Technology can be a pain

Last Wednesday, IT finally upgraded the staff computers on my floor. Everyone has been complaining about lost favorites and saved programs. Up until today, I hadn't been affected.
I logged onto my computer this morning, I received a message saying that an error had occurred yesterday. All of my favorites were gone. All of my pictures were gone. I spent the bulk of this morning trying to recall blog addresses and save them to my favorites again.
I thought I had missed the computer upgrade malfunction, it was just delayed.

Rainy days are the worst

Tuesdays, I get a ride to work from my Mom. It's her day to volunteer at the hospital and my job is along the route. This past Tuesday, it was raining and cold.

My Mom had asked me to drive to my job, because she wanted to eat her breakfast. The whole drive to work, she was teasing me. "Oh, it's raining and cold, I bet it will be crowded today. I don't mind the crowds, and the crazies, but the SMELL!!" They just smell so bad.

My only response was, "Um huh." All while she was talking about this, I was dealing with people driving crazy and having to brake suddenly because they were speeding and not gently merging into traffic. She then said, "Oh, if I were on my way to a stressful job and the other drivers kept doing me, like they are doing you, I would be highly upset. You seem to be handling it pretty well."

I then said, "Yeah, the other drivers are acting up and you are teasing me about the atmosphere that I will be subjected to while at work. FUN!"

I fell for it again!

A patron appraoched the reference desk. I was relieving my co-worker and he said, "I'll let you handle THIS one.". That should have been my clue.

The patron said that he wanted Lantern Lane. I said, "What about Lantern Lane?" He then said, "I don't know what or where it is.". I conducted an internet search and found that it is a street in Kansas. I showed the patron what I found and he said, "Is that a book? Where can I find it?". I then said, "Oh, you want a book with that in the title?". He said, "Yeah, that's what you do here isn't it, find books."

I searched the catalog and showed him that we don't have a book with Lantern Lane in the title. I told him that there is a fiction book titled Lantern Wife. He said, "Oh, I want that.". I explained that the book is in storage and he would have to request it at the page desk. I also explained where the page desk is, gave him the print out and he went in the opposite direction.
A little later, I had to go to the page desk. I passed the patron mentioned above. He was staring at the bottom of the empty coffee cup that he had been reading from while at the reference desk.
Once again, I was fooled by a "Coocoo for cocoa puffs," trying to ask a sane reference question.

Still able

I went to work last Sunday, even though I felt awful. I knew we always have a tight desk rotation for the librarians. I sounded about as bad as I felt.
Our regular OED man called and said after I answered his question, "YOU SOUND BAD, You need to take care of that." Our resident don't come to work at all librarian even asked me why I came to work. She even asked me if I would be at work on Monday. I explained to her that the desk schedule would be just as tight on Monday. She then said, "I guess you need to not let that be your problem!"

I stayed home on Monday and Tuesday. I came to work on Wednesday and the first thing my supervisor said to me is, "You look and sound bad!". I was actually was feeling better than I had in a few days and told him so.
OED man called and told me, "You sound better, but I know you can sound a WHOLE LOT BETTER!". I said, "Wow thanks!"
This week, I feel better. I'm still congested and sound like it too. I keep hearing, "Oh, YOU SOUND BAD, but you do sound better than you did last week.

These People Have Nothing Better To Do

I saw a patron walking around the floor and mumbling Monday around 5:12pm. He approached my co-worker and said, "All of the computers on this floor are being used. As he walked away from the desk, he said while shaking his head, "THESE PEOPLE MUST HAVE NOTHING ELSE TO DO.". My co-woker said, "What did you expect, it's a Monday and almost 45 minutes before closing?"
After he walked the floor 1 more time, he approached me. He said, "I have walked all of the floors, and all of the computers are in use! These people must really have nothing else to do."
I just stared at him, until he finally walked away mumbling.

*Dude is here everyday. I don't even know why he said anything to me, because I haven't entertained him with a response any other time.

Butterfly Award

Monique over at The Little Reading Nook chose me as a recipient of the Butterfly Award. It has taken me a minute, but I am finally making an attempt to complete this task. I really don't think that I'm going to pass this on. The authors of the blogs that I read on a regular have done so many of these things. To see the blogs that I love to visit, just look at the ones I have listed on the side.

This is a meme award to be passed on.
The rules are:
1. Post the logo on your blog
2. Add link to the person who awarded it to you
3. Award up to 10 blogs
4. Add links to those blogs in your award post
5. Leave a message for awardee on their blog

If I had to pick the two blogs that I check first daily, they are:

Aunt Jackie
Rashan Jamal

Some people

A patron approached me at the reference desk and said, "Every time I try to log in,
I get the message that says I have entered the wrong card number or pin number."

I asked the patron if he had reserved the computer that he was trying to use, and he said yes. I decided to double check, I just wanted to be sure that he had the correct computer terminal. He said, "I don't have my card, just the number."

He gave me a piece of paper. That should have been the warning flag for me, but no, I wanted to believe that everything was as he stated. I entered the information that was on the paper. I got the same message he did. I then asked him for his California Identification card. I looked his name up in the computer. Well, well, well, his card number was completely different. He said, "That is the correct information on the paper, unless my sister is playing tricks on me again." I gave him his library card number and told him that he can use that to get on the computer. He cursed the computer and side-eyed me while he walked to the other side of the room.

Later some other little off beat people joined him. After about 30 minutes, they left the floor in frustration. That little man had the nerve to side-eye me once again while they walked pass me. He didnt' know it, but I wasnt' in the mood for games yesterday.

As requested..................

I arrived to work @8:35a.m. I thought that I would have trouble gaining access to the staff entrance.

I did see a lot of people, but they were all making a beeline toward the plaza.

I didn't go to the auditorium. I opted to watch online. The librarian who sponsored the event reported that they ended up letting the patrons in at 8:50 a.m. The auditorium quickly became standing room only. Everyone wanted to watch the I.naguration together. Cheers were heard all the way up on the 3rd flr(mine.). It was a peaceful event that even brought out the city librarian.

By the public's reaction, you'd think we were giving out gold bars

Tuesday, the library will show the i.nauguration ceremony in our auditorium. Since we don't officially open until 9:00 a.m.(PST,) they will open the building at 8:45 a.m. Those who want to enter the building early, will need a ticket.

The tickets are being given out at the reference desk on my floor. There is an announcement on our website, it has been in the local paper, and I guess on the local news. People have been coming in everyday, all day, and asking for passes.

Sunday, a woman asked me for 20 passes. We had less than 10 at the desk. The librarian who's co-sponsoring the event said that when they ran out, that would be all. He then changed his mind and said that if there is time, he will request that more tickets be printed. I told the woman that I couldn't give her 20. She then said, "Well, can I have 3 because I want to bring my children." I gave her 3, along with the name and telephone number for the librarian in charge of the event. I gave the man that was with her 2. He then came back Monday evening and asked for 3 more tickets and said that he also wanted to pick up 15 for the woman from Sunday. At that point, we only had 1 ticket left.

Today, a woman called and asked me so many questions about the event, I thought she was writing an article. She asked if we had close circuit televisions, in addition to the projector screen. I looked at the telephone receiver before answering her. When I got off the telephone, my co-worker said, "Is the person writing a book?"

An unsoliticited suggestion

A patron approached me at the reference desk and asked if we have Ethernet cables to loan out. I told her that we didn't. She went on to tell me that we should. She said, "When you go through the trouble of packing up your laptop and coming down here, only to discover that you keep getting bumped off of the WI-fi. Then, you don't have your Ethernet cable. It would really help if you had those. That is my suggestion!"

All I said was okay. I was thinking, "Why, so that those can get stolen?"

No cell phone yesterday

I wasn't able to post about this nonsense, because I left my cell phone in my Mom's car yesterday.

1. A woman calls and says that she wants to read a sentence to me to see which
tense I think she should use. I don't remember the exact sentence, but she was
addressing two people. She wanted to say something to the effect of, "I wish to
send blessings your ways." I told her that the use of way in the singular
sounded better. We went back and forth for a minute, until she finally said,
" I want to know what the correct use of the word in this sentence is!" I told her, "I don't have a degree in English Literature, nor have
I ever taught an English class. Since you are the one composing and sending the
letter, you need to use whatever you feel comfortable with." She then says, "Is
there someone else there who can give me the correct usage of the word?" I put
her on hold and spoke with two of my co-workers. When the other librarian went
to answer the call, she had hung up.

2. A patron rushed up to the reference desk yelling that he needed help with the
computer. One of the lazy librarians who was leaving the desk said, " Oh, my
co-worker will be glad to help you(me.") I followed the patron to his assigned
computer. He stood there and looked at me like, "What are you going to do now!"
I told him to log onto the computer. As he was logging on he said, " I just want
to know how to access my e-mail." The box appeared where you chose which
you want to use. As I was telling the man to click the start button, he opened
up the adobe program. I told him that wasn't the right program. He turned and
yelled, "I HAVE A FLASHDRIVE AND I WANT TO USE IT." That was the point where I
began walking away. The patron said, as I was walking back toward the reference
desk, "AREN'T YOU GOING TO HELP ME?" I said, "I was, until you yelled at me
and told me WHAT TO DO!"

Ummm NO!

A patron asked me if we are open on January 1st. When I said, "No," the patron said, "Well I guess it's good that y'all get a day off."

At first, I thought I was being sensitive

My co-worker then confirmed what I believed to be true.

It began a few months ago, I don't know why he picked me, but he has. This old man wobbled to the desk and just stood in front of me. I was in the middle of helping a patron, so I walked away in order to help the patron retrieve a book. When I returned to the desk, the man was still standing in the same spot. My co-worker was sitting on the opposite end of the desk doing nothing.

I finally asked, "Did you need something?" He said, "YEAH, I NEED SOMETHING!" He didn't elaborate. My co-worker finally recovered from whatever fog she was in and said, "Oh, I'm sorry, can I help you?" She did this because I was still helping the first patron.

He has done other little things to me since, but I can't remember each one. What stands out the most in my mind is how he will just stand in front of me and stare when I'm at the reference desk.

Yesterday, he returned the reference desk copy of the K.ing J.ames version of the B.ible. After I returned his identification to him, he asked me, "Do you believe in J.esus?" I said, "Un huh." I was thinking, "Of course I do, that is what has kept me from telling you off!"

Back to today. This same man approached me at the reference desk and said, "THE WORD!" I asked, "Did you want the B.ible?" He said, "Same difference, B.ible, word, whatever." I then said, "If you want the B.ible, you need to ask for it by the correct name."

When he left, I told my co-worked that the patron is always messing with me. My co-worker said, "I noticed that, he has always approached me and asked for the K.ing J.ames B.ible. For whatever reason, he just doesn't like you."

I have now decided that if possilbe, I will just walk away from the desk whenever I see that patron wobbling toward me."

It's been raining and cold

Well, cold to us is anything below 50 degrees. It's been in the 40's. When it's raining and or cold, the library fills up. About 12;30p.m., it almost looked as if it was standing room only on the floor. And the smells, I wanted to turn around and return to the staff area.

Seen and heard at the reference desk:

I saw a man walk past and it seemed as if he was digging for gold with his
pinkie finger(in his nose.) What made this sight ultra scary is that he had
on a chef's jacket.

I helped a patron and then she said to me, " You are one of my favorite
librarians, because you shush people when they get noisy." I said, "Thank
you, I think."

Being unable to recognize that you're referring to yourself

Sunday afternoon, OED man approached the reference desk and began asking my co-worker to look up words and his new obsession of phrases.

I walked away from the desk to assist a patron in locating a book. Upon my return to the reference desk, my co-worker says to me, "OED said, if we created a new department, just for the crazy people, there wouldn't be any patrons in our department." I asked my co-worker, "Is he including himself in the proposed new department?"

Sometimes you just need to step away

This happened to one of my co-workers yesterday, and he said that I should write about it here.


One of our semi-regulars approached my co-worker at the reference desk and asked, "CAN YOU HELP ME FIND A BOOK THAT WILL TELL ME HOW TO MAKE MY BEST FRIEND TURN G.AY!"

My co-workers response, "YOU NEED TO JUST GO AWAY NOW!!!!" My co-worked then walked away from the reference desk and came into the staff area. He said that he just needed to take a moment away from the desk to just breath.

Background info on the patron:

For about 3 months, he rolled into the library on a very fancy motorized chair. He would just use the computers to type about 10 signs. He would then tape the signs to the back of his chair. He would do this everyday. I was curious, so one day, I read a portion of the signs. They said, "I am looking for my boyfriend. He helps me do everything." The signs went on to describe his boyfriend in detail.

One day he just stopped. From that point on, he had a laptop whenever he came into the library. I forgot to add that he was always very dirty, head to toe.

He hadn't been in here for quite a while, and then I noticed him again, last week. He is a little cleaner, hair cut, motorized chair gone. He now has an old school wheelchair.

I didn't know it was possible

Yesterday, I saw a patron maintain his pimp stroll while using a cane. He had a mean lean to the left. The cane was in the right hand. He also did a glide/shuffle.

Today, I have angered a co-worker. It wasn't my intention. She just assumed that I would feel sympathy for her and I don't. She has gotten away with not working the schedule that she agreed to when she was hired. This has gone on for more than 6 months. She complained to me because the management has informed her that she must return to her Sunday work schedule. Her whine, "I WON'T HAVE TWO DAYS OFF IN A ROW ANYMORE!"

My reply, "I didn't have 2 days in a row off for 5 years, and I was working 3 different jobs!"

No policy against it exists, so it is allowed

This is what my supervisor told me. We were at the reference desk together. I noticed out of the corner of my eye, a man at one of the teen computers, zip lock bag in hand. He had rolling papers in the other hand that he had just lined. As I observed him rolling the joi.nt, I mentioned it to my boss, and he said, "Since there isn't a policy against a patron rolling a joint, it is allowed!"

So I now know that it is okay for folks to sit in the open and roll joints inside the library.

True Crime readers scare me!!!!!!

A petite woman approached me at the reference desk. She specifically bypassed my co-worker to get to me. Her hair was disheveled, her skin was dirty, she had glasses with coke bottle lenses, they were dirty and lopsided.

She asked, "Do you have any books on KIL.LERS."

I looked at her oddly. She then said, "You know, like Scott Peters.on, or Charles Man.son."

I asked, "Do you want one about Scott, or Charles?"

She said, " I want a book about each of them."

As I was telling her what books were available, she said, "And do you have a book about SER.IAL KIL.LERS?"

I stopped typing and looked at her. She then said, "I'm studying them."

I took her to the section and pulled the books myself. She told me as I was walking away, "I'm just going to study the books in here." I said, "Uh huh," and kept walking.

When I returned to the desk, I relayed the interaction to my co-worker. He said, "Yeah, she's studying those books so she can learn how to be a ser.ial kill.er."

In my experience, giving a man a fish will only lead to

him asking you to cook it and plan the rest of the meal while you're at it.

Monday afternoon at 4:30 p.m(I was off the desk at 5 p.m.,) a man approached the desk and asked me for hospital statistics. I removed the American Hosp.ital Statisti.cs handbook off the shelf. I opened the book to the Californ.ia hospit.al statist.ics page. I showed the information to the man. He said, "Oh, I want hospital statistics for A.frica."

I searched to see if we might have a book in our collection with that information. We didn't, so I then searched the internet. I found some statistics for a children's hospital in S.outh Africa. I printed this and showed it to the man. He said, "I want statistics for hospitals in West Africa." I searched a bit more and didn't find anything and told the man so. He then said, "I want statistics on medical schools in Africa."

My search resulted in a list of medical schools in S.outh A.frica. I showed this to the man and he said, "I want to know the costs to build a school in Africa."

This time, I found information on a foundation that provides grants for the building of elementary schools in A.frica. I also found a proposal for the building of an elementary school in S.outh A.frica. The proposal also included the cost of building a dormatory. I gave all of this information to the man and he said, " I want to know the cost of building a medical school in W.est A.frica. My brother wants to build a medical school for the area where I am from. All of the funding will come from A.merica." By this time, I had given the man 25 minutes of my time. I told him that he needed to take the information that I gave him and do further research.

He then said, "What about salaries? I need to know how much it will cost to pay the instructors." I told him that he would have to look at the websites for medical schools in S.outh A.frica and see what they are offering as salary and then make an educated guess." He then realized that I was done with him and said, "Well I guess this will have to do."