It's been a few years. The public library was a place that me and a cousin of mine practically lived in growing up. We had a very eclectic taste in reading material and would check out stacks of books at a time. Also, we liked to read microfilm of newspapers going back 200 years.
Well, it's been a while; but only because I can do more research online in 3 hours than I could do in the library over the weekend.
But there are a number of university libraries---some specialized---in close proximity when needed.
This post was edited by tom jackson at July 3, 2018 5:18 AM MDT
Sadly, it's been over year or two. I used to be a constant fixture at many local libraries, and I always kept a valid card for each library system where I lived; city, county, university, etc. It began to end slowly when the local laws allowed for any person to access any kind of content on library computers, and it became a daily occurrence that some perv or another was downloading pornography in full view of anyone and everyone. At first, it was just images. Later, the sounds of porn movies permeated the silence of the libraries. Men were pleasuring themselves right there in the seats, and the restrooms became dens of sexual hookups. Added to the problem was the daily crowd of homeless people who made the library their hangouts. Shopping carts and makeshift shelters surrounded the entrances, odors of unwashed bodies and unwashed clothing stunk up the joint, the bathroom sinks were public showers, and some people slept in the aisles between bookshelves. The final straw was the way that cell phone use exploded even in the sanctity of the library. No one cares that their supposedly "private" conversations carry like loudspeakers in a library, and dare be it for anyone to shush them lest the cursing begin.
The only thing wrong with libraries is that too many humans are in them. Wait, let me rephrase that: too many non-book-loving humans.
P.S. I forgot to add that when I was on active duty in the Marine Corps, I got myself a library card in each place that allowed it, regardless of how short my stay was and including overseas in countries where I didn't speak the language. Most places require that one be a resident in order to get a library card, but not all of them. ~
Randy D 