Work & the Typical Patron...aka: Wack-O!

i worked today. no i mean it-i actually worked! not saying working in a library (at a college) is the hardest job ever...but some days are a little more work than the others. and strangely, we get more 'work' done on breaks (which the college is still on). plus working w/the public is always interesting when you get some crazies in (or as the library kindly calls them, patrons).

for example: a guy came in today asking to use our phone (there's a courtesy phone in the lobby but it only dials my county's area code & strangely there's no pay phones on the campus). part of the reason they got rid of the public phones is because they were hardly doing any business since almost everyone has a cellphone these days. still, it is not cool for the peeps who don't cuz they can't call for a ride, etc... & in those cases we do let peeps use our phone. but this guy was kinda NUTS. and of course i'm the one to help him.

so first he said i need to make a very important business phone call. and then tells me he can't make his call from the courtesy phone cuz it's a different area code. and asks if there's another phone on campus. i say no because there isn't one. then, he asks if he could use our phone to make this 'very important business call.' i say the library phones are for OUR (business) use only. he's getting pissy. (& i'm thinking-why would he want to make this type of call anyways with us around him?...i mean it's kinda odd, right?) then continues to say well then can i use one of you guys' (my co-workers) cellphones. wha'''?!? i say no we don't do that. (eve looking like "what a freak!!!")

he goes on to say again how important this phone call is to him & that he came ALLLLL the WAYYYY up to the college to make this call. hm, i'm wondering at this point, why the hell didn't you go to a pay phone by your house, dude!?! WTF!?? or perhaps call us to see if we had a phone here instead of wasting both your time & my time?!!...cuz apparently his home phone can't get through to this 'business call's' area code. again, wha'''??? he walks away angry saying UNBELIEVABLE! yeah, this is an example of the kinds of crazies that come into the library.

what blew my mind the most was...isn't it really creepy/bizarre to ask a stranger to use his/her cellphone? i have actually been asked this before...waiting in line at the grocery store! i didn't have my phone out so i just told this person "i don't have one." what is up with people? that person didn't give me attitude but this guy did and unfortunately that wasn't the 1st time i had to deal with him. last time he was in shock that the library actually charges fines if your books are late. that time he said "i'm never coming back here." yeah, and he was back. and it's even crazier to think that peeps his age (around 40s-50s) don't understand such concepts like: YES a library charges if a book is late and NO the library doesn't allow you to use their phones unless it is an emergency (like calling for a ride). and again, if it's such an important call why completely depend on us from the start? i just don't get peeps some days.

weirdos weirdos weirdos...is it almost a full moon cuz that's usually when we get the real loonies in?!? anybody else have any weird patrons/customers at their job? i never thought a library would have so many oddballs but there's a lot...yeah, UNBELIEVABLE, ha. ^_^