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Front Line Reference: Stories from the Field By Gloria Meraz A Note from the Editor: From communication issues and dialect “hurdles” to complicated questions and just plain impenetrable

logic, the reference process is a fascinating exchange of ideas, needs, and information. I polled Texas

librarians recently for a few examples of some of their favorite reference questions.

I have included a few of the shorter examples in the Texas Library Journal. All of the stories submitted,

however, make for fun reading. While some questions may be funny and show the need for some

guidance, I applaud everyone who takes the time to search out answers. We print these stories with

affection for the librarians and clients who are earnestly working at figuring out solutions. And, I salute

the patience and understanding of all involved.

My thanks to all who shared their stories. I include them here without any names.

Ah, The Art of Reference

"I am looking for a book that I checked out last time, but can't remember what the title is. I know its

(insert color here) but that is all I remember. Can you help me find it?" For some reason it is usually blue.

I had a patron call one day to see if we had "that Henry Porter book, Giblets on Fire?"

My favorite reference question during my 15 years at reference desk is … “Did you know there is a snake

over there (pointing to reference stacks)?”

I had a pre-teen male who was working on a paper ask me (or so I thought because he was known to

mumble): “How do you spell marijuana?” I showed him to the dictionary and helped him look up the

word. His eyes got huge and he turned to me and said, “I said, how do you spell Medal of Honor?”

A young woman came in to look for etiquette books so she could teach a children’s course at the most

exclusive, expensive hotel in town. I showed her a PAC and told her to type the word “etiquette” in the

search box. She typed “ediket.”

I managed the Fine Books Division at the Dallas Public Library for many years. One day, a father and his

son came in and asked to see the Diderot Encyclopedia. This was the first "true" encyclopedia published,

and was issued in multiple volumes between 1751 and 1772. It was a product of the "Age of

Enlightenment" in France, and many notable French scholars contributed to it. I brought out one of the

volumes which contained the wonderful copper-plate engravings for which the Diderot is known. The

man and his son started speaking to each other in French, as the father pointed out various aspects of

the encyclopedia. Then he turned to me and said that he and his son were French and that he had

wanted to show him this great French achievement. However, none of the institutions in France that

owns the Diderot would bring out the original for him. He then said, "so I had to bring my son to the

Dallas Public Library so that he could see this magnificent example of French culture."

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Patron: I need a book on wills.

Me: Are you looking for books on estate planning or after death arrangements?

Patron: (Confused look) No, I mean what kind of tire goes on my tractor.

Me: Oh, you mean WHEELS, not WILLS.

My favorite phone reference question was… “Hi. I need to know the gestation period of an elephant.”

My director got when she started working that was… “I need to know when to breed my mare based on

the stars?” Of course, she was looking for the Old Farmer’s Almanac!

I had a woman come in and ask at the reference desk if I could identify the type of spider that had bitten

her. Her cheek was swollen, oozing, and all sorts of nasty. My response was, “I don't think it matters at

this point, but I would go to the emergency room if I was you.” According to the doctor she saw, it was a

Recluse that had bitten her cheek, and it was going through the stages of necrosis at the point she came

to me.

“Where can I find the tyrannosaurus book?” [she wanted a Thesaurus]

Patron: “I’m doing a pro can paper on ‘Should Texas succeed from the Union?’ I can’t think of any cons,

and no one I ask can think of any either! Do you think maybe the Social Security Act?”

What is a female kangaroo called? Answered long before the days of Google and Wikipedia.

I worked at a small library branch in rural South Carolina for nearly eight years. One of our regular

patrons was a die-hard self-teacher on any number of subjects, many of which were related to children

and crafting. So, when she came in asking for a book on making kites, I was not surprised. When I did a

search, I discovered that we did not have any books specifically on kites, but surmised we might find

some kite projects in other craft books. We went to the juvenile non-fiction section, and I did find a

couple of books which contained kite instructions. I showed them to her, and she said they were nice

but not what she was looking for. I suggested going to the adult non-fiction section, and she followed

dutifully along. As we made our way through the stacks toward the 741s, she stopped me at 641.81,

saying, in her very thick, rural South Carolina accent, "Hee-yer. Thee-yis looks good." She pulled out a

book on making cakes.

You mean, the actual contents of these articles are in this database? The whole article?

Where do I find out how to document my sources? No, kidding? The database will give me this

information?

From a 1st grader: Do you have any books with fun facts about frogs? These books just have regular

facts.

How are these electronic databases better than Google?

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I don't know how to document this website. Can you tell me who the author of the site is?

Can you show me how to search Google for my topic and eliminate results that are commercial sites?

I need to find a real magazine article on my topic in print format. My professor says I can't use the

computer. Can you help me?

The patron who told me that she was planning a tea for her women's group and asked to see pictures of

the place settings and decor used for the Boston Tea Party because she wanted to try and duplicate it.

A little girl walks up to the children’s desk one day and asks for a book that explains how to get a dragon.

She does not want a dragon story or a book about dragon folklore. She wants a dragon and needs to

learn how to obtain one. Our children's librarian explained that in order to get a dragon, you had to get

your hands on a dragon’s egg, which was almost impossible as they were extremely rare and incredibly

expensive. The little girl thought about this for a second (probably considering the extent of her

resources) and quickly understood that this goal, at least for now, was going to be out of her reach.

The librarian eventually convinced her that perhaps she could make a dragon with instructions out of

one of the craft books in the non-fiction section. As she was walking out, the little girl saw a book about

gorillas and suddenly another question was clearly on her mind: “How can I get my hands on a real life

gorilla?”

My favorite reference question was: “I need to find out how many volcanoes are there under the ocean.

I am concerned that they are contributing to global warming and want to write my congressman about

doing something about them.” Of course, it’s impossible to know how many volcanoes there are

because the ocean hasn’t been fully mapped. And I found out that volcanic activity actually counters

global warming. She seemed happy with this answer.

When I used to be a reference supervisor at the downtown public library in Arizona: “There are Hittites

walking down my street. What percentage of Tucson’s population is Hittite?” In fact, there were a small

number of ultra Orthodox Jewish people whose synagogue was in this neighborhood. The person

confused the style of dress with pictures from history books.

A patron asked for the poem “A Boob in Autumn.” Through the reference interview, we determined the

person was looking for “Abou Ben Adhem.”

“Where is the tree of knowledge?” After consultation, we decided it was a metaphor.

Just this week, a student was studying in the hallway by the back offices. When asked why, he replied

that main floor was rather loud. The librarian pointed out that the locked study carrels and other quiet

areas were on the lower floor. “Wait, there is a lower floor?!?”

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One from last week, a student was looking for funding levels for charter schools and wanted to know if

our EBSCO Discovery Search would pull up anything. We had to explain that scholarly databases were

often not the best source for data pools (with the exception of some business and legal databases that

needed to be searched separately from a discovery search) but that here, at least, the Internet was a

great resource. We played around with .gov sites and found usaspending.gov -- the student loved the

interactive part!

Shortly after getting EDS, we rebranded it as “jump start.” A teacher brought her class in and was

working with them on an assignment (yay!) but complained that the large “orientation screen” blocked

access to the databases. She just couldn’t believe that searching library databases would look anything

like Google. Her students were very happy the librarians were around and could help out.

We liked this question because it wasn’t easy but we found the answer (in an earlier answer of a

standard reference book): We were asked for the heat of combustion of a specific natural-gas odorant.

When I worked in New Jersey many years ago, I was asked how many people in the state of New Jersey

wore braces (of the sort that straighten teeth). I did not find an answer and had to suggest contacting

the American Dental Association.

In the early days of electronic databases, my boss was able to direct a student to a directory source

which helped the student’s mother find her birth family.

We were asked for weather data for the purpose of outdoor wedding planning. The caller hoped that, if

a certain calendar date had historically avoided rain, it would mean similar weather in the future.

I had a kid ask about a book on the Sixteenth Chapel instead of the Sistine Chapel.

A student contacted the library asking for a periodical. Actually, the citation was for a book. We sent her

what she needed.

A woman emailed and said that she had a newspaper article about her grandparents’ elopement but

that it was in bad shape. It had been cut out of the paper; she didn’t know what paper it was or where it

was published. She gave me the names and the date but that was all the information she had. I dug

around on Ancestry, Heritage Quest, and Texas Historical Newspapers and was able to find her three

articles written about her grandparent’s elopement in the late 1890s!

I once had a paraprofessional ask me a question about “tweeter.” I guess she combined Twitter and

tweet and made up her own word!

If Pluto is a dog then what is Goofy?

If unicorns need to scratch between their ears, how do they scratch around the horn?

How long is The Never Ending Story?

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My favorite one is, "Do you have any good books?" Students at every grade level ask this question,

especially at the beginning of the school year!

I’ve spent many years in public school libraries, yet last year was the first time a student asked me for a

needle and thread. Surprisingly, I found an emergency antique (circa 1965) sewing kit in the circulation

desk drawer beneath the superglue, clothes pins, and dental floss.

Due to the vagaries of our switchboard operators, or Texas accents, or whatever, we frequently we pick

up the phone and say “Geology Library,” whereupon someone launches into an elaborate description of

some Thornbirds style family saga. Generally, I wait until they stop to draw breath, and gently break in

to explain that this is the GEOLOGY library, not the GENEOLOGY library – granite, not Granny, and after

an awkward silence, I refer them to some of the other, hopefully more fruitful options.

Another interesting situation we find ourselves in is a frantic homeowner, calling to find fault maps or

earthquake hazard maps of some part of Texas, which until recently, except for some parts of the

Houston area, were basically non-existent. Some basic interrogation usually reveals that they have doors

that won’t shut or sheetrock and brick cracks around their windows, etc., which they are certain must be

caused by some kind of major ground motion (or, in one case, malignant spirits). Of course average

quality slab on grade foundations are very susceptible to the mild stresses of mobile clays, expansive

soils, compaction where fill has been used, or, in the Houston area, subsidence from groundwater

withdrawal (a form of compaction), so what they really need is a good plumber, an engineer, and an

insurance agent. People are always disappointed to hear this.

Many years ago, during the boom of the early ‘80’s, it seemed we were getting a lot of calls from

dentists, for some reason, looking for quick inside information on the Austin Chalk play, or whatever

happened to be big at the moment, I forget. We found this puzzling, wondering if perhaps the notion of

drilling somehow made these folks feel an affinity for the oil and gas industry. I had this confirmed

accidently later, after the bust, when an unemployed petroleum landman told me how much he missed

the good old days when “even dentists were getting rich.”

Grandmother’s request: “Where are the Grimm’s fairy tales? Don’t give me the Disney crap. I want the

ones where toes get cut off.”

A couple of weeks ago, a young man asked me how to spell “wedgie.”

This is a blast from the past : A second grader was sent to the library to check out an overhead

projector. His question was... “Will you please check out an overhead rejector so that I can take it to my

teacher?”

How tall was Jesus Christ?

Do you have an audio recording of dinosaurs?

Do you have a photo of the apostles?

Are you a mom?

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Have you seen my shoe?

Do you know my password?

Do you have the source? (WANTS A THESAURUS)

I need to know how to make meth.

I've been asked for a list of every book ever published. When I explained I didn't think there was a

resource with such a list, the patron was very upset. He proceeded to go to our catalog machines and

mutter about how it's got to be on there somewhere. I did explain that even the Library of Congress

catalog doesn't have such a comprehensive list. I also explained all of the self published items online

(just in the United States, let alone other countries with other languages). He seemed to sort of get it,

but was unhappy that I couldn't print out a list for him.

Another one that stuck with me were a couple of teenagers (boy and girl) asking for a book about

teenage pregnancy. I brought them to an area specifically dealing with teenage pregnancy and opposing

viewpoints on sexual education etc. They responded. "No, what about...say...if you're pregnant?" My

response "Oh, you're looking for pregnancy books. Here you go." They seemed relieved there was no

judgment, simply information.

An elderly woman came in the other week who wanted to look at a world map or a globe. She was

looking for Bora Bora since her daughter said she and her husband were going there on vacation. I knew

roughly where it was, but found it more quickly online. Since she really liked the globe, I just went to my

computer and found it and then showed her on the globe where Bora Bora is. She smiled, thanked me,

and walked back out the door. That was all she needed.

I once had a student ask at the desk for "an English translation of Shakespeare."

When I first began my library career some 38 years ago, I was doing reference at one of our branch

libraries after school let out one day. The library was filled with middle and high school students from

nearby, working on all sorts of school assignments. One young person asked me if I had any information

about youth in Asia. I tried to ask questions to narrow down the topic, but all I was getting were

quizzical looks back and no response. A line was forming with other students who needed help, so I had

to move quickly and took the student to the 900's, where books on foreign countries were located and

told him that I'd come back to check on him. Finally, he asked why I took him to that location. After all,

he said, "I want information on youth in Asia spelled e-u-t-h-a-n-a-s-i-a." I never have forgotten that

reference question. Definitely, my reference approach changed after that encounter. As for the student

seeking information on euthanasia, he left happy, as we had an entire vertical file folder on that very

topic!

Adult asking in the youth area: “I need books about aliens because they are trying to communicate with

me.”

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A boy asked if we had any children’s books on spirits. His dad told me – out of earshot – that the boy’s

grandmother had just died and he (the boy) wanted to make sure she was OK. They needed a non-

religious take on the subject. Didn’t find anything and felt awful.

Teen request: “Do you have any books about teen girls who are mean and then feel bad about it later?”

Mom: “We are not a religious family. We need to get ready for a Christmas visit from our devout in-

laws. What books on Christmas do you have that I can read to my preschooler that talk about Jesus but

aren’t religious?”

I’m not a native Texan, so when I was asked once for “water whales”, I took the patron to the 500’s. She

gave me a very odd look and said “no, I need information on digging water whales.” At which point, I

realized she meant WELLs.

I was on the reference desk at a public library in the evening and a man came up and asked, "Do you have any information on women?" Here's how the reference interview went:

"Famous women?" "No." "Particular women?" "No." "Women's Studies?" "No." "Women's anatomy?" "Uh, sort of."

I took him to the shelves and stopped by The Joy of Sex. I didn't have to say anything. He looked very

relieved and said, "Yeah, that one."

My most memorable ref question during my time on the desk was “I’m looking for a European history

book. I think its title is 1984?”

I always love our humming questions… “I would like to find this song. It goes like this…” (from a music

librarian)

I once had a graduate environmental science student come into the art and architecture library at

University of Illinois. He was interested in knowing what type of material the artists Christo and Jeanne-

Claude used in their “Surrounded Islands” project and what impact it may have had on the environment

(if any). In looking up info on the project, I found a very nice book (given to us by a generous donor) on

the project. As we flipped through it (it was a non-circulating book because it was very expensive), we

actually found a swatch of material that had been included in the book with information about the

material.

Patron looking for a movie recommended by friends and did not know anything about plot except it was

about a "deaf" Englishman and might be political. It turned out to be The King’s Speech.

“Can you take a look at my rash and tell me what it is?”

“How do I get to Google?” (sophomore at Mt. Vernon High School)

“How does Ebsco know these people are for real?” (freshman at Mt. Vernon High School)

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If people don’t want you to copy what they say, why do they put it on the Internet? (Junior Mt. Vernon

High School)

Comment from librarian: “After each question, I have sighed and bowed my head, ‘Lord, bless

them. Bless them all.’"

A female patron told me she wanted to know how you get pregnant (she looked liked she was at least

seven months pregnant already). I was a bit surprised, but of course continued the reference interview

with professional and interest. It turned out that she was interested in the development of the fetus,

which I then proceeded to provide her with photos of fetal development at different stages.

Today a freshman asked me if we had any books about EVERYTHING. He said he wanted one book with

EVERYTHING in it.

One of my favorite questions that I received my first year as a librarian was, “Do you have the green

book?” After a nice quick game of “20 Reference Questions,” I finally figured out that the student

wanted the book Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look (which was in

fact green!). Once I figured out which book they were talking about I felt like a real librarian for the first

time!

We have a very robust reference service at our library, but the questions are usually about how to find

and use library resources. These questions are not humorous, but they are insightful in how reference

has changed, so much of the time we are helping customers use library resources that require

technology skills. We received the questions below this past month through the Ask a Librarian email

service.

I have a kindle fire and I downloaded a format that I cannot get on my fire. How do I get the download off of my check-out list?

What is the best way to secure a high position on a hold list for a book that the library does not yet have - "Gray Mountain" by John Grisham?

I used to be able to get a list of businesses in the area through one of your databases, and I have forgotten how to do it. Please help.

We still get Reader’s Advisory questions, where customers want a book on a particular topic or just

something they would enjoy reading. Here are two examples.

Today, a friend asked me for a book about depression, and how to “fix” someone else's depression

within her family. The first non-fiction book that came to mind was “The Noonday Demon.” Could you

please help me to do a search for other books on depression that are similar?

I need a book on Spanish sign language, but I need it to be written in English (or bilingual).

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“Can you print me a photo of the Tabernacle from the Temple in Jerusalem? I’m building a model and

want to know what color the curtains were.”

“ I’m looking for a movie about hippopotamuses, preferably giving birth.”

“ I want to know the cities around Killeen, TX that aren’t on any map.” When asked if the patron was

referring to a particular map that had missed some cities, he said, “No, I’m looking for cities that are on

no map.”

“I am looking for hookers in Amsterdam.” The student was working on a sociology project and said this

very loudly at the information desk. I was barely able to keep a straight face. I changed it to, “So you

need information about the red-light district and sex workers in Amsterdam?

“Do you mean a librarian can help me with research?”

“Librarians know about the TEKS?”

“I didn't know that librarians had to have a degree.”

“Where are the books on lunch meat?” (My favorite example of the type of hyper-specific questions we

get around science fair time.)

“Where is eBranch located?”

“Is it legal to kill armadillos in Texas?” This was years ago. Apparently, a lady had just buried her

husband, very tragically. But armadillos kept digging up her husband’s grave. Armadillos like loose soil

to dig in, so the cemetery was a favorite spot. The lady was fed up and wanted to take matters into her

own hands. Law: you cannot sell a live armadillo. However, killing it seems to be okay.

“Where is the dot on the keyboard? You know like when you need to type in wwwDOTsomething.” I

told my caller that he was looking for the period and where to find it, and the memory still makes me

smile.

One of my favorites from over the years was a phone call from an engineer who worked for the Texas

Highway Department. They were painting an overpass up over a busy freeway intersection. Traffic

could not be halted so they called the Science & Technology reference desk at for research on a type of

paint they could use that would "fall dry" and let paint drips hit the passing cars below as dry particles

instead of splatters of wet paint. After extensive research in the technical literature, we found the

information in the patent filings.

"Who was that Indian who helped the pilgrims?" I googled it, and I told her, "Squanto?" She said, "Yes!

That's the one. Thank you so much, I called another library and they said they didn't know so now I know

who to call. You guys are the smart library."

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Bono's home address in Ireland. Found with a combination of blog entries and Google Earth.

Morris the Cat's biography and vitals.

Quotations - where not one word given by the patron was in the actual quote.

"I'm here for the list of places that give out free money." (That one never grows old!)

"I need the form for an unbreakable contract."

Fan mail contacts for people no longer living.

Patron asking for maps of Texas and Mexico, because Texas will annex Mexico soon ... before the world

ends.

Republic of Texas seceding from the US. (Haven't got that one in a while, used to be a very common

query.)

The name of a particular church in Paris. Found using flickr.com.

Looking for values of priceless art.

I was helping a woman with an Indian accent. She asked me for books on “belly dancing” for her five-

year-old daughter who was with her. Not one to judge, I took them to the books on belly dancing and

opened a few to show pictures and content. She gave me a confused look, and said, “No, no, belly

dancing!” I returned her confused look. Then she spoke in another language to her child who quickly

did a pirouette. I laughed and said, “Ohhhh, ballet dancing --- follow me!” and off we went to another

part of the library. We all had a learning moment.

The good folks at the Armstrong Browning Library helped a collector of Browning materials determine whether some manuscripts were authentic. Interestingly, the leading world authority and collector of Browning memorabilia, the library had been consulted years before on the items in question. “After seeing the images you sent, it jogged my memory to look back at an inquiry we had in 2006. I have taken the liberty of copying my exchange regarding the very items you have in hand. You will see that we came to the conclusion then that these items were not written by the Brownings. To be absolutely sure, for your sake, I turned also to the leading Browning scholar who is publishing all of the Brownings' correspondence. It is his consensus also that these items are not in the Brownings' handwriting. I am sending copies of two samples of Robert Browning's handwriting and three samples of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's handwriting for your own comparison.” I had a patron ask me about “boats.” What he REALLY wanted was engine repair for lawnmowers.

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Of course there is always the 7th grader several years ago that kept telling me he did not need my help

in looking for a biography for his research project on the Civil War. At the end of the period, I asked for

questions (as I always do), and this child asked why I didn’t have any books on Abraham Lincoln. “How

were you looking it up?” (I asked, but really already knew.) “Under Abraham of course…”….thus I always

start with that when reminding students how to search for anything in the library.

Student came in looking for “Emily” because the professor said she’d help him. He was looking for the

MLA.

Well, there was the one young man who called and asked how to get his $%^%$ out of a bottle. He

needed to know quickly before his mother got home. No, a jelly lubricant didn’t work because the more

he tried, the tighter it got.

What is the phone number for a wrecking yard in LA. Anywhere in LA. Nope, doesn’t matter which

one. Gave him said number, and he was happy.

“What is the name of that business across the street from us? It’s the one with the red awning.” I

advised that the individual walk to the front windows and peer across the street to get the name of the

business off their windows. “Great! Thank you!! Are they open right now?”

“How many people died in the potato famine? Is there poof it was genocide of the Irish by the English?”

“What did I learn from this critical thinking assignment? “

A client needed help getting started with research about power consumption in hospitals. We turned to

alternative power sources hospitals are using and energy saving techniques.

Request for information about a specific relief agency.

Not exactly a reference question, but a young man did once ask me, earnestly if we had that book on

how to kill mockingbirds.

From very hard of hearing man, "Can you tell me what flatulence means?" After I explain, the next

question is, "Can you spell that? I can't hear you." Answer given very, very loudly in echoing library.

The Indian language is what the Scottish people speak, right? It says so on this website."

We actually field queries quite a bit from folks who have moved to town and want to renovate an old

home – looking for the history of the home, families who lived there, etc.

In a high school library one year I had a student ask for help with her taxes.

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A reference question that always evokes a chuckle from the Genealogy, History, and Archives staff is, “I

am here for my genealogy.” Not all patrons realize that a person’s genealogy or family history takes

years to research and piece together. Libraries do not have handouts with family trees at the reference

desk to hand to the public.

Years ago, when I was going for my masters, I worked at a smallish public library. Part of my job included

reference desk duty. One day a patron walked in and asked for information on “wheels” – or at least

that’s what I heard. Being a novice who was not really adept at doing a good reference interview, I

dragged the poor man over to the 629s and started to show him car repair manuals. He looked quite

puzzled, and said (more than once) “No, I need a book on wheels…” Finally he got exasperated enough

to say, “You know, like when you die, you need a WILL.”

I think the most inspiring reference questions come from the senior students at our university. We have

a highly active undergraduate research agenda at our institution. I see students coming in as freshmen

who don’t really know where to begin with research; we have to help them learn to identify search

terms and sometimes even help them zero in on a reasonable research problem. Then, in just a few

years, here they are as seniors who have become the subject specialists! Some of them who are

majoring in a field other than my own are throwing around words I can't even spell! They’re now closer

to being colleagues rather than overwhelmed freshmen. As seniors, THEY come in ready to explain their

research problem and suggest search terms, and we help with resource location, access, proper citation,

etc. I think this is one of my favorite things about reference in a university library.

A student once asked me for help in locating information on “car pool tunnel syndrome”

“I heard that when Percy Shelley died, his heart didn’t burn, and Mary Shelley wore it in a necklace. Can

you help me find out if that is true?”

“One of my ancestors was an aide-de-camp to Sam Houston during the Battle of San Jacinto and wrote a

pamphlet criticizing Houston. Can you help me find it?”

“Are birds afraid to fly too high?”

“Why can’t I access my Favorites on the computer here?”

“Where does the library keep the land records? I need to find out more about my house. Strange things

keep happening there, so we’re wondering if it’s haunted…and by whom…”

“Where is your section on trichotillomania?” (compulsive hair-pulling)

“Can you find someone that’s in prison for me? I only have their name.”

And one of my favorites from years ago: "Can you find me research proving that ionic hair dryers can

improve your mood? Because I always feel better when I am near the ocean..."

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“How many miles is it from here (Diboll) to Mars?!!!”

“Does the library staff get to sit and read all day? No? Why not? How can you recommend a good

book if you don’t read them!”

An adult asked me for photographs of live dinosaurs (not artist renditions or CGI), preferably T-Rex... She

left mad that, not only did I not help her, but that I wouldn't refer her to anyone who could...

"Where is the closest cemetery?"

“Will regular table salt work as well sea salt in a voodoo potion?”

Youngster: I need to find information for my homework. Staff: What kind of information will you need for your assignment?

Youngster: I am working on a paper about animals and I also need photos. Staff: What kind of animals? A group or a specific kind of animal?

Youngster: It’s on a type of lion

Staff: What kind of lion? Youngster: I think it has markings on it. Staff: Is it one that lives in the United States or another country? Youngster: I don’t know but it is a big one. Staff: Do you know the kind of big cat and where it lives?

Youngster: I think in Africa maybe and I think its name is a Suburban Tiger Staff: Do you mean a Siberian Tiger?

Youngster: Yes, that’s it a Siberian Tiger, it’s big and has markings. This kiddo will never forget finding out about Siberian Tigers. I had someone ask me for a recent book someone recommended. She couldn't remember the exact title but knew it had either the word bear or could be wolf. I called the bookstore and asked them if a recent book had been released with the word bear or wolf in the title. He wondered if I meant Beowulf. I burst out laughing. I told the patron, and she said yes – that was it!