But September was quite an emotional time this year, one reason being that this lovely lady decided that the life of a Library Account Developer (LAD) was no longer for her and that working at IOP Publishing is just not relaxing enough, so she opted to pursue her dream of becoming a yoga teacher and will soon be setting up her own business after doing her teacher training at a beautiful retreat in Spain. So as sad as it was to lose such a kick-ass member of the team, it's also actually quite nice to watch a friend chase what she really wants and make it become a reality. Fair bloomin' play!
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| Ailsa Burns, a bubbly kinda' character |
As her line manager it was my duty to carry out the traditional leaving speech (get a load of colleagues to stand around her desk, say embarrassing things about her, shower her with gifts and make her open them awkwardly in front of the group, that type of thing), so to commemorate her succumbing to the call of the yoga beast (yes, that's a real thing), I worked this little poem into her presentation:
There was once a wee lassy called Ailsa, who was IOP’s top LAD,
Who
worked hard, and then handed in her notice, which made the team really sad.
She
brought marketing prowess and glitter and threw them around in an effortless
manner,
So
much so that all her achievements couldn’t even fit on a flexi banner.
 |
| Bunch of LADs |
She toured around parts of Europe and got into lots of hilarious capers,
Which
mostly involved helping libraries promote their ebooks and journal papers.
She
impressed customers across the continent, because she’s as bright as a button,
And
could even cope with the terrible jokes when on tour with Ian Sutton.
She
sampled pizza all over Italia during work adventures with Fran,
And
frolicked with the stars in Milano, well… that Made in Chelsea man.
She
spent a whole day feeding Bristol, building a pond with pure man power,
Dug
up the mulch and planted the shrubs, and made James Dacey eat a flower.
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| Feed(ing) Bristol (and James) |
Her
marketing plans were exceptional, her infographics had real appeal,
And
she even managed to get her head round the Austrian offsetting deal.
She
rescued institution’s subscriptions when their downloads took a tumble,
And
even being paired with Lukas Piasecki couldn’t make this warrior crumble.
At
the sales and marketing Belbin day where we played the ‘would I lie to you’
game,
Ailsa
opted to tell all the group, about her five minutes of fame,
Where
she starred in a yoga video, and had to hold the most difficult pose,
But
all Davide was interested to know about was if she was wearing any clothes.
But
outside of her IOP Publishing life, a different Ailsa emerges,
A
fashion model, a DJ queen, and a blogger with ethical urges.
Yes,
there’s many a project or good cause that this fab woman wants to tackle,
And
if you ever need to track her down, just simply follow her cackle.
 |
| You spin me right round baby! |
She is the girl who invented disco, and at karaoke she was a real hoot,
But
come down time she was often found playing The Sims or Crash Bandicoot,
She’s
a friend of the birds and the mighty red panda, who has the furriest face,
And
she’s a pretty big fan of humans too, especially on Ru Paul’s Drag Race.
 |
| All of the glamour |
So
now that the news has finally sunk in and we’re just about over the shock,
It’s
time to say bye to our Ailsa, the pure, beautiful fairy on the fairy rock,
May
we wish you all of the luck in the world as your new journey gets underway,
But
please leave us a little of your sunshine, because we’ll miss you every day.
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