According to the Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs, this common saying originated in North America. Nowadays, you can find it borrowed and adapted to suit any situation. So, “You can take the girl out of Glasgow, but you can’t take Glasgow out of the girl” – or whatever.
Today, I’ve come up with a new version:-
You can take the scholar-librarian out of the library, but you can’t take the librarian out of the scholar.
I received an email asking me about a particular publication. Did I have any idea where it might be found? Oh, yes, I had ideas. (Indeed, as a former librarian, I tend to take it as a slur on my searching abilities if I can’t find something online!) Sadly, none of my digital ideas have borne fruit this time – and goodness knows, I have turned the internet inside out. I used all the tricks of the trade – Boolean searching, phrase searching, library union catalogues, libraries NOT in union catalogues, second-hand music sites, NEW music sites (just to be on the safe side), specialised bibliographies – I just hope that maybe my non-digital suggestions might be more successful.
But if you find your web-searches are a wee bit weird tonight, it’s because the internet is now inside out! Sorry about that.
Images by StockSnap and Daniel Roberts from Pixabay
Karen McAulay, Musicologist 