Look Who's Back

It's my evil twin, back blogging on Bookish. i don't know if I can keep up two blogs, and FACEBOOK but will give it a try.

Catching up:

This year our library suffered some draconian budget cuts but at least we have been able to maintain services. That is, we have not reduced staff or hours. We are still open 70 hours a week (at Central and Regionals), 66 at most branches. We have not laid off any staff although when someone leaves, it's darn difficult to get them replaced. Every job opening must be approved by the county manager before it can be advertised. However, our county has always been fiscally conservative and extremely responsible, so we are in much better shape that other metro area Counties. I am grateful for that.

Still it has been challenging to spread out the book budget and patrons are feeling it at this point. We've cut the number of bestseller copies we purchase by 50%, doubled the holds-to-copies ratio. We're much more cautious about purchasing marginal materials. Generally I purchase 2 copies unless I am certain the title will be in high demand, in which case I might order 10 right off the bat and more if requests grow.

Yet, I love the position I'm in as collection development librarian. I love reading about books as much as I love reading them; the publishing industry is interesting and weird; and I love working with the reference/selection team.

My only complaint: I didn't do this thirty years ago. I never wanted to work in a public library. I didn't like the crazy hours or having to deal with such a diverse public. However, I have found that working with a broader base of patrons is really easier than a focused one as you would in a medical or law library. I found that in a special library, you generally have one type of patron so the quirks and difficult personalities seem to be magnified. In a public library, YOU GET EVERYTHING. Readers and non-readers, high school and middle school students, some college students who don't want to drive up to their campus or they're home on spring break; little old ladies and men; homeless people, crazy people, lonely people. Some make you want to strangle them, some break your heart, to others, you are their savior.

I miss that part of being on the public desk.

I had one woman who called regularly but we rarely saw her. She is certifiably nuts. She always has about five or six requests when she calls and they are random, off the wall questions: phone numbers and faxes usually, such as the county jail (where apparently both her sons reside), Catholic charities, the head of the Social Security Administration. And that's in the same call.

She drives some folks crazy but I don't mind her. If you're very busy with folks at the desk, and you tell her she'll have to call back she says, "Oh, okay honey." I would just go along with her because I think she might be alcoholic but I also believe her two sons problems have driven her over the edge.

That doesn't go for everybody I have had to deal with but the really difficult ones are neutralized by the good ones and in the medical library where I worked briefly that wasn't the case. Too many of the same personality types in that profession.

I thank the Lord everyday for this job, and simultaneously kick myself for not doing it sooner.

Two Nice Things That Happened Recently

All the negativity that's heaving and gasping around us sometimes overshadows the simplest and nicest things.

A couple of days ago a patron called to see if he could renew his interlibrary loan. It was due in just two days, and I didn't know if the lending library would be able to respond that quickly. He was upset and didn't want to "ruin his reputation" with the library, because he was so impressed with the ILL service we offered. "This is what makes America great!" he exclaimed in a foreign accent I could not identify.

Today a young-sounding gentleman called looking for the old 1950's sci-fi movie, "The Fly" which starred the great Vincent Price and David Hedison. We did not have the DVD in our system and since we do not ILL media at all, I checked Amazon, finding out that he could either view the old movie online for a small fee, download it and watch it (not sure how that works), or buy it, along with "The Return of the Fly" for about $15.00.

He was extremely happy to hear that. Of course I don't know why he wanted to watch this particular movie, nor does it matter but it seemed important to him. I was glad I thought of Amazon's Video on Demand, where I have watched a few films. In addition, if you're a Netflix subscriber, there are hundreds of not thousands of movies available to watchfor free online.

Technology is a burden sometimes but there is a huge positive side to it, making so many things available for little or no cost. As a movie buff, I'm thrilled to have so many options, particularly at night when I can't sleep or if I'm feeling a little blah, a movie can pick me right up.

I loved the reaction of the ILL patron, who thought that ILL service was just great. Many people are astonished to learn that libraries across the country and indeed, many around the world, are willing to lend their materials outside their own systems. Recently, we received transcripts of some interviews of President Eisenhower from the Eisenhower library in Kansas. No problem! They were even willing for the patron to take the materials outside the library.

Interlibrary loan is a fundamental service in almost all libraries. ILL service is interesting and challenging to me, although our operation is very small. We process about 200 loans a month and lend our materials about half that many times. We are able to obtain microfilm of old newspapers (very popular with genealogists), out of print fiction, research materials, magazine articles. It's that great cooperative spirit of libraries that I love, and that so very many people are either unaware of, or - the flip side - take tremendous advantage of.

National Library Week is just around the corner. Use your library!