Last night a slightly shabby man walked to the circ desk and asked for a student phone directory. He seemed to find it difficult to accept that student phone numbers are private information. His demeanor was friendly but odd, as if his cognitive abilities were slightly scrambled. Eventually he went upstairs. About 15 min. later a campus security officer and a city policer office walked in and asked if someone had been inquiring about student phone numbers. Turns out the shabby man had started asking students studying upstairs if they could get him a student directory, and one of them had been disturbed enough by his behavior that she called security on her cell phone. The two officers went upstairs to talk to him for a few minutes. They came back downstairs and the campus security officer said "I don't think there's anything to worry about; he just seems a little slow. Call us if he gives you any problems." Later the shabby man asked me to help him find a book he had pulled up on the OPAC, but after I located it on the shelf he said "That's all I needed to know," shook my hand, and left without the book.

This morning The Boss mentioned a guy who pestered her last Saturday asking about student phone numbers! I related my experience of last night. She said "We need to ban him." Lo and behold, he walked in a few minutes later, walked right out as soon as he saw K.L. the database librarian, then decided to come in again, rushing immediately upstairs. The Boss asked me to go confirm that it was the same fellow who came in last night. I saw him parked on a chair on the second floor, staring at the elevator. We called security and they escorted him out after a brief, heated discussion.

I'm tired after a hard day of manual labor. We're setting up for our semi-annual book sale, so my back is aching after hours of lifting and toting boxes of books. Maybe the fatigue will help me sleep well for once.