International Librarians Reception

There was no charge to attend this reception if you were not from the United States. Strangely, there were primarily people from the United States at the reception.

There were very few tables set up (they were totally taken anyway) in the Winter Room (as lovely as it sounds) at the Harold Washington Library Center and I had walked atleast an hour to get there. And, it appeared that it would be unacceptable for me to sit against the wall on the floor.

After much surveillance, I saw an opening and asked the three woman if I could join them at their table and they were very welcoming. One of the women was a Library Board Trustee from Shreveport, Louisiana, another who had two jobs in Washington: one in Homeland Security and another in the Library of a Governor's Mansion. The third was a Library Director for a university in Guatemala. We talked about the library system rebuilding in New Orleans, and shared information about our work backgrounds and libraries. Then we got down to the nitty gritty ... Obama's presidency and the death of Michael Jackson!