Libraries are not for fun and noise. A collection of Letters to The Times Online might lead one to believe only grumpy old people write Letters to The Times Online.
Sir, Libraries are not about fun and coffee. Librarians who wish to change this should work for Starbucks.
These are in response to A noisy library is a joyful thing and We need books to sink our teeth into, not burgers.
This “diversification” of public libraries away from books into computers and cupcakes is simply wrong. That is not a library. That is an EasyInternet café.
If I’m following along with the links correctly, this all got started with Public libraries open way for drinks, snacks and mobiles.
Public libraries open way for drinks, snacks and mobiles.
As a 34 year veteran of Public Library employ, I have come around to the allowing of drinks (when they are covered) in the library…but you have to remember I am the one who has stayed after closing because I was mopping up a kicked-over strawberry smoothie off the carpet….EWWWW GROSS!
Food, I’m still not a maid, and I don’t like the crumbs on the floor & tables….Please, go outside and sit on our benches while you eat, but put your trash in the trash cans….
Mobiles??? Do you really have to sit on the internet and yell into your phone about how the site isn’t responding?
I guess what I’m saying is I abhor the rude behavior that has tagged along with the new “relaxed” policies. It’s one thing to make room for a bit of comfort, but when personal comfort begins to edge out common courtesy, leaves the library a pig sty, and forces us all to be privy to your telephone conversations (which we really do not want to hear)….well, where do we draw the line?
School Libraries
The above post and comment are extremely well put! I have been a high school teacher librarian for six years now and have transformed a traditionally quit library into a nice social / learning spot–a popular gathering spot. We offer a nice collection of books for 1800 students, with an average age of 12 years to the collection. We also offer high speed connection to the Internet and an array of outstanding online research databases. The students are encouraged to use these and are learning how to evaluate sites reached by search engines. They like their library and we have readers! We have every magazine imaginable!
We will soon move into a brand new high school and a brand new library. I am hoping to gain approval on an outsourced coffee house in the library, for the vinyl, tile flooring of the library and a small library cafe.
But in reading the comment above, I do see my “relaxed” policy (allowing for (1) more personal comfort and (2) more social, interacting zones) has often edged out common courtesy. Bottles of pop and water make their way into the lab (whereas I have established a social zone with proper flooring and furnishing for food and drink), supplies I have provided free are left laying around everywhere, with cut paper left all over the FLOOR, for goodness sake.
So how best to bring back self-discipline, respect and appreciation of one’s public surroundings, and manners and common courtesy? This can happen, but it takes the dedicated effort of many helping hands to make it a reality. Humm, I need to give this some thought. What’s a good plan of action??? I think I’ll post this over on my blog, http://vanhookc.blogspot.com and on FB and see if I can get some students involved in seeing this a reality!