Friday, February 24, 2006

11:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon; 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.

What I'm doing between questions: the ever-popular Dewey updates.
11:00

* We never got today's local paper. Major crisis...
* Patron wants to sign up for computer classes, but they are all full and the waiting lists are immense
[phone] Historical stock quotes
* Little Guide to Your Well-Read Life, by Steve Leveen
* State tax forms
* Multiple questions about Olympic Speed Skating
* Stock patron shows up and we can't find historical stock quote for Sears because the symbol has changed.
[phone] High school librarian asking about linking to our databases

1:00

[phone] Real Estate exam [hasn't arrived yet]
* Latin/English dictionary
["Lameness in Sheep" is the subject heading I'm looking at right now...falling OFF the chair laughing]
* Tax forms [why-o-why can't the state get their act together and send us FORMS--we have a million copies of instructions and NO STANDARD FORMS!]
* "I just moved here from Maine..." etc. how to get a library card
* Real estate exam [different person]
[phone] Called high school librarian back with link information

A surprisingly quiet day....

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

10:45 a.m. - 12:00 noon ; 2:00 - 3:00 p.m.

One of our librarians has left us, so I will be filling in some of his hours until we replace him.

What I'm doing between questions: fixing the layout on this blog, the ever-present Dewey changes, and Demand order cards.

10:45

* "Can you help me move the text in this over?" [I hate Word templates; they are so unforgiving]
* Doddery woman asking about using genealogy database; I get her card re-entered into SAM and [gratefully] send her upstairs to the wolv...genealogy section.
* Yep, tax forms are right there
* Stapler [right in front of you]
* No, the 1040A and its Schedule 1 are not the same as the 1040EZ your granddaughter asked you to pick up [same woman who found the tax forms above]
* SAM registration [more genealogy]
[OH MY GOD! Someone actually found the tax forms without asking for directions; he didn't even slow down as he came around the corner in search of them. Some people aren't stupid.]
[Circ person comes out of study room with patron, stops to talk to one of our regular 'net users, and then comes to me and says the woman was able to see that patron looking at some pretty awful websites. She didn't know what to do, so she went to the circ desk (the other side of the library) to tell. HELLO! I'm right-flippin' here in front of you! Of course, the guy was doing something completely innocuous and denied everything when the staff member talked to him. Proof? We don't keep track of what people were doing. Unfortunately.]
* SAM registration
*[phone] More information on journal articles requested yesterday
* Doddery genealogy lady isn't quite as dumb as she seems, but she is having printing problems
* Other genealogist pays for prints; she's back to the 14th century: "Is that good?" [wow!]
* SAM renewal
* [state] Manufacturer's Directory

2:00

* Patron has Dewey numbers but no clue how to find the books [we walk, we find]
* Sales guys from EBSCO; we chat
* Very sweet girl needs help with computer
* Internet newbie SAM registration
[EBSCO guys leave]
[Tech asst. brings me her latest assignment; I repeated a list, so it's already done!]
* "Cigar Aficionado" magazine [we don't have; only three libraries in a 60-mile radius do--too far for her to go]
* "Which tax form do I need?" [pathetic]
* SAM renewal
* How to print in color
* Everybody's Business from the 1980s and 1990