Why We Do The Things We Do

As the person in charge of booking programs for the Friends, I often find myself fielding questions about program content, times, sign up sheets, etc. Since alot of the questions are ones that seems to come up over and over, I thought I would address some of the most frequently asked in a specific series of posts.
So without further ado:

Why We Do The Things We Do, Part 1:
Why Registration is Necessary

Every time we have a program where registration is required, one of two things happens: Either no one signs up and loads of people come anyway, or a few people sign up and no one shows up at all.

The reasons that we need you to sign up are very simple:
Space limitations and supplies.

As anyone who has been in our library knows, we have very limited space. We have only one meeting room, and it is not huge by any means. When we are going to be doing any sort of interactive program (such as crafts), I take very seriously the number of people that can work comfortably in that room. I know that I do not like to be crammed into a place where I will be nudged, bumped, or elbowed in any situation, but definitely not when I am trying to make something, or take notes. It is always distracting, and in some cases painful. My stance is that I would not expect or invite anyone to attend a program where they would be subjected to conditions in which I would be uncomfortable.

It has been mentioned to me several times, that maybe people just don’t like to commit to something if they don’t know whether they’ll be able to attend. I have to admit that I think that attitude is a little weird. I don't understand why anyone would think that it would be a problem if they didn't attend. The real problem is when too many people show up! We have, in the past, brought out more tables and rearranged the room when we had more people than expected, but that is a really stressful and unprofessional way to do things. It is just not appropriate to make everyone move around and wait, because of a few too many people. And frankly, I don't intend to do things that way again.

So, what will happen if you don't sign up and come to the program anyway? Well, that depends.
If, by time for the program to start, we still have some empty spaces, then you may stay. But if everyone who registered is in attendance, you will have to leave.
And really, it is not horribly difficult to register for any of our programs. You can sign up at our library, email us at: FriendsNCPL@yahoo.com, or leave a comment here.
It's that simple.