How can you help us? Don't lie.
You know when you go to the library and you come up to "check out your selections" and the person at the desk mentions you have late fees to pay? And you totally don't remember from what or how? And you ask about it? And the clerk tells you exactly what they are for, for which books or DVDs and how many days you brought them late on what day, in what month? But you really don't want to pay your late fees?
Do yourself a favor. Don't tell the clerk you never checked out those books/DVDs/CDs, that you don't know how they ever got on your account, that someone must have stolen your library card (from your wallet out of your bag and then put it back neatly again without touching the credit cards and the wads of cash?), that you ALWAYS ALWAYS return your items on time, that the computer was a lying liar, that every time you come the library wants you to pay pay pay, that there must have been a mistake even though you can't produce a receipt to prove it, but that you will not pay the $5.50, no! no! no!
Do yourself a favor. Don't do that. Don't lie. As you elevate your voice and everyone around you starts to pay attention and you keep going on with your thin defense, you are digging yourself deeper and deeper and...
Just hit pause for a moment. Look at yourself. A full grown adult, throwing a tantrum over a few dollars, making a giant fool of yourself trying to get out of paying a library fine (!), lying so badly that everyone, even your kid can see the truth. What do you think is worse now, the public knowing you brought your books back late or that your pants are on fire?
Shut up, pay your fine, keep your dignity.
Posted at 08:12 PM on February 04, 2007
I ahve to tell you, when we lived in Albany, we used to patronise our library regularly, once a week as a matter of fact. Wednesday was "Library Day". I had a system, a library bag where we kept the books and DVDs and always put them right back in the bag to return the next Library Day. Anyway, on more than one occasion I got bills in the mail for books that were waayyyyy overdue that I knew I had returned on time. Very often I would have to call in, tell the librarian to please look on the shelf and see if the book was there, and it was.
The last time it happened, I got so fed up, I didn't call and didn't go there again either. I must have been pregnant because I am not sure why I would get so annoyed at such a simple task in retrospect. As a matter of fact, yes I was come to think of it.
LOL, you don't speak from any personal experience, now do you, Dinka? heehee. I'm on the other end of the desk from you...not the liar, but a stuttering idiot that is terribly embarrassed at the fines we've managed to wrack up. I made a private pledge not to check anything else out until we pay those (we have a fine on both adult cards!!) and so we've been at the library a lot less for the last month. It's really lame, I know! Since our electricity bill is drastically lower this month than during most of the rest of the year, I'll easily be able to pay it this month, but it will be embarrassing.
And then...I need to get a serious system. And not let my kids check out more than one DVD at a time (those are the huge fine-makers!)
Hey!! I really have to protest, here!!! YOu know what just happened to me - and all because our librarians in the Stadtbibliothek are so darn terrifying one dare not contradict them - they made me replace a whole book because they said I must have lost it - but I RETURNED it - I KNOW I did, 10000%, it was the first book lying on top of my pile of books. I made SURE it was there. But it wasn't in the system. It wasn't at my home either. So, naturally, I must have lost it! Computer says so! And there is nothing, nothing, nothing I could do or say to convince them otherwise. Maybe they screwed up? Maybe they misplaced it? Maybe they didn't scan it in properly??? Maybe it got lost in the mail on the way back to the original library? (I ordered it via Fernleihe).
Do you think we little people have any chance against librarians?!? HAH. I had to buy the book again and replace it.
And as I rechecked the catalog a couple of days ago, I noticed that all of a sudden they had TWO copies of the book (when I checked it out originally there was only ONE - which is why I had to order it via Fernleihe in the first place). Which means they found the original book which I was supposed to have lost after all.
Am I mad now, or what???
Grrr.
Alright, girls. I was obviously talking about situations where people were DENYING things. I am completely ok with bringing your books late, in fact the only reason I have no fines myself is because I am there twice a week and because as an employee I am privy to the knowledge and possibility of how to check in your book due 1st February on 15th February and still be on time.
Anyway. Pansy: We make this mistake all the time (Although before we send notices we check the shelves. Nothing more fun than walking around the library with a stack of paper listing hundreds of overdue books and checking the shelves for them!) I am more than willing to check the shelves for someone. What I'm talking about here though is fines for books that were in fact returned. We do have them on the shelves. They were just returned late.
Lindsey: No need to feel embarrassed for returning things late. As a matter of fact as a library employee I can tell you, we don't care. We won't even remember. Now, if you make a lot of fuss... we will remember. Also, I hear you on the DVDs. Our library has some new system called ELF (http://www.libraryelf.com/) where you get emails and reminders that your items are due. Maybe you can use that at your library too?
Alice: Wr. Stadtbuecherei. Yikes. I'm sorry. I totally believe you.
Oh, I didn't respond in order to argue with what you're saying. I totally agree (and would be either laughing inside or rolling my eyes to the top of my head if I heard one of the idiots like you describe making all their lame excuses at the library). Your post just brought out all the guilt I've been carrying around about our library fines. Let me get this off my chest: combining both mine and my hubby's cards, it's over $40.00. I'm paying it this week...I swear! I'm going to make this a priority over buying groceries. LOL
Alright, girls. I was obviously talking about situations where people were DENYING things.
I'm sorry. You touched on a library nerve-LOL
Still haven't paid off my fine! The $$s in the bank so I should go do it today. I'll report back, unless I die of humiliation writing out the check!
It just so happens that my husband went to the library today to pick up some DVDs that I had put on hold. He never usually goes but since I am down with the flu he offered to go. Yippee! Then I get a call. He wanted to make sure that I knew that he paid my late fees fine and that there will be more because of the book he just returned for me was 2 days late. Gosh, thanks dear husband. Like I really need to be reminded! I'll be the one going to the library from now on, flu or no flu. And I think of it this way: the libraries need money, right? So, here's one way to help them out! :-)
I PAID IT!! That's all. :)