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Nabila Cruz
Library assistant (or librarian in the making)!
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Bio
- A little bit about me...So here's the thing. I'm a bibliophile. I define my life by the books I read. When I think about growing up, I think about all the books that saw me through it. My earliest memories are related to books. When I was child, my favourite outing would be going to a library and losing myself in the books for hours.Although I don't pretend my life was anything like Roald Dahl's Matilda, I share with its heroine the magical feeling of reading. I truly believe books can transform lives. It's no surprise that I chose a career I can bring together my passion for books with my love for looking for information and my desire to help people.
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Info
- SummaryI am a graduate seeking to step in the information management career ladder. Since graduating, I have taken time off to travel and now I am keen to gain more work experience in the library services. I am passionate about providing information with openness, ingenuity and creativity. I am confident that given the chance, I could become an important part of your organization.Experience
- Apr 2012 - PresentSunday Library Assistant / Southwark Council•Customer service •Telephone enquiries •Shelving books •Handling money
- Dec 2011 - PresentLibrary Assistant / House of Commons•Distributing vote bundle •Delivering newspapers •Processing books, periodicals and parliamentary material •Filing parliamentary papers and bills •Shelving and retrieving books in storage •Assisting move of documents •Factiva and Records Management training
- Sept 2007 - Sept 2009Casual Library Assistant / London Borough of Lewisham•Working during university holidays as staff relief •Customer service based role •Telephone enquiries •Shelving books and tidying library •General office tasks (photocopying, data entry, laminating, etc) •Handling money •Creating book and information displays
- Jun 2005 - Sept 2007Saturday Library Assistant / London Borough of Lewisham•Same duties as above •Permanent, part-time position •Holding craft activities for children during summer holidays
Education-
2007 - 2010University of Warwick2:1 BA with Honours in Politics with International Studies
Activities: Craft Society, Project and Development Officer and President, (October 2008 to June 2010) Duke of Edinburgh's Award Society, Publicity Officer, (October 2008 to June 2010) -
2005 - 2007Hillsyde Sixth FormA-Levels in English Literature, Geography, Mathematics and Portuguese
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2003 - 2005Sedgehill Secondary SchoolGCSEs in English, Mathematics, Double Science, etc
Activities: Gifted and Talented Group Library Helper Year 11 Prefect
Additional Information-
Websites:
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Honors:Warwick Advantage Award, The Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award
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Interests:blogging, baking, reading, yoga, swimming, museums, travelling, shopping, photography, technology.
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Profile Pictures
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Posts
- Mar 05, 12I really don't know what made me think it would be OK to go out in flats in February. Needless to say it was freezing near the sea in Seven Sisters, East Sussex.
- Feb 28, 12Last night it was the last episode of Playing it Straight and I was shocked to learn who won. I normally enjoy watching the E4 reality programmes mostly because they cannot be taken too seriously. But this one leaves me divided. I'm not sure if it helps or hinders the gay rights cause. I mean, it's not like it's trying to help. But if it seriously makes it worse, it would not be broadcast.I can see the argument that it does in fact helps us see that it is impossible to tell someone's sexual preference simply by what they do or say. How many times have I sworn this guy or that guy was definitely gay/straight just be proven wrong? I'm not known for my gaydar, but it goes to show that men (and women) cannot be simply put into boxes and that stereotypes are, in the least, misleading. Television and other media usually serve as a platform to breakdown our preconceptions and educate us into equality.At the same time the programme tries to makes us judge the possibly gay or straight contestants by having them perform tasks associated with manliness or gayness, which I am uncomfortable with because no one should have to be judged by their gay (i.e. feminine) or masculine aptitudes. The men are set up to fall into traps that reveal their sexual preference by doing things like dancing, performing a massage or cooking. At this day and age, E4's audience (I presume mostly comprised of the 18-24 demographic) is smarter than assuming a man is gay because he cooks or dances well. But open minded younglings that we are, we're not free from ages old prejudices and Playing It Straight seems to be emphasizing them.The question for me is: is it using stereotypes simply for pure entertainment or does E4 have a wider social agenda? I don't think I will ever be able to answer that question unless I'm the E4 commissioner. Of course part of me is very entertained and Alan Carr's narration is precious, a bit like the Come Dine With Me's Dave Lamb for a pseudo-dating programme. It also helps being parody with some soap opera worthy drama. All the 'he said this, he did that' game going on showed some good actors in the contestants and Cara seemed genuinely worried about not being the stupid girl and trying to decide who was lying. So I guess, I will remain undecided but I won't let that deter the TV critic inside me.
- Feb 28, 12So here we are again. Two days after the Oscars were handed out to the crème de la crème of Hollywood (who would think they'd have one?). And once again, people found the Academy Awards shockingly boring and called it "the worst in history". What I find shocking is that people actually expect it to be anything more than boring. What can be more tedious than watch an out of touch group of professionals babble unfunny self-congratulatory scripts for hours? I didn't watch it, but I won't lie, I probably would if I could. I do love a bit of celebrity bashing and putting up with a couple of hours of their plastic perfection is not so bad if I can diss them later. Though to be honest, the tidbits I watched made me cringe into a permanent scowl. I don't know what it that makes me so uncomfortable about celebrities when they are supposed to be themselves. I just feel it's just so fake, as if the roles they play were their real selves. I feel so gullible because I unconsciously really believe they are theose people in the films I watch. THAT actually shocks me. How can I, a fully aware intelligent adult, think for a moment that actors are actually anything like their characters? Are they really that good? No, I'd rather admit that I am gullible than think that Jennifer Aniston is good for playing Rachel all the time.
- Jan 23, 12
- Jan 21, 12When I was about 12 years old Harry Potter arrived in Brazil. Unfortunately I cannot say I fell in love straight away. Even though it was all the rage, I didn't really pay much attention to it (probably because I have this need of going against trends). But on my birthday that same year, I was gifted the first book and everything changed. Soon after, I bought the 2 other books available and went crazy. It was horrible having to way for the next one and to know that there where a few more to come. The wait was unending and torturous because I needed to know what happens next. My own imagination was not enough because I knew that whatever stories I made up I was pretty sure it was not what what J. K. Rowling had in mind. I had to suffer on, surviving by reading the rumour fansites, full of crazy theories of what was going to happen next. At least until J.K. Rowling lauched her own website and dead were the good old days of fruitless rumours. Though must say I spent hours of my teens trying to unlock the door for the Room of Requirement (I didn't know the walkthroughs then) like it was a matter of life and death.My aunt, learning about my literary suffering, recommended that I read Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings books. Although she said that they were somehow similar, I wasn't convinced, mainly because I saw that the trilogy book was over 1,200 pages. But I was bored, so I decided to give it a go. The first 100 pages dragged on, and it took me about 6 days to finish then (that's pretty slow in my standards). But suddenly things picked up, though I don't know if it was myself or the story, and I finished the series in another 5 days. I remember skipping meals and sleeping late just because I couldn't bear to put the book down. And when I finished one book I didn't even stop and went straight to the other one. When I finished the three books, I felt I completed a great hurdle. But regardless of how great the Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings books are, it was the fact that they are part of series (same in plural, ha) that marked me.Only recently, when I started reading A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin, I realised that I love book series, or more like magical sagas that can be read in many books. As I eagerly waited for years (literally) for the Harry Potter series conclusion, my love for the story never died. Thankfully I moved to the UK in the mean time so I didn't have to wait for the translations any more (they were at least 1 year behind). I found love for other epic tales in the mean time, such as The Tales of the Otori by Lian Hearn, Samurai Girl by Karen Asai, The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot and The Old Kingdom by Garth Nix. But at the same time there are series I never finished such as The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis, His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman and ArtEmis Fowl by Eoin Colfer. I would love to read the Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, though it is not very high in my reading list. First I want to read more of Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels and maybe I dabble into Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games Triology. I don't think I will read the Twilight series, mainly out of spite because it is so anti-feminist (my passive way of protesting). And to make matters worse, I am sure that there are many other great series out there waiting to be read. I just don't know if I should go looking for them like I did when I discovered Neil Gaiman's Sandman comic book series and did not rest until I read all of them.I have many favourite books, but somehow I don't have a favourite series. Perhaps because I associate each of them with a different period of my life. Feelings and emotions were associated and emphazised by those series; knowing that there is another instalment to a loved tale gives reading it an extra fire. The anticipation of the next book which is either unpublished or unavailable (I reserved the Earthsea Quartet at the Library 3 weeks ago!) makes it even more enjoyable, even if I set myself to disappointment by building too high expectations. I realised too that most of these series are aimed at children or teenagers. I'm not bothered if people see me reading them, but I think I need to balance my reading with some 'adult' stories (just for the sake of pretending to be a grown up). I've been trying to read classics such Charles Dickens and Oscar Wilde. But I can't help to miss the magic and adventure of series. Thankfully, Sherlock Holmes came to my aid. Even though it is not a series per se, Arthur Conan Doyle's tales should satisfy my appetite for series and classics. Win-win!
- Jan 20, 12Up until last Tuesday, this blog only had 6 posts. Suddenly it has over 400. Why? Well, let me explain with what I call my blog life story. Back in 2003, when I was about to move to the UK my school friends and I decided to keep a blog together to keep in touch. That failed miserably as we didn't write more than 5 posts (I think I wrote half of them). It was easier to email each other. But the damage was done: I fell in love with blogging.In 2006 I started a blog called Dreamy Confessions mainly to talk about my crazy dreams (awake and asleep). Of course no one ever visited it; I wasn't brave enough to tell anyone but my closest friends about it. My mother found out and told the family, but there was nothing there to embarrass me, so no one cared.In 2007, when I started university, I went even crazier with blogging as I spent more time using computers than ever. I kept Dreamy Confessions and I started Dumb Pictures Of My Feet as a side project hoping the novelty factor would be interesting. Again, I never got round telling anyone but my friends about my passion for blogging. As my 'audience' consisted of about 7 people I kept writing things I would only share with them. So in 2009 I decided to move my online diary (as it was turning into one) to a new address and made it private inviting only those I deemed trustworthy enough. It was titled Oh. Whatever. but there is no point in writing the address here as none can view it now (oh, the irony). By then, I was writing long rants about people I knew. I felt my blog was the only place I could voice my opinions freely. Blogging turned very personal and secret.But things change and since we graduated, my friends and I have not seen each other as much as I liked so we lost the intimacy of being carefree students. I also didn't update the blog as often as I planned over the last year (though Dumb Pictures kept going for a while). A lot of water is under the bridge and I came out a little bit (or a lot) different. It makes no sense then for me to keep a blog from a time which doesn't represent me any more.So here I am, hoping that this time round I can keep it more constant updates. Initially I planned to make this a new feminist blog, inspired by my love of Jezebel. Now I want to write about whatever comes up. She Blogs Too Much is inspired by the name of my sister's blog (She Blogs A Lot, which has about 3 posts I think) and the fact that I really do blog too much for my own good. Not only did I try to keep 2 blogs up, but I succumbed to Tumblr's and Twitter's social networking seduction. I also joined WordPress and TypePad, though I haven't written anything there. Yet.Reading through my old blog, I decided to import my old posts from both Oh. Whatever. and Dumb Pictures and make this my 'ultimate' blog (note this is said with a snort). I had to delete a few posts that were too revealing, but I sort of like what I created. So I'll keep creating posts with photos of my feet and maybe I throw in some confessions as well. I realize that though I might not be the same, what I wrote shows the journey I've been through to be who I am now. And to be honest, I still am blogger, like I was almost 10 years ago.
- Jan 21, 12Yesterday I read The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman. It tells the story of a holocaust survivor, from his pre-war youth in Poland to his later years in New York using one of the most striking metaphores: Jews are mice, Nazis are cats, Poles are pigs and Americans are dogs. It is a very personal account as tells through comics the story of the author's own father. But most importantly it is also a non-fiction memoir, not a fantasy graphic novel as many would have you think.I avoided reading it for many years since I discovered my love for graphic novels just because I am one of those people that likes to escape through books and not confront the harsh reality of history. To read a book like Maus would be like looking in the eye of all the terrible things that happen all around me. So yes, I am a wimp. But I guess I summed up the courage and realised that I need to educate myself. And I am glad I did. It is a harrowing account but it is also very well written and extremely touching.Reading it made me think about my own relationship with my mother and about my own personal history. I was born in Brazil, a country that never felt the same effects of the 20th Century wars as Europe, so to be honest the wars may not represent the same to me as to native Europeans. Living here for the past 8 years has taught me a lot and from what I have studied I felt an extreme sense of remorse for these tragedies. I never had anyone, such as a grandparent, to create a personal relation with the wars. But after I read Maus I felt I learnt first hand what happened as if someone was tell me personally what they experienced. And that made it more personal and made me search for similar experiences.I soon realised that like in the book, I sometimes (or many times) lose my temper with my mother for her own anxiousness. But she herself is a survivor and that perhaps is related to her attitude to life nowadays, such as not spending money on anything unnecessary. She overcame extreme poverty and prejudice to become a doctor and has told my sister and I numerous times the hardship she encountered along the way. She makes sure we know that we need resourcefulness and faith all the time and that sometimes annoys me. Now I see that I am just ungrateful and that all that she achieved is shared with us. Actually, I am pretty sure her hard work is so we do not have to go through what she went through.I am not saying that her experiences are in any level with surviving the horrors of a concentration camp. That is something incomparable. What I mean is that Maus taught me a lesson in making amends with my history and accepting that terrible things happen and I cannot change the past. My mother went through a lot and no matter how annoying her attitude maybe, I must accept her for who she is.
- Nov 19, 11Drama. That is the only word that can describe what I am about to write. And I do not know why, but it seems to follow me wherever I go, so I am starting to think I do something to attract it. Two of my best friends, E2 and K, fell out and I am in the middle, unsure of what to do.I remember being about 12 or 13 and running between two friends, E1 and L1, who hated each other because they fancied the same boy (he did not even care about either of them). There was a lot of secret talks and meetings behind their backs, like any sort to school girl drama. It was over 10 years ago: I occasionally talk to them and I am sure it was all forgotten. But that was the end of our childhood friendship. It marked me deeply because I learned to manage having friends that hated each other.However, a couple of years ago two other very good friends, M and L2, sort of fell out. I say sort of because they never actually confronted each other. It was just a lot of gossip doing the rounds and resulting on M being left in the rain, when L2 was driving an empty car. This time I was forced to choose one side because my mother decided to support M. Frankly being on my mother's good books takes precedence over anything (yes, I am a mommy's girl). I also was a little annoyed with L2 because she was very bossy (just like me, sometimes).As time passed and I spent more time with M, I started to see her other side, the one that was a gossiper and unreliable (I cannot say 'just like me') and I became a little annoyed with her too. If only they stopped being so childish and talked about whatever it was that made them angry (I think they did not even know), we would not need to be in such an awkward situation every time we were in the same room. M moved away a few months ago and I am not as good friends as I was before with either of them (but that is another story). This time I learned the hard way that I should not get involved as it only made things worse.So now I am back at the beginning. E2 and K's break up is by far the worse and I will not try to explain it (it would make this post much longer). Suffice to say that when any relationship goes wrong both parties have to account for their mistakes. All I know is that I am pretty sure it will take a long time to heal. Like before, I wish they would talk about it. I am not sure of what to say to either of them. I showed my sympathy face to both and tried to judge neither. Things will be awkward but I do not want to lose either of them. Like E1, L1, M and L2, they are amazing people. I just wish they could me a little bit more amazing and do the unexpected: deal with it.
- Nov 10, 11My birthday is in one month's time. And unfortunately all I want is to not celebrate it. I never realised I had turned into one of those cranky people that feels birthdays are not special. When did I turn so sour? I mean, I always loved birthdays. I literally counted the days off my calendar and I would painstakingly plan how I would spend it. And the parties, oh the parties. I loved organizing them: inviting people, getting the decorations and baking the cake. Oh, how I loved my cakes (speaking as true chocoholic).But all that happened in birthdays past. For the last few years, my birthdays have been just as fun as when I was little to be honest, mostly because I have spent them with people I love. This year though I think I am not spending it with anyone. It does not feel like there is something to celebrate. Sure, I am one year older and I am thankful for having been blessed for surviving another year. Yet I do not feel this year has given anything to count for itself. I have achieved nothing. I am virtually the same as (or even worse than) last year. I guess I unconsciously thought that by not celebrating, it would not count.I know this is just another of part of the process of 'growing up', although pretty soon it will be called 'maturing' since my growing up is almost done (or at least, I hope so). When I was a child I remember specifically not wanting to become one of those serious grown-ups. Now I feel I have no choice. They have infected me with their grumpiness. I guess I need to find that inner child before it is too late and there is no cure for this. Maybe I should celebrate my birthday after all.
- Nov 10, 11Today I had to make a decision and my usual indecisive self got in the way. I never thought myself as a confident person but I managed to sum up the courage to do what I thought was right. OK, so here is what happened: I was working as an invigilator in a quiet library, where I must ensure people follow library rules. My shift started quiet as usual. Then suddenly people start taking in loud voices. It would be a case of me casually informing then that they were in the quiet study area, no?If only it was so simple. One of the parties involved has seniority over me. Hence, dilemma number 1: do I tell them or do I let it pass? Well, that was answered for me because one costumer actually complained to me about the noise and I, thoughtless wimp that I am, said I would pass the message on. As I am one that keeps my word, I just had to do something then. Cue dilemma number 2: when should I tell them? And consequently, dilemma number 3: what should I tell them?I mulled it over and postponed it for as long as I could. As the clock ticked, I grew more uncomfortable because I could see the costumer looking at them reproachfully. And it seemed that the more uncomfortable I became, the more nervous I became. And as time passed the nervousness turned to cowardice. But I actually made the decision of what to do very soon; I would tell them what the costumer told me (minus the anger) as soon as they moved to the main library. The problem was that the opportunity I was waiting for took very long to arrive. But then it did come I had to jump at it. If I thought twice, I would not have done it. I finally managed to speak somewhat privately to them and they received it well. Relief came after a few moments of calming down. In the end, everyone was happy as the costumer received an apology and I did my job.I know know this incident is something almost negligible, but I am proud of it nonetheless. The little things count too.
- Nov 10, 11My family does not celebrate Christmas, but it so happens that our birthdays, that is my mother's, my sister's and my own, fall at the end the of the year, around the same time people are running around shopping for Christmas presents. So in a way, I do not miss out on all the gift-giving fever. Since September or so, I've been looking for the best presents, having compiled a gift list for each one of them (and a wish list for myself, of course) as soon as their last birthday passed.Unfortunately, I will not be able to give them all I wanted as unemployment is a bitch. Really they deserve much more, but I can't afford it. So I resigned myself at giving 3 small gifts for each one of them. But for me the greatest challenge is keeping the gifts a secret. We live in such a tiny flat, nothing happens without our knowledge, even if we pretend we do not know. So at the moment, I am not sure if I managed to keep what I bought a secret because they know that there have been a lot of deliveries lately (I bought everything online - it is cheaper). I will only find out when I give the presents. It's kind of like a surprise to myself.Thinking about it, it is kind of a game we play. They have surprised me before and I strive at surprising them. I guess this is our strange way of showing our love: pretending that we do not know what we would like the most and them showing up with a great gift.
- Nov 10, 11Have you ever wanted to divorce your relatives? I have. I feel awful. I feel the world is ready to stone me. But I cannot help wishing to be very far away from them. It's not that I don't like them. They are nice enough people even if they are, pardon my French, pains in the ass, after all they are family. But I would like to be less connected to them. "Too close for comfort" keeps popping into my mind. We know too much about our lives. We know enough to start hating each other, so it is hard labour avoiding bad feelings. When I feel I can't take it any more, I have to take a step back and not see them for a while, simply because I am angry and it it my own fault. When I don't know someone intimately, I don't know enough to judge them or to justify their actions. I always give them the benefit of the doubt. But when I do know them well, I tend to be merciless. I do not accept when they don't recognize their mistakes. And while I know I am at fault, I don't want to give up my own critical eye, so useful in life, for the benefit of people that want to keep on being wrong. So in the end, I turn just like them, making the same mistake all over again. I realize that and I am angry at not being able to let it go. Sometimes I think if I move away, the distance will make it all better. But I know that family is complicated even if it is on the other side of the world, as I know from personal experience. Even if I did divorce them, we would still have to share so many connections, we would never be truly separated. Because we will always be family. Even if I don't like it.
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Tweets
- I favorited a @YouTube video http://t.co/qojusX7q The Saga Of Biorn
- I favorited a @YouTube video http://t.co/3Ja33bFp SHORT stories - "Fresh Guacamole" - PES
- I've been to 12 of the 116 countries #wherethequeensbeen #jubilee http://t.co/cK5odWKl My new life goal: visit all of them.
- hey Hollywood, where's the Mulan live action film? I'm waiting. #wishfulthinkingApr 29, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Everybody quiet now. Mulan is on. That's all. #lostchildhoodApr 29, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- @miss_lisaT next friday evening?
- @fifi_1992 thanks. I hope so too.
- @miss_lisaT yes! Let's celebrate! So maybe I'll forget I'm facing unemployment +_+
- @fifi_1992 oh don't be, cause I'm not. It was for a library, but it didn't feel right. I shouldn't be picky though.
- What to do when I don't get a job I didn't want? Rejoice! But then #unemploymentsucks so really I'm screwed. #ohshit
- If you read anything today, read this. For Chrissakes, There Is Nothing Wrong With You http://t.co/UGHj3Mzb #proudfeminist
- Can't wait for when I'm 25. #depressing #im24 The Official Anthem For 24 Year Old People Everywhere http://t.co/ngCDpKsV
- Feeling a sudden urge to turn the TV analogue one last time. #goodbyeCEEFAX I won't miss you. Ceefax: A love letter http://t.co/KCYeI04J
- This says a lot about my early teenage years. 63 Reasons Why Boybands Were Better In The '90s http://t.co/pKdiDq3m #NSYNC4ever
- It's official, I like whatever Linkin Park comes up with. Happily listening to #BURNITDOWN from @linkinpark http://t.co/F0xborTQ
- Sunday: the best day for cake. #ilovecake
- Sorry, Twitter, Pinterest is taking all of my time. Now excuse me, I gotta keep pinning.Apr 05, 12 from web Reply, Retweet, Favorite
- Photo: marinacruzing: http://t.co/400kJuub
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Photos
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Posts
Dragon Ball and Pandas. Mind blown.
early 90s kids will know why this is funny ;)
I never forget. Darn it!
Just remembered I have to wake up early tomorrow instead of having my magical lie-in in the land of unicorns :’( FML.
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