I used to work in a hospital library. I hated it, for many reasons, and I'll never go back. My reference shifts were spent answering strange (and some not so strange) questions. After a boring and mentally exhausting shift, I wrote down a few questions that I had recently gotten on the reference desk (taken from an entry in my journal on April 10, 2000):
Where's the bathroom?
Where's the photocopier?
Why can't I use my U of T copicard in your photocopier?
Why doesn't your photocopier take coins?
Can I buy this book?
How much is this book?
Do you sell videos?
How do you spell Harvard?
What time zone are we in?
What is Level II, Section C?
Are you a doctor?
Are there any doctors on staff in the library?
How can you help me if you are not a doctor?
Can you read this article for me?
Where is San Antonio?
Can I use your email account?
Can I use your computer?
Please pay for these subscriptions and send them to my office. (not really a question, is it?)
Can you tell me the name of the green book I signed out last week?
Do you have any medical books?
Do you have any journals?
There were more, many more....
Tags: libraries, reference questions
2 comments:
haha. but where is the most brutal question of all, which is not on your list?
question: 'where is the _____ Library?'
answer: 'well, you're in it'.
An actual question I received at a Reference Desk. I think it was a moment of admirable self-restraint that I didn't smirk or laugh out loud.
CMF | 06.30.04 - 6:14 pm
this may be dating myself, but there once was a nurse who ripped the catalogue card out of the card catalogue, placed it on the reference desk, and asked for it to be retrieved! that's not a question either, but it was quite unbelievable.
zf | 06.30.04 - 7:28 pm
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