by Darlene Goodrick, Supervisor – Printing & Duplicating, Vancouver Island University
In my last writing I talked about how fortunate we are to be working at a University where there is so much opportunity to learn and teach.
In this submission I want to talk about how tormenting it can be to have so much going on so near and be limited in what we can get to and how much we have to pass by.
There are so many emails about learning opportunities and yet understandably we can only partake in a small fraction of those; so who do you listen to and what do you learn?
Some will say this falls into the goal setting and time management area. I do agree you need to know what you want to learn and what your end goal may be. However that said, how do you choose, and who do you listen to?
What if, like me, you want to learn EVERYTHING!! What then?
The print shop has some great learning and teaching opportunities. 
Today I am sharing knowledge about picas and points. Did you know there are 12 points in a pica? Maybe you knew there are 72 points in an inch? You can add your picas: 3p4 + 2p7 = 5p11. What about pixels you ask; those refer to the dots in a picture element, and the more pixels you have the more printing options you have with that picture. You may have heard of pixelation, that noticeable recognition of tiny dots or squares when an image is enlarged too much.
In today’s world we have so much information coming at us all the time, it has become not so much what you can take in, but rather what you are able to block out so you can stay focused and on track to your ultimate chosen goal. This is no easy task and takes us back to how we manage our precious time.
How many of you keep your email closed and only open it three times a day to deal with the emails? Is there anything more distracting than an incoming email that appears in a ghost-like temptation at the bottom right of your screen saying ‘read me, read me’ in a curiosity peaking way.
What about interruptions and noise? How do you block that out? For the most part, we can’t; we simply learn to make the best of our situation and hopefully implement a few of the ‘tips for a more productive day’ that are amply available upon a quick google search.
We are grateful to be working in a learning and teaching rich environment, and not one of those places where you take your brain out on your way in, and then pick it up again when you leave.