I rang up the library to ask if I could re-renew a book. I'd renewed it twice, and this is the limit of what I'm allowed to do online. The librarian said no, I couldn't renew the book again; two renewals was the limit. I said, oh please, I've moved house since taking out the book. She replied that if I had been hospitalised, and could provide written documentation, then she would be able to renew, but not for moving house. HAVE YOU EVER MOVED HOUSE? I wanted to ask, but I didn't. I guessed that if you are operating a system where you require written documentation in evidence of hospitalisation, you're probably not going to be empathetic enough by nature for a discussion on the comparative Richter scale scores of major life events.
This was all particularly galling, as I had pulled the trick at a different branch, and had found the lost library book the very next day. I suppose I could have tried pointing out the inconsistency in policy between branches, but there comes a moment when $21, set against the financial, emotional and whatever other costs of a house move (our third in 5 months) doesn't seem worth the argument.
I guess the charm of the English accent doesn't do it for everyone out here after all. Ah well.
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