Unfiltered Story #147706

(I’m a weekend supervisor at a university library. On this day, it’s just me and two student workers, and I’ve left them at the circulation desk while I take my lunch break in the back. After about ten minutes, one of my workers comes to tell me they need my help at the desk, and I come up to find a young male student standing there.)

Me: Hi, how can I help you?
Student: I’m looking for [date] issue of [Magazine], and I’m having trouble finding it.
Me: Our periodicals section is right over there, they’re organized alphabetically so the “S”s should be toward the back.
Student: Yeah, I looked over on those shelves and it’s not there.

(I’ve had several students from the First-Year Seminar class come looking for back issues of that magazine for an assignment this week, so I’ve fielded this same question several times recently, and know for a fact all the issues that should be shelved there are.)

Me: Really? They were there a few days ago.
Student (slightly frustrated): Will you just come look?

(I go over to the periodicals section with him and right up to where [Magazine] is shelved. The most recent issue is propped up on the display, with a clearly visible stack of back-issues right below it.)

Me (pointing): They’re right there.
Student: Oh. Those are [Magazine] too?
Me: Yep.

(He would have seen that if he’d spent a nanosecond looking at them before interrupting my break.)