My colleagues and I were chatting last week about how we've entered the "meh" time of the year.

In academia, the time between semesters is a mixed bag. As librarians, we are finally free to focus solely on our own priorities. Our space is so empty we are only "on call" for reference work, no one is asking for classes, and most teaching faculty skedaddle after they turn in their grades.  Our calendars are a lot emptier. But, we constantly wrestle with the mental exhaustion and general "eh, do I have to?" feeling that comes after the semester ends. 

Knowing that we are sliding into the holidays, I try to be mindful of my energy levels. Instead of cramming in all the things, I try to complete one major priority and then just tie up loose ends. On my last day in the office - which happens to be tomorrow since I'm using up vacation days - I generally watch some webinars while I clean up my cubicle and write out a to do list for the new year. 

Sure it's not "real" productivity, but at least it's progress. 

How do you wrap up work for the year?

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Also, starting in the new year, I’ll be introducing The Best Thing on Tuesdays. This discussion post will give everyone a chance to share the best thing they read, saw, heard, experienced, or did. Let's celebrate the random awesome stuff that makes us happy, surprises us, or drives us to learn more.

I love how dramatic teenagers are in YA books because it’s so true to life. We’ve hit the *angst* portion of The Dazzling Heights and it’s such a soap opera. Now that I’m not in high school, I live for this sort of thing. Also, my kid gave me the “yeah, whatever, mom” face the other day. She’s three. I should probably start preparing myself.

*Books shared here are affiliate links for Bookshop.org

• Watch out for this Venmo scam. [Lifehacker]

• The problem of everything being content. [Read, Watch, Binge]

• A lack of housing is why there are so many people who are unhoused. [The Atlantic - may be paywalled]

• The evolution of COVID. We're not at common cold status yet. [The Atlantic - may be paywalled]

• The problem with making something too good. [Planet Money]

• The real origins of a Swedish holiday tradition. [Atlas Obscura]

• How the Ukrainian railroad came to be a lifeline. [The Daily]

• The powerful role of ritual. [Hidden Brain]

• Making art from plastic ocean trash. [Atlas Obscura]

• Stay for the story about parachuting beavers. [99% Invisible]

• I LOVE when Planet Money get's creative. This time, it involves a sea shanty. [The Indicator]

• This is accurately representative of everything I am watching right now. [Trey Kennedy]

• The one Hallmark Channel Christmas flick I keep running into is Undercover Holiday. As far as these films go, it's not bad. Yeah, the story is a real stretch - a singer asks her bodyguard to pretend to be her boyfriend - but all the actors seem to be having a lot of fun. Plus, I enjoyed that the lead actress can really sing. [Hallmark]

• Yesterday, we hosted our annual holiday party for the first time in three years. What once was an evening event is now a brunch shindig to accommodate the kiddos. The change meant I had an excuse to make cream scones. My mom used to make these when she ran a B&B and I stole the recipe. I love them plain, but they are also good with lemon curd, butter, or strawberry jam. [My Evernote]

• For the party, I also made a double batch of chocolate chip tea cookies. The kiddo helped with this one and only stole a few of the mini chocolate chips while we mixed. There's no egg in this one and the cookies practically melt on your tongue. So buttery and delicious! [Brown Eyed Baker]

Look at this bird! It’s feathers are so beautiful. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen plumage transition like this in such detail. [Colossal]

ChatGPT is the AI writing machine that is going to break the traditional college paper. (I am so here for that.) Also, if you listened to this episode of the The Daily, you’ll see that it may have some actual use in daily life. It’s also just fun to play around with.

The Husband took the entire week off and I am taking four days off. We are going to get so much done while our kiddo is in daycare.