Having Fun Isn't Hard When You've Got a Library Card

I must admit I'm more of a bookstore geek than a library-goer. (No, it's not because of the coffee.) Lakewood's library has a very beautiful facade, though, so I think this weekend I'll have to finally go exploring and see if the inside is as pretty as the outside. Pretty with good books. How perfect, considering September is National Library Card Sign-up Month. The last time I tried to get a library card in Strongsville, they needed a form of ID with my current address on it. Unfortunately, my driver's license said Cincy, my checks said Dayton, and my gas bills did say Strongsville, but they had the wrong apartment number. It's sad to think I let that stop me. Of course my boyfriend walks in, says he just moved here (liar) and gets a card no problem. I say I just moved here and they want my life story and probably a credit check.

My main dig with libraries has always really been a dig with myself. I am selfish, and I hate returning the books. Especially if they're good books. I also have this awful condition called irresponsibility...usually by the time I've finished a good book, it's in shambles. There is soup splashed on page 149, every 10 pages have dog-ears, and the cover is dingy if not torn or bent. So libraries will be a new thing to get used to.

My mom used to take me to the library all the time as a kid, where I could sit for hours, reading all the picture books; and then we'd take them all home to read again. Sometimes my mom had to put a limit on what we checked out. I wanted them all. Now that I'm all grown up, I still love the children's section best. And I still love the sound of a librarian moving a plastic-jacketed book from one pile to another as she scans the card inside each cover. Swfft...beep!...puhp...Swfft...beep!...puhp. (This may have planted the seeds of my awe for STOMP!) I love studying all the different handwritings on the checkout card. It's like a story inside a story.

Why did I stop going to the library again?

Never fear. September is almost over, but I still have time to take advantage. To solidify the deal, I'll make a pledge -- if I don't come out in October with a new library card, I won't be able to buy another book for 6 months. If you know me, you know how hard that's going to be. I wish I could say I had some legitimate backers, so I could have a contest like Schmutzie here, and give something away as incentive for actually going the distance. But I don't have backers, and I'm pretty sure I don't have readers yet. So I'll have to settle for the next best thing: deprivation.

Anyway, please, join me (and I do mean in spirit if you do not happen to live near me) in getting to know your local library, and the awesomeness that is getting books for free.

And speaking of libraries...props to Arthur throwbacks.