While we were on San Juan Island over the summer, we enjoyed going to the library and checking out books and dvds.  So, when Tom and I got to St. Simons Island, we decided to get a library card here also.  Because so many people come to St. Simons Island every winter, the library has a temporary card.  For $12 you can get a card without showing that you live on the island.  With a little cash shelled out, we can take advantage of the extensive Pines Library system.

The Pines Library system covers most of the state of Georgia.  We can check out books from almost any library in the state and return them to almost any other library:  275 libraries in all!  The big cities are the exception, with Atlanta, Savannah, and Columbus having their own library systems.

Tom really likes to use inter-library loan in order to do historical research.  Having a Pines Library cards allows him to request books from any library.  Unlike other inter-library loan systems, however, the Pines Library requires you to pay postage on any book you order.  After paying $2.50 per book for the four books he requested, Tom decided he wouldn’t be requesting any more inter-library books.

We go to the library here on St. Simons Island or over the causeway in Brunswick.  I enjoy browsing the new books.  Browsing books on the internet is difficult.  So it is nice to look at the books, read the jackets, and decide if I am interested in reading them.  I also like wandering through the stacks, looking at whatever catches my eye.  I have gotten used to reading books on my iPad, but I prefer an old-fashioned page-turning book.  Tom reads books differently – jumping from one section to another – and he has a hard time reading e-books.

I also enjoy picking out dvds.  Tom and I love to watch movies in the evening, especially old movies, and the library in Brunswick has a nice selection.  I can order other movies from the Pines Library system if I decide there is something I want to see.

Having a Pines Library card opens up new worlds of possibility.  So many books, so little time – but how much fun to browse through the books and think about all the things we still have to learn.