library bound

i’ve always had a mini love affair with libraries. i mean, come on, you get your library card (a fun, bright color) for free and you have instant access to millions of books. for free. for me. for you. for him. for her. for them. shelves and shelves of delicious books waiting to be read. and the library doesn’t get jealous when i go to the bookstore instead and purchase my own copy. what’s not to love?

the cambridge public library recently re-opened its renovated doors and my love affair has blossomed into a full on romance. i go to the CPL at least twice a week. i go to pick up books on hold. i go to search for something new. i go to write. i go to research. i go to read the smutty gossip rags i refuse to pay subscriptions for. i go for the comfy chairs. i go for inspiration.

and the hope that one day i’ll be able to find my book on the shelf.

i was in the library on saturday trying to figure out why my account kept saying i had IT’S RAINING CUPCAKES by lisa schroeder checked out when i had returned it weeks ago. because it’s an MG book, it was located in the kids’ section on the third floor and they needed me to go up there to see if it actually was on the shelf. once i finished climbing the seemingly endless flights of stairs, i stood in line to wait for the next available librarian. and man alive, i could have waited in that line forever. the one librarian was so sweet with two little girls, sky and rachel, who were signing up for their first library cards. and to watch those little girls listen to the librarian and lean on the counter to look at the gerbil and pick out a seed ball and clap with excitement over their first card just about melted my heart. as a lover of books, it made me so happy to know that someone gentle and caring and enthusiastic was taking care of these little bubbles of joy. and while those little girls probably won’t remember, the librarian was instilling a love of books and reading with such a strong foundation that the love is sure to continue into adulthood.

another librarian was soon available and i had to tear myself away (but not before realizing what i want. i want a little kid who is PSYCHED to get their card to check out one of my books. i know how excited i get when i find a book i want. and i want someone to want my book like that. I WANT. i do.) anyways, it turns out the book they said i had checked out was sitting there patiently waiting for its next reader. so all was squared away.

and then i swung by the library yesterday to pick up a book they were holding for me (SEA by heidi kling). as i was waiting in line, i spied one of our books from work on the shelf waiting to be taken home. this was the first time i’ve seen a harvard book at the library. sure, i see them in bookstores all the time, but there was something about seeing it at the library that delighted me. i don’t really know why, but it did. and also, i saw HUNGER GAMES sitting on a cart waiting for the next patron to pick it up. i know what that book holds inside and i can’t wait for that person to get their hands on it and dive in.

it seems that no matter the day, the library continues to charm my pants off. do you have a love affair with a library? or, perhaps, with something other than a person?

spill it.