Library Woes

Before I start this story, I want to stress that I love the library. Libraries are awesome. I borrow tons of books that I want to read, or at least try, but don't want to own, and I appreciate that so much.

However.

I requested a book a while back, and for some time now, a few months at least, it has shown that I am hold number 1 of 1 for the one copy that is checked out. I've been meaning to ask them about it, so when I went in on Saturday to pick up a hold, I stopped at the desk first (holds are self-serve, across the room) and asked the woman there if she could tell me anything about it.

She looked up my account while kindly explaining to me that sometimes, if there are a lot of holds, it can take a while for it to be your turn. Uh, yeah, don't teach your grandmother to suck eggs, honey. I repeated that I have been hold 1 of 1 since at least April. 

She looked at my holds, and once she confirmed which title I meant (that would be, again, the one that I'm hold 1 of 1), she said ah and called another person over to confirm that, as the book had been billed, it was apparently not going to be returned at this point, and they should cancel the hold because I would not be getting it. As we circled around this point, one of them mentioned that it had been billed in October.

At this point, I am thinking that if the single copy of a book has been billed for months, the system should not have allowed a hold to be placed on this book. Which I still absolutely believe, but I didn't bother mentioned it to them in that moment, because it's not their fault that the system is set up in this stupid way.

I also did not get into why they wouldn't be reordering the book, which only came out last year, because I do understand that if there isn't demand, they might not. Just because I want it. I do get that.

So they kept saying that they should cancel the hold, should cancel the hold, and I said fine, and went to get the book I was picking up. When I scanned my card, though, it told me that I owed a fine of 50 cents. Now, the fine was real: I was a day late returning two books last month, and since I hadn't returned anything late in a long time, I was surprised that they charge a quarter a day for that. But okay, fair enough, that's the rule and I was late.

But I paid the fine, a week prior, when I was in. I remember that I was pleased that I had two quarters with me to pay it. 

And now it's saying I still owe it. On top of the previous interaction, I was kind of pissed. But okay. I checked out my book and went over to the desk, where the first woman still sat. I told her that it was showing I had a fine, and that I paid it last week, but here's a dollar, could you be sure that comes off. And god love her, I don't know if she's new or she assumes that no one knows what they're doing, but she looks at my account and starts explaining to me which titles it was that I returned late.

Bless her heart. I KNOW.

I put the dollar down and said, I know, here is the money, could you just please take it off the account, and I walked away, probably leaving her thinking I was rude, and maybe I was. But I use the library all the time*, I know how it works, and it's not that I can't afford to pay it, or even to pay it twice, and maybe they do get a lot of people trying to claim they paid when they didn't, but I paid it, I did.
*I have borrowed 50+ books from them in the first half of this year. Didn't finish all of them, but it does indicate I am familiar with how it works.

As I drove home, I was thinking that if the system still says I owe it the next time I'm in, I'm going to have to stand at the desk until they can prove to me that it's really off this time.

And then I got home and when I looked at my account, the hold is still there. That they said multiple times they would have to cancel now. Still there.

Okay.

I checked the other library I have a card to, and they have the book, so I'll get it from them. But do I have to be the one to cancel the hold at the library here?