An uncomfortably long story about my getting a library card
This post is about libraries and procrastination.
I've wanted to go to my library for months. I think I got the idea to do so 1.5 years ago, when I first moved into this apartment. However,I did everything that I could to slow down my progress towards going there.
I wrote "Go to library" in my bullet journal
I typed "Go to library" in my Apple Reminders app and scheduled it to remind me every evening.
I created a blocked called "Go to library and read" in my calendar.
I googled "libraries near me" and debated which of the 3 I should visit.
I read reviews for the closest one. There were only 48 reviews, which concerned me.
I read reviews for the further ones. One had more than a thousand reviews. I was pleased. I checked the distance from my house. I was displeased.
I opened Libby and continued using my old libary card.
I watched a TikTok where the girl told me that I could easily sign up for multiple library cards at once.
I read several Substack articles about how libraries are awesome and how I should use their free resources.
I watched a TikTok video where the guy said I should use the library so that their analytics improve, preventing a funding reduction from the government.
I scheduled "Go to library " on my calendar and fell asleep as the block started.
I went to the NYPL libary website and signed up for a digital library card to use for Libby. They give these out like candy!
I visited a large library branch in Manhattan and picked up all the activity brochures, awe struck by the grandiosity.
I put on my workout clothes, put my wallet, water bottle, book, and notebook in a bag (which was ripped and had to be emptied into another bag), and waved "goodbye" to my cat who was meowing at me ferociously and texted my partner "When are you coming home?", hoping that he could join me.
I stepped outside when he didn't respond for 1 hour, walked for a block, and walked back when I got a text "I'm home. wya".
I teased a toddler about his hat while I waited in the lobby for my partner to come home.
I walked 8 minutes to a small building, went through all the shelves, remembered my old post about 1000 Nos and walked to the front desk and asked for a library card.
I checked out "The Wedding People" and walked back home.