Anecdotes from the Circulation Desk
Can you picture this scene? It is 3:05 PM, and children are swarming into the library after the elementary school across the road has finished for the day. A particularly energetic child, perhaps in the 5th grade, bursts in.
HEY, IS THERE ANYTHING GOING ON TODAY?
Well, someone just walked in talking too loudly.
WHAT? I MEAN IS THERE ANY PROGRAM THIS AFTERNOON! Oh... sorry...
About 50 minutes later, as the kids discover that their allotted hour of computer time is about to expire, a small child approached the desk.
Hey, can I get more time?
I'm sorry, we have other people waiting for a turn on the computers.
But can I get more time?
Lastly, a child who has always struck me as a bit dull when it comes to academics asked if he could borrow a board game called Go to the Head of the Class. I was surprised at this request, but checked it out to him anyway. I was less surprised when literally 30 seconds later, after barely opening the box to glance at the contents, he returned it and said it was "boring."
And there's your glimpse into the exciting and glamorous life of a librarian!
It's too bad you can't say all the things that must pop into your head.
That sounds about right. Board games don't flash and move around fast enough to keep people's attention now. Of course, it would do us no justice to say that this only affected children. Adults have a complete lack of attention as well. I am an avid book reader and cannot count the cringe-worthy moments of me asking someone if they had read a particular book and their response is "no, but I've seen the movie". Your pain ripples across the earth to all of us. You just get to see it more some days.