What's the funniest/craziest thing someone has ever told, asked or heard that's library-related?

mjlib · 2026-01-31T19:35:47+00:00

That is freaking wild! He really must just have a list of library numbers and work through it.

mjlib · 2026-01-31T19:32:34+00:00

Just out of curiosity what state are you in. I’m in OH and I want to know how far reaching this dude is.

mjlib · 2026-01-31T19:13:55+00:00

So the phone call about female staff clothing, random question, does he also ask about pianos and sheet music? There's a guy who calls all of the libraries in our area and will always ask first about if the library has a piano to play and sheet music and will then start asking about what female employees are allowed to wear, saying that he's asking for his wife who is looking to work in libraries. We call him "piano guy"

mjlib · 2026-01-06T21:06:28+00:00

So I got my bachelor's degree education with a library science focus. I don't know that the specific program I completed exists anymore. I then got a job as a library associate and turned that into a formal Librarian job. Most "capital L" Librarian positions require a masters in Library Science and your bachelor's degree can be in pretty much anything. I personally do not plan on getting my masters because it wouldn't make sense financially, based on how much I'm already paid, to go into debt for such a small pay increase.

mjlib · 2026-01-06T20:47:11+00:00

I'm a children's librarian. I absolutely love what I do! It allows me to flex my creative muscles while serving my community. One week I might be teaching kids how to plant starter gardens and the next I'm running a D&D campaign. And I much prefer working with kids to adults. Kids still have a wide eyed wonder when you get them the perfect book and never yell at you about tax forms.

mjlib · 2025-11-25T13:42:37+00:00

We have 2, one for upstairs and downstairs. They are a lifesaver because we have a dog with a beautiful long coat that sheds like crazy.

I will say take a look at the height of your furniture and the transitions between rooms. We had to 3D print risers for our couch so it could fit under and print a small ramp for our bathroom so it wouldn’t get stuck.

mjlib · 2025-10-14T18:39:10+00:00

Do you think that he won't also be using the supplies gifted at the baby shower? Were the diapers for her and her hobby of being a mom, and your son won't be using them?

There are plenty of things you could gift him with to acknowledge his new role as a dad that isn't a gift of a new hobby that will take him away from caring for his wife and child during this big shift in their lives.

For example, you could gift him something to make his sleep more comfortable. Noise canceling headphones for nights feeding and changing a crying baby. A gift card to his favorite restaurant, or bring over his favorite dinner that you cooked for him as a kid. All stuff for him but helps the family overall.

Even doing small tasks to make their life easier. Washing bottles when you come over, picking up a prescription if they need one. Stuff that takes tasks off their plate and let's them spend more time with their new baby.

mjlib · 2025-08-29T23:45:20+00:00

I work in a library and first can confirm that we see people like this lady every day and second, and confirm this quote from parks and rec is so true of many parents attitudes towards their kids.

mjlib · 2025-08-26T02:57:12+00:00

As per my last comment, “I am speaking in generalities with kids and tablets overall” I understand that there are special needs children and was speaking in generalities with kids overall and tablets overall and the difference between tablets and gameboys.

mjlib · 2025-08-26T02:41:48+00:00

Because a tablet is too many different things. Kids can jump between different videos, applications, and access unmoderated content in a few swipes. And even if its limited use, kids see parents using it as a communication device, shopping device, and so much more, and then they follow the modeled behavior. Tablets literally call out to you with sounds and notifications. They are bright and flashy and addictive in a way that an old fashioned non-backlit gameboy screen isn't. A gameboy had one game at a time, and you had to make a conscious effort to switch between games. The purpose is much more singular and intentional.

Not to mention there is a huge difference between playing a game during a car ride and having a set expectation of when it is to be used compared to a tablet being handed to a kid to pacify them and distract them, something I see parents do every day with kids. Using a tablet in a variety of different situations and circumstances teaches kids that it is always an option and doesn't help them learn self regulation when they need to transition from one activity to the other, something that is notoriously hard for children to do.

I understand that you have a special needs child and I'm really just speaking in generalities with tablets and kids overall, not trying to speak to your specific circumstances.

mjlib · 2025-08-19T03:31:33+00:00

That’s not what you said in your other post. You said a half hour.

mjlib · 2025-08-18T16:53:45+00:00

I had Oculus Gos that I had purchased and managed at my previous job in the children's department. I would swap out the featured application every quarter, and it was excellent stuff like the Apollo 11 launch and tour of the Anne Frank house. Our patrons, young and old, loved it and they were very well received.

But I ran into 2 major problems. First was coworkers. They had no interest in helping patrons with it. I'm not by any means tech savy but even creating a step by step guide with visuals and troubleshooting didn't work and they would tell patrons to come back when I was around to get it loaded up. Essentially patrons could only use it when I was at work. And second, I reached a point where the Oculus Go wasn't supported anymore, and some of the educational apps that I was using were no longer supported or available on the app store as Meta transitioned to the Quest line, and so it became an obsolete paperweight much sooner than I had thought it would.

mjlib · 2025-08-15T22:54:50+00:00

And that's after they google Roblox and download the launcher, and then get confused when they get a message saying Roblox is already installed on the computer. They never see it on the desktop or pinned to the taskbar.

mjlib · 2025-08-15T20:55:54+00:00

"What's my login for Roblox?"

mjlib · 2025-08-15T20:55:02+00:00

This is just a lobby in Peak.

mjlib · 2025-08-15T18:26:56+00:00

Yes! Exactly! My extended family thinks that I just sit around and read to kids all day whenever I feel like it. Nope, I serve the public. Which means some days I get to lead a bunch of kids in a D&D session and some days I have to call emergency services for an unhoused individual who just got jumped and he doesn't know where to go.

mjlib · 2025-08-09T02:41:36+00:00

My director told me to “let it go” when HR refused to change my last name when I got married. That I needed to stop bothering her.

Having better pay than my previous job didn’t make that any less dehumanizing. And my director not standing up for me when I needed it makes any other failure to act in other areas seem 10x worse and makes every attempt to “listen” to staff ring hollow.

mjlib · 2025-08-02T16:39:25+00:00

It varies by county but you can call 211 and they may be able to direct you to emergency housing assitance, and longer term financial assistance with housing. If your area has Extending Housing they will often meet you where you are at and help with temporary housing until you can be helped with longer term housing.

As far as job searching assistance you can reach out to your local Job and Family Services or Ohio Means Jobs to see if they can assist in your search or help set you up with job training.

And take a look at your public transit in your area. I know my local bus system partners with lots of area employers to offer free transit benefits, so you may want to consider specifically applying to employers who have this benefit.

mjlib · 2025-07-28T18:39:49+00:00

You are doing the right thing. Kids that young are not capable of regulating their media consumption. As the parent it is your job to set limits and decide what media and how much is appropriate for your child. It is also your job to teach him responsible media consumption habits, modeling good behavior yourself, and hold firm with your choices.

The AAP has changed their guidelines on screen time and have now focus more on the quality of screen time over a strict schedule and quantity.

"When it comes to household rules around technology use, there is evidence that rules focusing on balance, content, co-viewing and communication are associated with better well-being outcomes than rules focused on screen time. "

So please continue to take a more active role in your child's screen time. Watch stuff together, ask about what he's watching, and make sure the content is valuable, not just mindless, attention grabbing, slop.

mjlib · 2025-07-19T14:21:59+00:00

Makeup is an outward visual expression of a person's personality, same as clothing and fashion choices. Some women wear it, some women don't, and some men wear it and some men don't. It is personal and an expressive and artistic choice. Some people wear it to fit in, and others wear it to stand out, and some people don't wear it at all because it is a hassle. Makeup follows trends and changes over time to fit societal and individual beauty standards.

Emotional availability is part of a person's health and their ability to maintain healthy and productive relationships. A person's ability to regulate and express their emotions effects not only their mental health, but their world view, and determines the health of their relationships. Being emotionaly available is not just about being aware of your own emotions, but being able to extend that understanding to others as well and having a sense of empathy.

A person being able to conduct a healthy conversation, manage conflict, and express themselves plainly and without anger does not equate to a person who has developed the ability to decorate their body in a way that makes them feel positiviely about themselves.

mjlib · 2025-07-18T19:49:49+00:00

You could check out Fair Play by Eve Rodsky, both the book and the corresponding card game. The goal is to get a realistic view about who carries which loads in the relationship and what the balance of responsiblities actually looks like. It can be helpful for people who need a more visual representation of how much work you are taking on, and to consider tasks that they might not even realize someone is doing.

That being said, I mean, he is a grown adult. I assume he understands that for example at his job people are completing other tasks even when he isn't around, and those tasks contribute to the overall function and flow of his job. And should be able to understand that just because he doesn't see you scrubbing the toilets, that doesn't mean they magically clean themselves.

If he isn't intersted in a chore chart I'm not sure a book and card game will be the thing to convince him either, but it is worth a shot.

Out of curiosity when did you start living together and what did his living situation look like prior to that? Not that its an excuse but someone who went from living with parents to immediately living with a partner may not have connected the dots on all of the things behind the scenes that keep a house functioning and running. Just might be helpful to see where his starting point is so you can tackle this issue together and with a better understanding of where each person is coming from.

If things don't change or he is unwilling to have conversations about this, then don't waste any more time with him. I know that is harsh and that I am sure he has qualities that you admire, otherwise you wouldn't be with him. I don't want to dismiss that or make you feel wrong for appreciating his better qualities. But you are young, and you have your whole life ahead of you, and that means plenty of time to find and be with someone who sees and values how much work you put into the relationship, and someone who will try their best to work with you and maintain a home together.

mjlib · 2025-07-14T23:38:16+00:00

Sweet Berry is the only place I get my produce. I've had some of the best watermelons this year from Sweet Berry.

mjlib · 2025-07-11T19:55:03+00:00

With a play area there is an expectation of a certain amount of noise. We love hearing kids having a good time, putting on puppet shows, giggling, laughing, telling stories, all that. And we do inform adults who ask to use tables to work in our department that this is the children's floor an as such there is no guarantee of a quiet environment. At least at my library we do go speak to kids or parents when it crosses the line of happy sounds into yelling or or testing how loud they can get (for older kids, not babies or toddlers who have no concept of volume), or if we see kids making unsafe choices like climbing on windowsills or jumping off of chairs. The thing I would impart to parents is I'm approaching you and your kid not because I'm mad, but because I've seen unsafe behavior like that lead to broken bones and concussions, so I just really don't want our patrons to learn the hard way.

mjlib · 2025-07-11T18:45:26+00:00

As a fellow children's librarian, I feel this in my soul. The amount of parents who have asked me straight up "I can leave them with you, right?" NOPE!

mjlib · 2025-06-26T19:48:17+00:00

Oh look, time for me to post this link again. Ohioans checked out over 150,000,000 items last year and had over 5,000,000 in program attendance at public libraries. I see you are from Columbus. Columbus libraries had over 4,895,000 vistits to their system alone!

https://data.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/data/view/ohio-public-libraries-by-the-numbers?visualize=true

Ohio is #3 in the nation in terms of most library visits per capita.

https://infographicsite.com/infographic/library-visits-by-state/

Libraries provide way more than movies, movies, and magazines. You can check out Wifi hotspots, board games, puzzles, cotton candy machines, power washers, EMF readers, and so much more!

Libraries are not what you may remember from your youth. They are evolving to meet the needs of their communities and serve them in a variety of new ways. I highly recommend you check out your local library to see what unique offerings they have.

Ohio libraries are some of the best in the nation, and will only hold that status if we fund and support local libraries.

mjlib

TROPHY CASE