The Days & Nights of the Lipstick Librarian!

Overdue Check on Librarian Clichés

In my never-ending quest to feed the yawning maw that is now my blog, I troll Google News for any librarian tidbits o' interest. Unfortunately most of you out there who routinely blog beat me to the punch when it comes to news that features the L Word, which forces me into checking the latest celeb botox nightmare to console myself.

But there is one thing that none of you smarty-pants out there have commented upon: the profoundly sucky headlines reporters use for news stories about All Things Librarian.

Seriously; is it too much effort to come up with something other than

• A pun on what civilians see as our major duties;
• Awkward incorporations of the B-word or anything related to the B-word;
• The perennial standby of twisting the stereotype; or
• Any combination thereof?

I'm sure stories about librarian retirements don't rank up there with Angelina's latest spiritual makeover, but if I had a nickel for every blurb about a librarian "closing the book" on her or his career, I'd have a...well, enough to buy a Krispy Kreme doughnut or a share of their stock--whichever is cheaper.

But I will give the San Antonio Express-News kudos for their refreshingly novel headline for an article about the Archivo General de Indias in Seville, Spain. Extra props for the latent pop culture tie-in.

What I'm Listening To Dept: "Pop, Lock and Drop It" by Huey. WARNING: music starts automatically. If you attempt any of the video moves at your place of work, make sure you have long-term disability. Or no surveillance cameras.

Posted by absherl at July 1, 2007 12:08 AM