ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

INNOVATIONS: Humor and creativity: Questions and answers

By Norman D. Stevens Director The Molesworth Institute

As librarians, answering questions—correctly or incorrectly—is our stock-in-trade; it is not surprising, therefore, to find that various aspects of the question and answer game lend themselves to creative approaches that generate humor. In some cases it is the questions that users ask at the information or reference desk that generate, usually unintentionally, the humor. In other cases special humor issues of library newsletters that contain mock advice to the library lorn are a special delight. In still other cases academic libraries have created imaginative forums in which to answer written comments, complaints, questions, or suggestions. Each brings its own unique view of the world of library humor.

At the reference desk

Nancy S. Osborne, of the SUNY College at Oswego Library, observes that, “students asking pre-exam questions fall in a number of categories: the desperate, the confident, the confused, the organized. The questions fall into categories too: thoughtful, cognitive; hasty, rapid; penetrating and searching; inane and perhaps irrelevant. … [In responding] I maintain that the existence and willing utilization of an active, healthy, and operative sense of humor, can make all the difference.”

Perhaps that is what Lynne S. Epstein, then of the University of Kansas Medical Center Library, had in mind when she answered the phone one day—in the midst of a discussion with her supervisor about eating—by saying, “Reference. This is Lynne. May I feed you?” The patron responded, “You certainly may. What are you serving?” Lynne’s supervisor provided the final note of indignity by point out that, given Lynne’s history of cooking failures, she might better have said, “Reference. Will you feed me?”

Equally baffling must have been the greeting given by an assistant at the Winnipeg Public Library, where Randy Reichardt worked, who answered the phone one day not with the usual, “Good afternoon. Information and Reference,” but with the unusual, and perhaps more accurate, “Good afternoon. Reformation and Inference.”

A startling miscue, although not in the context of a true information exchange with a patron, was generated by a colleague (to remain nameless) who, when leaving for the reference stacks with a patron one day, called out loudly to the student assistant at the desk, “ I’m going to ‘P.’” Responding to his look of amazement, she hastily added, “the literature section is what I meant.”

Such encounters are undoubtedly more frequent than we would admit but because they take the form of fleeting exchanges, which we may think reflect poorly on our professional skills, they remain largely unreported. We should instead, I would suggest, treat them as a part of the joy of working with library users and cherish and share them.

Advice columns

Given the widespread distribution of various kinds of advice columns in contemporary American newspapers, it is not surprising to And that the mock library newsletters that satirize the foibles of our best academic libraries often contain advice columns of one kind or another. Such columns are not, unfortunately, a regular feature of any “real” library newsletter of which I am aware. That’s too bad, for the format certainly allows for an honest and open exchange of information and opinion.

The Library Muse,from the University of Missouri Library, and Torn Sheet, from the University of Wyoming Library, have regularly contained such columns. “The Muse Advisor,” which is accompanied by a picture of a properly sage bearded gentleman, is an attempt to offer recourse to the dissatisfied, an ear to the unheard, and answers to the curious. “Ask Miss Behavior . . .,” which is accompanied by a silhouette of an elegant lady, offers no explanation of its purpose. Both offer many words of wit and sometimes even wisdom.

“The Muse Advisor,” for example, often deals with the little problems that all library staff face such as clocks, elevators, restrooms, temperature, and other malfunctioning systems that plague most academic libraries but that no self-respecting library administrator will deign to deal with. The questions highlight the problems even if the answers fail to provide adequate responses perhaps, in their own fashion, paralleling the inadequate responses that are typically provided to such questions when they are asked in a serious way. “Shivering in Shelving” asks, “It seems that no matter what the season, my hands and feet are always cold. Sometimes they even take on a bluish cast. What can I do?” “The Muse Advisor” sagely responds, “I’m hardly a physician, but it sounds a though you should take your problem to someone in circulation.”

“Ask Miss Behavior…” takes a similar approach but tends to concentrate on the etiquette of library behavior and the image of the librarian. “Gentle Reader” (for so all of her inquirers are identified) asks, ‘What should one do when one is browsing in the stacks and suddenly meets a gentleman clad only in a ski mask?” “Miss Behavior” gently responds, “Present him with a preprinted card listing local agencies that supply clothing to the needy. Since one does not wish to encourage ‘hanging out’ in the stacks, it would be prudent to scrutinize the gentleman carefully for identifying features (such as tattoos) in case he should return.”

Another “Gentle Reader” asks, “I’ve been hearing about the ‘Magic Marker Makeup’ trend, but since I’ve never used much makeup of any kind, I really don’t know what to make of this…. I need advice on this before my big debut [as a consultant] next week!” “Miss Behavior” responds, in part, ‘Wise woman! The right magic marker can give your presentation that je ne sais quoi we all desire.

I hope you know what season you are (you have had your colors done haven’t you?)….Marks-a-lot and

El Marko give even coverage and last forever, but Sheaffer is marketing a slightly more upscale line with sunscreen and skin conditioner which I am sure you will be able to afford in your new line of business!”

Formal features

A number of academic libraries—probably more than we realize—have adopted creative formal systems for responding to questions from users that, in a substantial number of cases, make frequent and good use of humor in dealing with the inquiries. Such systems are often, as Sherman Hayes of the Bentley College Library points out, devices that can deflect the complaint level even though you may already know what the questions will be. He suggests—and others practice—that the best technique is to answer the question in the same tone as it was asked. Names are frequently an important attribute of such systems. The University of Connecticut Library once had, in pre-feminist days, a Bitch Box, while the University of North Dakota Library had a Bitch and Bonus Board. Sometimes the whole thing takes on a personality of its own. At Bentley College it is Sol while at the Law Library at the University of California at Berkeley it is Zeb.

The questions most commonly asked are, like those dealt with in the advice to the library lorn columns described above, about such mundane but important matters as change, cleaning, clocks, copying machines, noise, pencil sharpeners, restrooms, telephones, and the like. Emily, at the University of Baltimore Law Library, suggests, for example, that “Cleanliness is next to Impossible” in responding to the question, “Why aren’t the study carrels cleaned out and disinfected weekly? Some of them are truly disgusting.” She ventures that, “[The Housekeeping Department] will tell me cheerfully and cooperatively that they will ask staff to check the carrels more often. Then they’ll tell me that they don’t have enough money to keep the whole place clean (which is probably true), and they’ll suggest that if students would stop bringing ten-course meals and pizza and all matter of gooey stuff into the library, that it would be easier to keep the carrels clean. I’ll ask the library’s official Carrel Light-Bulb-Checker if she would also check the Goo Factor of the carrels as she goes by. A Goo Factor of 5 or more will warrant a report to Housekeeping.”

One of the most creative of these systems is “The Question Board” in the Undergraduate Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign that is, primarily, a serious short-answer reference system. It has been more than adequately described by Donna Pitman in “The Question Board” in the June 1987 issue of none other than C&RL News (pp. 327-30). As an institution that is now widely respected on campus and frequently publicized locally, this system seems destined, fortunately, to endure in its present format for some time to come.

Even during times of financial difficulties, “The Question Board” seems to be an essential service that manages to avoid the lurking budgetary axe. The questions remain posted on the original scraps of paper on which they are typically submitted. They are transferred to a notebook for recordkeeping purposes, but when neatly typed versions of the questions were posted, complaints about censorship and control quickly brought an end to that practice. An electronic version is under consideration but its lack of the personal touch is a major concern. It seems unlikely, in any case, that an electronic version could ever have the attraction, charm, and visibility of the original. Ms. Pittman, like Ms. Osborne, suggests that through this approach to answering reference questions “Staff members … can add a touch of geniality or humor in their manner of answering.”