Happy National Library Week!
http://www.ala.org/ala/conferencesevents/celebrationweeks/natlibraryweek/index.cfm
http://jmrl.org/br-bookmobile.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6g_S63Y8zI
A very seductive and radical idea, when you think about it. Providing citizens with information - as a function of government. Something so accepted (and frequently ignored) that we don't realize how really astounding a thing it is. I still remember my first visit to the old Alexandria library on Queen Street, It was a little school field trip, I think I was five. The place was a little dark and musty, (no problem there, so am I). But the books! Each of us got a library card, (I wish I still had mine - a heavy piece of cardboard with a rectangular steel 'badge' in the corner - my first bit of officialdom!); and I went mad - scurrying around the shelves finding Dr. Seuss and other treasure, ((I remember a short series featuring a French mouse that I was quite fond of at the time, damned if I can remember the author or any titles, though). At any rate, it was a thrill. And fortunately for me, my parents were very big on reading, so Saturday's meant my Mother taking me down to load up on more booty. Later on, (around 2nd grade) Alexandria got a bookmobile that stopped within walking distance of my house, (next to the Baskin Robbins at Fairlington). A virtual one-stop for ice cream AND books! Life was GOOD, I gotta tell ya! At any rate, the whole point of this little memory flogger of mine is two-fold. If you've got kids, get 'em into reading early, neither they, nor you, will regret it. And secondly, please support, check out, and fanatically protect your local library system. I know all the arguments about the Internet replacing libraries, etc. They all have flaws, books and libraries are a resource we absolutely need.
http://jmrl.org/br-bookmobile.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6g_S63Y8zI
A very seductive and radical idea, when you think about it. Providing citizens with information - as a function of government. Something so accepted (and frequently ignored) that we don't realize how really astounding a thing it is. I still remember my first visit to the old Alexandria library on Queen Street, It was a little school field trip, I think I was five. The place was a little dark and musty, (no problem there, so am I). But the books! Each of us got a library card, (I wish I still had mine - a heavy piece of cardboard with a rectangular steel 'badge' in the corner - my first bit of officialdom!); and I went mad - scurrying around the shelves finding Dr. Seuss and other treasure, ((I remember a short series featuring a French mouse that I was quite fond of at the time, damned if I can remember the author or any titles, though). At any rate, it was a thrill. And fortunately for me, my parents were very big on reading, so Saturday's meant my Mother taking me down to load up on more booty. Later on, (around 2nd grade) Alexandria got a bookmobile that stopped within walking distance of my house, (next to the Baskin Robbins at Fairlington). A virtual one-stop for ice cream AND books! Life was GOOD, I gotta tell ya! At any rate, the whole point of this little memory flogger of mine is two-fold. If you've got kids, get 'em into reading early, neither they, nor you, will regret it. And secondly, please support, check out, and fanatically protect your local library system. I know all the arguments about the Internet replacing libraries, etc. They all have flaws, books and libraries are a resource we absolutely need.
posted by mendip at
12:01 AM
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