I Prefer The Term Sasquatch, Sir
As I’ve previously documented, I’ve been AWOL a lot lately because I’m a big whiny baby. That said, school is kind of kicking my ass these days. So far I’ve been able to keep up with everything but it’s taking lots of effort.
Last night I had to do a “project” of sorts for my reference class. Our assignment was to observe for 2 hours at a library reference desk and then write a report about it (and no, this doesn’t count). I was told that 5-7 would be a good time to observe, so I headed for my local library right after work. It turned out to be not too busy, but I did observe a couple of things to put in my report, including a man who asked for a book about Bigfoot (preferably as recent as possible). I didn’t tell him that I prefer the term Sasquatch. The librarian hooked him up with a 2005 title. All this made me think of a friend of mine who’s all about the Bigfoot.
I also got a look at the “anything can happen” side of the public library. I carried a stroller down the stairs because the elevator was broken. The automatic paper towel dispenser in the men’s restroom went berserk and just kept running and running, causing a pile of paper towels to pile up about a foot thick on the floor. I watched as the librarian approached a teenage couple getting a bit too cozy and asked the boy to give the girl’s arm back, to which he replied “it’s not your arm, what do you care?” Is “because I said so asshole” an appropriate response?
I got to see how books are ordered, which was pretty cool. After a finding a book for one guy, he asked if the library had a more recent edition. They had a 2nd edition, and a quick web search revealed that that book is now in a 4th edition. An order was placed right there at the desk for the 4th edition. Later a woman came in asking for a book that did not show up in the system. A quick search of Amazon revealed that the book was just published on September 4th. Boom! An order was placed right then and the woman will be notified when it comes in. At this particular library, each librarian gets a budget, and they can pretty much order whatever they want as long as they stay within their budget. That’s pretty damn cool.
Last night I had to do a “project” of sorts for my reference class. Our assignment was to observe for 2 hours at a library reference desk and then write a report about it (and no, this doesn’t count). I was told that 5-7 would be a good time to observe, so I headed for my local library right after work. It turned out to be not too busy, but I did observe a couple of things to put in my report, including a man who asked for a book about Bigfoot (preferably as recent as possible). I didn’t tell him that I prefer the term Sasquatch. The librarian hooked him up with a 2005 title. All this made me think of a friend of mine who’s all about the Bigfoot.
I also got a look at the “anything can happen” side of the public library. I carried a stroller down the stairs because the elevator was broken. The automatic paper towel dispenser in the men’s restroom went berserk and just kept running and running, causing a pile of paper towels to pile up about a foot thick on the floor. I watched as the librarian approached a teenage couple getting a bit too cozy and asked the boy to give the girl’s arm back, to which he replied “it’s not your arm, what do you care?” Is “because I said so asshole” an appropriate response?
I got to see how books are ordered, which was pretty cool. After a finding a book for one guy, he asked if the library had a more recent edition. They had a 2nd edition, and a quick web search revealed that that book is now in a 4th edition. An order was placed right there at the desk for the 4th edition. Later a woman came in asking for a book that did not show up in the system. A quick search of Amazon revealed that the book was just published on September 4th. Boom! An order was placed right then and the woman will be notified when it comes in. At this particular library, each librarian gets a budget, and they can pretty much order whatever they want as long as they stay within their budget. That’s pretty damn cool.
posted by JC at 10:36 AM
3 Comments:
This library I think I'd likey, the only ones I've been to (save for university ones) have been filled with noisy children, scary looking middle-age men hogging the internet, and sassy too-important-to-ask-where-THAT-book-is librarians
Sounds like a fun project! Sorry to hear that school is kicking your ass. I know how you feel. I made the mistake of going full time this semester while also working a full time job! It is all I can do to keep my head above water! And on top of that, I've been sick all week, so I'm really behind now! :(
Keep up the great work, and I don't think you're a big whiny baby at all. :)
By the way, the Sasquatch reference made me remember a line from the new King Kong movie. "The only thing that could leave a footprint that big is the Abominable Snowman!" *LOL*
Btw, you've been tagged! ;)
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