I’m a retired librarian, having worked most recently at Boston University where I taught students (and faculty, too) how to do research. That meant teaching them about tools and techniques, but more importantly about how exploring a topic leads to new discoveries and new ways of thinking. I told students I describe my own method of research as “directed stumbling,” and I do plenty of that on many different topics, often leading me in unexpected directions.
Word and phrase origins is just one of my research interests, and I created this new blog as a place to share what I find (and, often, how I got there.) I’m also the volunteer head of the Brookline (MA) Historical Society and have been blogging on that topic since 2009. Some of my other interests and projects can be seen on this more general page.
