ALLUNY – Association of Law Libraries of Upstate New York

Kat Fischer
Title: Knowledge Initiatives Analyst
Library: Harris Beach PLLC
Location: Pittsford, NY

5 Questions:

1. What’s your greatest achievement and how has it shaped you? I am a part time playwright, and have had a few things produced locally. My first play was an adaptation of Little Women, which was my favorite book in my youth–and indeed the heroine Jo March was my inspiration to write in the first place. My most successful production was the autobiographical play Melanie and the Record Man in which I got to work closely with Woodstock icon Melanie Safka as we adapted her songs, journals and poems into a staged production. That project came about because the Artistic Director of the theatre company I work with reached out to her and pitched the project. And she said yes! I’ve learned that things you think are impossible might indeed be possible if you just have the courage to pursue them.

2. Favorite travel destination? I live to travel, and have had a number of exciting adventures, but my trip to South Africa probably edges up to the top of the list. Seeing “the big five” safari animals in their natural habitat was an incredible privilege–but South Africa had so much else to offer, including amazing wine country, fabulous cities like Johannesburg and Cape Town, beaches and surf towns, friendly people, and even up close interaction with African penguin colonies.

3. How long did it take you to become a librarian? I’ve been haunting libraries since the time I was a toddler, and always wanted to be a librarian, though I didn’t get around to it until after I decided to change careers in my thirties. I grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania, and our town library was divided into a children and adult side. By the time I was 10, I had read every single book in the children’s side…even the ones about sports and snakes that didn’t interest me. But there was a strict rule that children under 12 couldn’t venture over to the adult side of the library unaccompanied. Since I spent my summers alone at the library, the librarian took pity on me, and started selectively choosing books from the adult side that she thought appropriate for me. She mostly focused on the classics, but I also remember her bringing me Erma Bombeck’s The Grass is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank and Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy so there was some popular stuff in there too. I thought being a librarian and having access to all the books you want any time at all was the most perfect job imaginable. (And now that I am one, I know I was right!)

4. Coffee klatch with three historical American women? Susan B. Anthony, Louisa May Alcott, Nellie Bly (and can we squeeze in Dorothy Parker to spice things up?)

5. If you could have any superpower, what would it be? Time manipulation; the ability to pause, rewind, and fast forward time at will. Pause…so I can get things done! Rewind…to relive moments with loved ones who are gone. Fast forward…would certainly be helpful to get through certain meetings.