"If I kill off all my demons my angels might die as well." - Tennesse Willams

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Violet Blue and the Librarian

I love to read. As a matter of fact, I will read almost anything except cheesy romance garbage. So, when a friend of mine in Montana started telling me about some great Sci-Fi, I wanted to check it out.
By the time I got to the library, I had forgotten the names of the authors and titles we'd talked about. So I sent him a text. The answer I got back was only two words... "Violet Blue." Although I am technologically-challenged, I figured it was enough information to find what I was looking for in the library's computer system.
Wrong! I got nothing no matter what kind of search I did. Whatever. No worries. I found some other books and went to the check-out desk.
The librarian who helped me out that day was incredibly friendly. When she asked if I found everything ok, I told her I had trouble finding the title "Violet Blue." Despite my protests, she was adamant about helping me.
She couldn't find anything in the system with that title either. (I was all proud at that point. At least it wasn't my user error!) Ms. Librarian still wasn't satisfied. She absolutely MUST be able to help me SOMEHOW. That's when she decided to look for the title on Amazon. All I really wanted to do was take my historical fictions and go home. Oh, boy.
Across the counter from me, she pulled up the site. After a long pause, she said, "Oh. Now I know why we don't have Violet Blue in our system. Violet Blue is an author, by the way."
At this point she leaned across the counter. She was still smiling her super-friendly-let-me-help-you-or-I-won't-be-fulfilling-my-destiny smile when she said, "Violet Blue's titles include The Smart Girl's Guide to Porn, Best Women's Erotica, and The Ultimate Guide to Cunnilingus."
Ohmygod. No, really - ohmygod.
"There's some kind of mistake. I think I've just been pranked," I said. "Well, there's nothing wrong with reading erotica," said Ms. Librarian. She was still smiling and her voice became conspiratorial. I insisted it was a joke and asked where the cameras were. She kept on about erotica being a perfectly legitimate form of literature. Though I happen to agree, I sure didn't want to talk about it with her. She finally shut up when I pointed out that my teenage son had already gone to the car, thank God, and I needed to leave.
As I walked out to the parking lot, laughing and red-faced, I realized a couple of things. First, this was probably the greatest prank anyone has ever gotten over on me. Second, the guy in Montana who pulled it off is most definitely a club member.
And finally, any day you can get a dowdy librarian, one who goes to the local private Christian school to read to the kindergarten class, to say the word 'cunnilingus' with a smile is a good day.

Additional note:
When I got home I looked up Violet Blue on Amazon myself. You can actually read a couple of pages of one of her books. I might be checking out some of her stuff after all. Just not at the library.