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A woman walked into the library yesterday afternoon with her daughter(who looked about 10-11 years old), and asked to use the phone...I confirmed that they were just wanting to call for a ride, got the cordless, and asked the mother what number(we try not to let the patrons dial, due to prior phone abuse)...she said something to the effect of "I need to call several numbers, but don't worry, they're all local," grabbed the phone, and went off to a nearby table.
Meanwhile, the child spotted some coloring sheets, and asked if we had crayons she could use...so I get out the big bag o' crayons and set it on the desk in front of her...she looks at it, then grabs for the open(small) box of Crayolas that I was using(which I keep tucked away in a desk drawer when not in use, and which are NOT to be given to the childrens, because I use 'em for displays and don't want 'em getting broken, peeled for no reason, etc). So I move them out of reach and explain that that box is for library use, but that she's welcome to use the (hundred or so) crayons in the bag. she scribbles for a few seconds, then leaves the crayons, balls up the coloring sheet, and wanders off.
A couple of minutes later, the little girl comes back and asks to use a computer...I asked if she wanted one of the ones in the children's area(which don't have internet, just games and MS Office), and she says "No! One with internet!" I asked how old she was, she said 13, I told her her mother would have to sit with her(they have to be 14+ to sit by themselves when online)..."She's sitting right there." "She has to sit right next to you at the computer the whole time you're on it." "She will, she will"(I highly doubted it, because her mother was supposedly trying to get a ride so they could leave asap). I told her I'd need to see her card and her mom's card, both...first she tried to give me her card number, then got very huffy when I insisted on seeing the actual card(as of October 1, they MUST have their card with them to use the internet) and snapped at me that I should be able to "just find me on that computer right there!" When I didn't give in, she wandered off again...and less than a minute later had plopped down in front of a logged-into computer whose user had gone to the lobby to answer a phone call...so I logged her out from the desk, with a message saying that she wasn't the one assigned to that computer, and right as it was logging out, the lady who'd been on there came back(fortunately one of my regulars, and someone who likes me), and we had to sign her back in. At which point the little girl came up to the desk and started muttering about me being evil, and I ignored her and kept coloring my bulletin-board stuff and trying not to laugh at her. Meanwhile, the reference assistant was having to all but wrestle the phone away from the mother, because she was just sitting there yakking away and had long since asked someone to come get them.
I found out later that the same little girl had been in earlier, while I was at lunch, and had already attempted to use the internet and had been told the rules then, too.
Meanwhile, the child spotted some coloring sheets, and asked if we had crayons she could use...so I get out the big bag o' crayons and set it on the desk in front of her...she looks at it, then grabs for the open(small) box of Crayolas that I was using(which I keep tucked away in a desk drawer when not in use, and which are NOT to be given to the childrens, because I use 'em for displays and don't want 'em getting broken, peeled for no reason, etc). So I move them out of reach and explain that that box is for library use, but that she's welcome to use the (hundred or so) crayons in the bag. she scribbles for a few seconds, then leaves the crayons, balls up the coloring sheet, and wanders off.
A couple of minutes later, the little girl comes back and asks to use a computer...I asked if she wanted one of the ones in the children's area(which don't have internet, just games and MS Office), and she says "No! One with internet!" I asked how old she was, she said 13, I told her her mother would have to sit with her(they have to be 14+ to sit by themselves when online)..."She's sitting right there." "She has to sit right next to you at the computer the whole time you're on it." "She will, she will"(I highly doubted it, because her mother was supposedly trying to get a ride so they could leave asap). I told her I'd need to see her card and her mom's card, both...first she tried to give me her card number, then got very huffy when I insisted on seeing the actual card(as of October 1, they MUST have their card with them to use the internet) and snapped at me that I should be able to "just find me on that computer right there!" When I didn't give in, she wandered off again...and less than a minute later had plopped down in front of a logged-into computer whose user had gone to the lobby to answer a phone call...so I logged her out from the desk, with a message saying that she wasn't the one assigned to that computer, and right as it was logging out, the lady who'd been on there came back(fortunately one of my regulars, and someone who likes me), and we had to sign her back in. At which point the little girl came up to the desk and started muttering about me being evil, and I ignored her and kept coloring my bulletin-board stuff and trying not to laugh at her. Meanwhile, the reference assistant was having to all but wrestle the phone away from the mother, because she was just sitting there yakking away and had long since asked someone to come get them.
I found out later that the same little girl had been in earlier, while I was at lunch, and had already attempted to use the internet and had been told the rules then, too.
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