Jun 18, 2008
{ Adult Patron Tantrum }
-ExcellentLovely patron this afternoon. She wanted me to find her some VHS tapes. No, she can't wait for them to be brought from other branches. She needs them now. The specific ones she wants are only available at another branch, and most of them are only available on DVD. She doesn't have a DVD player. We are discriminating against patrons that don't have DVD players. And she can't wait. Fine. She just wants to see what VHS we DO have. But she really needs some documentaties. That lady at the desk already showed her where they were, but now she can't remember. They were over “there” somewhere.
“Over there” somewhere turned out to be the mystery section. The mystery BOOK section.
“These are books. But I can show you where the VHS would be.”
“No. The lady told me they were here. These are all documentaries.”
“These are books. Mystery Books.”
“No. See. They're tapes.” She pulls one off the shelf. “Oh. I guess they are books. Where's the VHS? She told me they was here.”
“As I was saying, if you will follow me to the next aisle.”
“Where's all the VHS? Is this a VHS? I need a documentary.”
“These are DVD. See, the case is too small for a tape to fit into. We do have a few VHS. Here's one.”
“No. That's not it.”
“And here's one. We are phasing them out.”
“This is bullshit. I need VHS. You are discriminating against me.”
“As I said, I would be happy to reserve something from another branch for you.”
“This is bullshit. What about these? Are these VHS?”
“Those are books on tape.”
“No. That lady told me these are VHS.”
“I can assure you that they are books. On Cassette tape. And CD, in fact.”
“This is bullshit. You're discriminating against me.”
And so on. But it gets better. She finally turned around in the aisle and told me that she was done with me, there was nothing I could do to help her. So I went back over to the reference desk and started to help a nice elderly man who had been patiently waiting with a real reference question for about ten minutes. Just as I started to enter his information into my computer she came back over to my desk.
“I need you to reserve me those VHS.”
“Certainly, but I'm helping another patron right now.”
“No. I was here first.”
“And then you said you were done and I am helping another patron. But if you will just give me your library card I will see what.....”
“This is bullshit.”
And she left the building in full-grown-adult bitchy tantrum mode, leaving my other patron to stare at me like a bitch with two heads.
And that was just a minor event from the hell that was today.
Labels: bitch printer printing tantrum, DVD, excellent help bitch, patrons, VHS
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Jun 9, 2008
{ the NEW Summer Reading Club }
-Excellent
I know it’s a subject that has been ranted and raved about forever. But here I go again.... Summer Reading Club. I hate the Summer Reading Club. The patrons seem to hate Summer Reading Club. Why do we go through the same misery every year?
The agony starts with the fact that despite having sent out numerous emails in advance on exactly how to sign people up for the club, my coworkers still stare at me blankly when I explain why they can’t sign up a teen for the children’s club. Also when I explain that they need to put the entry form in the box that is labeled “entry forms go here.” Also when I say “Just send them to me, I’ll do it........”
Then there are the arguments with patrons who want to kow why the prizes are so shitty. (It is FREE. You don’t want your crappy prize, don’t sign-up.)
Then there is the problem that in order to avoid excluding anyone, the library people in charge decided a couple of years ago to open the adult (not the children or teens. They are apparently held to higher standards) READING club to also include DVDs and CDs (not books on CD. The music kind). So our new theme is “Join the Summer Reading Club and sit on your ass in front of the TV all summer long for shitty prizes that you are going to throw in the librarian's waste-can as soon as her back is turned.”
Enjoy.Labels: bookstore, booze, DVD, movies, reading, stupidity, summer reading club
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