A New Job and Ideas for Grad School

For the past month I have been employed.  I was working two hours a day for my aunt and uncle in their furniture store.  Naturally, this wasn't cutting it for me if I'm looking to save up and move, so I applied to a few places locally and got hired to work at the local lumberyard.

In the past four weeks I've managed to learn a few things about my now place of employment.  Starting there was a bit of a culture shock though.  The new jargon of the place confused me and if I stood back and listened to the technical terms and shorthand-like speech used, it was as mystifying to me as yet another language.  The difference between transfers and deliveries, what a striker is, what an air chuck is (which I learned right as my foreman launched it off the air hose and at my head), and things that I am still figuring out.  The layout of the place is becoming clearer to me, but physically I am not yet as strong as the other 3 guys I work with and so cannot work as fast as them.

Not that I've ever been a fast worker anyways.  I've always been more meticulous rather than quick and getting tasks done.

There is also the expression "to not see the forest/wood for the trees" meaning someone is so intent on the details that they miss the big picture.  I've found that my personality definitely tilts towards the details.  I can focus on getting a task right and miss three other things around me.

This has been interesting for me to learn, to figure out how I can adapt away from it when necessary (still figuring that out, actually), but also the more important thing is learning how to be comfortable with it.

It must be completely frustrating to have someone who's not as strong, is still quite green to the lingo and protocol, and quite frankly is more familiar with books working indoors with teaching and so forth rather than the physical work needed at a lumberyard.

All said and told though, I do enjoy it.  I like the people I work with, and of course I like to learn new things.  It's fun to do something different, and my coworkers are a salty group of people who are generally fun to be around.

The bigger news in my life, speaking of learning things, is that I think I've finally decided on a grad school subject: Library and Information Science.  From what I've read so far, this sounds like a great fit for me since my favorite thing in the world is learning new things, and learning how to sift through information is naturally a huge part of learning.  I haven't yet decided on a school, although I've ruled out (probably) studying in DC.  For a long time I've thought about moving there, but due to cost and the super professional nature I've seen of the city, I'm not sure I'd fit in there very well.

I don't know anything about applying for grad schools, or deciding on how to choose one, so any advice would be very welcome.

Likewise, any advice regarding career possibilities, or people I can contact concerning Library and Information Science would be very appreciated.  I've found that people can work in museums, and I also think it would be fun to work in university or research libraries, but all that is still a bit down the road.  My investigations have only just begun.

More to follow, and I'll try to make things sound not so dry in my next message.

Kindly,
Tristan