13 Questions With: Megan and Yusuke Fitzgibbons

February 17, 2013

Megan Fitzgibbons

Librarian, University of Western Australia Law Library

Yusuke Fitzgibbons

Assistant Professor, Edith Cowan University

Megan and Yusuke moved to Perth, Australia in December 2012. Prior to that, they were both affiliated with McGill University in Montreal – the McGill University Library (Megan) and McGill’s School of Information Studies (Yusuke).

Yusuke and Megan Fitzgibbons

A hero who has inspired you in your career?

We share a hero (with many others in the library world): Norman Horrocks.

The first job you ever held and at what age?

Megan: Babysitting at 12, then age 15 in a law firm doing photocopying, filing, etc. I started getting paper cuts early on.

Yusuke: Gas station, age 16

Your first position in the library and/or information services field?

Megan: student worker in the cadet academic library at the U.S. Air Force Academy. I shifted lots of microfiche and met great librarians.

Yusuke: my current position is the first, other than as a practicum student in Halifax.

Coolest thing in your cubicle or office?

Megan: I have a lot of geeky cool things. E.g., broadside of Ranganathan’s Five Laws of Library Science, printed at The Press at Colorado College.

Yusuke: Huge dual monitors. Also, I can see palm trees outside the window.

What is your guilty pleasure?

Megan: Yusuke’s guilty pleasure is buying gadgets that, strictly speaking, he doesn’t need.

Yusuke: Megan’s guilty pleasure is Facebook.

Career advice – what’s your top tip?

Position yourself so that the perfect opportunity can find you: meet people, put yourself out there, be engaged.

What useless skill(s) do you possess?

Yusuke: All of Megan’s skills are useful!

Megan: Yusuke can twirl pens super-fast.

Proudest moment in your professional life?

Megan: It has happened more than once, but I’m very proud anytime a student or staff member gives me genuine thanks for helping them.

Yusuke: Hopefully it’s yet to come, but good teaching evaluations mean a lot.

If you had 24 hours all to yourself, how would you best like to spend it?

Megan: It would involve swimming in the ocean, listening to the waves, reading a book, yoga, and eating tofu.

Yusuke: Just sleep.

If you didn’t work in the information industry, what would you be doing?

Megan: Besides lying on a beach? Ideally, working in some type of NGO that has a high impact in making people’s lives better.

Yusuke: Good question… Perhaps still working in the automotive industry.

Finish this sentence: “In high school, I would have been voted the person most likely to … “

Megan: Be in Riverdance

Yusuke: Move to Canada

How do you stay current in your field?

Meeting people, key blogs, journal alerts, social media (Megan: Library Society of the World!)

What would you like your headstone to read?

This one is a bit morbid! We don’t really plan to have headstones…