Spring Cowman Goes Ahead and Makes My Day

It was an unceremonious day at the Forest Lawn Library, the building seemingly locked into the late Spring frigidity. Absent from the day was the usual mid-afternoon melee, and the delightful clatter of pre-adolescence. Gone was the hateful murmur of a pre-teen in full headlock, the red-faced humiliation of a bullied gamer at the computer, or the high-pitched antagonism of young girls cutting each other low hovering slightly above the allowable decibel level of a library voice. It was as if there was some miracle occurring outside which drew the teenagers to its bright light, and away from their TDC you-tubing, and nexopia.

As you can imagine, staff were in a gleeful, if not yearning mood, as the fresh snow melting in the bright sun signaled the oncoming season of renewal. A rather cowboy-looking customer approached me at the info desk with a question that began:” I’m not sure what you call it up here, but in Texas we call it a (in this space a blank).” The term that the man was asking about was for an officer, the title which I did not know at the time, and cannot now recall, who is the district court’s supervisor of domestic affairs. He told me the name of the kind of office he was enquiring about, and after some difficulty, I was able to locate telephone numbers for the man in Texas, that he could get in touch with. It had something to do with courts, and officers, and even lawyers, but it was beyond me.

“Thanks for all your work. You’ve been mighty helpful. I always knew that the public library was the place to go to get the information you needed.”
“You bet it is, “ I responded, feeling a sense of accomplishment – the kind of accomplishment one would feel, I presume sitting at the infodesk, who charges through burning houses to rescue sleeping children – not out of a deep-seeded need for recognition, not for the moniker ‘hero’, but out of the prosaic fulfillment of a specialized duty – one you were born to do.
“Thanks again,” said the cowboy, “Now I’ll be able to start the process of suing my wife for everything she’s got.”
“Not at all,” I offered, as the cowboy ventured out to his horse he had hitched to the bicycle rack. “All in the line of duty,” I whispered to myself.

Spring is here!!

Spring time takes the library to the schools . West Dover Elementary was our first stop on May 12 to promote the Summer Reading Adventure. The theme this year is "A dragon tale" and the children are anxious to register and start reading. Later on that afternoon some children came in to register- registration begins June 19th.

April Music!

The other day I helped a man photocopy sheet music. He's been playing the guitar for many years and even showed me how he grew his fingernails longer which made for good pickin'!! He was so appreciative for the help at the photcopier he promised to come back and play me a love song ???!!!

Walker Being Used!

I saw my first customer using the walker that we recently puchased for the branch! Its nice to see a new initiative being used and appreciated by customers.

The library is a good place where people will help you!

On a recent Wednesday evening a senior citizen customer came to the desk. She was trying to find "Calgary Eats" on 17th Ave. and an employee named Lydia. The senior needed to ask Lydia if she could spend the night. Carol S. and I could not locate "Calgary Eats " nor could we locate Lydia (we did have her last name).
Our customer's name was Ethel and she confirmed that she had no place to spend the night. She had gotten confused coming down 44th ave and found the library and decided that the "library was a good place where people would help you"
Ethel told us that she had left her place on 44 street and couldn't return there as it was "too much hassle" and "not a good thing". She was vague about where on 44th she had come from. She was dressed in red sweatpants, two coats, a ball cap and had a small suitcase with her. We asked her if we could help her find a place to spend the night and she agreed.
Carol and I made a some calls to agencies on 17 ave but most were closed for the evening. The Salvation Army didn't take females, the Centre for Hope and the YWCA were full. A call to Calgary 211 confirmed that there were no agencies in the Forest Lawn area that had facilities for over night; they suggested we try the Calgary Drop-in Centre.
Shane answered the phone at the Calgary Drop-in Centre and he suggested Ethel make her way down there. Ethel didn't think she could manage a bus and then a train ride (she had gotten confused coming down 44th ave.) Shane gave us a phone number for "DOAP" a street team connected with CUPS. Roxanne at DOAP was our next contact and she was driving a van and could pick up Ethel in about 30 minutes and take her to the Drop-in Centre providing that Ethel was sober! (she was).
We gave Ethel tea and cookies and she waited by the circ desk. She was grateful for the tea and quickly ate the cookies. Roxanne and her partner picked up Ethel but were unable to get a former address from her or any family members to contact.
Ethel thanked us for everything we had done for her and said she'd see us again! She was smiling when she left.

HA HA HA!

A customer took a book from the "Freedom to Read" display table and asked if he was allowed to borrow it. I said, yes he could certainly sign it out. "But its a banned book!" he replied!

Chinese Accent

"Your child must certainly enjoy the books with CD's" I said to my customer as I signed out her large number of readalongs.
"I am Chinese and I don't like to read to my son for fear that he will pick up my accent. So I borrow lots of readalongs for him. With these stories a Canadian reads to him!"