June 2019 - Out of the Box

June 14, 2019September 14, 2021 by swaminathanv

Final Week….

This is my last week in the CLIR CCEPS Fellowship program. The program has helped me hone my skills both as an individual and as a working professional. Through the one year I have worked here, I have been able to understand time management, team work and professional ethics which are key elements for any career seeking individual. Freedom in the work space and being able to adapt based on fellow team members’ workflows also played a crucial role in this program. Being able to use the Hasselblad camera and experiment with lighting techniques for different archival materials was my most favorite part of the program.

Tanya has been a great mentor for me throughout the program in making me understand the process right from scanning till uploading the materials into the collection. Her patience and understanding helped me grasp the process quicker and stay ahead in the work front. I would like to thank her for looking at me as an individual and as a team player.

June 13, 2019September 14, 2021 by vinht

End III

An end to an end,

Another search for one thing:

Opportunity.

June 7, 2019September 14, 2021 by vinht

Report!

This report is reported to report the fact that the report for the newly reported reports has been reported to the person in charge of reporting these reports to another committee responsible for reporting the final report in the form of a physical report. The report should also report the fact that the word “report” has been reported more than what the reporting guidelines would recommend in a report, for the amount of reports with metadata, that is. Lastly, it is reported that the grammar might make no sense whatsoever, reportedly.

June 7, 2019September 14, 2021 by swaminathanv

Telegrams, telegraphs and letters….

This week I continued working on the metadata for the collections from
the A.K. Smiley Public Library. The items I uploaded this week were mainly telegrams, telegraphs and a handful of letters. They were sent between James T. Taylor, the chief engineer at the Bear Valley Irrigation Company and the Spreckels Bro’s Commercial Company.

The subject that was mainly exchanged was the shipment of a specific type of cement known as the ‘Willingham’ cement at the rate of $3.55. Usually cement prices are measured per ton, but in the materials I worked on, it was not mentioned clearly on what metric basis they were measured in. In 2018, the price of a ton of cement was approximately $125.00. Also, I was unable to find any solid information on what the ‘Willingham’ cement was. The shipping of the cement was done using railroads. Thus, in the telegrams or telegraphs, the number of cars of cement being shipped was stated, which was usually followed by a reply confirming the arrival of materials. When the term ‘cars’ were mentioned, it referred to the railway cars.

One unique letter that caught my eye was a reference letter for a Mr. Marcus A. Byron for a job at the Bear Valley Irrigation Company. Having come near my graduation and as I will be moving into the zone of job hunting where reference letters are a key factor, this letter rather reminded me to change gears and pick up some speed on my career front.