Good morning. 😀
Let’s just cut to the chase.
I blame you.
Yes you! Sitting there all innocent like staring into your computer screen with those innocent eyes.
Pah…. lease.
First let me get this blame game started at the beginning…. you, the bookish people who told me, “Oh! How can you live without a library card!”
Yes, even taking it a step further last year when there was a Library Challenge…. “read you library books” it said! It’s fun, it’s easy, and you could save a library.
I went for it. Yup. Gullible me went down to my local library last year and came out with a…
with a….
library card.
Of course…. if that was it, there would be no story here.
Oh no….. then there were the book recommendations……everyone is reading all over the place, my book club, my friends, and all of you here on-line offering up book choices and covers I can not resist… like book pushers really…
I am weak I tell you….
but you did not care.
No – instead I was bombarded with books, books, books….
and then it happened.
Yup. the “A’ word.
Audio books.
*gulp*
*sweat beads*
I was drawn to the convenience…. no longer was I bound to a book where I had to hold still and find a quiet corner to read in. Oh no….. new doors were opened when I discovered I could read…
ANYWHERE and ANYTIME.
I mowed the lawn while listening to Farenheit 451, I baked cookies while listening to House Rules by Jodi Piccoult, every morning getting ready to the sound of a book being narrated while I showered, dressed, did make up and hair and only (ONLY) shut it off as I headed out the door each morning.
I was in my bookish dream world.
SO…..
to get to the point…
(get to the point…. get to the point… get to the point… get to the point…)
Ahh yes! The point!
For the past couple days since I asked for your help with great audio books…. I have been popping these titles into my library reserve like they were candy. I currently am at the point where two of my current audio are going to end yet this weekend and I did not want an audio dry spell…..
yes friends…. I do think it can be too quiet.
AND then after work yesterday I went to pick up a reserve audio that had come in. I went to the reserve shelf and pulled out two rubber banded together with my name on them. AWESOME I thought!
Then I looked a little further on the shelf to a much longer bundle of 2 books and 4 audio…. also under my name.
*gulp*
Yet I held me head high and went to the automatic check out scanner and started scanning my treasures. I was right at the end…. so close I could smell freedom! …And then it happened.
The little computer scanner thingy told me I had too many audio out and would have to go to the front desk.
Oh the humiliation…..
So I took the one audio I was denied up to the desk and spoke to Mr. Library Man. I told him my dilemma and asked if I could return the one to the reserved shelf and come back tomorrow with one to turn in. I told him I had one on my kitchen table that I just forgot to bring back…. this is true…. Dean Koontz’ Frankenstein was waiting for return after I decided this audio was not for me….
He smiled. It may have been condescending, it may have been pity, it might have been fear of the crazy woman in front of him white knuckling an audio book she did not want to let go of….
whatever it was. He said “sure.”
Book Journey 
Ah hahaha! I love it, this made me laugh so hard. Thanks for brightening up my day!
Kath its why I share these moments…. truly what else can I do but laugh… I always say that life is NEVER dull. 😛
What a way to start the day, I love it. I feel for you, really I do. I have discovered so many new authors I would never had tried before. So many genres I bwas scared of before. Audio books were never my thing. Now here I sit… my first giveaway… my ipod attached to my tshirt, ear buds engaged (gonna have a clean house in no time flat), and a bunch of tbr piles that I have hidden around the house (others just wouldn’t understand)….all because I started reading book blogs and making new friends.
*Virtual high five*
Yup…. Margaret I actually look forward to going places now because I get to pick up on where I Ieft off in my car audio. Even filling the wood stove at night is ok because I drive to the stove and that 2 minutes drive puts me a little further into my story…. 😀
Hahaha, you write fantasticly! I have the same problem sometimes when I reserve a lot of books/movies/audio at the same time, and I can pick up everything at the same time. A little embarrasing! Have a nice day, Sheila, I’m half way through afternoon in Norway (it’s currently 3:39 pm).
Elida… I wonder if they talk about me after I leave?
😛
3:39 in Norway! Holy cats! I have not even started my day yet beyond coffee and this post!
You’re too funny! But beware of book withdrawal syndrome. One day you will find yourself without a book or audio and you won’t know what to do. You will probably panic. It’s okay not to do anything sometimes and be alone with your own thoughts. Just make sure you take some breaks in between your reading frenzy! It will save you from going bonkers. OMG, that word is so 80s! I don’t know where it came from….
No Laura! Say it isn’t true!!!!!
LOL…. bonkers…
😆
Misery loves company, they say. I totally get it about books and libraries, but now you see why I haven’t gotten into audio books. I have enough problems, thank you very much. Addiction! Well, there are worse things to be addicted to.
LOL! 😀
Yes, I’m afraid to go there…the audio books, I mean. It’s hard enough dealing with all the print books on my stacks, the ones I get at the library, and now…my Kindle!
I’m afraid that I am going a little nuts with that. And I thought I didn’t want one! Who knows? Maybe I’ll fall into the audio trenches at some point….I’m hanging on by a thread, though. Is there a Bookaholics Anonymous, for real? I know there was a site for that…Probably one of those Ning sites that closed down….
So glad you had your coffee!
I do know that trips are the perfect venue for audio. That might work for me. I hope to take some trips this year….
Ahh Laurel -it makes the drive time so enjoyable 🙂
I am laughing not at you but with you.
I get carried away now I can reserve books online from the local library.
I click away, get 3 or 4 books on my reservations list, alll with various positions in the queue of waiting readers…..
then I get text after text….the books have come in like buses, one after another!
carol
Its ok Carol – you are laughing with me…. 😛
I did not think they would all arrive so fast – normally it can take weeks to have them come in… trickle in really.
I guess I got carried away.
You’re a funny lady.
Welcome to the swirling vortex of library heaven…books in, books out, books on hold, waiting lists for books, audio books, children’s books, children’s books on CD, movies, YA books, and soon you will find yourself not knowing how many books you have out.
A little helpful hint from a woman who single-handedly keeps my library functioning with all her fees…KEEP YOUR LIBRARY BOOKS SEPARATE FROM YOUR OTHER BOOKS! Trust me on this.
I use my Book Bloggers Convention Tote bag. It’s big, it’s sturdy and it holds my library books no matter the size or number. I use other totes for other books…but this is my dedicated library tote. It’s also nice that they recognize me by my tote and know it’s safe to chat me up…I’m one of the club.
That is a great idea Alison.
College son was coming home for dinner last night so I decided it was time to “un-bury” my kitchen table from recent bookish endeavors. I put them in the reading room in a stack noticing that I now had library books entwined with my own books….
If only you would have told me yesterday.
😛
I feel your pain! I haven’t ever exceeded limits for audiobooks, but I have been faced with the embarrassment of checking out too many books to carry (of course this was in pre-blogging days). I check out far fewer books nowadays as a result of receiving review copies and using paperbackswap. I still check out a few each week though.
It is the Monday meme that gets me Alyce… so many awesome books everyone is reading so I usually have the library reserve website open to so I do not miss out on any titles.
Unfortunately this does occasionally lead to books being returned without being read…. I am trying to learn balance…
so far? Failing.
😀
Hehe. It reminds me of when I was a kid and we were allowed 3 books out on our card… You could almost guarrentee there’d be 4 books that I wanted. So, I’d ask my Mum how many books she was checking out and if she could check out my 4th book for me 😀
Good plan Nikki-ann…. I like that. Chance is staying with us…. I wonder if I can talk him into getting a library card….LOL
That might be an idea Sheila! 😀
I love reading your posts, Sheila. I really do. This one made me laugh so much, picturing you going up to Mr. Library Man 🙂
It was embarrassing Rebecca….. I am in there like three times a week I am sure he thought”what an addict!” 😛
You think you are undergoing torture !? My ‘dearest’ librarian only lets me take ONE book at a time……to tell you the truth audio-books are not available in abundance yet in my city so I cannot comprehend your ‘pain’ to your fullest satisfaction….but I will try (melodramatic tone)……ahem………..you can overcome the humiliation (melodramatic background score gets drowned by the beat of drums)….you can do it Sheila for the sake of your love for books (trumpets)…for the sake of your craving for audio books (2 trumpets)….for the sake of the rejected Frankenstein (how could you cook food with that on ?….oh pardon me……TRUMPET BLAST AND CHORUS GIRLS VOCALIZE)…..for the sake of the books read before (loud)…for the sake of the books yet to come (louder)….for the sake of incomplete books (louder still)…for the sake of reviews yet to be posted (getting warmer)….for the sake of all the coffee in your kitchen (not yet)…..for the sake of my spilled coffee thanks to your strange ‘good morning’ greeting (well actually for me its goodnight but……LOUDEST)……YES SHEILA…YOU CAN DO IT………………..YES SHEILA WE SHALL OVERCOME…………YES WE CAN….YES WE CAN (the ‘Yes We Can’ song being played in the background)….yes Sheila yes you can-you can…………………………………………………okay I’ll knock it off, my mother is looking over what I am typing and already has her eyes fixed on a portrait in my study of ‘The Mad Hatters Tea Party’.(company dismiss says my mother who is backseat typing)
And besides, I have got to catch up on some much needed sleep.(still backseat typing)
Keep up the fun and continue to enjoy your day.
That is HILARIOUS Fiza! I even made the trumpet sound with my mouth when you said (TRUMPET)… your mom can think we are both crazy 😀
I toooooooooootally get wrapped up in the audio books section too, it sucks me in every time.
And not to fuel your addiction, but I hammered out the details for my Harry Potter read-along and posted it today…I know you said you were listening to those on audio last year 😉 You can read more about it at:
http://www.dorolerium.com/?p=2171
OOH Crystal….. so tempting! maybe just a peak….. 😉
Did someone say Harry Potter read-along?? I could read HP for the ahem-7th-ahem time. 😀
LOL oh good Alison, I thought that was just me….
Didn’t know you were in the audiobook market, and I hate to add to your list, but Water for Elephants was the best audiobook I have ever listened to. Just thought you should know . . .
Annette I LOVED the book….. I may have to tr it on audio after your comment here 🙂 Thanks!
So imagine what’s it’s like to have over 5,000 audiobooks at your disposal! I walk into the warehouse and I have to remind myself that they will always be there and available and if not, someone in duplicating will help me out, but still… Well, to make a long story short, now I have over 100 titles in my queue
I think I would faint. 😀
I would have to remind myself the same thing…. 😀
I hate being between books so I understand your fear! I wish I could get into audio b/c I like the idea of being read to, but I have tried and I can’t focus. i need to be using my eyes on the words or my minds WANDERS.
Have you tried while you are doing something else – like housework or cooking? I can not just sit and listen, I tend to wander too – but if I am working on something it seems to keep me really on task and I enjoy the work so much more.
Your post made me smile! I used to work at a library where you could only check out six audiobooks at a time and this lady who loved audiobooks used to check them out on her children’s cards as well as her own.
Being a librarian has only made my addiction to books worse because I am constantly surrounded by them. I currently have 30 odd books checked out on my library card . I just can’t stop myself. Yesterday I had so many books to check out that I couldn’t fit them in my bag and had to bring some home today!
I’ll let you in on a little secret though: we like it when people use the library a lot and check out lots of books (in any form). Thank you for supporting your library!
Thanks Christina! (Especially your last paragraph!) LOL…. 😀
Boy I haven’t been to the library in years.
I could have said that same thing a little over a year ago. I had forgotten how useful they are – how fun! Go – I highly recommend it! 😀
You crack me up, girl! Audio books are almost the only thing I check out at the library now, except for books to research my novel. I know what you mean…libraries are very dangerous. If I even go near any of the shelves I like…writing books, new books, etc…I can’t walk out without a stack!
YAY Michelle – glad to have you on team library! LOL
I work in a public library where there is no limit to the amount you can check out…there are people who take boxes of audios with them (I may be one of them!). You are not alone!
No limits? Holy smokes! Does that work? 😀
You’re too funny Sheila! Thank goodness my library doesn’t have any limits on how many books I can check out! I tend to get carried away sometimes and put too many on reserve, then they all seem to come in at the same time. Yikes!
Terri, our reserve on line lets you put a date when you want it by and I always put the date way out there like Nov. 2012…. doesn’t matter… i still seem to get them within the week.
So funny! But so true!! Reserves on a Public LIbrary is dangerous, even if you aren’t just checking out Audiobooks. You can go crazy with them!!! Ironically I just did a post about this, sort of: Discussing one of the things I love about my Public LIbrary is the Reserves option.
http://patriciasparticularity.blogspot.com/2011/01/discussion-love-your-public-library.html
OOH I Have to check that post out Pat!
Oh my gosh I almost fell off my chair laughing just now. What a great story! So glad you are having fun with your library card. I’m telling you right now…libraries are readers’ crack so watch out!!
Kathleen – as long as readers crack is NOTHING like Plumbers crack…. I am ok with that…
LOL 😛
so jealous. All of you guys have a great library there.
In here, the library is full of dust. looks like a spooky places. Do not ask about the collection
*sighed*