Summer Reading is over, and I am so done with it.

Well, my schedule got shot all to hell with the advent of Summer Reading. Have you heard of it? When the kids get out of school, things get lively over here at the public library. We have a series of activities for the children and teens. Those activities are designed to keep our youth learning and engaged over the long summer break, and to keep them reading. This is supposed to keep kids from forgetting quite so much while they are on vacation, and incidentally to keep them out of their parents' hair.

Summer Reading is very good for the children. It keeps them excited and motivated to read and participate in activities over the summer, when they might have just plopped on the couch and watched TV. It is also, however, pure hell for all but the most psychotically enthusiastic librarians. We have one of those, by the way. She's totally awesome.

I am not noted for my enthusiasm in general. Unless, of course, we're talking about betta fish. Somehow Mr. Kitty survived my initial mistreatment and is now flourishing, and two more betta fish have joined my family. The neons, sadly, did not make it.

I digress.

This year at my library branch we did the following for kids and teens:

1-4 special programs a week

Summer reading game boards & prizes

Summer of Learning digital badges

Passport to Success

and...

*drumroll*

Feeding lunch to the children.

Yes, really. Lunch. It's fun, but way out of my job description. Except there's this little line at the bottom of the page that says "other duties as required," and I guess that's it.

We signed up 71 teens and 359 children this year. My teen numbers are down from last year, which disappoints me...I'll have to try harder next year, which is a shame, because I'm freaking exhausted already!