Egad. Not wearing gloves while trying to touch anything in Florida State University’s Strozier Library Special Collections will get you kicked out. The thing is, you have to sign in with your name (and ID #, IIRC), leave all your stuff in a locker, and have the call number of the item you’re requesting before you get anywhere near the stuff. 90% of their stuff is in a collections basement where it’s kept in special archival-friendly conditions. I can’t imagine someone going that far to see something and then being so stupid about handling the materials.
By the way, I read through your thread from years ago. Some of those stories make me cringe. The “food and drink rule doesn’t apply to donors” one reminded me of when I was an intern. We had some special event nights in which there was catered food in the lobby. Luckily enough, the [strike]vultures[/strike] patrons understood not to bring food or drink anywhere near the gallery entrances. However, that didn’t stop them from ignoring lowly little me, the intern, when I asked them not to touch the hors d’oeuvres that were still being set up. Of course, this results in me having to stop the people who are already eating, trying to assuage those that haven’t eaten that the people eating are mannerless cretins who don’t follow directions (and that they should follow directions regardless), and getting an earful from the catering staff, who later in the evening ran out of food before many people got a first serving of hors d’oeuvres. Joy. (That one experienced caused me to NEVER help on those special nights again for that particular museum, as I was left on my lonesome without much instruction or help when I needed it. This was contrary to the experience I had during the regular hours I was there as an intern.)
We’re not quite that strict. Our precious books and letters are kept in a temperature/humidity-controlled vault, brought out only by request. We don’t have lockers or anything like that, but we do refuse to allow people to bring in ink pens. (Have had occasions where people mark on the items they’re researching. With pencil, we have a hope of being able to repair the damage.) The archivist stays in the same room with the researcher, but they can’t watch them every moment.
I hate and despise “special event nights” and also refuse to work them for the same reasons you described. Even though trash cans are conspicuously placed around the entire area and the caterers clean up, the next day I always find cups and plates with food still on them crammed behind cases, and on one memorable occasion, tossed into the bed of one of the wagons on display.
Does this apply to the entire museum, or just the library part?
I ask because the last time I was at an art museum a few college students came in and began to take notes on the works. They were told by the security guard that there was no writing of any kind allowed in the gallery. I understand that people might be stupid and try to write on something, but not allowing note taking seemed a bit much.
It more than likely applies to the entire museum. The reason? Ink is really, ridiculously difficult to remove from objects, whereas pencil markings are much less difficult to remove, and far less damaging. Even if they’re only taking notes, there’s always the possibility of the pen “exploding” and getting ink all over the note-takers. It’s just a risk that museum professionals would rather avoid.
That security guards were probably a little too strict with how they enforced the rule; however, they may not have understood why no pens were allowed and pencils were. It all depends on knowing what was going on with the individuals involved.
I do most of my studying at a research facility. It’s popular with a certain cross-section of the undergrad body (such as myself) since it is huge and has nice wireless. Every time I am in there, there’s always some asshole that has to DRAG a chair across the floor instead of picking it up and setting it down like an actual non-retard would do. Mind you these are often able-bodied males of the athletic build. Unless you are seriously handicapped there is no excuse for this shit. Then there are the study groups who converse loudly during finals when I’m trying to crank out a paper. Grrr.
More than once too I’ve heard people eating apples or snacks in crinkly plastic bags or what-have-you. I always wonder how they got this far through life being such inconsiderate douchebags.
People who violate the quiet sanctity of a museum or library can tenderly tongue my asshole.
I can get behind the OP on the gum issue, mainly because I can relate.
I used to work at one of those “chain” restaurants, that had peanuts all about the bar area that people could eat and throw the shells on the floor. Said floor being a rough concrete non-slip surface. Peanuts were emphatically not allowed in the restaurant area, whose floor was hardwood, and decidedly not non-slip. In fact, a small broom was kept near the threshold of the two floors to sweep peanut shells back into the bar area.
Every single fucking shift I had to stop someone from bringing peanuts into the restaurant area. Invariably they would argue with me, and assure me that they would never put the shells on the floor, just what kind of barbarian did I think they were anyway?
At which point I was obligated to explain the simple kindergarten fact that rules are applied over a broad spectrum and not simply to certain individuals after a lengthy, multi-stage interview process.
Why a museum or library wouldn’t have a “No Gum” rule is beyond me.
You reminded me of another reason why, internally, I’m such a hardass about this. I used to work in foodservice while I was in college. After working in one location on campus for a while, I was given a “boost” in status/responsibility by being given the location’s “saftey representative” position. Since all the foodservice is done by one major company that oversees all the locations on campus, they had implemented a system of checks and balances where each location’s “safety representative” would not only be the person to police their coworkers on food and work safety issues, but would inspect other locations on a monthly basis to make sure that the safety rep was doing their job and being listened to by their coworkers. (It wasn’t an improvement in pay, but it shows a willingness to take on a position of greater responsibility. It looks good on the resume of “here for now” jobs, so why not?) Now, as far as it goes, I tried to follow the rules as closely as possible to set a good example, and wouldn’t often critique coworkers on the clock about the stuff unless it was something that was really important that they never do again. (For example, making sure that people are wearing gloves while handling food, keeping the cooler closed when one is not entering or exiting it [I don’t care if it’s cold and you’re getting something; don’t hold the door open with a door stop of any sort!], properly diluting and using cleaning chemicals and food sanitizers, etc.)
I came across to some people as being a “nazi” about it, but at the same time, most of them were careful about that stuff if anyone got hurt. (There was a time that someone hung the freshly cleaned tomato slicer from its hook on a rack above their head. The next morning, it drops, and another worker tried to catch it. He had to get stitches in a few different parts of his hand because of that safety hazard, and couldn’t work for a few weeks. Those who were around got a careful reminder of why we store the tomato slicer under the work table on its shelf instead of hanging it, and the rest of the employees got the same reminder at the monthly meeting. It took me over an hour that morning to take care of all the paperwork required when someone gets hurt on the job. We opened the shop about half an hour late, after recleaning and sanitizing that and the work area where it happened in addition to our regular opening duties.)
Rules are there for a reason. It doesn’t matter if you think it’s stupid, because it’s there to protect somebody or something in the long run, and there are enough people with no common sense that we have to make the rule apply to everyone.
I see people eating in the Arlington (Va.) Public Library all the time at the study tables nestled behind the stacks. I’ve even seen people eating complete meals – sandwich, chips, soda and coffee and a brownie for dessert! Of course, it’s against the rules, but it happens anyway.
It’s simply amazing how confident some people are that* they* won’t spill or drop the priceless figurine or that their hands are cleaner than those of other mortals.
I, on the other hand, am so paraniod that when I’m working on something particularly precious, I often sit on the floor to work because despite all my care, I* might *knock it over and if it’s on the floor, it doesn’t have as far to drop.
I think that’s what separates us from a lot of those rule-breakers, Lissa; we know our limitations and that it’s wiser to exercise a bit of caution rather than to throw caution to the wind and be sorry later.
Which is just the sort of rule most users of manuscripts and rare books actually find far more annoying than other readers talking, coughing, chewing gum, spreading faeces etc. OK, so perhaps not the last of those. But, without exception, the most experienced, knowledgeable, conscientious readers will all regard gloves as the very symbol of archivists’ overzealousness-gone-mad. Indeed, that is, more often than not, what they’ll tell each other in whispers when the archivists are out of earshot. Nor is this just because they think gloves merely unnecessary. No, it’s because their instincts are that wearing gloves does more damage. And they’re right.
I think that wearing gloves while handling archival materials is a holdover from wearing gloves while handling anything else that’s susceptible to wear and tear that isn’t paper, such as textiles, art, etc. I’d be okay with a policy that required very thorough hand washing as a measure against damage to paper-based materials. However, I’d be a bit more leery with things like textiles and paintings just because I’ve had the notion of having to wear gloves for the object’s protection ingrained into me. Then again, I generally don’t handle anything that I know is fragile with anything but the lightest touch I can muster without dropping the object.
I have some old and rare books in my possession, and I certainly don’t wear gloves to handle them. I do, however, make sure that my hands are thoroughly washed and free of moisture before I handle them.
