I'm not a book thief!

My name is cleared. For weeks (actually months) I searched high and low for two items I had borrowed from the U of R's libraries. I use a lot of books. I usually go to great lengths to ensure that I know what I have and when it's due to be returned (such as Google Calendar, email reminders, a homemade website with library login info, etc).

So, it was very bewildering to discover that, despite my efforts, I had lost two books! When my last renewal had expired, I emailed the library and explained that I had lost their books... But not two days later did they email back, and tell me that someone at their end had incorrectly scanned the returned books, and placed them back on the shelf, while my account showed them as still in my possession! All this time those books were safe and sound on the shelves, and here I was in a panic (or at least with a little pinch in the back of my brain, constantly reminding me that I failed the library).

I felt like Dr. House in that episode when Dr. Cuddy lets him believe that he had wrongly diagnosed a patient. For weeks after that, House was insecure about his diagnostic ability -- that is, until it got out that he was right. And so, much like House, I feel reaffirmed in my care of borrowed books.

I am not a book thief.