Road Tripping, Librarian Style
Driving the Lincoln Highway to visit a bunch of libraries
I’ve already said this, but: I like libraries. Really, really like libraries. If a library passed me a note that said “Do you love me? Check yes or no” I’m checking Yes every time without even thinking about it.
Should everyone plan a trip around visits to libraries? Yes!
Sure, it sounds kind of silly at first glance. If you have a perfectly good library right here, why wander around to visit other libraries?
But, without question adding libraries to your trip plan will always be the right thing to do - as will just making a hard right turn into a library when you see the sign as you drive by. Visiting libraries when on a road trip is will do so much to add value to a trip.
I’m doing it this summer: driving the Lincoln Highway to visit all the libraries along the way.
I say this all the time, but I’ve been in libraries all over the country and every single one of them has something new and interesting that is tied to their community. Of course, libraries all kind of do the same things: we have materials, most of us have programs (all of us should!), and we all provide a variety of services. These are the library tripod. Seeing these things in a new place, or new things - it’s just cool!
And when you are road tripping, libraries have a variety of other nice advantages. (I’m generally referring to public libraries here; but some academic libraries will have similar features, and maybe a few special libraries. School libraries, K-12 schools, are almost universally closed to the public.)
Wi-Fi! Aaahhhhh - when I’m are on the road, especially when it’s a camping trip, I realize how much I love my Wi-Fi. I download a lot of podcasts every day, and I blow through audiobooks when I’m traveling - and you really do need Wi-Fi. Public libraries have it available for all, and I’m thankful for the opportunity to catch up on things I’ve missed. Even when I stay in hotels, their Wi-Fi is often trash and I can’t download anything. Thanks, libraries, for keeping me stocked up with information!
Books! Of course you can’t check out books when you are out of state (libraries are locally funded for local people), but most libraries will have at least a small book sale with astonishingly cheap - sometimes free! - books. Drop off some of the books you’ve brought with you and refresh the car library with some new things.
I have an unfortunate tendency, that I am guessing is pretty widely shared among my fellow book people, to come home with bags and boxes of books from my trips. It’s slightly embarrassing; but I know I can either enjoy them, or pass them along in Little Free Libraries or donate them back to a library for sale or giveaway. It’s a pretty inexpensive vice, and I have to say that it makes me absurdly happy to have stacks of paper books around me. (In addition to the virtual stacks of audiobooks and eBooks that I also have!)
Bathrooms! The moment you step out of “regular” life, you realize how precarious access to basic requirements of becomes. Need something to drink? You can’t just pop into the kitchen. Hungry? Hopefully you thought ahead, or have ready access to money. And when it’s bathroom time? Yeesh. Gas stations and fast food places are pretty reliable, if sometimes…icky…choices. But when you are able to visit the library, you are certain to have access to running water and flush toilets. After a couple of days camping and driving, that access seems like magic.
Even if you haven’t read it, the book Everyone Poops, by Toro Gomi is a universal truth. Anyone who have never not had the privilege of trying to figure out where to poop should notice that it is a privilege. I’m totally fearless about “bathrooming” outside in forest and fields and such. But when you are in an urban environment - what are your choices? And when you haven’t washed your hands with running water and soap for a few days, it feels glorious. Library access is a wonderful thing that travel makes you deeply appreciate!
(I’m just going to put in the obvious note that for all the complaining library staff, and community members in general, do about the difficulties that unhoused people bring to a library, which are real and complicated - what are the choices available? This should not be a library problem, it’s a “society is broken for people who need help” problem, and we should all be ashamed that we live in a society that we are allowing to be broken for too many people. I’m stepping off my soapbox before I get too far down the ranting road here; but the fact that I am road tripping with fistfuls of advantages, including the money to buy access to bathrooms and the middle-aged-middle-class-white-lady persona to be accepted pretty much everywhere, is never lost on me. Fuck the capitalist system that is breaking us!)
Rest breaks! When I’ve been moving a lot and driving longer distances, it’s just lovely to sit down for a while and relax. Bonus points to a library over almost anywhere else, because I can sit there with a nice book and enjoy myself.
For true reading fanatics, find a paper book you like at the first library you visit. Sit, read, enjoy for 30 minutes or an hour or so. Then at your next library break, find the same book, and start reading from the stopping point. That’s right Amazon - you didn’t invent the idea of synching reading across devices. It’s always been an option! (I’m making “libraries are so cool!” emphatic gestures here. You’ll just have to imagine them.)
Pro tip: Fill up your water bottles on the way out the door. (Also do this at national parks, and highway rest stops.) It saves you time and money later, and you always need more water when you are traveling!
Play time! If you are road tripping with kids, public libraries are a good stop. Public libraries are often designed for kids, and only have kid programming. (I have thoughts on that; but I’ll save them for later.) You can arrive unannounced and unplanned, and ask if there are any programs you can join. Or, just zip off to the kid area and let your kids play with some toys while you download things to your devices. Some libraries have outdoor spaces, perfect for screaming and running around; and if not, there is often a park nearby for these important kid activities! Training kids to know about libraries, and to rely on them for services, sets them up for future library-related success.
Wrapping It Up
(clearing throat officiously) And in conclusion: get in your car! Go places! See things! There are so many great places to see and things to do. Sometimes they will fill your heart with the glory of knowing such things exist. Sometimes they will make you deeply grateful that you are going home soon. Either way is valuable.
And there are always libraries!
Have you visited a library this week? If not - today would be a GREAT day to do so!