Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
@devinfitz.bsky.social
Old Books, Global History, at UCLA (Curator of Global Book History and the History of Printing). Once described as, "in need of etiquette classes." Queer. Poly. They/them
Love notes like this left in books by earlier librarians. This profession runs on the hope of ever having time to love things as they deserve, and our archives are full of the epitaphs of good intentions.
January 20, 2026 at 10:13 PM
Love notes like this left in books by earlier librarians. This profession runs on the hope of ever having time to love things as they deserve, and our archives are full of the epitaphs of good intentions.
Moving after divorce is gradually stepping up from disposable crap furniture that is plywood composed of broken hearts into mid century modern.
January 19, 2026 at 7:17 PM
Moving after divorce is gradually stepping up from disposable crap furniture that is plywood composed of broken hearts into mid century modern.
Reposted by Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
ICE raids are not the first time this was made explicit. I think people downplay how much Jim Crow was not just about controlling Black people but it was also about controlling white people. If you thought racism was dumb and acted that way you could end up with a bomb in your home
Just keep coming back to the fact that keeping people in a constant state of terror is a form of mass disablement and essential to the eugenic project that is the United States.
January 17, 2026 at 6:08 AM
ICE raids are not the first time this was made explicit. I think people downplay how much Jim Crow was not just about controlling Black people but it was also about controlling white people. If you thought racism was dumb and acted that way you could end up with a bomb in your home
Reposted by Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
This is more nuanced than things on the ground: essential research services (libraries, staff support) have been gutted at an alarming rate, and there is little discussion of rebuilding former capacities. Even as the US is at its wealthiest, we are robbing the future
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/u...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/u...
Chinese Universities Surge in Global Rankings as U.S. Schools Slip
www.nytimes.com
January 16, 2026 at 5:44 PM
This is more nuanced than things on the ground: essential research services (libraries, staff support) have been gutted at an alarming rate, and there is little discussion of rebuilding former capacities. Even as the US is at its wealthiest, we are robbing the future
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/u...
www.nytimes.com/2026/01/15/u...
Totally nutty: A rubbing of the calligraphy of Yan Zhenqing (d. 785), cut and pasted into a Ming 1600s directorate of education Song history.
January 15, 2026 at 6:47 PM
Totally nutty: A rubbing of the calligraphy of Yan Zhenqing (d. 785), cut and pasted into a Ming 1600s directorate of education Song history.
Fed chair being the beacon of morality and spine was not on my bingo card. Homie serving Atticus Finch moral clarity. Felt like his statement should have been filmed in black and white.
January 12, 2026 at 7:34 PM
Fed chair being the beacon of morality and spine was not on my bingo card. Homie serving Atticus Finch moral clarity. Felt like his statement should have been filmed in black and white.
Reposted by Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
I can't describe how bad Minneapolis feels right now. My neighbors are pulling kids out of school. The public schools are offering remote learning until 2/12. We are having conversations in our alleys about how to protect ourselves. It feels like a military occupation with a blockade.
The US Department of Agriculture suspends all federal funding to Minnesota, effective immediately.
January 10, 2026 at 4:29 PM
I can't describe how bad Minneapolis feels right now. My neighbors are pulling kids out of school. The public schools are offering remote learning until 2/12. We are having conversations in our alleys about how to protect ourselves. It feels like a military occupation with a blockade.
Had a check in with my friend/tutor in Isfahan scheduled, likely the internet is down with all the protests. Love 2026. No notes.
January 9, 2026 at 7:13 PM
Had a check in with my friend/tutor in Isfahan scheduled, likely the internet is down with all the protests. Love 2026. No notes.
Reposted by Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
Yale Law School never beating the “they don’t teach law at Yale” allegations
January 8, 2026 at 7:19 PM
Yale Law School never beating the “they don’t teach law at Yale” allegations
Metal AF, from 1751 'Vida, maritirio, y beatificación del invicto proto-martir del Japón San Felipe de Jesus, patrón de México su patria, imperial corte de Nueva España en el Nuevo Mundo' printed in Mexico city. A biography of the San Felipe de Jesus, the first Mexican saint, martyred in Japan.
January 8, 2026 at 11:03 PM
Metal AF, from 1751 'Vida, maritirio, y beatificación del invicto proto-martir del Japón San Felipe de Jesus, patrón de México su patria, imperial corte de Nueva España en el Nuevo Mundo' printed in Mexico city. A biography of the San Felipe de Jesus, the first Mexican saint, martyred in Japan.
I have officially started a routine of sleeping for 20 minutes every lunch. And you know, it's magical. I think I may actually be on to something.
January 8, 2026 at 8:54 PM
I have officially started a routine of sleeping for 20 minutes every lunch. And you know, it's magical. I think I may actually be on to something.
Reposted by Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
The woman killed by ICE today was a poet. She won the 2020 Academy of American Poets, University & College Poetry Prize at Old Dominion University.
(And this is Renee from confirmed socials- a photo of a different woman with red lipstick is going around, but that was a classmate.)
/
(And this is Renee from confirmed socials- a photo of a different woman with red lipstick is going around, but that was a classmate.)
/
January 8, 2026 at 12:13 AM
The woman killed by ICE today was a poet. She won the 2020 Academy of American Poets, University & College Poetry Prize at Old Dominion University.
(And this is Renee from confirmed socials- a photo of a different woman with red lipstick is going around, but that was a classmate.)
/
(And this is Renee from confirmed socials- a photo of a different woman with red lipstick is going around, but that was a classmate.)
/
Fuck this fascist administration and everyone who helped put them in power.
A friend in Minneapolis just sent me this video. Looks like thousands have come together for a vigil after an ICE agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good. This was my neighborhood for several years before coming to Portland.
January 8, 2026 at 1:33 AM
Fuck this fascist administration and everyone who helped put them in power.
Reposted by Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
Back at work this week and I wanted to share something that's actually a cool history post and not just, like, anti-imperialist rage. This is a Buddhist 'dharani' amulet found in a tomb at Chang'an (modern Xi'an) in northern China. It was *printed* (probably by monks) circa 650-670 CE.
January 7, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Back at work this week and I wanted to share something that's actually a cool history post and not just, like, anti-imperialist rage. This is a Buddhist 'dharani' amulet found in a tomb at Chang'an (modern Xi'an) in northern China. It was *printed* (probably by monks) circa 650-670 CE.
Does anyone have a reference to a single peer-reviewed scientific article demonstrating the danger of gel nail polish (or nail polish) to rare books and manuscripts in their handling?
There are many anecdotes, which I expect are misogynist and classist dog whistles.
There are many anecdotes, which I expect are misogynist and classist dog whistles.
January 6, 2026 at 6:56 PM
Does anyone have a reference to a single peer-reviewed scientific article demonstrating the danger of gel nail polish (or nail polish) to rare books and manuscripts in their handling?
There are many anecdotes, which I expect are misogynist and classist dog whistles.
There are many anecdotes, which I expect are misogynist and classist dog whistles.
Reposted by Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
Do you have an archive, collection, recent acquisition, or project on Japan worth showcasing in a short article? 🗾 NCC collaborates with institutions and scholars on “Japanese Studies Spotlight” features to introduce these important resources to the field!
January 6, 2026 at 3:35 PM
Do you have an archive, collection, recent acquisition, or project on Japan worth showcasing in a short article? 🗾 NCC collaborates with institutions and scholars on “Japanese Studies Spotlight” features to introduce these important resources to the field!
Reposted by Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
On the first day back following the kidnapping of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro & first lady Cilia Flores, 6 Senate Democrats vote yea to confirm Keith Bass as an Assistant Secretary of Defense by a vote of 50-35.
January 5, 2026 at 11:37 PM
On the first day back following the kidnapping of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro & first lady Cilia Flores, 6 Senate Democrats vote yea to confirm Keith Bass as an Assistant Secretary of Defense by a vote of 50-35.
Classes already back. The quarter system is brutal. Happy first day of winter quarter UC goons.
January 5, 2026 at 4:53 PM
Classes already back. The quarter system is brutal. Happy first day of winter quarter UC goons.
Now that my Hunagarian is getting into A2 (we are in month 2), I would say the most interesting thing is watching a brain without scaffolding. No cognates, just gut busting memorization. My brain keeps making false friends.
Also started Hindi this week, for something a bit lighter.
Also started Hindi this week, for something a bit lighter.
January 4, 2026 at 8:38 PM
Now that my Hunagarian is getting into A2 (we are in month 2), I would say the most interesting thing is watching a brain without scaffolding. No cognates, just gut busting memorization. My brain keeps making false friends.
Also started Hindi this week, for something a bit lighter.
Also started Hindi this week, for something a bit lighter.
Here I was thinking we'd make through the first week of the year before starting a war. Silly.
January 3, 2026 at 10:56 PM
Here I was thinking we'd make through the first week of the year before starting a war. Silly.
Congratulations LA.! We did full Old Testament this year. We got raining fire, Pharoah's troops (ICE), and world submerging floods.
December 24, 2025 at 8:05 PM
Congratulations LA.! We did full Old Testament this year. We got raining fire, Pharoah's troops (ICE), and world submerging floods.
Looks like I am finally moving from the Westside to mid city. Will be nice to be near people with interests aside from surfing.
December 22, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Looks like I am finally moving from the Westside to mid city. Will be nice to be near people with interests aside from surfing.
Reposted by Devin Fitzgerald, bibliothot
Closing out my year with a journal editor shocker 🧵
Checking new manuscripts today I reviewed a paper attributing 2 papers to me I did not write. A daft thing for an author to do of course. But intrigued I web searched up one of the titles and that's when it got real weird...
Checking new manuscripts today I reviewed a paper attributing 2 papers to me I did not write. A daft thing for an author to do of course. But intrigued I web searched up one of the titles and that's when it got real weird...
December 19, 2025 at 5:20 PM
Closing out my year with a journal editor shocker 🧵
Checking new manuscripts today I reviewed a paper attributing 2 papers to me I did not write. A daft thing for an author to do of course. But intrigued I web searched up one of the titles and that's when it got real weird...
Checking new manuscripts today I reviewed a paper attributing 2 papers to me I did not write. A daft thing for an author to do of course. But intrigued I web searched up one of the titles and that's when it got real weird...
Can I get three chapters in a readable form by Jan 5?
No!
Will I be disappointed that I failed?
Yes!
Happy holidays from the beginning of my final failures of 2025. May you and yours also find impossible self imposed expectations and epigenetic Protestant shame!
No!
Will I be disappointed that I failed?
Yes!
Happy holidays from the beginning of my final failures of 2025. May you and yours also find impossible self imposed expectations and epigenetic Protestant shame!
December 19, 2025 at 11:24 PM
Can I get three chapters in a readable form by Jan 5?
No!
Will I be disappointed that I failed?
Yes!
Happy holidays from the beginning of my final failures of 2025. May you and yours also find impossible self imposed expectations and epigenetic Protestant shame!
No!
Will I be disappointed that I failed?
Yes!
Happy holidays from the beginning of my final failures of 2025. May you and yours also find impossible self imposed expectations and epigenetic Protestant shame!