Aug. 7, 2007 - Library Elf
Posted in Gracefilled Education
Do your library fines add up to more than your month grocery bills? Do you check out so many library books for school that when return books you inevitably find that you are missing several that are due THAT DAY (and you can't renew them so the fine just increases?) Do you find that you won't allow your children to check out library books on their cards because you end up having to empty their college savings to pay for their library fines? Do you and your dh have disagreements over who is responsible for returning overdue books that they check out and find that you must enter marital counseling in order to resolve the conflict? Do you lose sleep or receive speeding tickets just because you have an overdue book that is haunting you (read here for example)? If you answered YES to any of the following questions, then there is an answer to your prayers (or at least a solution to the insanity that you may be feeling over this touchy subject.)
Library Elf
I love Library Elf. If you are fortunate enough to have your local library set up with this website you can easily cut down on library fines. You have the ability to sign up free and then enter the number of any library card in your home. You can determine when and how you want your reminders that books are due. I was even able to set my system up to tell me when my hold books are ready. And it is efficient enough that it usually beats the local library system (of course, with our local system that isn't saying much. HA!!) Check it out. You won't be disappointed.
*******DISCLAIMER!!!! Make sure that you have the card number of EVERYBODY in your household that will be checking out books. Otherwise the system will fail. And then you will be blamed for overdue books that you didn't even know where overdue. (see here for further understanding of this concept.) It's also important you realize that when those warnings for library books come due, you must act or pay the consequences. There is no laziness with Library Elf and there is no little man that will pop out and return your books for you or make fines disappear. You are still responsible!!!
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