Here's another photo from my walk around Hackney a few weeks ago. I'm not sure I took a single photo yesterday, which is unusual for me. Last night I took a video of the dog scratching around on our bed to make a "nest," but I'd rather not show you how much we let her get away with, so I don't think I'll post it. We might seem like pushovers.
Yesterday was partly consumed by gathering statistics of various kinds for a report about library usage. My new boss is a data fiend -- she loves spreadsheets and numbers and says (not wrongly) that they're the only way we can objectively know how people are using the library. So she has created multiple spreadsheets for all kinds of things, from how many parents checked out books last month to how many people were in the library yesterday during lunch. I must populate those spreadsheets with data.
The other day I ran into someone formerly from our finance department in the staff lounge. He left the finance job but is back on campus doing something else. He said he will never look at another spreadsheet again. "I'm done with spreadsheets," he said. I know how he feels.
I don't mind data but I tend to value personal experience and judgment more than my boss does. Our opinions are based on observation and analysis, after all -- they're not just whims. There's a coldness to relying on numbers. It removes the human element, for better and worse. It's also erroneous to believe numbers are foolproof -- you know the old saying about lies, damned lies and statistics. I think spreadsheets should be supporting players, not the headliners of the show.
Anyway, that's what I did yesterday, in addition to continuing my campaign to get back summer books, which were all due Sept. 6. I still have pages and pages of kids with those books still checked out. I suspect kids are less responsible now about that sort of thing than they were even ten years ago -- some people blame the pandemic but who knows. Maybe I should create a spreadsheet and compare statistics about summer book returns...ten years ago vs. now.
Aaaaaaargh!
I'm not a fan of spreadsheets, I prefer my data in more manageable sizes.
ReplyDeleteI mean, they're a great tool, but my argument is that data isn't the full story.
DeleteSounds like you should tie your boss up in a big spreadsheet and chuck her in The Thames. That'll teach her! As for you and Dave seeming like "pushovers" with regard to Olga - that has been crystal clear for years so why not share the image?
ReplyDeleteYeah, I know, it's pretty obvious that dog runs our lives.
DeleteI'm sorry but I also love a spread sheet, but not for everything, when I worked it was often given to me to create the required data. Nothing wrong with being a pushover for your pets, they are our children.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely, I think if you've got large volumes of data to deal with, it makes perfect sense to use a spreadsheet. I just don't want to rely on data alone. Our professional judgement should be valued as well.
DeleteDid you know that excel turned 40 yesterday? Spreadsheets are my bread and butter!
ReplyDeleteHere by way of Debby's blog.
I did not know that! Good timing on my part! Welcome.
DeleteAs a former librarian I can tell you that numbers are only a small part of it. One person may need a lot of help and take lots of your time and the next is just a walk-in that does not need anything. I hate spreadsheets.
ReplyDeleteCheers Peter
EXACTLY! Numbers aren't everything.
DeleteC'mon Steve. Show us the video of Olga settling down for the night.
ReplyDeleteI may be able to read spreadsheets but I don't really get them. I was given a a very thick book about spreadsheets some twenty years ago. Gosh it seemed complicated and I never bothered.
I never use them in my personal life, but some people like them for banking and expenses and that kind of thing. I just don't feel the need.
DeleteI feel like I'd create a spreadsheet to showcase by lack of interest in spreadsheets.
ReplyDeleteHa! Would it be full of zeroes?
DeleteI don't like the reverence people have for spreadsheets. They're an inaccurate gauge of human interaction. Okay for widget production forecasting. And are they boring..
ReplyDeleteYES! They don't capture the full range of our services or experiences in the library.
DeleteI hate to tell you this, but we are all already well aware that you & Dave are pushovers.
ReplyDeleteI am a spreadsheet fiend, but what I really like to do is create a DATABASE where I can input data & then create spreadsheets from THAT data. Ha!
Oh, Lord, don't say that to my boss! LOL! I've used databases at work but I've never created one.
DeleteI used to make spreadsheets a lot in my job as an administrative assistant and I liked being able to do that. Then I retired! Now I just make a spreadsheet once a year for medical expenses and charitable donations when I do my income tax. Eventually, I will forget how ...
ReplyDeleteWell, that's more organized than I am! I don't track any of that stuff. I probably ought to start, though -- our medical expenses will no doubt grow as we get older and although I've never donated more than the standard deduction, that could change too.
DeleteI guess coming from a numbers background, I like it when the human element is removed from analysis. So many times, some news piece will talk about something that increases my risk of death by 50% or some such percentage. One sees 50% and thinks, wow, if I don't stop now I have a 50% chance of death. But if you remove the human element of fear and look at the actual numbers, they may be something like 2 people out of a thousand died before and whatever now increased that number to 3 out of a thousand. Yes your chances of death increased 50% but if you look at those cold, hard, numbers, you are still very unlikely to die from whatever. Statistics is a powerful analysis tool but also a weapon to those who deal in fear.
ReplyDeleteStatistics can absolutely be deceptive. (Part of what Twain meant by "lies, damned lies and statistics.") But I think the human experience of the job, the context in which the patrons are served or the ways in which they successfully get their information, are important. It's not enough to say X number of people searched a database. Did they find what they wanted? Was it useful to them?
DeleteI believe your new boss may have a problem with actual humans. Just an observation and of course I really do not know. I do know that I am seventy years old and have never had do deal with a spread sheet in my life which makes me incredibly lucky.
ReplyDeleteNo way would we ever think that you and Dave are pushovers when it comes to Olga.
It's funny -- she seems very outgoing but I think she's actually quite introverted and doesn't enjoy a lot of her interaction with people. So you're quite right.
Deletedo you allow them to check out new books if they still have ones that are way overdue? I'm with you on personal observation vs data. data doesn't tell you how the kids use the library, only that they were there. unless she has a spreadsheet for that too. how many were there, how many checked out books, how many just lounged around. geez, you'd spend all your time watching them like hawks.
ReplyDeleteExactly -- numbers through the door are only part of the story. (Or numbers using a database, or even numbers checking out books.) I've blocked the kids who still have summer books from checking out new books, unless they're with a class and it's part of their assignment to get a book.
DeleteHappy October 1st ... 🍁🎃🍂
ReplyDeleteI don't relate to spreadsheets at all ... never have!
Olga ... Princess of the house!
Jimmy Carter is 100 years old today!
I know! Isn't it amazing? Jimmy Carter is a great human being.
DeleteThe end panel on the building in your photo looks very much like the mural I posted yesterday. Same colors and floral theme.
ReplyDeleteWhere I work, numbers gathering is big business. It's amazing the types of things we need to count.
I think it's good to have statistics, absolutely. My old boss used to gather them annually, except in special circumstances. The new boss wants them monthly, and in more granular fashion!
DeleteSometimes spreadsheets are helpful, if they support your argument. How's that for bias? I love that photo of the aster, amid the dusty miller, from yesterday. Gorgeous
ReplyDeleteHa! Well, the thing about statistics is, you can almost always portray them in a way that supports your argument. (As Ed says above.) They are easily manipulated!
DeleteSpreadsheets, ugh. I saw WAY too many of them in my teaching career. They most certainly only tell part of the story.
ReplyDeleteExactly.
DeleteI don't miss spreadsheets from my days as a teacher. I grew weary of data collection, just to support the pencil pushers in central office who rarely step inside a classroom and have no real clue what it's like to be in the trenches. I agree that spreadsheets should be supporting players.
ReplyDeleteYeah, and I totally understand wanting statistics. But they are not the full story. A kid may not do well on his tests, but that doesn't always mean he's not learning. Maybe he's a bad test-taker. Maybe there are other issues. You know?
DeleteI used to be a spreadsheet maven. Then I retired, and that part of my brain turned to mush. Now we have a big one to keep track of all the passwords. I would like to see Olga nesting, too.
ReplyDeleteI WANT that part of my brain to turn to mush. LOL!
DeleteI wasn’t much of a fan of spreadsheets at work when used to determine customer needs. But SG and I love using spreadsheets at home for different efforts (like our upcoming move).
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely -- they have their uses! I never use them at home but I probably could.
DeleteI have a fridge magnet that says "I'm so old I can remember going through a whole day without taking a photo of anything".
ReplyDeleteYou should have shared the video of Olga. It sounds like I'm not the only one who enjoys watching dogs make nests. I've recorded my share here.
Ha! It's crazy how many pictures humanity produces these days. We are drowning in them! I will try to take a better "nest" video.
DeleteWe all know that you and Dave are Olga's devoted minions!
ReplyDeleteGo ahead and say it -- servants!
DeleteThe numbers show library use by various people and it is one way of legitimizing the existence of having a library. Is your boss being pressured to provide these stats? I would want to know how library users feel about the library and how are they using it beyond borrowing books? A survey of users with some open-ended questions would provide more info.
ReplyDeleteAs for Olga, she rules...no questions there.
No doubt there is some pressure related to budgeting. I don't mean to argue we shouldn't collect the information. But I'm not sure we need it at the level of detail she wants, and yes, I'd say user experience is more important.
DeleteYou could write your own version of Bartleby, I think!
ReplyDeleteHa! I think that IS my mindset. "I would prefer not to." How did I become such a difficult curmudgeon?
Delete