An Interesting School Assignment

About a month ago I was sitting next to my manager and two girls came up to him with an "assignment" from school. They needed to do a book report on herpes. So being the dutiful librarian that he was he promptly asked them how many sources were required, what kind of sources they needed etc. etc. They hesitated and then said that a web source was fine so then my manager turned to the web and found information on herpes. He then asked them what they needed to know for their "book report" as they both fidgeted in front of the computer. They said all they needed to know was how it was spread, nothing else. So my manager told them and they went on their way.

At least the two girls went to a reputable source of information for their "book report" instead of one of their "classmates."

A Community full of rockin' Michelangelos

For the past month I've sponsored an anime art contest at our library. The response has been overwhelming. We've put colored paper on the walls and then taped the art around the teen section but we've just about run out of room. I think if we had just said we were having an "art contest" there would not have been as much response. I think "art contest" sounds a little elitist and it's too broad. But by giving the teens something specific, and something so popular they've really come through. They love having them on display. I want to keep them up there as long as I can. I hope they don't want their pictures back because honestly I want to take them all home and put them on my fridge.

I've put up some pictures on this blog of other art projects they've worked on. What really impressed me was the gingerbread men they made back at Christmas. Now if I made a gingerbread men he would have buttons down his middle, cute little eyes and a perky smile. The teens went completely out of the box on this assignment. There were very few "cute" gingerbread men. Actually, we had "Naruto/gingerbread men", "cat/gingerbread men", and ones of all different bold colors instead of the traditional brown. One teen made one with a pistol in its hand but then he later claimed it was a "candy cane." (Yeah right.) Some gingerbread men even had googly eyes all down their bellies instead of bright, black buttons. The teens really used their creativity.

Gruff from Grandmas and Grandpas

The last few weeks I've had some gruff from our area's senior citizens. Now I love senior citizens and have volunteered numerous times for them but these patrons are not your kindly grandmas and grandpas. They cut in line, order me around, and one yelled at me when he didn't get his way. I've given some thought to why these senior citizens are so cranky and argumentative and what I've come up with is that perhaps the library is one of the few places that they CAN be push others around and get their way. At the library we are polite and kind to everyone no matter how we are treated. In a society that calls these individuals "old fogeys" and says that anyone who forgets something has a "senior moment" these disenfranchised older members of the population probably feel powerless a lot of the time. They're often ignored by the media and even their own families. If they can berate me it might give them a sense of control and power in a society that gives them no authority. Of course it might also be because they don't feel very well and they're dealing with many aches and pains. I try to tell myself this when I get one on the phone ordering me around but I admit it's hard to keep a perspective sometimes. Maybe it won't be until I'm in their shoes that I will entirely understand.

Putting my pinky toe in

I felt inspired to join the blogosphere write about my own experiences after I read "Free for All: Oddballs, Geeks, and Gangstas in the Public Library." I thought to myself: "well this happens in MY library, why is someone not writing this down? I work in a disadvantaged neighborhood right next to a junior high. We're a very busy library and every afternoon we are flooded with teenagers. High school kids visit too but 7th, 8th, and 9th graders come at three and often don't leave until we close at nine. We kick some of them out every day and we often start off preemptively which I would recommend. We give the ones we know cause trouble an hour to clear out and they usually head out on their own. These kids need borders and rules although they would never admit it. We have a good system going with the kids and offer as many activities as we can. Thursday on Valentine's day we hid hearts in the library and had the kids find them for treats. I only suggest this if you can withstand sustained chaos for about twenty minutes. (You'll need to have a very understand manager.) You can do this activity for every holiday: four leaf clovers for St. Patrick's day, little flags for 4th of July. The kids love it but they often bump around and run around like pinballs in a machine for a while.