An interview with random OLA member #5 and #6: Megan Garza & Nick Ruest

In my previous column, I interviewed Aliki Tryphonopoulos from the Markham Public Library system. As usual, I asked her to recommend the next OLA member for this column (for that’s how the Random Library Generator works). She completely shattered the model by suggesting not one OLA member but two – a husband-and-wife dynamic librarian duo: Megan Garza, Children’s Librarian at the Angus Glen Library (Markham Public Library) and Nick Ruest, Digital Strategies Librarian at McMaster University. I interviewed them each separately by phone last June.

So, Megan, how did you meet Nick? We met at library school at Wayne State in Michigan.

What were you doing in Michigan? We’re both from Michigan.

So I guess the question is, what are you doing in Canada? Nick got a job at McMaster very quickly – he’s very good at what he does – and then he asked me to marry him. So I got a job in Markham. And typical American – I thought Hamilton and Markham can’t be too far away. So now we live in High Park in Toronto and we both commute.

How did you get into librarianship? My mom’s a librarian. I’m a second-generation librarian. I had an English degree and I thought I’d be a teacher, but after working in a preschool I realized I can’t be a teacher! Now, as a children’s librarian I still get to be with kids but I can give them back after storytime.

What’s been the most surprising thing about your career? Oh! I didn’t think I would be as comfortable singing in front of people as I am, but there’s no stage fright. I sing for the little kids – the lap babies who are zoned out on their parents’ laps, and the toddlers. I get a kick out of them. They have a good time and they remember who I am when they come back to the library. That way they feel comfortable with libraries and we build life-long learners.

Can you sing me a song? This is my favourite for toddlers: I’m gonna shake, shake, shake my sillies out Shake, shake, shake my sillies out Shake, shake, shake my sillies out … [Sorry, dear reader, I didn’t catch the last line.]

What do you know a lot about? I know an embarrassingly lot about pop culture. Well, maybe it’s not so bad. It helps me with my job. I have a sick fascination with gossip rags. I read them in the grocery store. For example, I know that Kourtney Kardashian and her husband seem to be having marital troubles.

What skills are you most proud of? My creativity and musicality. I played piano for 11 years and viola for six.

And what skills would you still like to learn? I’d like to learn to play the guitar.

Let’s see if you live up to any of these librarian stereotypes:

Do you own a cat? Not yet. We’re going to …

Do you like to cook? Kind of. Not really.

Do you read mystery novels? Many many.

Do you like to garden? No.

Do you like chocolate? I do like chocolate.

Do you socialize with other librarians? Oh my gosh, yes.

So let’s play The Newlywed Game. I’m going to ask you a question about Nick and then I’ll ask him the same question. We’ll see how well you know each other by how well your answers match. Make sure Nick’s left the room. OK. How did Nick decide to become a librarian? He was going to be a lawyer and he was studying for the LSAT and working at Hungry Howie’s when someone he knew who was in library school suggested he try library school instead.

Hungry Howie’s? Yeah, it’s a pizza chain known for its butter-flavoured crusts.

You must miss that now that you’re in Canada. Well, I mostly miss Cheez-Its. They’re like Cheese Nips, but better. It’s an awesome little snack cracker and I buy insane quantities when I go home, and then when I get back I have to ration them.

Did anything else catch you off guard about living in Canada? Yes, I was surprised in many little inexplicable ways. I always assumed Canada was America lite, but it’s not. The socio-political atmosphere is kinder to my worldview. But figuring out how to work the government was a shock. For example, getting a family doctor in Toronto is almost impossible. It’s challenging learning how to navigate that stuff.

Yet you’ve adapted? Yes. The thing I’m most proud of is my awesome Canadian accent. Listen to how I say process, project, and eh? When I go home I can no longer understand my parents.

Let me ask you one more question about Nick before I ask you to pass the phone onto him. If I asked him what skill he’d most like to learn, what do you think he’d say? He’d probably say he’d like to learn some obscure programming language I’ve never heard of.

Hi, Nick. How long have you been at McMaster? Three years this [past] September.

And how did you decide to become a librarian? A friend told me I should. I was supposed to go to law school but I kept putting off studying for the LSAT and I was working at Hungry Howie’s …

Hungry Howie’s? Yes, it’s known for its flavoured crusts.

Amazing! I asked Megan the same question about you and you both answered the same way. You would have killed on The Newlywed Game. Here’s another question I asked Megan about you. What skill would you most like to learn? To be proficient in a programming language.

Remarkable. That’s what she said. What do you know a lot about already? I’m well rounded – digital collections, a splash of scholarly communications, electronic publishing, systems administration, project management, and code management.

And what about outside the library world? I play the bass and I know a lot about electronic music. I’m snobby about it.

What’s the most spontaneous thing you’ve ever done? Asking my wife to marry me in a hotel room in Hamilton.

That was spontaneous? Did you have a ring prepared? No. It was three or four weeks before I started my job and it was a spontaneous question. I learned months later that there’s two rings, not just the one wedding ring. You’re supposed to have an engagement ring also.

I hear you’re getting a cat. I’ve always had cats and I think it’d be cool to have one instead of having children.

Megan found the lack of Cheez-Its in Canada a tough adjustment. What have you noticed that’s different about living here? The telecoms. Three-year commitments. You have to pay for voice mail, long distance, and roaming. You have to pay for caller ID. Poor bandwith capacity.

So do you go back to Michigan often? As little as possible. I don’t like going back to the States for political reasons.

Can you give us a teaser about the next OLA member you’ve picked to be interviewed for this column? Toronto Public Library librarian, Scott Robins, has done some great work advocating for comics and graphic novels in libraries. [Note: Scott will be Lucky OLA Member #7 – the seventh to be interviewed in this column. I think I’ll send him a prize.]

Robin Bergart is User Experience Librarian at the University of Guelph
Library. rbergart@uoguelph.ca