Monday, September 16, 2019

Animal visitation






Over the years we've had a lot of animals come through our library. Cats have wandered in more than once, birds by accident too, and a bat showed up in the elevator. A hamster was once dumped into the book drop long ago, and it was promptly adopted by us- so if you have any animals to get rid of, abandon them here at my library! A rabbit used to come by under the pretext of being read to. A pygmy horse came a couple of times to the kid's room for no reason anyone really understands, though it was interesting. Once I was at the front desk and a large parrot flew by. It was great. Apparently it was an escapee from the program room. Dogs, of course, are here all the time for various reasons. And just last week a little mouse made its way into our foyer where it dashed around a lot and then migrated overnight to the phone areas and disappeared for awhile. Mice are cuter in theory than as pestilence. Just in case you didn't know.

But today's animal was a new one for me.

I was out working the front desk of the library when a huge bug came through the security gates. Then it started walking into the library, with purpose, towards the kid's room. I went to look at it. It was a big cricket. I went to get a broom and one of our big book bins to sweep it into to take it back outside. Just as I was getting to work on it a nearby library patron, short, round, with goggly eyes and a strange look to him interrupted me.

"I can take him out." He said helpfully, sort of. "I'm don't mind touching him."

I shrugged assent. Who was I to refuse?

The guy got down to the ground and attempted to scoop up the cricket, but the cricket jumped. Then the man scrambled around on the ground for a couple of increasingly desperate minutes trying to capture him.

Finally he got him. He stood up with him in his hand.

"I can help you outside." I said gesturing to the front doors. But the man didn't seem at all interested.

"I don't mind touching bugs." He said, holding a cricket. "It doesn't bother me at all. I lived in the country for 11 years."

"Okay. Great. Thanks." I replied. Then I waited to see if he was going to go outside or anything.

Nope. We just stood there awkwardly.

So I left him to go put away the broom and box and return to the front desk. As far as I know he's still wandering around the library with that cricket in his hand, not minding it.

The cricket might, though.









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