This Blog

Once, to help put some troubles I was having into perspective, I decided to figure out what things I could not possibly live without. Then I could tell myself "if I lose everything, I still have these things which are really important to me." I ended up with a very short list: my wife and my library card.

It might sound crazy that my library card is one of the most important things in my life; to be honest, I probably could live without it. It makes the list anyway because, as long as you have a library card (and a library, naturally), you have a limitless source of entertainment and education, and it's free. Or, at least, the cost is cleverly hidden, hence the sub-title of this blog.

I am an absolutely voracious reader. For most of my life, I've read about a book a week. Childhood vacations always involved a stack of books; I'd usually take six or seven to the beach and get through them all in a week. One of my fondest memories was sitting in a corner on top of a heating duct in my parent's house reading The Hobbit. My father said I looked like a street urchin. I was just happy to be warm and reading.

There are a lot of satisfying pastimes in this life: travel, good food, and spending time with friends shouldn't be underrated, and I enjoy them all. But the one thing that makes me happiest is a good book. And the truly great thing is that you can read pretty much anything you want with a library card for free.

So I started this blog to share some of my old favorites and whatever I've picked up lately at the library. The public library is a great institution; truly a foundation of our nation's character and strength, and an undervalued component of any great community. I hope to help you appreciate it a little more and find something good to read as well.