Tag Archives: David

More than the Tie Guy

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Jack was a simple guy. Played by the rules…heck he worked at a public library for gosh sake! When Jack was at work, he did his normal functions; made coffee for the staff, sat down in the break room to get a doughnut (supplied by the director of the library every morning) and read the comic section of the local paper. He started his day at 8:30 am.  He was lazy. He only kept his job at the circulation department because of his famous neck tie collection.


Working in a library has its advantages. Libraries give you access to thousands of books from which you get thousands of ideas. For someone like me, who likes to write in my free time, this access to ideas is marvelous.
Photo from Creative Commons

My writing for fun started back in the seventh grade. One boring summer, I started on a story that I envisioned would be a transcript for a screenplay. Titled, “Hot Sun, Dry Sand,” this story ended up with pages and pages of short scenes that really went nowhere. Eventually, other activities took over in my life, and I found I was not writing as much.
When I began my writing routine again in 2007, I would scribble down thoughts on pieces of paper each day.

 Jack looks up from his notebook to think about what he was doing. A dating website? Had he really come to this? Yes, he had. He typed in a search for dating websites and quickly found out how many links there were. “Wow,” is all Jack could think. All of these people are trying to find someone? He was definitely not alone in the search. Jack clicked on one site with the name ‘Chat First, Talk Later.’ He filled out the questions and submitted it. Be da beep! Jack had his first match.

What will happen to Jack as he begins dating through ‘Chat First, Talk Later?’ Well, I have not written that part yet, but I think Jack will have to date quite a bit before finding the right girl for him. Stay tuned!

-Dave (the Tie Guy)

Who Else Loves Traveling?

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Traveling has always been a big hobby of mine. I’m always looking for new places to travel. From the beaches of Puerto Vallarta to the streets of London, I enjoy seeing the sites and learning about other cultures.

Books have always been a great source of information for my travels. Books allow you to find information quickly, sometimes even faster than websites. When I travel around the States, I also use the Chamber of Commerce web sites as a way to explore towns before I get there. These town web sites give you a glance at the most important local attractions to visit.

Plainfield-Guilford Township Public Library’s open source integrated library system, Evergreen, has broadened my horizons as to what types of travel material I can get. Adding so many libraries together on one system allows for a huge amount of material to be transferred from one library to another. This summer I will be heading to Seattle, Washington; Portland, Oregon; and Vancouver, Canada. I have checked out several DVDs and books about these destinations from our library. I use the Internet here at the library to search for more information. Using my college degree in Travel and Hospitality has allowed me to dig even deeper into travel information. One of my college books has invaluable world travel information. So: books and web sites help us explore different places in our world. Betty White says, “In a world where technology has taken over way we read, it is always comforting to physically hold a book.”

Dave

All You Ever Wanted to Know About "The Tie Guy!"

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Dave “The Tie Guy”

As anyone can tell, I like working at the Plainfield-Guilford Township Public Library. I have worked here for years, starting off as a page in high school and becoming a full time employee in 2004. When I started, the library had just been completely remodeled. Move forward a couple of years and once again, another remodel took place on the first floor. Yeah, the library has two levels to it; an upstairs and main floor.

The library has had some challenges: from a water leak, (which damaged our VHS tapes), to our old computer system malfunctioning during our Summer Reading Program (we could still check out items, but could not check in). Books began to pile up on unused shelves, in closets, on tables and even on the floor. It was a mess. When we eventually got our system up and running we had every department checking in the stacks. We provide the best service and resources for the community.

Our former director moved co-workers around and eventually merged departments. Circulation, Reference and Technical Services began to all help out at the customer service desk. This greatly improved our morale and friendship toward each other.

During the most recent remodel I worked crazy hours. The clock on my phone read 3:30 a.m., and the maintenance man and I were ready to call it a day after moving desks, checking to see that floor plugs were turned off, and breaking down desks. When the library opened up after being closed for two weeks the result was spectacular. Beautiful and stunning, the public greeted our new look with all-around excitement.

Sometimes people know me as “Dave, The Tie Guy”, because I collect unique neckties and wear them throughout the winter months. I have enough ties that I can go a couple of months without wearing the same necktie! A couple of years ago Donna, a co-worker, made a display of my ties and the name stuck.

I have to go for now, but I will be back with more news from the front line of the library!

Sincerely,

Dave “The Tie Guy” Brinker