The Library

I spent about 3 hours in St Peters House library today, researching for my exam project. Studying endless books of images that might inspire and help me refine my plan enough to write a proposal. All librarys are strange, but St Peters house is the most strange.

The staff are odd, thats just a fact. They are comprised of the most classicly stereotypical librarians ever placed on the world. Its a dream of ironic geekness. One thing binds the staff though - their inability to be enthused about anything! Perhaps I too would not be enthused if I worked there, but I was thinking - they are surrounded by thousands and thousands of books, containing hundred of images in each. Thats thousands times hundreds of images, which equals millions. Surely that would get you excited on a daily basis?

I went to get change for the colour photocopier at one point and meandered down to the enquiry desk. I stood there. One, particularly odd and vague chap was on duty and his colleague was chatting to him. I did the usual shuffles, leanings and such like to show I was there and waiting service. But he did nothing, for minutes! He clearly saw me but just decided to ignore me! Fair enough I thought, I wont say anything, I will wait with the patience of a saint until you decide to honour me with service. He started edging to the desk, I got excited and readied my fiver to swap for glistening pounds...some other guy sauntered up behind me with some books and stood next to me at the counter. What happened...he only went and served the new bloke first! Fair enough, I thought again, I shall saint it up some more and not say anything to the librarian ignorer or the other chap who was too rude to tell the librarian I was first.
THEN, what should unfold...only more ignoring! The chap left and the librarian just fiddled with the computer for AGES without saying a word! Eventually he vaguelly looked in my direction and I thrust my note at him before it was too late! Crazy, and not the only time its happened. Am I invisible or perhaps just too polite?

My other funny thing about St Peters House is the 4th floor...its like Willy Wonkers Chocolate Factory (minus the Ompa Lumpas). Nobody goes in and nobody leaves. The fourth floor has all the over sized books and lost of monographs for painters and I don't think I have ever seen anyone up there. This leads me to the conclusion that either nobody likes paintings any more and doesn't use them as research or all painters are just really lazy! The bonus of the deserted fourth floor is that there is a chair by a small round window that I like to sit in and read my books whilst chomping on onions. Your not allowed to eat in the library, but as nobody is on the floor I can...and sit down...and look out of a round window. Its good.

My other problem with the library is the crapness of the photocopiers! Given it is the library dedicated to the art school, they have one colour copier and its complete tosh! So much so many students take books out and go to City College as their machine is better! Seems most strange they would be so badly equiped.

Libraries hey...who needs them when we have the internet (thats a joke...I don't mean it, I am sorry Libraries).