I remember spending most of my time outside of school at the library down the street. I loved being able to read to my little heart’s content! My goal in life was to eventually have a library in my home.
Fast forward to today: I am now a minimalist and I no longer desire to own all the books. I want to read them, yes! But, I want to give them back and have someone else enjoy them without needing to house them myself.
Although I have been taking advantage of their e-books because I can get them instantly and without having to go anywhere, the other day I had the desire for a physical book, and since it happened to be during their open hours: I went.
I was incredibly surprised by all the things neighborhood libraries now offer!
The Usual
Yes, you can get: books, movies, newspapers, magazines, internet access, study rooms, and printing services. They also have apps to stream movies and shows.
Nice to Have
You can also get: board games and puzzles! Now I don’t have to buy jigsaw puzzles only to feel guilty about throwing it out so I end up keeping it in the box for years until I finally decide to donate it.
They even have outdoor games you can rent. So if you’re having a get together at your place you can rent whatever games your guests might like to play out in the yard while you’re grilling.
They even have baby stuff you can rent, like: high chairs and toys. Which sounds amazing if you can’t, or don’t want to, buy something if you have guests coming over that have infants. Seems like a great thing!
I also think it’s really cool that some libraries have a seed catalog that you can get free seeds from to plant a variety of things! They also have plant cuttings so you can have a new plant even quicker! I can’t wait to take a few cuttings of my own over there!
Flat Out Amazing
The best things though are probably the tool rentals!
At my local library you can rent an air compressor, a sewing machine, a hotspot, or even a carpet cleaner! (I don’t even have carpet! Lol, but this would have been amazing when I did!)
It used to be that these things had to be rented from a hardware store for actual cash. Now you can get them for free at the library!
I also learned that some libraries offer “cultural passes” like: orchestra concert tickets, tickets to plays, museums, art exhibits, state parks, and other events in the city! They usually give you two tickets, so you can even bring a guest!
For you digital creators, they also rent projectors and green screens!
Classes
Most libraries also have classes, both in person and virtually, on a variety of subjects. I took a break from work a few years ago and I started taking photography classes at my local library and also Photoshop classes. It was really cool to get practice using these things and they had everything for you right there. That library in particular had a photo studio that you could rent and a great variety of photo equipment, props, lighting, and even lenses you could borrow.
They also have apps to learn languages, learn how to code, use specific software, or learn how to improve your resume.
Library Agreements
Another thing you should note is that if you live in a small city or town sometimes nearby towns have reciprocal agreements with your town library that allow you to have free library cards to all of the nearby libraries. This is great because smaller libraries tend to have a smaller selection so if your closest one doesn’t have what you’re looking for you can check out the next nearest one. I do this a lot with e-books in particular because sometimes a book I really want to read right then might be checked out at one library, but another one might have a copy!
If there’s a large city nearby, you could also look into getting their library card. They might charge a fee if you’re not a resident, or there might be an exception: working in that city, for example.
Go Check Them Out
Libraries are continuing to do their best to provide the services that we need. Go check out your local library and if they don’t have something you’d like to see: go ahead and suggest it. They are constantly looking for ways to improve their traffic and continue to provide valuable services to our communities.
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