the Great Smokey Mountains, the area was filled with historical ghosts. Those were the stories we told each other around the camp fire.
I tried my hand at being an actor. While I do love it, I could never make it as a professional actor. There are elements of what an actor needs to do off-stage in order to stay relevant that I really don't care for. I am still, at heart, an actor however. Because I love to tell a story.
Ok, so let's marry the love of telling a story, spice it up with some theatrical elements (such as a lighting effect or some background music), solidify that story with an object or three on display and voila! You have a museum exhibit.
Every object has a story. It doesn't matter if it is a painting, a sculpture, a musket, or a glow in the dark rock. The museum professional's job is to convey that story to guests of all ages and backgrounds. It is a challenge that I accept. I now have a Masters Degree and 13 years of experience. If you do not have my resume and would like one, please let me know. I'd be happy to send it.
Until next time....
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