Today, I had to come up with a new rule for my library's patrons: If you, your child, or your dog has thrown up on our books, we DON'T WANT THEM BACK. FML
Collection
Fall
Dead leaves, the first cold of the season and an umbrella flipped inside out: fall, the season of grace.
Today, I was working at the library. Some punks thought it would be funny to shit in a book, close it and return it in the drop box. The fact that it was sitting outside in the ninety degree heat for a couple hours did not help the stench; it was everywhere and I had to clean the mess. FML
Today, my dog tore up a single book from the dozens within his reach. That book was titled "How to Train Your Dog". FML
Today, my 8-month-old dog decided to decorate the living room by tearing apart a rented college textbook, the reference guide that went with it, and part of a color therapy book. FML
Today, I went to my local library to study. As I settled in, I dropped my water bottle, causing a mini flood. Panicked, I tried to clean it up with paper towels, only to knock over a stack of books, creating a domino effect of chaos. The librarian gave me the dirtiest look. FML
Today, I had to go pick up my kid, because he threw up while playing at his friend's house. The boy's mother bitched me out for not keeping my son at home while he was "ill". Her breath was unspeakably foul. So foul that it caused me to throw up too. FML
Today, I tried to return a library book sneakily to avoid the overdue fine. I slid it on the counter but the scanner screamed, lights flashed, and the librarian announced my humiliatingly overdue name like a game show host. FML
Today, I got home from a long day of work and saw a pile of dog puke on the kitchen floor. I went to get paper towels and found a pile of dog shit. With my foot. Both of my kids were home all day and left the piles for me to clean because "that's gross". FML
Today, at the small daycare I run, I turned around to put something away. I heard a splashing sound and then saw one of my kids vomiting. He puked several times, and managed to hit the only rug in the entire house. FML
Today, I found out that someone found my lost library card, and instead of returning it, took out multiple items. If they don't return them, I'm on the hook to paying over $100 for them. FML
Today, I stepped into a pile of dog shit on my doorstep, along with a note saying, "Keep your dog out of my yard." I don't own a dog. FML
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Top comments
singlwforlife 22
You would think that something like that would be self explanatory... People no longer speak up when things go wrong or not as expected. They just shove things aside and hope the next person to encounter the problem doesn't notice it... Like vomit in a book. No one will notice that.
lexiieeex3 32
Isn't the general rule that if a book is damaged in any way you replace it?
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Comments (27)
gosh_mate 30
Ewww that's so unhygienic.. People can be so inconsiderate sometimes. Using the library is a privilege and the books should be treated with some care.
Tyrez 32
My favorite about used books was always the smell ;)
idk_rose 25
scary librarian!!! jk
A07 48
It's a shame people don't appreciate books
Lalala579121 28
I don't think it's so much about appreciating books. It's not like they (or their dog or child) vomited on them on purpose. It's more about not being willing to admit that they did something very wrong and would rather have other people deal with the disgusting consequences.
WCARlover 35
Gotta avoid that fine :p
lexiieeex3 32
Isn't the general rule that if a book is damaged in any way you replace it?
Lalala579121 28
Naw it's fine, vomit will come right off. You just have to soak it in coffee and it'll be good as new.
Peachy2392 26
What patrons are fined for varies in different systems. The branch I work for doesn't charge for paperbacks if they come from the youth department. They're not even catalogued in our system. The barcode just reads "Juvenile/Young Adult Fiction Paperback" and if you decide not to return it, there's nothing we can do. That being said, if a hardback is damaged (whether it comes from the adult or youth department) the patron has to pay a fine or replace the book if necessary. If you're going to check out a book, check for damages before you check out. If the circulation staff misses something when it's checked out but notices spine damage when it's returned, you may have to pay a fine. Even if you weren't the one that caused the damage. Sorry for the novel. :P!
TomeDr 25
I work for a library system as a book mender (check out my screen name) and I can tell some stories about how books are returned! Cat and dog barf is awful but cat PEE is the absolute worst!! People put their "whammied" items in the drop box because they're too embarrassed to take it to the desk and admit it's been damaged. Then the smell gets on everything else.
JulieLucero 18
you forgot to add on they have to also pay for them
CasiLG 17
I work in a library as well. I get that people are embarrassed but they still have to pay to replace the book. The book is checked out to them so we can easily see who to send the bill to.
ellyhan 11
And just think, this was a big enough problem that they had to make a rule about it.