the loudest librarian

[orangerful]

I just got "shushed" by a patron for talking too loud on the phone with another patron.

I think it can be hard to gauge how loud I am when I am talking on the phone with a patron - you can easily lower your voice when they are in front of you, but you never know how loud/soft a patron's phone is on their end and you can't really whisper and know if the phone will pick it up.

Oh well! She just told me I was too loud and I should set a better example! But it wasn't like I was goofing off, I was walking her through troubleshooting a website.

Speaking of, oh my goodness she didn't know what SPAM was. I am always amazed by what I have to explain sometimes. I mean, it is just so second nature to me to check my spam filter if an email I am waiting for doesn't appear but she didn't even know what it was or how to get to it. :|

Also, I have just now decided that "The Loudest Librarian" should be the name of a picture book. Or perhaps my biography. OR BOTH!

Oh and I am not supposed to say "patron" anymore, I'm supposed to say "customer" and I always forget and/or don't care. I still think "member" would have been better anyway but no one asked me.

Comments

[yourlibrarian]

What a great example of why the library is needed! And haha, I like the idea of that as a picture book. Although really that idea of the library as a place of silence needs to die a fiery death. We used to have rooms people could use for either personal study or meetings but nothing around service desks was quiet.

And I'm pretty surprised to hear that about customer. That used to be a dirty word when I was in library school. I think member works better too since public (or academic) libraries are supported by those in the service group.

[mythicgeek]

I love the title The Loudest Librarian ♥

[rhoda_rants]

LOL, wut? Oh, customers. That's not the way shushing goes. Bless.

The thing that keeps getting me is when they confuse the printer/copier/fax/scanner and tell you the wrong thing they're trying to make the machine do. Like, I want to help you, but do you want a page that you typed on the computer to appear on paper from this machine? Or do you want to take this existing piece of paper and make more of it? Takes finessing to ask that without making them feel stupid.

On the customer/patron thing--we got that transitory speech a couple years back, but we still flub it all the time. Also, we're not "reference" anymore, we're "adult services," which is just vague enough to sound dirty if you think about it too long.

/library problems

[thenewbuzwuzz]

A picture book biography! Yes! :D

I wouldn't care to call people customers either, especially if I wasn't even trying to sell them stuff.

[angrboda]

In this country, people who are using a library are 'borrowers'. Which in English, winds up sounding rather more awesome than it really is. :p

'Customers', though... I always think of a customer as a someone who buys something. You don't really buy anything at a library. Unless there's a retired book sale, but in general...

[angrboda]

we're "adult services,"

O.o Which genius thought that one up, and how much are they giggling to themselves now?

[orangerful]

LOL yeah, I used to say "adult movies" when pointing out the different DVD collections in the library until a coworker pointed out that phrase might not be the best one to use. **red face**

[orangerful]

Oooh I like that! "Borrower". Of course, then you're going to get some Shakespeare fan running up yelling "Neither a borrower nor a lender be!"

I really wanted it to be "member" so that it felt like they were a part of the library, not just people who came and went, but people with a stake in the library. I mean, we are there for the community. But I don't work in marketing so what do I know :P

[orangerful]

I love picture book biographies! Sometimes it is just the right amount of information for me on a new subject!

[orangerful]

LOL yeah I have to keep a calm voice during those interactions, along with people who ask for "books on DVD" because I'm not sure if they wanted movies adapted from books or if they just mean audiobooks. It is always tricky to probe those questions without outright correcting someone and embarrassing them.

[orangerful]

YES! We really do tend to explain to people that libraries are not quiet anymore. I mean, there is always the clicking of keyboards and humming of the printer, and after school the teens hanging out and talking or the little kids playing with toys. Most of our patrons tolerate it all pretty well, I've only had a few weird situations like yesterday (though when I said something to my coworker he knew which patrons it was immediately so she must do this a lot).

[angrboda]

'Users' is also sometimes, erm, used. <--there's no elegant way!

I think member is a good word, really. That's how I've usually phrased it when I've moved and want to start using the library in the new town. That I would like to register as a member. Since you have to actually register in their system, even though the whole thing is based on your social security card that you've got anyway, what are you if not a member? Perhaps it's because they feel a member is someone who pays a fee to use a service.

[silverusagi]

We say 'customer' casually, but it's supposed to be "patron" for us. Libraries have the stupidest rules sometimes. I could write a whole rant, but that might out my location, lol.