National Loonies Week
Since I work in an academic library, and the campus is kind of secluded, we don't get the volume of nut jobs you see in urban and/or public libraries. But Saturday was a full moon.
Last Thursday a guy came in here who must have missed his medication that day. He was involved in some sort of legal proceeding and was trying to defend himself. Unofrtunately, we just didn't have what he needed, and he didn't like that answer. He didn't like computers or air conditioning either. He was wearing a long, heavy full-length overcoat. He didn't like the reference librarian who was trying to help him because, he said, she was a "Jewess." When she pointed out that she was actually of Greek descent, he said he knew that if he investigated her background he could prove she was "from Israel."
The head of reference ended up calling security and having him shown out.
This morning when I got here I had a telephone message. It was some old lady. At first she said books that belonged to her grandfather had been donated to the university and she wanted to know if these books could be loaned to the National Cathedral. She never indicated how we were supposed to know what books they were or whether they'd even been donated to this particular library. Then she talked about how she wanted to become co-executrix of her grandfather's estate because she knew what was best for the family. Then she said she wanted a photocopy of some law review article that quoted or was quoted by John Roberts. She never gave a clue as to what journal or article she was talking about. Then she said she wanted us to call her son and ask him if he wanted to subscribe to some Supreme Court journal.
All these was spelled out very slowly over fifteen minutes except when she got around - finally - to providing her telephone number. She suddenly switched into high gear and spat out an incomprehensible string of numbers.
I told the reference librarian who'd been called a Jewess about this message, and she said ti must be National Loonies Week.