September 25 “Sometimes you have to just let it all out”

September 25th is World Pharmacist Day. To recognise this day, I have several books. First is a signed “A Sketch of Medicine and Pharmacy” by the S.E. Massengill Corporation, published 1943. The subtitle is “and a View of Its Progress by the Massengill Family from the Fifteenth to the Twentieth Century.

This book gives a pretty good outline of world medical history, and the subgroup of Pharmacy history, especially in the United States. The Massengill family began work in Pharmacy when S.E. Massengill graduated from medical school and worked in producing drugs in 1898, instead of practicing medicine.

My second book is “Breakthrough-The Discovery of Modern Medicines at Janssen” by Harry Schwartz, 1989. As the book states “This takes us inside the complex works of pharmaceutical research, and captures snapshots of the Janssen discoveries in Medicine. We watch as scientists manipulate molecules and develop lead compounds”

My brother gave me this book when he was a chemical engineer working on mass producing pain reliever drugs for the company. These are books on drugs. And perhaps… books can be drugs…addicting.

(Major Tangent coming).

When I studied for my degree in Journalism, books (and other written materials) were the main materials used. There was a lot of investigation to do in Journalism. You were to research about your subject. You needed to have some information of the person, place, or thing you were going to write about. Journalism not only expected you to write well, but to write knowingly about a lot of stuff. You had to read a bunch-I loved that. I read a lot of unusual books, and subscribed to several newspapers.

You were to become an actual ‘jack of all trades”. You also had to know people, have connections to people in other fields, see different views. My degree in Journalism, really helped me get a good all-around education. You could have an emphasis in Advertising (mine) or in Public Relations. And, while Journalism was in the English department, we were the red-headed stepchilds of English.

While we all spoke English, our situation was like certain Marching Band members-the percussion line. All Marching Band people had the same music and worked together, but the percussion line were just a little different-marching to their own beat. I loved the atmosphere, the demands, the education of that English-based Journalism degree.

Then NIU, a few years later, put the Journalism degree under Communications, instead of English. I believe that ruined everything, and by everything, they (and many other colleges) ruined the world. In the Communication dept., you can now had emphasis’s in Organizational/Corporate Communications; Advocacy and Public Communications; or Media Studies. And now, they wanted Journalism majors (In communications but still technically alone) to have double major or an additional minor; so why not make it easy using the aforementioned Communication emphasis’s. It was what they wanted.

Journalism now is like a business into business (in my view), and the power, not just of money but of people. I get that communications in the world were changing. Egon Spengler from Ghostbusters, did say about books “Print is dead.” The ways of communication, and media, and interjecting a voice in the world, have changed immensely, with a difference type of power. Gone are the days of Walter Cronkite-the most trusted man in America, straight-shooting to Middle America.

Now, journalists are influencers of the world, either to the left or to the right. They understand only how to sway people, and with their business savvy, they write, and make their news. The Middle America has no one giving straightforward reporting any more. Communications, putting journalism into business, has taken away discussions, and balanced news. The world only has time for one side, and one side only. And we as a whole, suffer.

So that is why I have ‘Library Tomes” trying to resurrect a little of printed history. It is why I have close to a hundred books on teaching, many on how to teach reading. Many of these books are old-nineteenth and twentieth century, trying to improve ways to read, and what to read, along with better, or just newer ways to teach. But does anyone get that? I know of one person who does.

September 25th is National Daughters Day. My daughter does get me, and I love her so much for it. She understands my compulsion with books, and reading, and continued learning; Of my using printed matters to recognise ideas, and help teach others. By still digging into the past to learn more, even about the future. And how do I know that my daughter understands?

She is a teacher. And what a teacher! She teaches kids (what person-unless a true teacher, begins her career wanting to tackle seventh and eighth grade students!); She teachs teachers (she is on a school program with superintendants to help take school goals and incentives for different grades, and help incorporate those goals into various teacher’s game plans, along with assisting teachers in applying those new plans).

She is a writer (she has been active in several conferences, and producing grant winning programs getting free book vending machines for a school along with free or cheaper books to supply the machine); She is a reader (while not with as many the physical books that I have, she is best friends with her kindle, and several libraries); She is a researcher (I bought a matching computer because of how well and much she uses hers, for looking into new ways to teach, and learn); She is a student (she has completed one masters corriculum, and is going for more).

My daughter, also has a wonderful family,. They say they understand (perhaps occasionally merely putting up with) some of her idiosyncrasies, while I do understand them. She and I are the same type of left-handed, blue-eyed crazy person. Our brains are perhaps just wired a little different than others. I love her!

P.S. September 25th is National Lobster Day. If you were six years old in 1978, you would B-52…Rock Lobster.