Thankful Sunday

 I am thankful for my library.

Recently, a friend asked Ward and me to join their Mahjong group. Neither of us had ever played before, so we weren't sure if we wanted to. And then, voila, we discovered that our library was giving beginner Mahjong lessons yesterday.*

So for the free Mahjong lessons (not to mention all of books, movies, etc.), I am thankful.

Until next time...

*We found the game complicated, and Ward's not sure if he wants to play again, but I want to learn more.

I'm Impressed

 I was chatting with a woman at the library yesterday who was lamenting that that library would be closed for two years for renovation. This is a common conversation these days because the doors will close next week for this work. As we discussed alternatives, she revealed that she read 342 books last year!! She does this mostly by listening to audiobooks as she works as a house cleaner. She often plays them at 2x the speed unless she really likes the narrator, then she does normal speed. And for some authors, she likes to read the words in paper book form. No matter how she does it, I was impressed! I'm not sure I have the attention span to devour that many books in that amount of time. And something tells me she may not spend as much time playing computer games as I do. 😀

When the library doors close next week, that will be my final day before I retire. I've shed a few tears when I think about leaving, but that's a good thing--to be leaving a job I like enough that I am sad about leaving. 

But as I said in my high school graduation speech, "All old things must end, so new things can begin." (Which, BTW, my mother was heavily involved in helping me write. One of her many talents.)

Until next time...

Thankful Sunday, January 12, 2020

I am thankful for willing and patient teachers.

As you all know, I have a new job with a lot to learn. Some of it will be formal training, but  most of it so far has been on the job. My co-workers have patiently shown me many, many things I need to know. They have done this when it would have been much faster for them to do it themselves or when they have had other work to do. So for my coworkers who are willingly and patiently helping me to learn my new job, I am thankful.

L is for Librariies

My love affair with libraries began when I was very young. While reading was important in my family, there was no money to buy books, so naturally the library was the place where we got them. My first library was in an old storefront that had two rooms and was a short walk from our house. My sisters and I often walked there together.

I can remember going to the library before I was old enough to go to school when Mrs. Simon and Mrs. Garrett were the librarians. I thought they were about the nicest people I'd ever met. At that point in time, my signature was rather sprawling even for just my first name and they let me use the entire card to sign out a book. I felt very important when I did that.

The town library continued to be important after I went to school. Because of funding problems, my school did not have a library. Each teacher had a small bookcase in the back of their room and that's where we got our school library books. However by 8th grade, the school finally built a library and I got to help set it up and work in it. Handling all of those brand new books was great.

As time went on, I had less time for leisure reading. The high school teachers had books for us to read as part of the curriculum and those took up much of my time. However, the town library was still an important part of my high school years. Every Monday night kids would meet at the library to do their homework. The gathering was more social than academic and it was great for me because this was a place I could meet with the popular kids that was acceptable. (It seemed that the popular kids were not usually at the library, but at a drinking party somewhere--not something I was interested in.)

During my college years, I was consumed with classes, and libraries faded to the background except for an occasional study session or to find a book to read in the summer. During this time, a new library was built in my hometown. The building was beautiful with beamed ceilings and fireplaces and that's where Ward and I had our wedding reception. Decades later, that library is still the place for many events in the town.

In the years to follow, Ward and I spent a lot of time in libraries with Wally and Theo. They were always excited by the limitless supply of books as were Ward and I. Then one day at a soccer game, one of the moms said that she was leaving her job at the library and a couple of weeks later, I had taken her place. Twelve years later, I'm still there and I'm happy.

I Love Libraries.

Other Random Library Thoughts

Apparently, there is not a limitless supple of books in every library because Ward read every single book in his junior high library.

The hardest part of my job is not being able to spend all of the time I want to perusing books I come across. They are not paying me to browse the collection all day long. Sigh.

When I first started working at the library, Wally and Theo would quiz me about what was the most interesting book I had handled that day. Everyone concluded that there is a book about most everything.

Thankful Sunday--January 17, 2016

These are the books Kimmy and I read yesterday.

I am thankful for the library.

Kimmy, a special needs teenager who lives next door, visits me most days so we can read together. She loves the actual process of reading out loud more than listening to a story, so that has evolved into she reads a page and then I read a page. While her reading has improved, she has not progressed beyond the beginning reading stage and that limits our choice of books.  

Kimmy has a very good memory and remembers most of the books we have read. She doesn't like to repeat a book, so that limits our choices further. That is where the library comes in. While we have read hundreds of books together from there, there are still hundreds (thousands?) to go. And for that I am thankful.