Shhh! Yourself

We all know the image of library folk pressing a finger to pursed lips and issuing forth a no-nonsense “shhh!” to noisy offenders who violate the dignified serenity and sanctity of the library/collection/archive, right?  Well, it looks like it’s time to turn the tables on that stereotype, and here’s the way to do it, via Shhh…Silent Auction!

Taking note of the “silent” in Silent Auction, the Silent Auction committee is spinning that silence aspect to incorporate the scurrilous “shhh” cliché!  You see, we are TAKING IT BACK AND MAKING IT OUR OWN!  In the spirit of über librarian Nancy Pearl herself (long may she wave!), this is your chance to cheerfully step up and join the fun of lampooning- of popping the balloon and letting the air all out of- this peculiar image.  It’s time to have some fun at the expense of a silly stereotype and celebrate our uniqueness as a profession with humor.

So, in this spirit, we invite you to submit a jpeg (max. 20mb) of your sweet self  Shhh’ing for the Shhh…Silent Auction! website.  The sky’s the limit on where and in what context you “Shhh!”  Group shots are also encouraged, the only criteria required is the Shhh! gesture.

Revel in your ability to diffuse this old association and please send it as an attachment to Julieann Swanson at swansonj@umn.edu with the subject line Shhh!  She will append them to the Shhh…Silent Auction! blog page. You can see the gallery of Shhh’ers by going to the Shhhhh…Yourself! page.  And don’t forget to check out the photo gallery of items donated for the Silent Auction.

Next week- on the importance of donating, what makes a good donation (that’s a trick question, just about everything qualifies!) and how to go about donating.

With a sly shhh! of their own accompanied by a knowing wink,

Empress Patti and the Silent Auction Committee

Janice Lea Lurie: jlurie@artsmia.org
Patricia McRae Baley: patricia.mcrae@unlv.edu
Julieann Swanson: swansonj@umn.edu
Allan Kohl: allan_kohl@mcad.edu