back in my advertising days
i often had to find answers to odd questions of all kinds
as there was no google then
when i exhausted all possible avenues
(asking 2 or 3 random people in my office)
i knew there was a place i could go to find someone
who would unfailingly find an answer to my questions
i dialed up the local phone number
of the woman sitting at a desk in the detroit public library
who held the very interesting and important position of
‘chief and brilliant question answerer/researcher’
(or some such title as i imagined it to be)
she answered my call
when i asked in all seriousness:
“did gumby (of gumby and pokey fame), have a nose?”
she did not waver or judge and said she would research it and get back to me asap
true to her word she returned my call within the hour with this report:
she could confirm
that gumby did indeed, have a nose
brilliant
client crisis averted
just another moment in her day and i wish this position still existed.
—
“i used to think i knew all the answers.
then i thought knew maybe a few of the answers.
now I’m not even sure I understand the questions.
nobody knows anything.”
― p
What a marvellous resource to have had. We should be sad they no longer exist. When the machines break, how will we discover the answers?
Best wishes, Pete.
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exactly
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Pokey was the original talking horse, making his debut well before “Mr. Ed” All the linguistic skills minus the sarcasm. Funny post, my friend!
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I loved pokey
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Me too!
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Mmm…never remember Gumby having a nose but did love the way he could bend. Thanks for the memories
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who knew?)
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Those were the days. This post reminds me of Cathy, who had no nose.
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right! and I recently met Cathy’s writer at a writing workshop, who was amazing
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Oh for those days again, where you could call and not only get an answer; but a researched one!
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right! and it was so lucky to have those people around
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No kidding!
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I loved watching Gumby. What a useful person. 🤩
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agreed
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😍
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People are quick to want to get rid of libraries, but they are SO important!
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just another reason why they are –
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With research so accessible now at our fingertips, I must wonder where the source of information existed before we had technology. Somehow, I can’t imagine the answer to your question appeared in the encyclopedia sets we grew up with!
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Right and I never questioned that at the time)
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These folks do in fact still exist in our public libraries, Beth (and beetleypete above) I can happily report. Librarians dutifully sit at the reference desk (or information desk if you wish to call it) and help patrons who walk up with this question or that. And yes they still take phone calls. I think back in that day, Beth, the racks of encyclopedias, books and magazines and a great mind knowing where to look was the key. Now, yes, the computer next to them helps but still you need to know best searching methods!
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This makes me so happy to hear this mark! Thanks for the insider info
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Always glad to spread the public library word, Beth, you’re very welcome. Thank you for planting so many great memories in my brain.
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hahaha!! Love it! 🙂
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That is so true! We never know the right questions to ask, so how can we possibly know the answer. And I loved Gumby and Pokey!
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Me too!
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I think that would have been a wonderful job, one I would have loved.
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Me too!
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😂😂😂
>
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)))
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Curiosity is a wonderful thing.
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I think so too
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I’m betting that was the only time she ever got that question.😊 Long live Pokey and Gumby.
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she was so nice about it, and here’s to them!
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What a fun post! Really enjoyed this, and I can really relate to the quote.
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thanks!
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I don’t recall calling a librarian to get an answer. I was sure all the answers were somewhere in one of the volumes of our World Book Encyclopedia, the source of all knowledge (for the year of publication, at least).
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oh, I loved the world book series and I gleaned so much knowledge from them
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Oh, gosh, I love helpful people like that librarian who answered your question. No judging. Simply the kindness of seeking out the info you requested and THEN getting back to you. I absolutely love this story, Beth.
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thank you so much
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Oh I know. In the days bg (before google) I owned rows and rows of encyclopaedia, history tomes the size of the chicken shed, we asked around and for simple questions we had a ‘pay for’ info phone number 11….. the minute cost more and more and eventually there were no offices any longer and telephone directories didn’t get made any more. Great story
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loved having a number to call -)
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I knew EVERYTHING when I was 17 and it’s been a constant descent in knowledge since then. I think, but I’m not sure. How would I know?
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call someone to ask?)
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Wait till you see what I write about tomorrow (I think…)
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I agree with that quote! A real good one Beth!
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thanks!
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You’re welcome.
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Yes, the libraries were the google of the past.
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absolutely
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a wonderful story; my kids loved Gumby; I could never get into him —
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they were kind of eccentric characters
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I’ve used this service in both Chicago and Atlanta.
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excellent
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I wish that position was still there as well. Asked for help a number of times. It was a wonderful service.
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so good –
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We know so little of that which is knowable. Love that position at the library.
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me too!
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I don’t think I ever called a librarian for information. I just went to the library when we lived close to one and looked for answers. Of course, those kinds of questions never came up in our house. I think my kids read most of the books in the library and I read what they didn’t. 😉 We took a wagon to the library.
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excellent
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I want that job!! lol
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Gumby was not a pencil eraser, something that annoyed me a little. I kept him in my pencil pouch.
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we all have our place )
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I’m inclined to agree with Pete Nelson.
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yes –
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Oh, I wish the same thing. It’s a human Google who cares.
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right!
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🙂
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