The OW Factor

@theowfac
7 Followers
13 Following
114 Posts
Ramblings on life, faith, and career
https://theowfactor.org
The OW Factor1d ago

Smaller is better

#AcademicLibraries
#HigherEducation
#LiberalArts
#Librarianship

https://theowfactor.org/2026/04/05/smaller-is-better/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

Smaller is better

Lately, I’ve been ruminating on the various jobs I’ve had in my more than three decades of work experience in libraries, particularly because of switching jobs soon. I’ve worked in large academic r…

The OW Factor
The OW Factor6d ago
I am looking for recommendations of people to follow and lists of lists. Interests are #naturephotography, #libraries (especially #academiclibraries), and credible #news sources -- by which I mean almost anything NOT MAGA-related. Any suggestions are most welcome and thank you in advance.
The OW FactorMar 30

Some thoughts on blogging

#Blogging
#Mastodon
#News
#RSS
#SelfHosting
#SherlockHolmes
#SocialMedia
#Substack
#WordPress

https://theowfactor.org/2026/03/30/some-thoughts-on-blogging/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

Some thoughts on blogging

I know my blog doesn’t have a huge audience, and that’s perfectly fine with me. I’d love to have more readers, but I’m not going to try the usual methods of promoting my work on various commercial …

The OW Factor
The OW FactorMar 29

McHenry County Dam and Glacial Park - July 2023

#GlacialPark
#McHenryCountyDam
#NaturePhotography
#Photos

https://theowfactor.org/2026/03/29/mchenry-county-dam-and-glacial-park-july-2023/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

McHenry County Dam and Glacial Park – July 2023

These are some photos from two places I’ve enjoyed visiting for many years. I hardly ever fail to find something worth seeing and photographing when I go there.

The OW Factor
The OW FactorMar 28

Sturm und drang and AI

#AI
#Cataloging
#Libraries

https://theowfactor.org/2026/03/28/sturm-und-drang-and-ai/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

Sturm und drang and AI

A lot of attention and money has been lavished on artificial intelligence lately. (Understatement of the decade.) Germans have good ways of expressing things, and one of them is “sturm und dr…

The OW Factor
The OW FactorMar 23

Volo Bog - July 2023

#Flowers
#NaturePhotography
#Photos
#VoloBog

https://theowfactor.org/2026/03/23/volo-bog-july-2023/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

Volo Bog – July 2023

Volo Bog is one of the best and most unique natural areas in the Midwest. On this visit, I took some photos of the many different wildflowers found there, as well as one butterfly.

The OW Factor
The OW FactorMar 22

Maine - September 1998

#Family
#Maine
#Travel

https://theowfactor.org/2026/03/22/maine-september-1998/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

Maine – September 1998

My mother and I went on a memorable trip to Maine over a long Labor Day weekend and enjoyed eating lots of seafood and exploring many beautiful areas including the Harpswells, Eagle Island (locatio…

The OW Factor
The OW FactorMar 19

Calculations and consequences

#Cleaning
#Commuting
#Dysfunction
#ToxicWorkplaces

https://theowfactor.org/2026/03/19/calculations-and-consequences/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

Calculations and consequences

Lately, as part of what I’m starting to jokingly think of in my head as The Long Goodbye, I have been reviewing many aspects of the past 14 1/2 years of work. This includes thinking through what to…

The OW Factor
The OW FactorMar 15

Spring cleaning

#AcademicLibraries
#Cleaning
#Weather

https://theowfactor.org/2026/03/15/spring-cleaning/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

Spring cleaning

Yesterday, Saturday, was a slow, do-nothing sort of day. One thing I did accomplish, though, was the deletion of almost fourteen years of work emails. The number of emails I got rid of was well ove…

The OW Factor
The OW FactorMar 8

The past week

#Fatigue
#Food
#Students
#Teaching

https://theowfactor.org/2026/03/08/the-past-week/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

The past week

The past week was hard. I found it difficult to concentrate or focus on work tasks, for example, and the usual grind of lengthy and stressful commutes seemed even less tolerable than usual. Global …

The OW Factor