Monday, September 28, 2009

your library request is ready to be picked up

Two years ago last August, Abe & I bought a pair of Ikea's black-brown Billy bookcases. It was our first furniture purchase that didn't involve Salvation Army (or it's equivalent). Aside from a wedding ring and plane tickets home, it may have been our single biggest purchase together.

What does it say about us that our next big furniture purchase (last Saturday) was 3 additional Billy's?

I think it says that I shouldn't be surprised to look at our library accounts and find 74 checked out items - 68 books*, 6 DVDs.

We relegated the original Billy's into our bedroom. Now our living room sports the more stylish half-width Billy's, including one wall mount. The shelves will be arranged in a sort of square arch around our piano. This creates a shrine-like space above the piano and below the wall mount (the keystone, if you will). Abe has suggested a series of 3 cat statues, in increasing size, for this space**.

In transit, these books have taken residence on our bedroom floor.


I've always felt that books on someone's bookshelf are a good conversation piece. A sampling of titles from our floor:

Godel, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter
Biology of Life (Bio 101 textbook)
Peace Like a River by Leif Enger
Rational Herds: Economic Models of Social Learning by Christophe P. Chamley
Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
Jane Austen's Complete Works by Jane Austen
4 hymnals
The Authoritative Calvin & Hobbes by Bill Watterson
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Beowulf by a heroic epic poet

Surprisingly, we actually own all of the above books.

*Until last week, this included one book, Trees of Michigan, that I have been renewing since June 2008 (approximately 22 renewals).
**It is disturbing that my Google search for "cat statues" came up with this photo:

5 comments:

Janssen said...

Wait, they let you renew a book 22 times?

Rachel said...

Great idea! I love when people have books in the front room - you always find some books/interests in common. Good luck finding the right cat statues for the job.

Maren Hansen said...

Sigh. I wish we had a library system as completely awesome as A2. I miss being able to renew things forever, having no limit on how much I check out, and having cool microchips that make checking out easy... Enjoy it while you can!!

Dawn said...

You're lucky that aadl allows the never ending renewal of books! We are only allow one renewal at my library system! I like buying book cases..but still there are just too many books around here to fit! :)

Erin Gong said...

Our library system is wonderful. I almost always find the books/DVDs I'm looking for, and the unlimited renewal helps me actually get around to many of the books I want to read.

And I don't need to feel too guilty about building my own library out of theirs, because if someone wants a book I've got, they can request it and then I have to return it.

Besides, I figure most libraries want their collections largely in the homes of their patrons, not collecting dust and taking up valuable space on their shelves.