I have been watching a lot of C-Span. They have a lot of interviews about history, society, and government. They recently did a show about David McCullough, a favorite author. I had enjoyed his biography of Harry Truman, and “1776”, about the first year of the American Revolution. I hadn’t realized he had written a book about the Brooklyn Bridge. I have enjoyed visiting the bridge, and since I enjoyed his other books, I thought I would head to the library. West Hartford libraries are very good and would be sure to have it. Great! I thought, I’ll go get it. Then I thought again – no can do!
I added it to the list of books I want to read when this is over and we can get out. For folks who have read all the books in their house and don’t have a Kindle, the West Hartford Library offers downloadable audiobooks. Just go the catalog on their website. Personally, I am not a big fan of audiobooks. It seems too slow. Most of us read faster than someone can speak. But check into it, that might not be your experience. The Library recently sent an email saying that they upgraded their digital magazine services. Now you may download 3,600 different magazines!
You might also look into a website Project Gutenberg which offers thousands of books published before 1924. That date has something to do with copyrights. Fair enough, authors have every right to reap the fruits of their labor.
Speaking of fruit, or maybe it’s a vegetable, someone recently told me they had a strong hankering for an avocado. They said they only ate about three a year, but because they didn’t have one, they wanted one. They were avoiding shopping, and didn’t want to make a trip for an item the store might not have.
Social distancing is teaching us lessons about the difference between wanting and needing. People are discovering that their needs are very few. They are discovering that some of the things they want might not be so very important as they once thought. This clarification can be an important take away from this lockdown.