March Ramblings

Well, March is at an end.  It has been a busy, crazy month.  It opened to my grandmother in the hospital, followed shortly by two more interviews (which produced no results 😦 ).  Throughout, I still had to deal with my grandfather’s ill heath.  Plus with my insurance coverage ending this month (don’t get me started on this subject!), it’s been doctor’s appointment after appointment to make sure everything is okay, including getting what may be my last pair of glasses for a while.

For this week, I thought about posting another book review but I’ve already done that twice.  Plus, I still have one advanced readers copy to review was released this month.  That latter post will come sometime in April.  Mostly, as this is not a book review blog-it just features then from time to time-I didn’t want to overburden readers with them.  Especially since you all seem to prefer my tutorials, thought-provoking, and historical pieces better.  After all, my Boolean operators post is the most visited and searched for and last week’s post has had my largest number of views for a post written this year thus far.

Since September, when I took the part-time job I have, I haven’t seemed to have the time to write as much as I’d like for this blog.  I work 28.5 hours a week, job hunt, write for this and a side project (deliberately not saying more about this for a while longer), help with housework at home, substitute teach, and do things for my grandparents (including helping Dad cut down a tree that split in a windstorm and hung precariously over the house and power lines).  In essence, everything I did before the job plus the job, which works out to be much more than a full-time job.  That said, I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon.  However, I am contemplating going down to posting every other week.  Or at least a tutorial, historical, or thought-provoking piece every other week alternating with book and website reviews that are shorter.  What do you, loyal readers, think?

Screenshot of the Naval Aviation Museum Facebook Page taken March 30.

In the meantime, as this post does need some library, archive, or historical content I thought I’d share a short review of a favorite social media account that touches on each aspect.  The National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida has one of the best account’s I have seen.  They post two to three times daily to their Facebook and Twitter accounts.  Each post features a photo, scan, or series of each with an accompanying story.  Usually, the posts are themed to an event that happened on that date in history.  Some days, the posts show early aviation history; others come from the wars and conflicts the Navy participated in.  Yet others still show peacetime missions, training events, or provide biographies of aviation personnel (with equal focus on the famous and common aviators).  The posts never fail to have interesting content and they usually never fail to have hundreds of likes and multiple comments.

I’ve been following Naval Aviation Museum’s Facebook page since it’s début and the Twitter page since I opened my account there.  Granted the posts are the same to both (the Twitter account links to the Facebook account for the full post), but I’m loyal.  Besides following their social media accounts, if you have the chance, I’d recommend visiting the museum.  I’ve been their twice.  It never fails to amaze me.  Part of the museum’s design incorporated a mock-up of a carrier deck complete with the tower.  Planes featured come from all eras of manned flight.  Other items on display include uniforms and personal objects that belonged to the aviators.  Throughout, the accompanying history is provided.  For those who would enjoy it, there are even mock-up of cockpits for a half-dozen planes one can sit in (great for photo ops!).  Plus the gift shop is equally astonishing with its plethora of unique items and the Cubi Bar Cafe replicated the former Cubi Point Officer’s Club in its entirety-distinctive unit plaque decor and all- from its former home the Philippines.  In fact, my dad has ate there in both its former and current locations!

At some point in the future, I’ll touch on their digital library and museum.  I did a report on them that looked at the content and usability back in grad school I can update, simplify, and share.

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