I was in the media section, where DVDs, music CDs, and audiobooks are. Now I’m used to people coming up to me and asking “where are the DVDs?” and I try not to slap them, since the dvds are RIGHT BEHIND THEM, on tall shelves.
So tonight a man came up to me and asked, “where is the music?” I say, “What do you mean?” because right behind, on short shelves but plainly visible, are the music cds. He replys, “music, scores,” like it’s obvious that “music” means “music scores”. I tell him where they are (on the second floor).
Shift change, where we go to other floors. I go to the third floor at 8pm and cw is helping the same man. They are looking at books on Austria . CW leaves and man complains about how we only 9 books on Austria , when he was at another of our branches 100s of books appeared. So I tell him let’s go to the catalog and look it up again. He says, “I’m not going back to that branch to look it up.” I tell him, “no this one (catalog computer) here.” Man is complaining about how there were 100s of books. I said some could be Austrian art, Austrian cusine, etc. We were in the history section, the 938s.
We find one whose call number was 306.
Man: what does 306 mean?
Me: let’s click on the title, and we get to see the subject…ok, it says it’s about Austrian politics, political culture…
Man: no, what the dewey classification means.
Me: (maybe one words will work here) politics.
Then we find a book with 940. Napoleon is in the title.
Man: What does 940 mean?
Me: Napolean.
Man: No, we don’t want that....wait, wait, the Sean Shawn one.
Me:
He had scrolled down and now is looking for Sean Shawn, which he saw higher up on the page. We find one by the author Sean Shawn.
Me: That is about Empress Sissy, In Spanish.
Man: no, I don't want that.
We find books that start with 914
Man: what is 914?
Me: Guide books.
Man: That is no good. You know I was a guide in Vienna . I knew everything there.
Me: (sort of faking interest, since I was a bit interested) Really? That’s great.
So back to bitching about how we don’t have any books.
Man: I’m not trying to be difficult, but…
Me (trying not to do an eye-roll)
Man is looking at a title on shelf: I protested against this man, we blah blah…
Me: who?
Man: This man is the second Hitler.
Luckily someone else needed my help.
There was much more to his bitching, but I forgot most of it.
So tonight a man came up to me and asked, “where is the music?” I say, “What do you mean?” because right behind, on short shelves but plainly visible, are the music cds. He replys, “music, scores,” like it’s obvious that “music” means “music scores”. I tell him where they are (on the second floor).
Shift change, where we go to other floors. I go to the third floor at 8pm and cw is helping the same man. They are looking at books on Austria . CW leaves and man complains about how we only 9 books on Austria , when he was at another of our branches 100s of books appeared. So I tell him let’s go to the catalog and look it up again. He says, “I’m not going back to that branch to look it up.” I tell him, “no this one (catalog computer) here.” Man is complaining about how there were 100s of books. I said some could be Austrian art, Austrian cusine, etc. We were in the history section, the 938s.
We find one whose call number was 306.
Man: what does 306 mean?
Me: let’s click on the title, and we get to see the subject…ok, it says it’s about Austrian politics, political culture…
Man: no, what the dewey classification means.
Me: (maybe one words will work here) politics.
Then we find a book with 940. Napoleon is in the title.
Man: What does 940 mean?
Me: Napolean.
Man: No, we don’t want that....wait, wait, the Sean Shawn one.
Me:

He had scrolled down and now is looking for Sean Shawn, which he saw higher up on the page. We find one by the author Sean Shawn.
Me: That is about Empress Sissy, In Spanish.
Man: no, I don't want that.
We find books that start with 914
Man: what is 914?
Me: Guide books.
Man: That is no good. You know I was a guide in Vienna . I knew everything there.
Me: (sort of faking interest, since I was a bit interested) Really? That’s great.
So back to bitching about how we don’t have any books.
Man: I’m not trying to be difficult, but…
Me (trying not to do an eye-roll)
Man is looking at a title on shelf: I protested against this man, we blah blah…
Me: who?
Man: This man is the second Hitler.
Luckily someone else needed my help.
There was much more to his bitching, but I forgot most of it.
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