38. Join the library

Since I didn’t have to be at work until 10:30am today, I stopped at the library to pick up the library card that I ordered online the other day.  The town library has a whole host of meanings for me.

1. My hometown is the hometown of the poet William Carlos Williams.  His brother, Edgar, designed the library (as well as the post office).  The library has a good amount of WCW memoribilia and tries to maintain and honor WCW’s legacy (although I often find the town’s efforts to do that lacking).

2. When I was in middle school, I was fat (just as I was in elementary school, high school, college, and now, but I digress).  My parents took me to a nutritionist who said I needed to exercise more (fair enough).  My mother signed me up at a women’s only gym in town.  I was supposed to go on my own after school several days a week (it was sort of on my route home).  I didn’t want to go, but was worried that my mother would call the gym to find out if I was going so I would go to the gym, sign in (this is before they had those bar codes they would scan in), and then leave and go to the library.  I would sit in the YA (Young Adult) section and read for an hour and then go home.

3. In high school, the library was no longer a refuge since more of my fellow students had to go there to do research for papers and I basically couldn’t go anywhere that my fellow students were because I would be made fun of (see: I was fat) or just generally felt unwelcome to share the same breathing space they did.

I love the library, though, and saw three books I want to read just within arm’s length of the counter when I picked up my card.  I didn’t check any out, though, since I have a few books at home that I want to read first.  I’m looking forward to taking out many books from there, though (and am also looking forward to fewer and smaller Barnes and Noble expenses).  The library even rents movies so maybe I’ll be able to find some of my AFI list films there!

It is unlikely that the hubby and I will get an apartment in this same town because it’s a bit expensive, but if we somehow are able to, I would definitely like to do some work for the library.  I don’t know what kind of help they need (if any) but I’d like to do something.  Libraries are wonderful and I’d like to do my part to support them.

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