Library Rant: Snow Storms

Ok, so this is a bit of a rant since it is a big pet peeve of mine.  For those that don't know, I work part-time at a library in the northern-mid Michigan area.  And if you know anything about Michigan winters, it's that they can be very nasty, with lots of snow. Like right now, yesterday we got probably 8-9 inches (though who can really tell with all this drifting!) and this morning we have really high winds making driving conditions dangerous. Now, fortunately for me (thank you Lord!!!), my library director actually decided to close today, however, this is often not the case.

I've been working at this library for, well, between this time and the first time, it will be 5.5 years this summer, and this is the first time that I can recall the library system EVER closing for weather related issues (except of course when they lose power). Often, the most we can hope for is a 2-hour delay in opening, however, my library system has a new director so hopefully this will change.

But not closing for severe weather is not just a problem that my library system has; this is an issue across the board with many library systems.  Today, I may not have to go into work, but my cousin who works at a library down-state does because her library director did not close/delay.  I went to the local news website this morning to see who all had closed/delayed for today, and when I looked up libraries only 8 library systems had closed state-wide.  Pretty much the whole state, if not the whole state, just got socked with a pretty large snow storm (and it's still blowing/drifting something awful) and only 8 library systems across the state closed.  What?! Even Delta Community College, about the most notorious college in Michigan for not closing in severe weather, had the sense to close today! Here's what I don't get: why?  Sure, no business/organization/etc., likes to have to close, but if it is not safe to be driving, then why stay open?  Libraries, as much as I love them and think they are important, are not a critical service to have open 24-7; it's not like a hospital that HAS to stay open in case of emergency.  It's just books, and no potential library fine for overdue books is worth the risk of crashing your car into a ditch.  Besides, any patron with sense is going to stay home; so, by staying open they are just endangering their own workers and the non-sensible patrons.

Yesterday, I would have worked from 4pm-8pm and been driving home in a snow storm and in the dark.  My mom and I decided it would be best for me to just call in saying I won't be coming in since we knew it wasn't going to be safe.  This was at about 1pm.  Being curious as to whether or not the library would decide to close early after all, I kept checking my work e-mail throughout the day. The e-mails went like this: at 12-something, there was an e-mail of a lady leaving one of the branches early so as to beat the storm; then came an e-mail about Bookmobile being canceled for the rest of the day; next there was one e-mail and one website notice of craft activities being canceled at two different branches for both yesterday and today; then three notices of three branches cancelling yesterday and today's storytimes; and finally, and e-mail about one of our branches loosing power at just after 3pm.  It was only after all this, that our director decided that we should close the library system early that day.  So, 5pm the whole library system was closed.  Great!  The director did the right, and smart, thing by closing early; however, by this time the road conditions had already reached the level of being unsafe.  I know, because I was watching out the window and it was most definitely blizzard conditions; driving in it would have been an absolute white-out.

In closing: would you library directors please pay better attention to the weather forecast/road conditions, realize that it really makes no sense to stay open in a blizzard or before road crews have had a chance clean up after a blizzard, and do the sensible thing more often: close for the day.

Random Word Fun: Pussillanimous

First random word post!  The word is 'pussillanimous.'  I love this word. It's such a great insult and just really fun to say.  The word means 'showing a lack of courage or determination; timid.'  It's a late Middle English word originating from the Latin word 'pussillanimis.' Root words: 'pussilus' (meaning: very small, little) and 'animus' (meaning: mind, spirit, courage (and variations thereof)) with the English '-ous' ending added to it.  The Greek equivilent is: 'olugopsukhos.'

Synonyms of pussillanimous  are: timid, timorous, cowardly, fearful, faint-hearted, lily-livered, spineless, craven, etc.

Our English form of the word dates to about the early 15c. Unfortunately, this is not a word you hear/see used very often anymore.

Book Review: After Alice by Gregory Maguire

First off, I didn’t finish this book. I managed to suffer through 19 pages before I gave it up as a lost cause. However, I did take detailed notes on those 19 pages.

I really, really wanted to like this book! The premise sounded really interesting and it could have been great. Unfortunately, it was absolute rubbish!!! There can be no doubt about the author having a great vocabulary, however, great use of the vocabulary he does not have. I happen to love weird, obscure words and yet I couldn’t get more than 19 pages into this book. He needs to learn that you don’t need to spew every piece of interesting vocab onto the page. He over saturates his writing with words that 90% of people will not know nor have the inclination to find out what they mean. Besides that, he doesn’t take care to make sure the vocab is in keeping with the speaker using it!!! Ada is a child, she is not going to know even half of these words, yet alone be using them; the same can be said of the servants: it is highly unlikely that someone in their positions would know/use those kinds of words. He just pukes up every word he can think of onto the page without regard for who is supposed to be using it. Some of the words/phrasings he used were old-fashioned even for the time period the book is set in so there is no way they would have been used let alone by the person using them!! 

His narrative style is absolutely horrible!!! It’s not even clear whether this is a third person narrative or first person. Sometimes it sounds third person, but then it switches to sound like it’s first person. It’s just plain sloppy, you shouldn’t have to be guessing what the ‘voice’ of the writing is. In addition to this, the narrative is bogged down with too much, useless drivel. He describes useless things in ridiculous detail, and using the most obscure words possible. His phraseology is also extremely awkward and unnatural. While technically correct grammar, he ignores the other rules of grammar that say when there are more than one option of correct word order choose the least awkward one: he doesn’t, instead, he chooses the most awkward. He rambles, it took Ada 5 chapters to get from her house to Alice’s and we know they don’t live that far from each other as the house was close enough for her to walk to. He also has one chapter that is just two sentences, both dialog. No problem with the chapter being short, but there is no identification for either speakers, because they are talking about Alice you just assume it must be her parents, but nowhere does it tell you this. The way it is written also makes it stand out like a sore thumb because it is not consistent with the rest of his writing. He goes from boring, rambling narrative, to two short sentences of unknown dialog, and then back to the rambling.

There are also multiple examples of serious TMI. Do we really need to read about how bad the baby’s excrement/nappies smelled? Or have the author refer to the certain private body parts!?!??! Seriously! How is that necessary information?! Let alone appropriate information, especially since it was regarding an infant. That is beyond TMI and inappropriate, that is down right disgusting, disturbing, and verbal pedophilia. How did this get printed? 

And this was all just within the first 19 pages! I cringe at the thought of what the rest of this book was like. If you see this in a bookstore/library and think you might like to read it, for you I have this advice: put the book back on the shelf and walk away. It’s not worth the paper it’s printed on.