- Name, job title, and location: Cindy Bowen, Systems Librarian, Lauinger first floor
- What do you do? I try to fix what’s not working, especially Alma and Primo, the software packages that power HoyaSearch and critical behind-the-scenes Library functions.
- Where are you from? I’m a Midwesterner born and bred. I was born in Illinois, grew up in a suburb of Milwaukee, and attended college at UW-Milwaukee.
- Do you have any hobbies? A bunch! Reading, cross-stitch, reading and writing fanfiction, bothering my cats, walking, and I’m trying to get back into biking but I’m a little intimidated by all the hills. I’m also a dedicated fan of Yoga with Adriene.
- What are you reading/watching/playing/listening to/learning right now? By the time this comes out, I hope to be reading the third book of the Hell’s Library series by A.J. Hackwith; the first two were really good. I recently began re-watching Star Trek: Voyager and will soon delve into the recent Marvel shows on Disney+. I’m currently learning how to get places in NoVa and the area around Georgetown! Even with map apps, I ‘explore’ by taking wrong turns semi-regularly.
- What's your favorite thing about winter? I love snow! There's something so peaceful about falling snow, the way it makes everything look so much prettier, and how everybody is forced to slow down a bit.
- Do you have any unique accomplishments or claims to fame? I mentioned fanfiction in my list of hobbies… In nearly 20 years of putting my stories online, I’ve posted over a million words in over 300 works that range in length from 60 words to 180,000-plus. I’m still a little astonished by my total word count, but there are far more prolific writers out there! The unique part for me is that I gave a lecture about fanfiction at Trine University in November 2018. (No, I’m not going to tell you my pseudonym.)
- If you were building a dream house, what room or feature would you be sure to include and why? I’d want a sunny porch with lots of comfortable seating and a screened-in area where I could let my cats roam without supervision.
- Who is your hero or inspiration and why? My friend Kimbra has been an inspiration in a whole host of ways. Her friendship and support in spite of her own troubles have helped me through rough times, especially while I was in college. She’s also the reason I’m a librarian today–she suggested I consider a library degree when I was nearing the end of undergrad and deciding what to do next.
- If you didn’t work in your current field, what would you be doing? That’s a hard question! Before going for my MLIS, I considered a Master’s in Translation; combining that with my bachelor’s in English and college experience doing help desk support, perhaps I’d be doing technical documentation and translation somewhere. It seems likely I’d be involved with technology at some level, at least.