Yesterday At The Desk...

 

Yesterday at the desk was a bit of a struggle.  First, I we had a major weather change overnight which almost always triggers a migraine.  Then, we had a short meeting late in the morning and some Christmas cookies were served, which for whatever reason, did not agree with my stomach at all.  So I started my shift not feeling well, and it just got worse as the afternoon went on.  It was disappointing, because I missed my desk shift last week to attend a great early literacy workshop, so I was looking forward to working the desk this week.  But I did the best I could to suck it up and put on a happy face and do my job.  I like working the desk and only get the opportunity to once a week, so I hated that I wasn't feeling well and couldn't really enjoy it, but I did try to do my best. 

 

We did not have a lot of patrons spending significant time in the department, but quite a steady stream of people in and out who needed help.  One patron was looking for Newbery medal-winners that she hadn't read, so I pulled up the list from their website for her and found her a couple of the ones she wanted to read next and didn't already own.  Then another patron needed help finding a book by D. J. MacHale, and though we found another series of his, it wasn't what she was looking for.  After quickly consulting the catalog, I discovered why.  It was a brand new series, so I showed her to the new shelf, explained that that's where all the books that have come out in the last 3 months are showcased, and found the book she wanted. 

 

I also had a patron who had put some items on hold, but had not waited for the notification they were ready.  Sometimes people think it's instantaneous, not understanding the request reports are usually only pulled 3 times a day, so her items were not ready yet.  But I pulled up her account to see what had been requested and it just took a few minutes to locate them all since some were in another department.  But I found them all and got them checked out to her, canceling the one she decided she didn't want.  Of course there were several simple check-outs and parking validations and a few directional questions, and I helped check Lexile levels for one poor tween who could only choose a book within 200 points of his supposed Lexile level.  It pains me to no end how often I hear this, knowing that Lexile scores are so skewed and that kids are much better off in the long run when they are allowed to read books that they choose for themselves, regardless of reading level.

I always try to stay busy, but today I really wanted to stay busy to distract myself from feeling bad, so in between patrons I worked on straightening the shelves, took care of some work-related e-mails, reviewed some picture books I'm considering for storytime, shelved a cartful of picture books, and pulled all the holds and transfers and took them down to circulation.  By that time, the shift was over and I could thankfully go home and go to bed.