turn the page

2008-11-21T21:14:00.000-08:00

I got off to a bit of a false start a few weeks ago...saying I was back to posting cartoons on a regular basis. Side tracked with some other things recently, I've fallen behind once again.
With the holidays coming up and no new finalized material ready, I've resorted to posting a cartoon that I included with the booklet I sold a while back. It was one of the "never before seen" cartoons...so for the those that own it and have already seen this, my apologies. For those that didn't order a copy, hope you like it. I'll get back to work soon...really.
Happy holidays! :)

2008-10-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, I'm back! Hello? Anyone still there? My apologies for taking so long to update this blog.
Once the weather started to get nice, I couldn't stand the thought of being indoors, sitting at a computer as the sun beckoned outside.
But now that it's slowly starting to get cold and rainy again, I'm sure I'll have more time to devote to cartooning.
I can't make any guarantees on how frequently I'll be updating this site, but hopefully it won't be more than a month between posts.
Now to some background behind this cartoon. I went to visit Seattle a few weeks ago and decided to check out their downtown library. It's actually a cool place...very modern and organized. I did embellish a couple of things in this cartoon, so it's not 100% true, but pretty close to the real thing. I guess I'm just trying to show what little charisma I have...
Hope everyone had a great summer and thanks to my die hard fans for encouraging me to get back to work! :)

2008-05-25T23:17:00.000-07:00

Yep ladies and gentlemen, it's about that time of year again...time for a little break from cartooning and being anchored to a computer. I'll be taking a few months off to get outside and soak up some UV rays, work on photography, get some ideas for the next round of cartoons, and just try to enjoy the summer.
I'm not sure if I'll be printing another collection of cartoons this time around. There weren't as many this season as the last, so maybe it's better to wait until I have enough to make it all worthwhile.
In the meantime, hang tight and I'll be back soon. Thanks for your support!

2008-05-19T22:20:00.000-07:00

Once again, I'm a little late on posting a new cartoon. I think it has something to do with the warmer weather we've been having and being at the Oregon coast for the weekend.
The idea behind this post started with a suggestion from R.K. It was slightly different at the beginning, but after a couple of little tweaks, this is the end result.
I call it "The Loquacious Patron."

2008-05-11T12:58:00.000-07:00

Truthfully, I don't watch any of the CSI shows on TV, but after getting an idea from one of my co-workers, N.B., I thought it would be fun to take the classic detective scenario and put it in a library. This might have the potential for later episodes...stay tuned!

2008-05-02T21:33:00.000-07:00

I've fallen behind schedule with my usual posting because I didn't have a cartoon ready for this past Sunday (sorry!). I finally finished what I've been working on and was going to wait a couple more days, but decided to hurry things along and just get it online.
This "page-centric" cartoon and idea came from one of my top contributors, R.K., but I altered it somewhat. Originally it called for a different end result and arrows pointing to all the different changes that had taken place through the course of evolution, but I didn't have enough room (even with this wider than usual panel!) and had trouble ending on a convincing note. After staring at the computer monitor for what seemed like hours and nearly giving up, for some reason my brain came up with (had to do a little Google search to find the name) the Martian Popping Thing™...??!!!

2008-04-20T13:49:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what prompted this week's cartoon. I guess it's some kind of deep seated fear of being embarrassed in front of a large group of people, or children in this case...something that probably goes back to my own childhood and fear of public speaking.
At my library we have what's called Story Stop and although I have nothing against reading and singing to kids, I don't think I'll be participating anytime soon. I'll leave that to the professionals. :)

2008-04-13T21:29:00.000-07:00

Recently I was riding the bus home and a passenger sitting across from me had their cell phone pointed right in my direction. Of course they might have been been scrolling through a list of contacts or playing games or whatever else you do with cell phones these days...or they could have been taking my picture and text messaging friends about the idiot sitting in the seat nearby. All in an instant...

2008-04-06T11:20:00.000-07:00

Once again, I'm posting this a little earlier in the day because I have plans for later this evening.
Occasionally my co-workers and I have joked about putting a life-sized cardboard cutout of ourselves somewhere in the stacks to see if we could slip out from work unnoticed.
That's what inspired this week's cartoon...and by the way, it's not based on a true story and I don't condone this behavior. ;D

2008-03-30T11:06:00.000-07:00

Just having a little fun here combining yoga with library tasks. Originally I had another patron salutation in mind, but as you might have guessed, it probably would have been deemed inappropriate. :)
Posting this earlier in the day, because I'm heading off to spend the afternoon playing that new fangled Rock Band game with some friends. Can't beat living room karaoke!

2008-03-23T19:57:00.001-07:00

This post is kind of filler material and not necessarily library related. I'm still working on some new ideas, so I hope to see you back here next week!

2008-03-16T21:11:00.001-07:00

This is one of those situations where the mind goes on autopilot, which has happened to me plenty of times.
Actually, if you can believe it or not, our library used to have a Starbucks parked in a corner of our fiction room. This was a few years ago during the peak of its powers, but eventually it closed down, much to the dismay of some our coffee loving staff and patrons. Luckily there are still plenty of coffee shops within a few blocks, so everyone can still get their caffeine fix, just a little less conveniently.
Thanks to H.J. for the coffee order help!

2008-03-09T19:15:00.001-07:00

It might seem like I'm wallowing in self pity with this post, but it's just showing a behind the scenes look at what I go through to put a cartoon together. Okay, it's actually not that bad, but I've been dealing with a bit of cartoonist's block this past week. No worries, I've got a couple of ideas brewing...stay tuned!

2008-03-02T19:42:00.001-08:00

To my one remaining fan out there:
I apologize for not posting a cartoon last week. I had one all ready to go, but at the final hour decided it might not be appropriate, and without a backup cartoon...well it just didn't work out.
This week's post is somewhat of a continuation of the previous cartoon, when my fellow co-worker G.H. and I were talking about the library attracting some "interesting" characters and what they would look like in a police lineup. The patrons you see here are based on a mixture of real and fictional regulars that roam the stacks throughout the day. Hopefully they don't discover this cartoon and sue me into oblivion.

2008-02-17T19:42:00.001-08:00

I didn't do the best job of conveying this, but after a discussion with fellow co-worker G.H., we decided that the info desk at our library would eventually end up looking like an L.A. pawn shop...complete with bullet-proof glass divider and steel metal drawer to handle any patron transactions. Maybe I'm just becoming paranoid, but there sure are some sketchy characters passing through the library doors these days.

2008-02-10T18:29:00.000-08:00

Back in the early nineties, a Seattle based rap group, Sir Mix-A-Lot, released a song called Baby Got Back. Perhaps you remember hearing it on the radio or seeing it on MTV (a million times). If not, I apologize for the obscure pop culture reference.
Anyway, a few weeks ago I was checking in some oversize books and my friend and co-worker, C.P., started in with this rap and planted the seed for this cartoon. Thanks C.P.!

2008-02-03T21:19:00.001-08:00

Here we are in February and already I'm starting to run out of ideas...another round of cartoonist's block I suppose. This is about the best I could come up with. Hopefully I'll get back on track soon. Have a good week everyone and I'll see you back here next post...

2008-01-27T21:56:00.000-08:00

Today's cartoon is to highlight one of our job hazards at the library. Thankfully this hasn't happened to me yet (knock on wood), but I've had a couple of close calls. Mainly through my own fault...trying to shelve a book up above that's slightly out of reach and a row of precariously placed novels come cascading down, narrowly missing any unprotected body parts.

2008-01-20T17:12:00.000-08:00

As they used to say on Monty Python, "And now for something completely different..."
I decided it was high time to work on another of David Elsey's poems. Only in this case, instead of picking a library themed poem, I chose another of my favorites. At first, I tried to illustrate it as a cartoon, but with the limitations of MS Paint and my own drawing skills, I wasn't able to do it justice. Then a co-worker of mine suggested I take photos and insert my cartoon characters onto them...but for some reason, it still didn't quite work. So after taking pictures around my neighborhood in southeast Portland, I thought they could stand on their own with the words to this poem. My one fear is that poetry is mostly for the reader's imagination, and posting photos with it would only take away from that experience...so I hope this doesn't diminish it in any way. Thanks to David and N.B. for their help and encouragement!

2008-01-13T20:30:00.001-08:00

After working at a library for a while, I've smelled some pretty harsh smells. You might even say I've built up a bit of a tolerance compared to the average person. Sometimes books smell, sometimes patrons smell, or the origination of the smell can't be ascertained. There are smells that leave when a particular patron leaves...other times, they linger for a few minutes, even after said patron vacates the area. Understandably, not everyone has access to health services, or chooses to take advantage of them for one reason or another. I'm not a social worker, otherwise I'd probably have more answers.
Anyway, this cartoon came about after recently experiencing a smell that can barely be described...I literally had to keep a 15 foot distance from the source or else my gag reflex would start to kick in. A character building shift for sure. Okay, enough ranting...many thanks to R.K. for his idea help and have a great week everyone!

2008-01-06T18:02:00.001-08:00

This is from an actual exchange between two patrons at our library. B.C.M told me how he overheard it during one of his shifts in Humanities and I decided to turn it into a cartoon.
For some reason I thought coming from royalty meant awareness of etiquette and manners...but that sure doesn't seem to be the case here. :)

2008-01-01T20:06:00.000-08:00

A little late on posting this because of the holiday. This cartoon came about after talking with D.T., a co-worker of mine. We were discussing the fact that a lot of companies seem to be jumping on the "green" bandwagon these days...which I suppose is a good thing.
Hope everyone has a great new year!

2007-12-23T17:54:00.000-08:00

This is just a classic case of misunderstanding...happens every once in a while in the library. I actually recycled the idea for this cartoon from one that I did a long time ago in a previous job where we talked to people over the phone.
Once again, happy holidays everyone! See you in 2008...

2007-12-16T21:29:00.001-08:00

The holidays seem to have snuck up a lot faster this year than normal...I don't know, just a feeling I had. We've been seeing our share of new hires recently which was the inspiration behind this week's cartoon. I'd say more here, but I gotta get caught up on x-mas shopping...see ya!

2007-12-09T22:00:00.001-08:00

Don't ask me where I got this idea from...I think it had something to do with trying to shelve books in the same section as another co-worker and suddenly imagining what would have happened if we were living in the days of the Wild West.

2007-11-30T20:57:00.000-08:00

The tone might be a little harsh, but I ended up drawing a rough draft for this cartoon after what seemed like a day of endless Wi-Fi inquiries. Our library doesn't officially have Wi-Fi access yet, but will hopefully get it soon.
Posting this cartoon earlier than scheduled, because I'm heading out of town for the weekend. Happy Holidays!

2007-11-25T21:52:00.000-08:00

It may not look like it, but this is one of the toughest cartoons I've had to do...mostly because of all the little details.
I was thinking that maybe sometime in the distant future, there'll be museums featuring artifacts and historical bits from the early 21st century, so in this case it's a library museum.
I wanted to use Latin names for each of the statues presented here, but since I don't know Latin at all and couldn't think of any cool fake names, I decided to use dinosaur names instead.

2007-11-18T17:44:00.001-08:00

Reference material has to stay in the library, so we have strict rules for patrons who want to have a look. Of course, there are always a few people who try to find ways around those rules...
Thanks to R.K. for the idea behind this cartoon.
You may have noticed that I no longer allow instant comment posting. That's because I started to get comment spam from some idiot trying to sell online meds, so I've got to approve things first. Sorry for any inconvenience...

2007-11-11T17:04:00.001-08:00

After having conversations with a few co-workers about the hazards of our job, I decided to come up with some updated gear for a library page. There are probably hundreds of other clothes and accessories I could have included, but ran out of room. Feel free to write in with any other ideas you might have.
And the reason for this t-shirt is because I'm frequently asked, "Excuse me, do you work here?" while in the middle of shelving books and wearing a library employee badge on my chest. Sometimes I feel like answering back, "No, I'm just a patron that likes to push book carts around and shelve books...sorry."

2007-11-04T17:58:00.001-08:00

I've decided to try and start posting on a more regular schedule. In the past, I would post cartoons somewhat unpredictably...occasionally once a week, sometimes twice a week. My current goal will be to have a cartoon ready by every Sunday evening, so when the week starts, there'll be something brand new to look at.
By the way, the last two lines in the final panel of this cartoon pay tribute to one of my favorite movies of all times, Better Off Dead. Sure, it's from the 80's, but to me it's a classic. If you haven't seen it, I suggest you go out to your local video store and rent it now!

2007-10-28T22:02:00.001-07:00

Most people that visit our library from out of town are either really impressed or indifferent, but every once in a while I hear little complaints about how there isn't wi-fi access yet, or things are hard to find, or we don't have such and such book, etc.
Here, I was trying to imagine a patron that was a bit too snooty for his own good...

2007-10-21T21:27:00.001-07:00

I'm posting this a little earlier than planned, because I realized October 21st of last year is the date when I first started putting my library cartoons online and thought it would be appropriate to have one ready by this evening.
Welcome to the world of the library ninja...

2007-10-16T22:11:00.000-07:00

Sorry it took me so long to post a new cartoon, but I've really fallen behind schedule! I recently got back from a trip to the Southwest and didn't have a buffer of cartoons waiting to upload (which I thought I'd have after all my time off this summer). Now that the weather is cooling off and getting rainy, I'll probably have a lot more time to plop down in front of a computer and get back to business.
This cartoon is just having a little fun with that Homeland Security color chart that seems like it was made for three year olds.

2007-09-27T23:24:00.000-07:00

I feel the need to explain panel #4. For those of you that haven't worked in a library or don't use a system like ours, an NOS occurs when a book requested by a patron or staff cannot be found for one reason or another. NOS stands for Not On Shelf...and we indicate that on a slip and fax it to the appropriate retrieval desk. As funny as some of these songs are, I can't take credit for the 2nd and 4th panel of this cartoon. I tried to do some research as to who thought of these great songs, but from talking to fellow co-workers, it sounds like they're collective ideas that developed over the past few years and can't be pinned down to just one person.
I'm posting this cartoon before heading out for a quick visit to the Southwest.
In the meantime, if you're interested in ordering my cartoon zine online, it's available at Powell's Books and you can get it here.

2007-09-24T09:30:00.001-07:00

Sorry it took so long to post a new cartoon, but I've been devoting most of my time to getting a book finished. Instead of taking a lot of blood, sweat, and tears...it was more like a lot of carpal tunnel, procrastination, and finger nail biting to get it done.
But the book is finally here and I have a few copies ready to give out. It's got most of the cartoons found on this blog, plus five brand new ones, and a couple of other little extras. The only drawback is that it's kind of thick, and in trying to staple it all together, I realized that it doesn't close all the way! If I get through this first run, I'll try and use thinner paper next time.
Anyway, if you're interested in getting a copy of my self published book, please write me at: librarycartoons@gmail.com
I'll respond as soon as I can and give you the details on where to get it and how much it'll cost. Thanks!

2007-08-30T21:40:00.000-07:00

I'm posting this as some kind of preemptive strike before everyone leaves for the holiday weekend. This cartoon is 98% true and happened to me just today. I've learned in life to try not to judge a book by its cover, but this patron looked like he didn't even know what yoga was. Not sure why he requested a copy of this particular magazine, but it sure made my shift all the more interesting. Guess this means my vacation is over with...?

2007-08-20T09:48:00.001-07:00

For those of you wondering what I've been up to the past few months, here's the latest news: I'm still working on printing up a little booklet with my cartoons. I was planning to have it finished by the end of this month, but it looks more like mid to late September. I was going to have a few color pages included, but when I found out the cost...well, let's just say it's all going to be in black and white (unless I win the lottery).
I also hope to resume posting new cartoons in a couple of weeks.
Check back to this specific post for any up to the minute details. Thanks for your patience!
* Update * The library cartoon book is finally here...to reserve a copy and find out more info, please write to: librarycartoons@gmail.com

2007-08-02T20:28:00.001-07:00

Okay, this isn't a library cartoon and I'm still supposed to be on vacation, but I was itching to post this.
One of my biggest pet peeves is when I'm walking down the sidewalk and a group of people heading in the opposite direction ignores that I'm there and nearly forces me into the street, or onto someone's lawn, etc.
I really don't feel that I should have to yell out "excuse me," or end up pushing someone out of the way. Common sense (if it still exists) should tell a person that the sidewalk space is limited and to pay attention to people headed in their direction, making room if necessary.
Enough of my soapbox talk, I've encountered this sidewalk problem a lot recently and felt like venting. Please feel free to write in with any suggestions, disagreements, or your own stories regarding this situation. Thanks to L.R. for encouraging me to turn my gripes into a cartoon.

2007-07-21T21:28:00.001-07:00

Surprise! I know I'm supposed to be on vacation, but with all the Harry Potter hype going on, I just had to take part.
Still working on putting a little book together with my cartoons...hoping to get it finished by mid-August. Check back then for more details. Thanks for your patience!

2007-05-17T07:14:00.000-07:00

Yep, that's right folks. At the risk of losing my fan base (four people), I'm taking some time off for the summer. It will give me a chance to create some kind of publication with my cartoons...a very lo-fi approach, probably just a zine of sorts. You might be thinking to yourself, why should I care about a printed book with your cartoons when I can easily look at them online? Well in that case, I'll try and put together a few extra cartoons that you won't find on my blog site. When all is said and done, I'm guessing there will only be a small amount of copies...to be distributed around the library I work at and to friends & co-workers. I'll post a message on my blog with more info once it's all finished. Who knows, maybe I'll have enough copies to sell some through Amazon or similar online distributor. I also plan to collect more cartoon ideas, so by the time September rolls around, I'll be better prepared with fresh material for a whole new season. Well, that's all I have to say for now. Have an excellent summer and I'll see everyone in September...or if procastination takes hold, more like October. Ha!

2007-05-14T07:04:00.000-07:00

I've had this concept in mind for a while now, but couldn't quite figure out how to condense it into a cartoon. I wanted to pay homage to the Twilight Zone series and somehow fit a library theme in there...such as the classic episode "Time Enough At Last."
Unfortunately, it's very difficult to come up with an original idea these days, so what I ended up with is somewhat generic, but it still cracked me up...and that's what counts, right?

2007-05-10T07:05:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what brought about the idea for this cartoon, because I've only had a couple of non-English speaking encounters. One of these days I'd like to quit being lazy and learn one of the target languages our library is most in need of: Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, Chinese...how cool would that be?
Special thanks to M.A. (who just started working in our circulation department) for his help with the proper Spanish translation.

2007-05-07T07:06:00.000-07:00

B.C.M. gave me the idea for this cartoon...it even fit nicely into a two panel format. Thanks! Originally the ending was slightly different, but I decided to tone it down just a tad.
As patrons sit and wait for the next available computer, I sometimes wonder what goes through their minds as they stare off into the distance. Perhaps it's best that I don't know...

2007-05-03T07:15:00.000-07:00

First and foremost, I'd like to apologize to manga fans out there for my latest cartoon. I wasn't trying to make fun of it...just never had any luck making sense of what was going on within the pages of our manga books here at the library...they're supposed to be read from back cover to front cover, right? Or is that what's causing my problem? Well anyway, I thought it would be fun to place my character in a graphic novel/manga setting, so here you go. If anyone out there has recommendations for a manga starter series to help me better understand what it's all about and maybe even get hooked, please let me know. Thanks...

2007-04-30T07:11:00.000-07:00

Our library has an extensive catalog of magazines, some archived issues going back many, many years. The location of specific titles requires us to vault up and down a few flights of stairs to obtain them. Of course, some patrons seem to know this and purposely request volumes of heavy, obscure magazine collections, with no other reason I can think of but to see us suffer.

2007-04-26T07:02:00.000-07:00

Besides making a bee line to get a computer in the morning, patrons also dash for the DVD section, trying to get their hands on the latest titles.
I thought I had run out of ideas this week, but a librarian who works in our Popular Library came to the rescue with this one. Thank you!

2007-04-23T07:59:00.000-07:00

Our library has two elevators...one for patrons and one for staff. Since there are a lot of employees to handle, the elevator usage is high. You have to be prepared for lengthy waits...and when the elevator finally does arrive, it may be too full. At that point, four flights of stairs don't seem like a big deal.
Thanks to P.H. in the circ department for planting the seed for this idea.

2007-04-09T07:05:00.000-07:00

Here's another info desk encounter similar to the cartoon from a couple of posts ago. This time I tried to imagine what it would be like to communicate with a Paris Hilton type of patron.

2007-04-05T06:43:00.000-07:00

Part of being employed by the library requires that you go through the occasional training. Some of the sessions are straight forward and to the point, while other times they don't make much sense, leaving you more confused than before. This is compounded by the fact that some of the trainings last an entire day, making them all the more difficult to sit through...especially right after a big lunch. Yawn!

2007-04-02T08:28:00.000-07:00

My very own sister e-mailed me some cartoon ideas not too long ago, and I chose to use this one first, because it most closely matched my style. I ended up changing the ending, so hopefully she doesn't decide to kill me...her ending was probably better anyway. Thanks sis!

2007-03-29T06:59:00.000-07:00

R.K. originally approached me with the concept for this cartoon a couple of weeks ago, and while I thought it was a brilliant idea, I wasn't sure if I could pull it off in just a few panels. For those of you unfamiliar, this is from the classic short story by Edgar Allan Poe called The Cask of Amontillado, where a man is sealed behind a brick wall tomb uttering that last phrase before the final brick is cemented into place. But here we have books instead of bricks. Thanks R.K.!

2007-03-26T07:01:00.000-07:00

Whenever I'm riding the bus or in some public place and a person is listening to headphones with the volume kind of high, I usually only hear muffled noises with a few rattling drum beats thrown in, but a couple of days ago there was a patron in the next aisle blasting his headphones so loud I could hear the vocals and picked out which song was being listened to in only a few seconds...sort of like playing Name That Tune. I cringe at the damage being done to this person's hearing, but I guess you don't need your ears to read.

2007-03-22T06:59:00.000-07:00

There are at least two other people I work with who have the initials J.C., so I'm not giving credit to myself for the idea behind this cartoon. I'm sure there are a lot of other types of pages that can be found at the library...this is just a sample. Thanks again to J.C. for helping me through my bout with cartoonist's block.

2007-03-19T09:15:00.000-07:00

There's a certain patron that visits our library occasionally who we've found doing stretches and light exercises amongst the shelves. I don't think there are any rules against that, it's just kind of awkward to see. I'd like to thank the boxes crew from last week for helping to come up with the idea for this cartoon. And thanks once again to my viewers for all the comments and suggestions.

2007-03-15T07:06:00.000-07:00

This is the end result of cartoonist's block. All I could draw was some kind of mix between The Missing Piece by Shel Silverstein and Matt Groening's Life In Hell. It's been difficult coming up with new ideas lately, so hopefully we'll return to our regularly scheduled program by next week.

2007-03-12T07:35:00.000-07:00

This cartoon reminds me of the trash compactor scene from Star Wars. Sometimes I forget to check if anyone is between shelves before I start them moving to access another section. Luckily there haven't been any mishaps yet...knock on wood.

2007-03-08T07:03:00.000-08:00

I was going to say something else here, but instead would like to dedicate this cartoon in memory of Portland blues musician, Paul deLay.

2007-03-05T07:19:00.000-08:00

David Elsey is a locally published writer and one of our poets-in-residence at the library. I decided to base this cartoon on one of his poems because I'm a fan of his work and can relate to what he writes. His books are available at our library and also at Powell's Books downtown.

2007-03-01T06:33:00.000-08:00

This cartoon is loosely based on that movie The Dead Zone from back in the early 80's. Except I think whenever the main character came into contact with people (or objects?), he would have visions of the future and not the past...I forget. Guess I'll have to check that movie out again and get my facts straight.

2007-02-25T12:12:00.000-08:00

With TV shows like Medium, The Ghost Whisperer, and even The Dog Whisperer, I thought it would be fun to try something like that in a library. Why not have a page with psychic powers...or some kind of otherworldly connection to books? I should be able to come up with another episode or two with this kind of theme in mind, so check back soon!

2007-02-22T07:00:00.000-08:00

Our library system has a large number of employees and I'm still somewhat new to it, so I can't be totally at fault for not knowing who's who. In all truth, I find it commendable for a person to stay at a job for a long time and see it through to retirement, especially if they still enjoy what they do. And who can turn down free food?

2007-02-17T22:00:00.000-08:00

Remember those microfilm machines from when you were younger? I barely do. Well anyway, our library has a few machines so people can look up archived magazine or newspaper articles. We get all kinds of questions and concerns about their use, so this cartoon is a result. It may not be a very original idea, but I couldn't resist.
Almost forgot to put in the logo this time, which explains why I barely fit it into the upper left corner in tiny print.

2007-02-13T06:59:00.000-08:00

No, I wasn't inspired to do this cartoon from those really strange caveman commercials made by that insurance company. Instead, it was during a conversation with R.K. after I finished the anniversary cartoon a couple of posts ago. I had already visited the library fifty years in the past...why not turn the time machine dial back even further?

2007-02-09T23:05:00.000-08:00

Decided to have some fun with a mafia theme for this one. Special thanks to R.K. and B.C.M. for the idea contributions.

2007-02-06T07:08:00.000-08:00

The Stacks department at our library celebrates its fiftieth anniversary today, so in honor of that, I put together this cartoon. Some things have changed, some things haven't...who knows what the library will be like 50 years from now?

2007-02-01T22:12:00.000-08:00

Here's another cartoon about the library at closing time and last minute stragglers. Whenever I head for the exit doors, I usually witness a member of our staff having to turn a patron away with some desperate excuse to enter. Turning patrons away at closing has got to be one of toughest jobs, in my opinion.

2007-01-27T22:36:00.000-08:00

In one of my conversations with R.K. at our place of work, he brought up some of his favorite book titles. After laughing until my stomach hurt, I thought it would work well to try and interpret them as cartoons. There are a couple more titles he had which didn't make it into this post, but it may become a continuing series. How to build a T-Rex skeleton out of chicken bones??? Yes, these books really do exist.

2007-01-23T07:00:00.001-08:00

I'm not even sure you can sing along with this. I've been having trouble coming up with new ideas lately, so out of desperation I decided on a musical. Strange...

2007-01-19T20:30:00.000-08:00

Originally I heard this story from a couple of co-workers and got a good chuckle out of it...the randomness of the situation and the way they impersonated the patron made me think it would work well to post as a blog. But translating it into cartoon form has proven to be exceedingly difficult. Not sure if I did it justice, but it was worth a try.

2007-01-16T08:27:00.000-08:00

The idea for this cartoon came about while I was talking with a co-worker who happens to work at another branch in a busy neighborhood. He was describing the high volume of patron traffic in comparison to the small sized building that the library is housed in and how it sometimes felt like he was working at a fast food restaurant.

2007-01-12T07:04:00.000-08:00

This particular strip is a bit heavy on the narrative, or maybe too wordy, but I felt it was important to give some background information on what really happened. And silhouettes have been changed to protect the identity of the person involved. More true stories are on the way, so check back soon...

2007-01-09T07:03:00.000-08:00

A flashback to my days working at call centers and temp jobs in customer service. What a nightmare.

2007-01-05T07:00:00.000-08:00

I wasn't trying to be particularly morbid or negative with this cartoon...just getting it out of my system. Being a library page isn't all that bad.

2007-01-01T18:46:00.000-08:00

I'd like to point out that this actually hasn't happened to me, but it's only a matter of time. Thanks again to everyone for all the great comments with insights and stories from other libraries.
Have a great 2007!

2006-12-26T18:37:00.000-08:00

While the reality of a situation like this isn't very funny, it does highlight the occasional encounter that one wouldn't normally expect to find in a library setting.
I just realized that the previous cartoon also ended with a person passed out on the floor. Hope I'm not falling into some kind of creative rut. Have a safe and fun New Year's Eve...see you next year!

2006-12-22T07:01:00.000-08:00

Attempting to straighten out shelves in certain sections of the library and making sure they're in proper order can be an arduous task...especially in the early morning when the brain is still half asleep. I'll try to squeeze in one more cartoon before the new year arrives. Happy Holidays!

2006-12-18T22:30:00.000-08:00

In this episode, I tried to see things from the viewpoint of a library clerk. Since I've never worked as one, I'm not sure if I pulled it off right, but my co-workers will let me know if I messed up. *Update* - Since posting this cartoon, it's been pointed out to me that library clerks are not supposed to comment on material checked out by patrons. Oops!

2006-12-15T20:33:00.000-08:00

I had a tough time coming up with the final panel on this one. Hopefully it makes sense...

2006-12-11T16:53:00.000-08:00

The graphic novels have got to be the most popular books in our library. I'm pretty sure they don't make bug lamps this huge, but it's fun to imagine...

2006-12-07T22:58:00.000-08:00

One of those random thoughts to ponder. Special thanks to "Unshelved" for the recent recognition and to everyone that has posted comments. See you next week!

2006-12-02T22:42:00.000-08:00

Patrons without library cards that want to use the internet are given a temporary visitor pass. We get quite a few regulars...

2006-11-28T22:06:00.000-08:00

Honestly, patrons drop the most random items down the book return. Still looking for your remote control underneath the couch cushions? You might want to try the lost & found at your local library.

2006-11-21T11:44:00.000-08:00

Another cartoon based on a true story. I was still somewhat new to working at the library and not yet familiar with the collection of materials we had. I'm posting this early to try and beat the holiday rush. Things should return to normal by the beginning of December...see you then.

2006-11-20T07:11:00.000-08:00

Okay, maybe this is a slight exaggeration, but the start of each day at the library can feel like this at times...

2006-11-15T22:23:00.000-08:00

While working at the library, one can encounter some interesting things...this cartoon is based on a true experience.

2006-11-10T20:47:00.000-08:00

The theme behind this cartoon is pretty self explanatory...sometimes cell phone users just don't have a clue.

2006-11-04T22:45:00.000-08:00

I'll try and post a new cartoon once a week, but procrastination and writer's block may get the best of me. Feel free to offer comments and suggestions, because this is still a work in progress.

2006-10-24T11:20:00.000-07:00

The idea for this cartoon came up a little sooner than I thought...another random scenario amongst the library shelves. More on the way...

2006-10-21T22:24:00.000-07:00

This is my attempt at making a cartoon blog, based on the life of a library employee. I'm not sure if it'll lead anywhere, but maybe I'll make another one in a week or so. Stay tuned...