Is It Summer Yet?

The semester is moving along and I need to start collecting data soon. My project is highly dependent on the kindness of others, and I'm starting to feel like there aren't that many kind people in the world.

Research Site

I really need a good research site to hand out a simple survey to voluntary participants. A bookstore would be great, but the local B&N already gave me the run around about 'corporate approval'...basically, that's a no-go.

My fallback is the Chesapeake Public Library. I reached out to an unidentified librarian through the CPL live-chat. She/he seemed perfectly willing to help with the research until I mentioned surveying (again, on a strictly voluntary basis) library patrons. The wall went up, and I could see it even through the itty-bitty chat window. "They typically don't let noncity employees hand out surveys".

First of all, "noncity employees"? I get what they were trying to say... they only like the city handing out surveys. But the weird, awkward phrasing suggested panic to me. What are they afraid of? 

I pressed on, asked if there's anyone I can speak to directly. I said I'd be willing to come in and show the head librarian the drafts of my research proposal.  The response was still cool, but I did get a phone number. I'm going to call today, but what if they still throw up a stop sign? What do I do then?

Tools of the Trade

A key part of my research involves interviewing published authors. According to the B&F Chapter on interviews, I need to record the interview as accurately as possible. Which means I need a setup for recording phone conversations. So, I did some searching...grand total: 65 bucks at Amazon.com

Sigh....

Conclusion

The dual parts of my research project are costing me more than I care to spend, in all honesty. 65 bucks for a device I may use a few times, then probably never again. And, I'm starting to lose major sleep over the possibility that I may not have a research site thanks to some bureaucratic red-tape.

Still I push on...what else can I do?