Just Another Writer

Photo by sosij

After work and home, the place I spend the most time is the library. Here’s why.

1. They have free books. I love to read. It is such a luxury to go to a bookshelf and grab the latest bestseller. If it’s not available, I put it on hold. When it gets in, they call me. No problem.

2. My kid likes to check out movies. They also have a pretty good selection of DVD’s and videocassettes. For my son, it is the same stuff we would be paying for at Blockbuster anyway–Pokemon Never Goes Away, Part II, that sort of thing.

3. Audio books. These are great for commutes or to listen to while walking. Of course, they are also free. My library has a number of language learning resources in this area as well.

4. Computers. Sometimes, after work, I want to get some writing done. At home, this can be an issue, because we are a one computer family, and my son wants to play Star Wars games on lego.com. When we’re at the library, we can both do our own thing.

5. It can be a good place for meetings. I do my tutoring at the library. It is nice to not have to rent an office to have that particular side business. Also, since it is a library and not an office, my son can come with me and play on the computer, read books or do his homework while I’m tutoring. There are a few book clubs that meet there as well, and occasionally, a writing group.

6. It has free entertainment for the kids. Our library has pajama reading nights for the kids, as well as local author events and contests. The kids always love it.

7. You can copy articles from magazines instead of buying them. Magazines are so expensive. Lately, I’ve been looking at a few while I’m at the library, and when I see an idea or project that I’d like to take home, I go and make a copy. An added bonus is that I’m more likely to look at that magazine page again, as opposed to when I simply dog-ear the pages of the ones I have at home.

8. Because you should support it. When people stop going to libraries because they are at home watching television and running up their credit cards ordering books off of Amazon, then the libraries won’t exist anymore. And it will be our fault. When we utilize the library, we help them to secure future funding to stay open.

I walk tha corner to tha rubble that used to be a library
Line up to tha mind cemetary now
What we don’t know keeps tha contracts alive an movin’
They don’t gotta burn tha books they just remove ‘em
–RATM

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