Special Collections: The (Not Entirely) Secret Desk Ornaments of Librarians

An image of a section of the Special Collections exhibit hanging in the Community Room. Framed images are: Ceramic Cat; Alien; Wood & Nail Puzzle; Collection of Kakashi Figures; Cat Thank You Card; Flaming Pink Dumpster; Pewter Truffle; and 1BR/0 Bath, $2k/month.

An image of a section of the Special Collections exhibit hanging in the Community Room. Framed images are: Sticker Collection; Minecraft Bee; Cat Life; Glass Orbs; Cat Art; Big Bad Wolf Puppet; and Rubber Band Ball.

An image of a section of the Special Collections exhibit hanging in the Community Room. Framed images are: Benjamin Bunny & Co.; Embroidery; and Three (3) Horse Head Finger Puppets.

An image of a section of the Special Collections exhibit hanging in the Community Room. Framed images are Breakroom Ducks: Storytime; and Breakroom Ducks: Sacrifice.

An image of a section of the Special Collections exhibit hanging in the Community Room. Framed images include: Pinky!; Cat Howling at the Moon; Kanan Jarrus, Jedi Knight; Vintage Ball Canning Jar; Glasses; Goose with Knife; and Jar of Buttons.

A colorful ceramic cat, sitting atop the framed image of it used in the exhibit.

The ducks are having a storytime! Or, if you’re a little weird like me, maybe your first thought was that the ducks have found religion. Either/or. -Kate & CPL team

[A rubber duck wearing a Sherlock-style cap and reading a book sits on top of a coffee mug. Around it are several tiny resin ducks paying rapt attention.]

Gift from Elizabette Batista to Rachel Zarvis. His name is Houston; he’s from San Antonio. -Rachel Z.

[A very colorful ceramic cat, whose tail is going straight into the air.]

Benjamin was a gift from a friend, and he’s perfectly sized to fit in a pocket. The hedgehog is from my mom, and is one of at least a hundred hedgehogs I’ve been gifted over the years. I used to get paper bouquets for my grandmother, and she passed right before I came to the CPL—my first library job—so this is my way of keeping her memory with me; she was thrilled that I was going to library school and would have been excited that I landed here. -Kate

[A hedgehog made from pinecone-like material holding a mushroom; a small stuffed Benjamin Bunny from the stories of Beatrix Potter; a small paper monstera plant.]

Did you know that you can buy approximately 250 tiny resin ducks online for a very low price? I started by bringing in a few at a time and leaving them in the windowsill, and of course denying any knowledge of their origins. Then someone started moving them and arranging them into little vignettes. This one reminds me of Shirley Jackson’s short story “The Lottery.” -Kate & CPL team

[A circle of tiny resin ducks in the style of rubber ducks. One duck is in the center of the circle. RIP.]

I helped a family make a “lost cat” sign. A few days later they left me this thank you card informing me that “Tiger” had come home. -Rachel W.

[A card with multiple cartoon cats and dogs, all saying "thank you."]

Assorted critters who live on the window sill in my office. -Laura

[A rubber duck reading a book; a small figure of Roosevelt; and a very large (compared to Roosevelt) otter.]

A glass jar filled with buttons that have been stacked by color.

This is a piece made by my clever and talented father. The wood block is a single, solid piece of wood that hasn’t been cut or glued in any way. How did the nail get there? I keep this on my desk to remind me of the delight my Dad takes in creating these types of puzzles and oddities. -Laura

[A single piece of wood cut into the shape of a capital E, but with an extra stem. There is a nail going through the two middle stems; it is unclear how the nail got there without damaging the outer stems.]

Made him for a Halloween craft one year. I liked him, so he stuck around. -Children’s Room (Erin)

[A puppet made out of a paper shopping bag; the puppet is a wolf whose tongue is sticking out between its great big teeth.]

The top image is a printed copy of a photograph from the early 1900s taken by local photographer Russ Gilbert. The back reads “‘What did you wake me up for?’ Asks the cat.” The bottom image is another piece of cat art from our chocolate-bearing patron. -Kate

[A black and white photo of a cat, sitting on a small ledge above a drawing of an orange cat taped to a wall (the picture is taped, not the cat).]

Our mascots. We love the books so much that Erin acquired the plushies and now they live in our office. -Children’s Room

[Four stuffed figures of Tea Dragons; colorful dragons with an extra dose of whimsy, including little flower horns.]

A jedi I love so much, I named my cat after him. He says, The Force will be with you, always. -Erin

[A large action figure of a Jedi knight in partial armor.]

Desk detritus, mostly because they’re pretty. -Laura

[Two glass orb paperweights, one pink and one blue.]

I started using reading glasses about 10 years ago. My first choice of readers was kind of boring. One of my best friends told me “Stop wearing those glasses that make you look like an old shushing librarian!” (She’s the kind of friend who infuses her commentary with kindness.) I overcompensated for the boring glasses by replacing them with a multitude of glasses in lots of colors and shapes. They’re way more fun and I never feel bored or boring when I wear them. -Anne

[A pile of glasses with very colorful frames.]

A collaborative art project that reminds you to never let your guard down. -Corrina

[It is a lovely day in the Library, and this is a white goose holding a knife in its orange beak.]

A little paper gingerbread house to decorate for the holidays.

A selection of library- and book-themed stickers on a wall.

You dress up as Kakashi a few times for work, and before you know it family and patrons have covered half your desk in his likeness. -Brent

[An assortment of figures of the same character (Kakashi) sitting on top of a desk.]

Found in a desk organizer without any memory of how they got there. -Corrina

[Three finger puppets of horse heads, one white, one brown, and one black. Their eyes are haunting.]

Kenneth Marshall makes much appreciated, regular deliveries of chocolates wrapped in his artwork. This is a drawing of characters Johnny and Spug from his graphic series Happy Land. -Brigitte

[A colorful drawing on brown craft paper of an orange cat and a person, both looking a bit like there's some chaos happening.]

This was a gift from my mom. -Tara

[A small metal truffle, the top removed to show a heart nested in the lower half.]

Circ’s most prized possession, ready for its close-up. -Circulation

[A very large, multicolored rubber band ball sitting atop a clear square base.]

Brent printed these tiny flaming dumpsters with the 3-D printer as a token of solidarity and reminder of the pandemic. -Brigitte

[A 3-D printed image of a flaming dumpster. The entire thing is bright pink.]

There’s a patron who regularly brings us chocolate (you know who you are), and the packets are always decorated with really cute illustrations, often featuring this orange cat. I have an orange cat at home, so I especially love the doodles. -Kate

[A drawing of a large orange cat howling at a full moon, drawn on brown craft paper.]

⟟ ⏃⋔ ⏃ ☌⍀⟒⟒⋏ ⎎⍀⟟⟒⋏⎅ ⎎⍀⍜⋔ ⏃ ⌇⎍⋔⋔⟒⍀ ⍀⟒⏃⎅⟟⋏☌ ⌿⍀⍜☌⍀⏃⋔ ⌰⍜⋏☌ ⌰⍜⋏☌ ⏃☌⍜. (Translation: I am a green friend from a Summer Reading Program long long ago. And. I am cute. -Anne

[An inflated green alien, arms extended in front of it.]

Carol Lynne made this as a prototype for an embroidery program we were planning for the library. -Brigitte

[A small embroidery hoop with embroidered images of a fern, an unspecified plant, and some autumn leaves.]

Circa 1923-1933. -Tara

[A vintage blue glass Ball canning jar, with glass lid, rubber seal, and metal clasp.]

She used to be a pen topper from the Thunderbirds “Pink in the Rink,” until her ink dried up (at least not the rink!). You can still find her at the Fairview Library giving all a smile and positive vibes! -Barbie

[A smiling pink creature with fuzzy pink hair, giving a thumbs up.]

Made by a teen here for me, which I will always treasure. -Corrina

[A bee made of small perler beads, in the style of Minecraft (read: squarish). The bee is striped brown and yellow, with little wings and antennae. It is very cute and a marvel of perler engineering.]