I would like to feed your fingertips to the wolverines

So last night when I drove home from work I got in the mood to go to our tiny public library only to remember that it was MLK day and it was closed for the holiday. I realized that about the time I looked at the very empty parking lot. Doh.

Still in the mood for a library trip I called the one in the next town and it was open for the evening. I do most of my recreational reading on line or when I am on a rare vacation. I was a business research librarian at a university for 4 years but didn't make it into the stacks much back then. Walking into the library I kind of remembered why I don't frequent it (that particular library).

1) the library is run by the city and they charge non-residents a big annual fee
2) you walk past the rest rooms on the way into the library and the foyer always smells a bit funky
3) I don't mind that the place is filled with kids. I think it's wonderful that they are all using the facilities. What I do mind is the, well, perverted looking men that sit and stare at all the kids. I doubt that these are the parents of the kids. They also stare at anyone walking by. I think these are the same guys that sit in the lawn chairs at our Court Club pool and watch all the swimming lesson kids through a couple of sessions. I know this sounds really gross but...

The knitting book department is pretty lean but they do have some real recent ones though all checked out.

I did have two things that I really enjoyed there last night.
1) I am a book lover, even though I don't get to the library any more. I don't enjoy the library bound plastic covers that they put on all newly purchased books. The books I love are the old ones, the ones bound in dark brown or dark red canvas with the titles handwritten on the spines. I went around the library and found those books and felt the covers, opened them, looked at the paper and the style of print. It had been a long time since I'd done that. When I went to the U of Colorado I used to wander the stacks and find the oldest books I could so I could feel the paper.
2) In the new book section I found the new John Belushi Bio. I loved John Belushi and still think he is a master of comedy. I meant to just spend a few minutes with the book, to decide whether or not I wanted to purchase it. Two hours later I was at the last page. I just couldn't put it down.