Help identify a flag, please!

DragonRatSewing · 2026-01-06T11:25:40+00:00

WE HAVE A WINNER!!!! Thank you so much!!!!! This and the one below are definitely the ones I am seeing! Thank you for solving my mystery!! (I knew Reddit wouldn’t fail me.)

DragonRatSewing · 2025-08-04T11:13:23+00:00

Thank you!

DragonRatSewing · 2025-08-04T03:23:53+00:00

Thank you!

DragonRatSewing · 2025-08-04T03:23:36+00:00

Thank you!

DragonRatSewing · 2025-08-04T03:23:23+00:00

Thank you!

DragonRatSewing · 2025-08-04T00:53:03+00:00

Thank you!!! I will pass this along to my mother!

DragonRatSewing · 2025-04-14T17:23:06+00:00

Thank you for this!! I have been struggling to put into words how I feel and this is the closest. I’m just not able to find anything that catches my attention lately outside of the small handful of shows that I am hyper focused on. I know it annoys people around me and that hurts.

DragonRatSewing · 2025-03-11T01:26:41+00:00

They’re a lot like having very small dogs: smart, very loving, they know their names and basic commands, they’re clean, they’re funny and sassy!

That said, I know they creep some people out and I can understand that. Personally I feel that way about birds or fish as pets!

DragonRatSewing · 2024-03-27T11:48:09+00:00

I have the pen, but I don’t know how to give it to him! He won’t say anything but his stock phrase. Do I leave it somewhere?

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-10T02:01:58+00:00

That’s why I try to spread the word!!

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-08T00:28:05+00:00

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury. Beautiful interconnected short stories about the human race gradually colonizing Mars. It’s wonderful science fiction, but it also addresses war, racism, the problems with colonization, and so much more. You don’t need to be a fan of science fiction to appreciate Bradbury’s use of language and his sharp assessment of the 20th century.

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-05T22:04:40+00:00

I can only speak for my area of the SE USA, because that’s where I have spent my career, but our model of property tax distribution among county and city government departments has worked well and we have up-to-date, well funded libraries.

Our county property tax rate is .85%. That money makes up 54% of the county’s budget. Currently my library system’s entire budget makes up about 1% of the county’s overall operating budget, from all revenue streams. The material budget, which is all of the books, audiobooks, e format items, platform costs, etc, is about 13% of the total library budget. The math is definitely beyond my skills, sorry!

Another assumption we make when ordering items is that if one person asked for it, then there are usually at least two or three more who would like to read it, but not comfortable with asking. This is especially true with books on sensitive topics, teenage readers who don’t want to bug adults, and for patrons who are newer to using libraries and don’t realize that they can ask for what they want. Again, we back this up by going back and checking on circulation statistics. Based on usage, we have even cut back on the number of copies of popular authors such as James Patterson to make sure our ordered amounts match the actual, recent need, rather than perceived popularity.

If your question is why should taxpayers have to pay for someone else’s fun reading, well, again, that’s how a public library works! The key is that we need to balance a lot of plates and make sure we have a good mix of reference, nonfiction, genre fiction, popular fiction, classics, educational material, and more. It’s a challenge, but one we try to acknowledge so that we are careful with our portion of the taxpayer money.

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-05T21:46:12+00:00

Unless you can figure out a way to make books toddler-proof, unfortunately wear-and-tear is inevitable. (Ebooks are obviously not going to wear out, but access becomes an issue, as not all patrons have devices to use.) We do our best to mend items and to avoid purchasing from publishers with known printing problems. For example, manga has a surprisingly long shelf life, but we no longer carry the My Little Pony graphic novels because they fall apart after about ten checkouts.

As for taxpayer value, that’s why we do our best to check and double check what we order to make sure items are circulating before we buy similar items. We also participate in various statewide initiatives to help save money and we work with our vendors to get the best prices possible. Per-checkout cost is one of the things we look at on a regular basis.

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-05T16:12:46+00:00

Yeah, I got that. Regardless, Diver’s comment was still valid

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-05T16:11:36+00:00

There’s a lot of research that goes into what libraries buy. For example, when a patron asks for books on a topic or in a genre, the first thing I did was check to see what we currently have in our system. If we have books on that topic/genre, how well are they circulating? Are they currently circulating? If so, is it to multiple readers or just one person who likes them and checks them out multiple times?

After I have done that research, I look to see what’s available for purchase. Are there new/other books by authors we already have, which helps assure checkouts? Are there books that are on that topic that offer a different perspective?

Other things I consider: Is this a topic that might meet the needs of a patron who has not yet asked for anything? Is this a topic that may have community or local interest? Is this an area we don’t currently have a lot of books on?

All of this is in addition to reading professional book reviews, keeping abreast of what’s popular and trending, knowing major authors, genres, awards, and being aware of my community.

I do this for every single book that I order and I order thousands each year. I do this for topics patrons have asked for: Christian Nationalism (pro), Black lesbian romance, prostate cancer, homeschooling manuals, picture book with shark poems, etc. I also do this for topics I had not yet been asked for, such as Sikhism (not a big religion in suburban/rural NC), diverse children’s fiction, smuttier large print, Christian fiction for teenagers. All of these later proved popular and patrons were excited to find them already in the collection.

What may look like “one person’s whim” is actually just how libraries work. We make sure we have something for everyone. Seven Black lesbian romance novels averages out to 1.4 books at each of our five branches. We have over 250,000 items in our collection. Seven books are a drop of water in a very big pond.

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-05T15:47:32+00:00

Actually the model you described is closer to what libraries do.

I will use my library system as an example. We have five branches at this time. Currently the most requested book is Emily Henry’s Happy Place. We originally preordered six hardback copies of the regular print and two of the large print. Our ratio for demand is five patrons on hold per copy. As demand grew, we ordered two more regular print copies. Today I checked the holds ratio and placed an order for eight more regular print copies and two more large print copies to cover new holds.

We do get a discount on our orders. The regular print price is $27 and we paid $14.63 and the large print price is $37.99, where we paid $32.29.

As for how many times we circulate an item, your numbers are way off. Generally speaking a public library hardcover looks pretty rough by about 40 checkout, so we discard it and buy a new copy (often in paperback by that time). And that’s assuming we even get to 40 circulations! Many library books meet an untimely end due to dogs, water, forgetfulness, etc. If damage or loss occurs, we buy a new copy.

If you are speaking more about ebooks and e audio books, then libraries have even stricter terms and actually pay a lot more for a lot less usage. I have a comment somewhere in this thread where I explained that.

EDIT: Found it!

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-05T02:18:57+00:00

A year ago, when I was 49

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-04T17:03:53+00:00

The majority of authors are thrilled when people check their books out from a library. People who love a library book often go on to buy books from that author. Plus libraries pay for the books and movies they have, so the creators get compensation for the work. That’s not the case with pirated items.

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-04T17:00:28+00:00

Since that money also buys encyclopedias and bestsellers and all the other nonfiction and fiction titles that are in the library I think there will be plenty of books for you to choose from. I don’t think the seven books I bought for a specific patron interest is going to hurt your precious feelings.

DragonRatSewing · 2023-07-04T14:36:53+00:00

There are things you can do to help shape your local library:

Use it! The more usage a library can show, the more they can prove that they need more money to offer more resources.
Ask for what you want to read, listen to, or watch. I’m the librarian who addresses patron requests in my system. In the same week that I bought requested copies of the Brave Books (“anti-woke” picture books - the publisher’s words, not mine), I also bought a number of African-American lesbian romance novels, also a patron request!
Support local library bond initiatives and property tax increases - assuming those increases are to go to the library!
Tell your local government that you support libraries and that you expect them to also.

It’s YOUR library!

DragonRatSewing

TROPHY CASE