I checked out one of the reserved books for your class on Monday, but I didn't realize that I could only have a reserved book for two hours. (I've always remembered that it's up to a week.) I now have a 100 dollar fine. Can you help me? You should probably tell your other students that they can only check out the books for two hours.Thanks,
Notta Britelite
Dear Notta,
(See that thing I just started this message with, the thing with your name in it? It's called a salutation, and it's considered rude not to use one.)Sincerely,
What were you thinking? Do you think, ever? You should try it. It feels good.
Have you been to class lately? There are around 90 students in the class. How many copies of the text do you think the library has? One for each of you? When you took the book home and kept it for a week or two, how do you think the other students managed to do the readings? Frankly, you got off easy with the $100 fine. If it were up to me, it would have been closer to $1000. (Your overinflated sense of entitlement indicates you're used to pissing away thousands of dollars at a go.)
And how, exactly, am I supposed to help? Do you think I have magic library powers? Let me tell you something about the Schutzstaffel at the library. I ignored a recall request a few years ago. Now, I, a tenured professor, racked up a quick $250 in fines before I returned the recalled book. Of course I ignored my fines, because professors don't have to pay fines, right? Wrong! Soon my university ID didn't work. I couldn't check out books, I couldn't go to the gym, and I couldn't open any doors.
I paid my fine. I learned from the experience. Go forth and do ye likewise.
Angry Professor
14 comments:
And, once again, cold hard reality hits a dork in the face. Library nazis are right up there with the DMV.
Oh, yeah, NOBODY gets away with library fines! Those librarians look all meek and quiet and stuff in the movies, but in real life, meek isn't what it's about!
What a passive agressive student. Or I think that is what it is - the condescension, assuming you didn't know it was on 2 hour reserve and that nobody else knew... ?
I am reading you in Suse 9.2 and your blog has good screen resolution in it and mine does not; I have not figured out why.
This sounds like someone who has never taken out a reserve book before. Is it also one of those types of people who announce proudly during their senior year that they've never been to the college library?
Um...at every library I ever used there was a big note on the book saying "Two hour reserve."
I'm betting yours does the same, no?
What a self-involved dumbass.
Just amazing. What an idiot. TWO-HOUR LIMIT is usually displayed prominently on the front of the book, if not on the inside front flap. Sheesh.
Her story's fishy: In order to even take the book away from the reserve desk she'd have to have her patron barcode scanned, which means that the circulation supervisor knew exactly who had run off with a non-circulating book. She almost certainly got at least one phone call from the library about this, too. If she hadn't responded to the phone messages, library staff are not above looking up a student's schedule and emailing their prof about this, either. Also, you may factor into the mess the idea that many libraries have fine ceilings, to forestall an angry student taking their tale of woe to a campus vice president. I don't think we need to discourage people with active imaginations, but you should caution her in future storytelling to choose her audience carefully.
Hey,
I got a parking fine one time I was on a college campus, and I was thinking of your blog the other day. Can you do something about that?
GDad
You must send this to this student. It'd change their life.
--AB
That's a pretty awesome "been there, get over it" e-mail INDEED.
You often write about student shenanigans; if you get a chance, please look at this one . Isn't there something I can do here!??!?!
You mean they actually collected the fines from your recalled book? All the places I have been the profs could ignore any law at the university and not get punished. How times have changed
When I have days filled with cases like these I can say quite evenly that I hate teaching. Who wouldn't?
There are those who say they 'love' teaching but when I tell them what I have to put up, or deal with, with in order to teach, they curl their lips and say that is not part of teaching.
I end up thinking they do not love teaching at all if this sort of event does not bother them.
Is my skin too thin or what?!
You shoulda told she/he/it that it's $100 she won't have to put toward her meth habit (since she/he/it is obviously on drugs) so you have helped her save a few of the brain cells she/he/it so obviously needs.
I am a student at a much smaller college and I work at the circ desk of our (probably also much smaller) library. My college is the kind of small where there is one faculty member per department, if the department is staffed at all, and I know nearly all of my fellow students by first and last name. We still always tell people when the goddamn books are due as they are leaving the library. I would bet my loan debt that the circ desk clerk told this girl when the book was due, and I'd also agree with whoever said that she probably got at least one phone call. I don't doubt that she actually got the $100 fine, but it sounds like she's trying to play dumb to get out of it. Too bad anyone who's ever used a library before can see right through the bullshit.
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