You'll never find me behind the info desk at a public library again...

So my goal for this year, which I just made this evening, is to make it to 500 posts.  This is post 494 so you'd think that would be easily attainable, but one has to take into account the extremely lazy approach I have to this blog.  This is my first post of 2015, so even if I strive for the half-assed goal of one post per month that's kind of stretching it.

One of the reasons why I haven't posted is because I no longer work in a public library.  In a few months it will be a full year since I've departed that field.  I may not work in a conventional library with the rows and rows of shelves, but I'm still a librarian at heart. 

Ironically, when I found this job posted online, there wasn't any mention of "library" or "librarian" in the description or title but the damn thing read like a library job.  It was as if they intentionally replaced any librar* words with "information" or "research specialist."  When I asked during the interview process, it was because they assumed that librarians couldn't do the tech stuff that I currently do.

From what I have heard about my two previous predecessors who held down the library for as long as I've been born, neither adjusted to the shift to a digital world.  I also encountered that resistance with public library workers as well, but at this place there's only one librarian position so it's get with it or get out.


I'll admit that I did apply and interview for different public libraries in my hunt for a full time library position.  I didn't get them, obviously, and if you're one to believe in kismet or destiny, well, then I guess you can say things did actually work out better for me.  Everyone in the public library kept giving me the same encouragement, "Hang in there," "Something's gotta give," "There'll be more positions opening up soon."  I do recognize that they were just giving me support and a shoulder to lean on, but looking back I don't even think they believed in what they were telling me.

After working 7+ years in the public library field, it was a breath of fresh air to get out of there.  Things had gotten deathly stale and stagnant.  This blog has always served as a free method of therapy for me.  I do not see any drastic improvements in the near future for the public library.  It's still the same old ish, different day. All of my older library coworkers had put in their time with the system and were retiring from it, it was the last job they'd ever work before calling it quits.  I thought to myself, "It can't be that bad if so-and-so has worked here 20+ years."  Now I think to myself, how in the hell did they manage to stay there that long.  Whenever I get together with my old library coworkers and they mention a new person that started, there's always a comment or two about how naive they are about working in a public library.  C'mon, you can't help but become jaded during these times.

I wish that there were more positions like mine for my library friends who want out of the public system but there really isn't and I admit how lucky I am.  Our get together's still consist of them venting about the system and patrons, and when they ask me how my job is going I admittedly feel guilty and I just keep it short: "I can't complain."  I really can't, almost 3 weeks paid time off during the holidays, random days where they'll cater breakfast or lunch, regular pay raises.  I recently got back from my first fully-paid, professional conference which was held in a Disney Resort.  I know that's not much to some people---my sister is constantly out of town for work, but that's relatively unheard of in the library world.  I'm hoping to get a paid trip to ALA next year and the year after that and the year after that...

Public Librarianship: "It's not what you do, but how you do it"

Last week I helped an elderly patron place a book on hold and find a book on the shelves.  Typical patron interaction which I conducted in my usual means, but her reaction made it seem different.  After I checked out the book for her, she was extremely grateful and told me, "Thank you so much, it really is not what you do, but how you do it.  It's nice to receive this kind of service.  And I should know because I was a teacher my whole life."  On her way out, she even made a point to find me and thank me again while I was shelving some material in the new adult section.

My online persona can be very different than how I really am in the library.  This is a place for me to vent when dealing with the frustrations that one encounters when dealing with the public and working in such a troubling field as librarianship.  I do my best to help every single patron I meet, even if some are extremely ungrateful and rude.  I didn't do anything out of the ordinary for her either, it's not like I jump-started her car or changed a flat tire which I would have gladly done for her.  Her comments were very touching but it made me wonder what kind of horrible experiences she might have had in the past when dealing with public librarians.  I may be an extremely jaded librarian, but I know how to repress it while I'm on the reference desk, it's part of the job.

Happy Labor Day to all the Library Workers out there...

Happy Labor Day to all the underpaid, under-appreciated, hard-working library workers out there.

To every library worker out there who has to deal with this BS of the "new-normal" of "doing more with less."

You are not alone in your struggle.  We are all in this together, so let's raise a full glass of top-shelf alcohol and enjoy this day off, you damn well deserve it!

Digitized Dividing = 1 ÷ 0

I'm pretty sure the stats would be higher if I wasn't such a tech-fiend.

The Digital Divide will always exist but there is also another side to the coin.  Besides those who are not fiscally able to gain access to the internet and new technology, there are those who are more than capable to purchase the latest tech toys but who remain tech-illiterate despite walking around with these devices in their possession.

You would hope that over time these individuals would end up learning how to use most of those features they spent all those hard-earned dollars on, but that does not always happen.  You know what is just as sad, people are proclaiming that there's an "App Gap," that's just pathetic.  "Oh, noez, little Timmy isn't able to play Angry Birds!  Now he's going to fail at life!"  Please, kids these days are so spoiled, the last thing they need is another Digital Distraction.

Last week, I had a patron who came up to the desk and ask, "Do you know how I can look at Twitter on my Kindle?"  Sounds like an easy enough problem: "There's an app for that."  So she fires up her Fire (like the wordplay, eh? eh??)  and we download the Twitter app.  I ask her if she has an account and she says, "I think I do."  So she proceeds to slowly enter in her username and password.  After several failures, I mention that she can always reset password.  Before she did, I made sure to ask if she has access/remembers her email credentials.  She says, "I think so," this is where I know that this supposed 5 minute interaction is going to end up being a little bit longer.  We reset her Twitter password and considering that it took awhile for her to maneuver on her Fire, it might be easier if she used on of the public internet stations.  Once we bring up Gmail she ends up pulling out her Blackberry and goes through her contact information to find her email account password.  You know how they say that the majority of people have their most-sensitive account passwords written down at there desk somewhere, well, she answered 'Yes' to that question during the survey.  Her email account was not linked to her Blackberry, in fact, none of her emails are linked to her phone, she just keeps all of her account information on it as contacts.

Not surprisingly, she has the wrong password listed on her phone so she gets frustrated and asks me, "Can't I go to Staples and they'll do all this for me?"  I'm a pretty patient person so it was more out of her own frustration.  I told her that we could make a new email and Twitter account and she agrees that this is the best solution.  So I go back to the Info Desk and let her do her thing.  She calls me back saying that she finished creating a new email account and needed help making a Twitter one.  So I go back and help her create a new Twitter account, even made up a password for her because she was so irritated at the thought of having to "create yet another password which [she] will forget."  Okay, account created, but wait there's more!---stupid confirmation process.  I let her know that she needs to go back to her email account and confirm her info.  Yeah, she forgot the password to her new email account which she had just created not 5 minutes before. 

Finally gets her usernames and passwords correct and we finally get her logged in to Twitter on her Fire.  Turns out her daughter is a pretty big and important public official or whatever, and she has a bunch of trolls and haters arguing with her on Twitter.  So after 45 minutes helping this patron, here comes mom to the Twitter fight rescue!

The Librarian Generation Gap... Hating on Google.

This is my second week working the Info desk and there is a lot of "stuff" being thrown at me.... "but I don't want to have any PIC-like responsibilities!!"  I went to a Reference Interview training last week with my coworker/friend "Red."

It was basically filled with fairly new Info people, a few Info volunteers, and Circ people who want Info positions.  Out of the 16 attendees, there were only 3 of us who were under the age of 30.  The average age was about early to mid 50's and I was the only male in attendance, shocker.

We had mini break out sessions and role played actual questions the presenters faced at the Info desk.  My friend Red played the person working the Info desk handling the question and suggested using Google to find the answer to a fact-based question which caused one of our older group members to get all upset like we told her that her kitten wasn't all that cute or something.  "You would use Google?" she asked us incredulously.  I told her that I agreed with Red and that it's a great way to find facts as long as you check the sources and citations of whatever resource you choose.  She still didn't agree with us and thus continued the debate for another 5 minutes. 

I really do not understand why any librarian out there would have so much beef with Google.  It is not the enemy to librarianship and if you think that Google has put librarians out of jobs well then those people shouldn't have been librarians in the first place if you ask me.  Adaptability is a must for any librarian.  I believe that Google is one of the greatest tools a librarian should use.  You would be hard-pressed to find any younger MLIS student who also objects to using Google on the job.  I just don't get it, I best she probably uses AltaVista...

What Kind of Library Do You Want to Work at?

The first day of class in my MLIS program involves the usual student introductions.  The typical questions are:
"How far are you into the program?" --- My last semester. 
"What's your favorite ice cream?" --- Edys Applie Pie Ice Cream (it's 'Limited Edition' for a reason!)
"What kind of library are you planning to work at?" --- Anywhere but public ones.  That usually results in some snickering, but I'm being completely honest.

Last week I 'celebrated' my 5 year anniversary working for the public library system.  5 damn years, half a decade, time flies by when you're stuck in the stacks.  Tomorrow is my last day working the Circ desk and I'll be starting the Info desk next week at a different library.  I'm the Crown Prince of Circ, I can handle anything you throw at me while I'm at the Circ desk: lost items, extended renewals, damaged materials, crying babies, missing holds, drunk patrons.  It's time for a change.  My weekend will include a crash course in Reader's Advisory.

Don't get me wrong, I love the public library institution and what it stands for but I believe I have had my fill of it.  I would like to work at an academic library, best of both worlds for me.  I love the feeling of a college campus, good vibes man, good vibes.

My coworker/friend and I had a running joke that we would both end up stuck at the public library.  She will be starting at a special library next week... FML.

Library Banhammer

For the past few months our branch has been frequented by a mid-20's homeless guy.  He's been dubbed "the young porn dude," as to not confuse him with the "old porn dude."  This new guy likes to bring in a pint of ice cream for his porn perusing.  We've had several patrons complain about his hygiene or lack thereof, but that there isn't much we can do about that minus a few discrete drive-by's with the Febreeze bottle.

He has recently been using other patrons' library cards to use the public internet stations past the allotted time.  He probably thinks of himself as a hacker, when in reality it doesn't take much to "hack" when you can enter in random library card numbers that still use the default password of '1111.'  I am not sure why he hasn't been talked to about this already.

I did a quick search and brought up several charges which includes unlawful entry, destruction of private property, and two counts of assault on a police officer.  He confronted by Info BFF after showering in the men's restroom.  He walked out dripping wet and when he saw her giving him the evil eye from the info desk he walked up to her and started talking trash.  Unfortunately, I was not working (damn Cataloging and Classification class!) but another info worker stepped in.

Last week we found out he was arrested for public urination outside of a different library.  On a side note, my coworker-friend came across a "pee spreadsheet" that denotes the time and location of said urination zones on library grounds.  He was promptly banned from that library, unfortunately it wasn't a system-wide ban... yet.

That Time of the Month Again...

Yesterday all 25+ of the library staff were forced into the meeting room to stare across the tables at each other for 2 straight hours. As you can see from my notes, nothing really important is ever discussed at these meetings.
We did celebrate the 20th anniversary of an employee. Yeah, she's a page. I cannot fathom what its like to page for a decade straight let alone TWO decades. I would go insane. She's been through two building renovations, and numerous managerial regime changes. She's a great person and worker. I wonder if I'll end up "stuck" at the County for the next 20 years too...

A Children's Librarian's Word of Warning about [Public] Librarianship.

I can honestly say that at my branch, I only have one friend on the Info side.  The rest I would define as "friendly coworkers."  That's 1 out of 13.  When they found out I was going for my MLIS, they would talk about the profession with all too rosy glasses, without one negative thing to say about librarianship, particularly public librarianship.  That kind of alacrity about working the info desk at a public library makes me question their honesty.  It was like hearing someone reading the ALA website out-loud, all the so-called good and none of bad aka reality.

Luckily, there's my one info friend.  Ironically, she sits on the polar opposite on the opinion scale from her colleagues.  She has flat out told me she regrets getting her MLIS and she always ends every sentence with, "Can't say I didn't warn you," even if we weren't talking about anything library related, I guess it's just her knee-jerk reaction to constantly remind me that I am heading to library hell.  Even when I try to suggest that academic or special libraries ought to be different, she shakes her head disappointingly "no."  I guess, I'm too hard headed, but I really see myself any where BUT a public library.  *SPOILER ALERT* 10 years from now I will be chained to the Info Desk which I stared at during my time working the Circ Desk.

Like any real friend, we have decided that I should take swift action if she ever joins the Management Darkside.  She gave me these warning signs to watch out for:

1). Barking at innocent subordinates.
2). Wearing SOCKS with SANDALS -- all year round.
3). Wearing loose, baggy, ill-fitting clothing, all year round.
4). Drinking the cool aid which [library management darkside] provides on a regular basis, so to speak.
5). Being overweight, yet always being on Weight Watchers.
6). Wearing Christmas sweaters -- not Christmas-inspired sweaters, but sweaters with, say, Santa on them.
7). Having a lot of stuff with cats on it.
8). Defining a Good Day as one in which your colleagues brought in doughnuts.
9). Believing that wearing Chapstick counts as wearing makeup.
10). Working at [our branch] full time.

This was posted strictly verbatim and I think that they do serve as the perfect check list to make sure one isn't becoming a library zombie.

"You've Been Warned...."

Best and Worst Jobs in 2011... Librarians in the Top 50!??!

Congrats to all you librarians out there.  Not only is 2011 the Year of the Rabbit, but the year Librarianship ranks #29 on The Wall Street Journal's Best and Worst Jobs of 2011.  No lie, AND shockingly enough, it is not on the "Worst" side, it's on the "Best" spectrum.

Wedged right in between Optometrist/Computer Programmer and Medical Technologist.

Apparently they ranked the jobs based on "income, working environment, stress, physical demands and job outlook.  Oh, and the all important expertise of their "researchers."  I'm pretty sure a librarian was not a part of the researchers.

Anyone who works at a public library knows that a LOT of workers are on the older end of the age spectrum and you would think that they would be close to retiring but of course they love their jobs so much that they are hanging on to them, even if the economy is in the crapper.

I guess the only aspect librarianship has going for it based on the WSJ ranking would be the physical demands.  The library system recently upped its physical demands from having to be able to life 20 pounds to 30 pounds.  Yeah, if you want to trim the ranks, the minimum weight lifting requirement would be the first think I would suggest testing.

Do You Have to Love Reading to be a Librarian?

It's well known in the branch that I don't read books often.  I do read (webpages, emails), I know how to, it's just that I am surrounded by too many things to be distracted by.  Granted if the power went out, and my cell phone and laptop were both dead, and I didn't have any gas in the car to go anywhere, I might, just *might* pick up something to read.  The most recent book I've read would have to be the Basher series, the cartoons are bad ass.

I will read if I have to, usually for school or food preparation.  It seems as though all of my MLIS professors love to read and they just shove article after article down your throat.  I honestly would read them if they weren't saying the same thing each semester.  It has become extremely redundant to be given the umpteenth article about how important libraries and librarians really are, blah blah blah.

Don't even get me started on the textbooks!  They have to be the least interesting thing since I took a social class in undergrad.  Suffice it to say, the textbooks I buy at the beginning of the semester are pretty much in the exact same condition at the end.  Except for my final exam for one of my recent classes.  The professor wanted us to cite page numbers in our responses.  I'm glad that I even bought the damn thing to begin with.  I'm pretty sure that I could go through this whole program without buying or reading a textbook.

If being a non-avid reader will affect my prospective career in whatever librarianship route I choose, who knows?  I don't see myself going the public route so reader advising wouldn't be in my future.

The main thing I learned from that class is that indexes are a life saver.