Langsdale Link
Spring 2006

Contents:

Staff Spotlight

New Staff

Thomas Arendall-Salvetti, Reference/Instruction Librarian

Birthdate: Nov. 28 1975
Birthplace: Detroit, Mich.
My First Job: Burger King. It took forever to wash the stench of cow grease out of my clothes and hair.
Hobbies: reading (I’m a librarian, after all), skiing, hiking
Favorite Books: Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig: Odd title, great book. It’s a crash course in philosophy that regular people can understand. It had a great impact on me as a teenager, and it still reads well today.
The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien: One of the greatest pieces of fantasy literature ever, and a book that practically begs to be read aloud…
Favorite Authors: JRR Tolkien, Neil Gaiman, Tad Williams and Robert Hienlien
Favorite Movies: Monty Python and the Holy Grail, La Femme Nikita, Lord of the Ring and Pink Floyd’s The Wall
Favorite TV Shows: Twin Peaks, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly and Lost
Favorite Website: Lawrence Lessig’s intellectual property blog www.lessig.org/blog or Jessamyn West’s www.librarian.net
Favorite Foods: deep-dish, Chicago-style pizza and turkey stuffing (preferably not together)
Favorite Quote: “Censorship is telling a man he can’t have a steak just because a baby can’t chew it.” Mark Twain
What I Like Best About Baltimore: People of all types live and work side by side. Baltimore has succeeded in many ways that Detroit has not.
What I Like Best About UB: the students

Ivy Owens, Cataloger

Home: The Wilds of Cockeysville
My First Job: Sales clerk at the Music House
Hobbies: Reading
Favorite Authors: P.G. Wodehouse, Patrick O’Brian, Ronald A. Knox
Favorite Movie: 39 Steps
Favorite TV Show: House
Favorite Website: www.markland.org (Markland Medieval Mercenary Militia)
Favorite Foods: Chocolate
Favorite Quote: “Men wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold, long hours of complete darkness. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in event of success.” - Ad for Shackleton’s Antarctic Expedition
What I Like Best About Baltimore: Crab Cakes
What I Like Best About UB: Everyone is so friendly & helpful.


Profiles of Current Staff

Laura Melamed, Library Assistant
By Valerie Carey

Laura Melamed, library assistant in the Circulation Department of the Langsdale Library, is a woman of immense creativity. She has been at the library for the past two years. Her previous library experience was at Baltimore County Public Library for three and a half years and Baltimore Hebrew University Library for four years.

Melamed was born in Flushing, N.Y. She earned her B.S. in Sociology from Towson University but also explored her creative side by taking courses in design and photography. Regarding her past art projects, she has done black-and-white photography, photo albums, comic strips, drawing, painting, collage, short stories, poetry, calendars with collage and drawings and journals with collage and drawings. In addition, she has done artwork with her teenage son, Erik Lenderman. Life, events and holidays inspire her art.

Melamed participated in a workshop at Pratt Library titled Displays-Boost Your Circulation, as well as Creative Writing, an informal neighborhood workshop. She has used her skills in designing two exhibits for Langsdale Library and anticipates doing future exhibits for the Langsdale Library display case.

Laura’s career goals are to continue to work in a library and to utilize her creativity in order to help people. She has previously worked as an art instructor for preschoolers and as an art tutor for a teenager with autism.

Melamed has applied for admission to UB's M.A. in Publications Design program and hopes to earn a Master’s of Library Science degree in the future.

Here are some other tidbits about Laura:

Favorite Books: Adulthood Rites by Octavia Butler, Hanta Yo by Ruth Beebe Hill, Last Chance to See by Douglas Adams & Mark Carwardine and A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr.
Favorite Movies: Gabbeh, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Star Wars
Favorite Foods: Greek salads, eggplant Parmesan, bean burritos with guacamole and sour cream, pumpkin pie and chocolate chip cookies
What She Likes About Baltimore: Laura likes the city of Baltimore mainly because the people are friendly, and she likens it to an urban small town. She says there is much to do for very little money and likes the fact that Baltimore is not too far from places with trees where people can go hiking.
What She Likes Best About UB: Langsdale Library, the sense of community, the cultural diversity, the fact that it is located in an artsy area and the opportunity for education

 

Derek W. Chase, Graduate Assistant

Birthdate: Feb. 24, 1983
Hometown: Baltimore, Md. (Woodlawn)
My First Job: McDonald’s
Hobbies: computers, photography, movies, music, skiing, swimming, baseball
Favorite Books: The Bible, Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story, Like Water for Chocolate
Favorite Movies: A League of Their Own, Grease
Favorite TV Shows: Sex and the City
Favorite Web site: www.yahoo.com
Favorite Foods: applesauce, spaghetti, crab cakes
Favorite Quote: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
What I Like Best About Baltimore: I love that it is a big city which is closely tied to another big city.
What I Like Best About UB: I love that it is easy to excel here.
I Would Like to Ask Fellow Langsdale Employees: what their first jobs were….

 

 

About the Link      Newsletter Archives      Langsdale Library      E-mail