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Re: Friday Funnies...a bit early
As a librarian who worked with a primarily genealogical clientele for
5 years, I *loved* this, and couldn't resist elaborating.
--- "Dostie, Arthur" <Arthur.Dostie@STATE.ME.US> wrote:
>
> Art Dostie
> Ten Commandments for Amateur "Genies":
The professionals could stand a little reminder, too.
> 1) Thou shalt be brief.
Your fellow researchers don't care how you're related to the third
sheriff of Jingleheimer County, either.
> 2) Thou shalt not complain about using microfilm. Thou cannot
> have the original documents.
In fact, the originals have often been destroyed (as was the case
with federal census records.)
> 3) Thou art perfectly capable of finding the bathroom on thine
> own.
"See that sign?"
> 4) Eateth not thy peanut butter cups in the Search Room, nor thy
> potato chips.
Spilling Pepsi on French's Gazetteer isn't so great, either.
> 5) Honor the Archivist, and bring him/her chocolate chip cookies.
Just saying Thank You on the way out goes a long way.
> 6) Thou shalt not put a death grip on the microfilm reader at
> closing time.
>
> 7) Thy spoiled unruly child shall never enter unto the Search
> Room,nay, not to the fifth generation, that My staff's sanity may
be preserved.
"MY child isn't spoiled, *theirs* are!"
> 8) Honor the Sabbath Day. Sitteth not down next to me at Burger
> King on
> Sunday morning as I peruseth the paper and telleth me all about thy
> family (this actuallyeth happened to me, folks!).
Oh, my. A hint of what lawyers and MDs go through every day, I'm
sure.
> 9) Thou shalt not bear false witness (thy grandmother, Bridgett
> McGillicuddy, was Not a full-blooded Indian princess.
These days, *every* Anglo/Yankee/WASP has Indian descent. Otherwise,
we'd have no ethnicity at all. :)
> 10) Thou shalt faithfully obey Commandment Number 5, lest the
> chances of thy locating that "critical" birth record be diminished.
And 11) Researchers-for-hire shall useth not the reading room as thy
professional office. (We had a professional genie who gave out our
reference number and expected us to let her tie up the line with
personal calls and to take messages in her absence.)
Actually, I like genealogical researchers. Only a few are a real
problem, those who behave as though I'm deliberately withholding
their ancestors, and I oughta get the hell out of the way.
Why I like them is the subject of another message, which I'll
consider writing and sharing with everyone, if there's interest.
Thanks to Arthur for a delightful piece!
-C.
=====
*:-.,_,.-:*'``'*:-.,_,.-:*'``'*:-.,_,.-:*'``'*:-.,_,.-:**:-,
"...every modern technology, from television to computers,
was invented by men & women whose education was conducted
almost exclusively with pen, paper, and book."
--Neil Postman
Cynthia Van Ness, MLS, email: bettybarcode@yahoo.com
Shameless self-promotion: http://cynthia.is-online.net
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