Sunday, March 21, 2010

Forgotten joys

Jerry and I just came back from our first trip to West U Library (since we moved back to Houston), a place we used to frequent quite often before we moved overseas. I had sort of forgotten about what a great place the library is until a friend and I were swapping ways to be frugal and she mentioned getting books, CDs, and DVDs at the library. If there are local libraries in K, we did not run across any. There is a National Library there, but it is mostly for researchers and it looked pretty run-down.

Anyhow, back to our local library. It's great! And here are some reasons why:
  1. It's quiet.
  2. You can borrow up to 10 DVDs at a time per library card.
  3. You can renew books, DVDs, etc online.
  4. There are even CDs to borrow.
  5. Usually, a book sale (to benefit the library) is going on and you can purchase hardbacks for $1 and paperbacks for $2. Today, I picked up a Dorothy Sayers mystery novel and Jerry picked up a book written by AND autographed by Kirk Douglas!
  6. You can go to the online site and browse all kinds of media from all of the libraries in the county, click on what you want and when it's available, you get an email. Then you go to your local branch and all of your items are waiting for you on a shelf in an envelope with your name.
  7. There are computers to browse the web.
  8. They host book clubs. Once my schedule gets settled, I plan to join one hosted by the library.
  9. They provide tables and chairs to sit in while reading through magazines. Not like at the grocery store where you have to stand in the aisle. One time, (I cannot believe I am about to tell this story...) Jerry and I were at Kroger and there was an outdoor furniture display in the middle of one of aisles near the magazines complete with comfy seating options, including a weather-proof love seat. Can you tell where this story is headed? Well, we chose several magazines and sat in the gazebo for about a hour, enjoying our mags and the outdoor furniture. It was kinda fun and no one said a word to us.
Any perks we left out?
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3 comments:

rachel said...

Libraries really do offer a lot of good things for free! The ones in the Boston area offer passes for free or very discounted admission to many of the museums and other attractions. And library sales are also great. At the last sale I went to, I picked up a 2008 copy of "What to Expect When You're Expecting" for $1...which, for the record, I do not need at this time, but I figured I or someone else could use it!

March 22, 2010 at 2:54 AM
mommapao said...

Your library is expensive! I just bought Harrison a paperback Ramona the Brave book for 25 cents! Hardbacks were 50 cents. And that's after a 100% increase.

March 26, 2010 at 7:01 AM
J Wakeham said...

I, too, LOVE the library. Especially the "loan request" feature on the website. It just feels so magical to click on a book and then a few days later it's all wrapped up and labeled with my name, waiting for me to just swoop in and grab it. Makes going to the library with 3 small children actually possible!

Glad y'all are back!

May 29, 2010 at 9:14 AM

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