I feel that nowadays I don't have any valid excuses for going on my long hiatuses. Since I've (somewhat) quit work and am more or less bumming around at home until my barista course starts, AND taking a gap year (though I'm not doing any of that any longer, apparently. More on that later), I'm technically the freest person I know. Which is why after weeks of avoiding doing everything I've wanted to do - make polymer clay food jewelry, write, and blog, I've scolded myself enough to do at least one of the three today. I've had this great inspiration (from reading a book about the Hubble Space Telescope) for my story but at the moment I'm facing a lot of problems writing a conversation taking place between the main character and a flaky constellation.
ANYWAY. On to what I'm writing about. This post is probably not as stupid as I look. Presently I'm wearing UV glasses and my mouth is frozen in a joker-like grin because I have a peroxide-free whitening strip pasted on my upper set of teeth (being a coffee addict has its dire, dire consequences).
I've worked in the library for a pretty long time, just about 2 and a half months. And I've decided that I've mused enough and made a sufficient number of observations to warrant a post.
My job is the job that everybody assumes a librarian to have - basically cart around books and shelve them. Which is about as fun as it sounds - not at all. In any case that's a huge misconception because we're NOT librarians. In a sense we are the mindless underpaid zombie mules that are made to do more than what the job description entails. And by that I mean doing the job the librarians are supposed to be doing - customer service. You'd think that the library patrons would look for help from the people that are ACTUALLY in an NLB uniform, instead of the cranky old people in hideous polo shirts that are VERY preoccupied with arranging and shelving books, but no. The real librarians are seated very comfortably on large, padded roller chairs behind a desk doing god knows what all day. I guess you could say they have a very cushy job. -insert loud booing-
Before working for a government organization one can expect several things:
Well this is what it's REALLY like to work for a government organization:
With the stupidity and general shitty-ness of the patrons, the library staff and the very low pay (worse than MacDonald's, laughably), it's not hard to see why they are very, very short of people. I pity my supervisor sometimes. She's a nice person.
Anyway, shitty-ness aside, being the jaded, misanthropic ol' crank that I am (I identify very much with Bosola, before his change in character in associating with the Duchess) I believe the state of the Singaporean library is a great metaphor for the general state of Singapore and it's people.
What comes to mind when one thinks of a library?
Here in Singapore, what do you have?
A large herd of insipid, unhygienic folk - tending towards the older end of the age spectrum (not being ageist, it's just a very frank observation) that come in here to hog the seats and air-conditioning. It wouldn't be so bad if they were at least reading, but no. They just plop their horrible-smelling sacks of flesh down on the seats and sit there like chunks of fermenting kueh lapis from 10am to 9pm. What, you may ask, do they do in these 11 hours? Oh, the list is long and varied. It's usually a very fascinating combination of the following: airing their smelly feet, picking their (smelly) feet, picking their nose, snoring loudly, talking loudly, scratching their backs on the columns, burping, farting, nosily staring at us while we work. The few that DO read, just dump whatever material they've perused in any random bookshelf that happens to be near them, much like untrained animals which take a dump wherever and whenever's convenient for them. Except that the latter has the excuse of NOT being toilet-trained. However, I suppose that excuse of not being toilet-trained is valid for some of those people. They certainly smell like it.
I guess in a way I should be thankful for my job. It made me realize how I should never, ever sit on any of those seats ever again. ESPECIALLY THE ARMCHAIRS.
Anyway, on to less disgusting stuff. You know how everyone nowadays is like "you can't judge me for what I like or do" blah blah? I kinda disagree with that notion because most of the time what you say and do DOES say a lot about you as a person. Why would anyone think otherwise? Whatever conscious (and deliberate) decision one makes DEFINITELY says something about your character and personality, whether you like it or not. You are what you eat? You are also what you read.
After being made to shelve pretty much the entire adult section in the library, this is made pretty clear to me.
The Business section: Very neat and organized to the second decimal point of the books' call number.
The Computer section: Very much neat and also organized to the second d.p. of the call number. Tome-like manuals often collapse on themselves, much like its readers who probably also collapse on themselves from the tedium of their work.
The Health section: Only superficially neat and organized. Upon closer inspection one realizes its kinda a huge mess, much like the mental state of its readers who are also a mess because of their hypochondria and self-consciousness.
The General section (what you read for GP, basically): a huge fucking mess, much like the state of the world.
The History section: Read above. Clearly much hasn't changed from the past.
The self-help section: A huge fucking mess, much like its readers.
The religion section: Ha ha ha. Read above.
And on to fiction books.
Cutest and sweetest and most polite patrons? Danielle Steele readers.
P.G. Wodehouse, Agatha Christie and the occasional M.C. Beaton readers? I see you have good taste.
Norah Roberts and Stephen King: smh
Don't get me started on the YA books.
xoxo,
Cupcake Militant
ANYWAY. On to what I'm writing about. This post is probably not as stupid as I look. Presently I'm wearing UV glasses and my mouth is frozen in a joker-like grin because I have a peroxide-free whitening strip pasted on my upper set of teeth (being a coffee addict has its dire, dire consequences).
I've worked in the library for a pretty long time, just about 2 and a half months. And I've decided that I've mused enough and made a sufficient number of observations to warrant a post.
My job is the job that everybody assumes a librarian to have - basically cart around books and shelve them. Which is about as fun as it sounds - not at all. In any case that's a huge misconception because we're NOT librarians. In a sense we are the mindless underpaid zombie mules that are made to do more than what the job description entails. And by that I mean doing the job the librarians are supposed to be doing - customer service. You'd think that the library patrons would look for help from the people that are ACTUALLY in an NLB uniform, instead of the cranky old people in hideous polo shirts that are VERY preoccupied with arranging and shelving books, but no. The real librarians are seated very comfortably on large, padded roller chairs behind a desk doing god knows what all day. I guess you could say they have a very cushy job. -insert loud booing-
Before working for a government organization one can expect several things:
- Large and inflexible bureaucratic system
- Inefficiency
- An unneccessarily extensive set of stupid rules and regulations
- Stupid and lazy people
- Meager pay
- Cheapskate and stingy. Because Singapore.
Well this is what it's REALLY like to work for a government organization:
- HUMONGOUS, and humongously stupidly inflexible bureaucractic system
- An unreal amount of inefficiency and productivity that will have Steve Jobs committing suicide on his first day.
- An unneccessarily extensive set of stupid rules and regulations
- Stupid and VERY lazy people (the library staff, not my poor overworked coworkers mind you)
- Very meager pay
- Cheapskate and stingy. Because Singapore.
With the stupidity and general shitty-ness of the patrons, the library staff and the very low pay (worse than MacDonald's, laughably), it's not hard to see why they are very, very short of people. I pity my supervisor sometimes. She's a nice person.
Anyway, shitty-ness aside, being the jaded, misanthropic ol' crank that I am (I identify very much with Bosola, before his change in character in associating with the Duchess) I believe the state of the Singaporean library is a great metaphor for the general state of Singapore and it's people.
What comes to mind when one thinks of a library?
Well even if it's not as fanciful and majestic as the ones in Prague/ Czech Republic shown above, I'd at least imagine a place for intellectuals, or students doing research and the assortment of people that, at the very least, come here to read - whether for the pursuit of knowledge or leisure.
Here in Singapore, what do you have?
A large herd of insipid, unhygienic folk - tending towards the older end of the age spectrum (not being ageist, it's just a very frank observation) that come in here to hog the seats and air-conditioning. It wouldn't be so bad if they were at least reading, but no. They just plop their horrible-smelling sacks of flesh down on the seats and sit there like chunks of fermenting kueh lapis from 10am to 9pm. What, you may ask, do they do in these 11 hours? Oh, the list is long and varied. It's usually a very fascinating combination of the following: airing their smelly feet, picking their (smelly) feet, picking their nose, snoring loudly, talking loudly, scratching their backs on the columns, burping, farting, nosily staring at us while we work. The few that DO read, just dump whatever material they've perused in any random bookshelf that happens to be near them, much like untrained animals which take a dump wherever and whenever's convenient for them. Except that the latter has the excuse of NOT being toilet-trained. However, I suppose that excuse of not being toilet-trained is valid for some of those people. They certainly smell like it.
I guess in a way I should be thankful for my job. It made me realize how I should never, ever sit on any of those seats ever again. ESPECIALLY THE ARMCHAIRS.
Anyway, on to less disgusting stuff. You know how everyone nowadays is like "you can't judge me for what I like or do" blah blah? I kinda disagree with that notion because most of the time what you say and do DOES say a lot about you as a person. Why would anyone think otherwise? Whatever conscious (and deliberate) decision one makes DEFINITELY says something about your character and personality, whether you like it or not. You are what you eat? You are also what you read.
After being made to shelve pretty much the entire adult section in the library, this is made pretty clear to me.
The Business section: Very neat and organized to the second decimal point of the books' call number.
The Computer section: Very much neat and also organized to the second d.p. of the call number. Tome-like manuals often collapse on themselves, much like its readers who probably also collapse on themselves from the tedium of their work.
The Health section: Only superficially neat and organized. Upon closer inspection one realizes its kinda a huge mess, much like the mental state of its readers who are also a mess because of their hypochondria and self-consciousness.
The General section (what you read for GP, basically): a huge fucking mess, much like the state of the world.
The History section: Read above. Clearly much hasn't changed from the past.
The self-help section: A huge fucking mess, much like its readers.
The religion section: Ha ha ha. Read above.
And on to fiction books.
Cutest and sweetest and most polite patrons? Danielle Steele readers.
P.G. Wodehouse, Agatha Christie and the occasional M.C. Beaton readers? I see you have good taste.
Norah Roberts and Stephen King: smh
Don't get me started on the YA books.
xoxo,
Cupcake Militant
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