December’s installment of 7 Questions With… AAAL Members features Leah Townsend, Instruction Librarian at NorQuest College Library.

1. If you could learn to do anything, what would it be? I’ve always wanted to learn how to surf, which is a bit of a challenge living where I do!

2. Have you ever had something happen to you that you thought was bad, but it turned out to be for the best? For almost three years I taught high school in a small northern community. When I decided to quit, I wasn’t sure if I had made the right choice. In retrospect, it was one of the best things I have ever done for myself. The job made me intensely unhappy, and quitting gave me the opportunity to pursue an MLIS.

3. If you had to work on only one project for the next year, what would it be? I am very interested in library service to distance and online learners. We have a small staff, so we don’t have a dedicated distance librarian at this time. I would love to take a year to develop a thorough outreach program aimed at our distance learners.

4. What is your favourite thing to binge watch? Cartoons for adults, like “The Venture Brothers” or “Archer”.

5. What is your proudest work-related accomplishment? Creating the IL Palooza workshop with Lisa Shamchuk. We wanted to build a free information literacy workshop that focused on real life examples of tools and techniques that have worked in practice. Our first iteration of IL Palooza went so well that it became an annual event, and it is still going strong after 4 years.

6. What do you eat for breakfast? I actually eat two breakfasts most days. A smoothie first thing in the morning before I go to the gym, and then usually a bagel or toast with fruit when I get to work.

7. What do you do when you’re not working? My mother and I are craft vendors at the downtown farmer’s market during the summer months, and at holiday craft shows in the winter. We call ourselves “Bouquet of Crochet”, and we mostly make handmade stuffed toys and animals.