That Place Where They Keep the Books

You guys, I am beside myself with glee. I am downright giddy. Why? Why can’t I stop smiling? Why does my heart seem fuller and the daylight seem brighter? Why is my heart full of Jimmy Fallon-type joy?

Because I have rediscovered the public library. ….

You guys, there’s this place where you can go and pick out books and then take them home with you and read them. And then when you’re done, you bring them back so that other people who might enjoy that book can also take it home. And, you guys, this amazing bookly transaction…totally free. Okay, not exactly free. Technically, if you’re a U.S. citizen and you pay state and federal taxes, you have contributed monetarily to this venture. But seriously, you guys. The library.*

*Don’t get me wrong. I’ve seen the inside of a library a lot in the last four years. It’s just been on the university campus and it’s been all about research and candidacy exams and grad school. I forgot about when the library was fun.  

As you can see, my expedition today was quite fruitful. Behold…BOOKS. Two on de-cluttering, one on re-falling in love with your wardrobe, a how-to on vintage hairstyles, and an old movie to help me cross something else off my 2012 bucket list. And spending more time at the public library has made it onto my bucket list for 2013.

I know that some of you are thinking, Gee, Elizabeth. I could have told you about the library a long time ago. And you’re right. You could have. What’s wrong with you?

love, elizabeth

the library of congress is going to be so mad…

First of all, I just wanted to say THANK YOU to all the wonderful bloggers who have been participating in the blog hop so far! If you haven’t linked up yet, it’s still open (and an awesome way to discover new blogs!) If you’re brand new to Love is the Adventure, thanks so much for being here. If you’ve recently followed and/or commented, I am so glad to hear from you. I’ll be returning the favor soon and visiting each of your blogs so look for me!

Here’s what last night looked like at our house…because when I’m feeling stressed and anxious, I find myself eating more carbs and watching more Buffy the Vampire Slayer and…alphabetizing my books. What? It’s soothing. And stuff.

But then it gets complicated. Do you alphabetize by author or by title? And if you alphabetize fiction by author, do you want to do the same thing with non-fiction, even if you can’t remember who wrote the biography of Zelda Fitzgerald? And speaking of non-fiction, do you create sub-categories for essays and biographies or do you just lump everything together?

And then the theatre books…which seems to grow by an entire shelf every year closer I get to my PhD. Did you know there’s a difference between drama and theatre? In this case, “drama” refers to dramatic literature (plays) and theatre refers to performance production. Also, what do you do about plays without anonymous authors like Everyman?

And my very favorite section, reserved for my favorite topic…popular entertainment (circus, sideshows, burlesque, vaudeville, etc.) which is what I’m hoping to write my dissertation about! But do I separate by topic or historical period or color?

I ended up with ten categories: poetry, fiction, non-fiction, women’s studies, drama, dramatic anthologies, theatre history, theatre practice (acting, directing, and technical), dramatic theory, and popular entertainment.

So now you know what I do on Tuesday nights when I can’t sleep. Books are so comforting to me. So is order.

What about you? What do you find comforting when you’re anxious?

love, elizabeth