ex libris, et cetera

thefluffingtonpost:

Kitty Caught Snooping in the Shower

A 5-month-old kitten named Lyla was discovered sneaking around the bathroom in search of water early Sunday.

“After you take a shower, she sits there, staring at puddles and drops from the leaky faucet,” says Molly Hippolitus, a source close to the situation. “I walked in the dark bathroom about one hour after my shower, flipped on the lights, and saw this. It was equal parts disturbing and entertaining.”

After seeing the article “From Graduate School to Welfare”* come across my Twitter feed this morning, I’ve decided to be done with it. I don’t mean that I’m dropping out of grad school (with one more semester to go? HELL NO.), but rather, I’m going to actively stop hate-reading articles that remind me of three key things:

1) I should have waited until I had saved up enough money to go to grad school so that I didn’t have to take out loans. So, I should have gone to school around the age of 57.

2) I should have chosen business administration. Wait, I think they’re having problems too. Either way, I shouldn’t have an advanced degree in the humanities. YOU FOOL.

3) More to the point, I shouldn’t have chosen libraries. Amazon is our library now! Just go work for them!

What I don’t think the journalists writing these articles realize is that 90% of the time, I am acutely aware of the fact that no one is going to throw 20 university librarian positions at me after graduation and say “by the way, we really think $50,000 for a starting salary is too low for a professional of your caliber. Let’s make it a smooth $80K!” At this point, I’d be thrilled if I get to work at any institution in which any staff member uses the word “smooth” with any regularity. I let myself run away with positive thinking (such a cruel mistress) the other 10% of the time, but my positive mindset looks like this: I get a job. I don’t hate it. I live in an apartment that is generally mold-free. I own a fancy pair of colorful sneakers that I wear on casual Friday to show how cool I am. 

I used to think that my generally cloudy outlook (or Eeyore tendencies, if you’re feeling adorable) was an asset. I worked hard because I felt that if I didn’t, heroin addiction and then death was, like, a week away from happening to me. Because that just happens to a person who is terrified of needles, right? Riiiiii-ght, says Eeyore. This whole mindset developed during my childhood, which was full of anxiety. It makes a lot of sense, since I was always loved and cared for as a child, and that care continues today. I think that when I was a kid, worrying all the time was my boring rebellion against the care and security I received. Of course my parents cared about me, but there are plenty of kids around the world whose parents don’t care about them! So, know that that could happen to you. Which led to me thinking “don’t get too comfy, Vincent!” a lot.

There was also a fun-loving string of years where I hated Christmas, because I thought that we would either get robbed on Christmas Eve or our house would burn down so that I would learn the real meaning of Christmas and stop being so materialistic. Nope, my parents never called me materialistic. We also didn’t live in a house filled with candles. But still! Could happen.

So, journalists of the world (who are all reading this, clearly): I’m quitting you. I don’t currently spend my student loan monies on toy ponies and $14 hamburgers, and I don’t plan on starting. I’m on LinkedIn, I subscribe to job posting list-servs, and I’ve done internships. I have currently employed librarians (*gasp* They exist!) lovingly review my customized-to-each-institution resumes before I send them out. I don’t wear open-toed shoes to interviews, and I don’t think libraries owe me a job. Stop reminding me of the unemployment facts I’m all too familiar with and let me get back to worrying about whether or not someone will die if I get too excited about them coming to visit me.

*I realize that as an information-friendly person, I should probably link to this article. But I really don’t think I need to support this kind of writing anymore. That being said, if you’re curious, that’s the article title. Just type it into a search engine, and you’ll find it. The Internet is magic and has totally replaced librarians.

alphabetspine:

No justice, no peace.

(via suicideblonde)

suicideblonde:

Carey Mulligan at the 2012 Met Costume Gala, May 7th

A blonde in gold, so lovely.  And her makeup is exquisite.  She is, as always, flawless.

Look at those sequins reflecting on her face. I AM MESMERIZED.

Miss this show so much.

(via whydoihaveablog)

calivintage:

i am one of those nerds who just can’t reblog a photo unless i know the original source. this can be super frustrating on sites like tumblr and pinterest because so many photos just float around uncredited.

but! i recently discovered a solution that has helped me find to find the sources of…

So awesome!

cavetocanvas:

George Barbier, Grande Robe du Soir en Brocart d’Argent, 1914

(via suicideblonde)

typewrittenword:

French proverb

(via 24freedinners)

(Source: hotteaandhappythings, via 24freedinners)

suicideblonde:

Alexander McQueen and Isabella Blow photographed by David LaChapelle in 1996