Conversation about Wednesday's fire.

A patron finishes reading the newspaper article.

"You know, the city burned it down."
"Why would they do that?" I said.
"To drive out the Mexicans."
"But the city bought out the Mexican owner months ago," I point out.
"Right, and that's why they burned it down." He hands the paper back to me and leaves.

Update: I walked past the remains on my way to lunch, and another patron tells me, "You know they burned it down on purpose because they wanted the space." It's a conspiracy.

A building across the street is on fire!

Update: Two hours later, it's still on fire. Three water cannons and a news helicopter. The building was abandoned, so no one was hurt. The smoke has infiltrated the library and I'm getting a sore throat. My eyes sting. And I'm just getting over a cold ...

A homeless guy claims he's been jailed for library fines and wants a friend to bail him out. The friend is, not surprisingly, suspicious, and calls us.

When the opportunity arose to trade my Tuesday evenings for Thursdays I gladly did it. Tuesday evenings on desk are hellishly busy. Thursdays are relatively calm.

So why the hell is it so busy tonight???

It's always a little strange when I encounter small children who are smarter than their parents.
Speaking of which, the copier is smarter than the last guy who tried to use it.

Late in my Online Reference Shift:

I've answered questions on cerebral palsy, ladybug species, and found pictures of Hawaiian volcanoes. Of the twelve librarians on call right now I have answered three of the six questions. Some people are not pulling their weight. Ahem.