91´«Ã½

We’ve got a cut! Nikita is finishing up technical work that I don’t really understand, sound and color, credits and titles, but the story is there. I love it. It’s just one of eleventy billion stories we could have told, and just one of the many stories we’ll tell with the footage we’ve gathered over the last thousands of miles. But this one? It’s ready. We can’t wait to premiere it at my president’s program, a testament to the good work libraries do. !

91´«Ã½

While Nikita managed the technical pieces and parts, Leah and I met Margaret Neill, director of the Santa Fe Public Library, for breakfast at , a longtime Santa Fe staple (chilequiles). Margaret previously worked in both the El Paso and Las Cruces systems, so had much to share about the ways libraries are supported in the state and border regions. We also gained insight into the varying needs of indigenous communities, Hispanics, immigrants, tourists, and transplants from across the United States. Neill and her staff work hard to build collections, programs, and services that connect with everyone in Santa Fe. The conversation was a good reminder that public librarians understand their communities in ways few others do.

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Then Leah and I went to the to learn more about where we have spent the last several days. Leah is the Director of Archives and Special Collections at George Washington University Libraries, which meant I was with someone skilled in understanding historical documents and what they do and don’t tell us about the past. We spent our days in Las Cruces, with the in the background. Seeing a drawing of those same mountains from the nineteenth century was a reminder of time and the ways that artifacts connect us across chasms. The labor of archivists–in museums, galleries, special libraries, and academic institutions–makes meaning-making possible. Also, do all archivists read the works cited before they read the wall text?

Mileage: City driving

Soundtrack: Bells and whistles

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