Are there any non-librarians on MetaFilter?
posted by Horace Rumpole at 6:35 AM on September 16 [55 favorites]

This is not a librarian job, this is a (half-time) library assistant job. It doesn't require a library degree.
posted by one for the books at 7:28 AM on September 16 [8 favorites]

Boy do I wish I could.
posted by JanetLand at 7:37 AM on September 16 [4 favorites]

My favorite thing about Orkney is that if you're talking about the mainland, you're talking about an island. If you meant Scotland, you'd say the Scottish mainland. Which is also an island.
posted by phooky at 8:49 AM on September 16 [5 favorites]

I love Orkney Library¡¯s Bluesky account. For a long while, back in January, they were publishing daily 5pm pictures to tell the world whether it was still daylight: nope, nope, nope, then suddenly yes, and eventually very much yes!
posted by rongorongo at 9:22 AM on September 16 [6 favorites]

About the windy bit: it's windier than you can imagine. A story I heard was about a radar station near Burgar Hill. The control room was beneath the radar, and during one storm, the radar suddenly cut out. Someone was sent upstairs through the hatch to check on the radar. There was no upstairs to check: the radar unit had been blown clean off.
posted by scruss at 9:45 AM on September 16 [4 favorites]

Librarian here, and man, if I could move to Scotland (in the US now) for almost any reason I would.
posted by Rykey at 9:56 AM on September 16 [1 favorite]

My wife and I spent a full hour talking with a ranger at Skara Brae in wind so strong we all had to lean into it. When we got back inside, I just about fell over. It was wonderful.
posted by McBearclaw at 10:00 AM on September 16 [2 favorites]

Scrolled down their Bluesky feed a bit and there's a much better video of the library van in action (includes ferry scenes).
posted by Wordshore at 10:02 AM on September 16 [1 favorite]

I'm gonna apply, even though I'm old, and live in Denver. Fuck, get out of the US, AND get to live in Scotland? Yes please!
posted by evilDoug at 10:41 AM on September 16 [3 favorites]

Oooo, talk to me about the Distant Islands Allowance.
posted by jessamyn at 11:54 AM on September 16 [6 favorites]

Oh man, I'm looking for a job right now. Where do I apply? I have rain wear, wellys, and I'm used to the wind blowing constantly. Sign me up!!
posted by BlueHorse at 12:43 PM on September 16 [1 favorite]

...with a ranger at Skara Brae in wind so strong...

This is me being a very specific kind of provincial, but today I learned that Skara Brae wasn't just a city in The Bard's Tale.
posted by gurple at 4:42 PM on September 16 [2 favorites]

I've worked for 35 years in all kinds of libraries and driving a book van was some of the best fun I've had.
posted by misterbee at 7:00 PM on September 16 [3 favorites]

I just wonder whether Colin McAllister, the pilot in the 'internal flights' video, ever gets bored and contemplates doing an aileron roll during that flight from Westray to Papa Westray.
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 8:00 PM on September 16 [1 favorite]

I¡¯m a librarian of vaguely Scottish descent but that weather is something I don¡¯t think I¡¯m cut out for.
posted by aspersioncast at 8:11 PM on September 16 [2 favorites]

BookyMcBookface ??? excellent
posted by utilitarian at 9:35 PM on September 16 [2 favorites]

I love Scotland and I love Orkney and I love Skara Brae.
posted by ThatCanadianGirl at 5:56 AM on September 17 [2 favorites]

This is literally a Jenny Colgan novel.
posted by suelac at 9:24 AM on September 17 [2 favorites]

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