Where o where have the libraries gone...

The library was a big part of my life when I was growing up. I loved to read. Still do, as a matter of fact. These days, alas, most of my books come from trading at the used book store or borrowed from friends.

When I was a kid, knee high to a grasshopper, as the saying goes, the summer months were filled with trips to the library and participation in the summer reading programs offered there. I spent so much time at the library that the staff knew me by name and I them. The library was close enough that I could walk to it. I didn't have to depend upon my parents for transportation. I could spend time browsing the shelves to my hearts content, and I did that often. I spent time after school at the library, too, looking up information for my homework assignments.

The dewey decimal system was my friend and brought order to the card catalog as well as the non fiction book section. I'm dating myself here, because this was before the days of the computer. I loved the little drawers with all of the little cards with information about all of the books, all safe from removal because of the little rod that went through the front of the drawer and down the center. Each card had a hole at the bottom, in the middle, allowing it to slide back and forth, as I searched patiently for my book of the moment. Little did I realize at the time how much more I was learning, how much richer my life was for having access to the library and the people that worked there.

While I was growing up there was always a library close by in the neighborhoods where we lived. Most of the schools I attended had libraries that ranged from a small collection of books at the back of the room in elementary school to a full on library in high school with a librarian and card catalog. During high school I considered myself very lucky indeed to be able to work in the library each day as one of my elective classes. During that time I learned how to mend books, how to shelve books, how to check books in and out. The face to face interaction with the other students gave me my first experiences in customer service.

Today, I live in a small community and the libraries continue to close and disappear. Although the population is on the rise, the services are very much on the decline. The staffing consists largely of volunteer positions. There remain very few paid positions. The county funds that used to support the library systems have long since dried up as these dollars have had to be reallocated to other, more necessary services that used to be paid for out of federal and state money that came to our counties.

There used to be money to open new library branches as areas were populated and developed, so that all could share in access to the free library sytem. Now there are very few branches open and these have ever dwindling hours. There are very few Saturday hours anymore and usually only one evening a week. The parking lots are small and the people have to drive long distances to visit the library.

Is it any wonder that many of our children are growing up with less than adequate skills to face the world? When was the last time you visited your library?

Post Office Blues

Imagine my surprise when I went to the post office on Saturday to drop off my mail, the last outgoing delivery before the holiday weekend, and found that the last pickup of the day was 3:00 p.m.

To backtrack a bit, I live in a small town on California's central coast, where the community is growing and the housing market continues to be out of sight. The main post office for the county is located here and it has always been open until 5:30 p.m Monday through Saturday. Since time immemorial...

The shock I felt when I realized that, although the population is on the upswing, the services are on the downswing, has moved me to begin my first blog. Does this mean that I no longer have faith that my civil servants care for my welfare? Maybe...

I can certainly admit to feeling left out of the decision making process at the federal level. Although I show up at my polling place every election day, it has been a long time since I believed that my vote made a difference to anything that I care about.

I want to go on record, and this is the record, as being appalled that our libraries are open a few hours a week, in very limited locations and now it would seem that our post offices are also in a similar decline. This occurring very shortly after an increase in postage. My taxes are up and so are my hackles. Where does this buck stop?

Warmest regards