tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post3301281810810330993..comments2024-03-20T11:36:53.907+00:00Comments on Restoring Mayberry: LibrariesBrian Kallerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11082602126850605083noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-48954314364852888652010-10-03T02:16:53.228+01:002010-10-03T02:16:53.228+01:00My fiance and I move a lot for his job, and since ...My fiance and I move a lot for his job, and since I love to cook, I googled "kitchen libraries" or something of that sort that would lend the use of a kitchen, including its spices and cookware, and happened on your post.<br /><br />At this point in my research, I'm not sure if what I have in mind exists, but both you and your readers have given me a lot to think about, in terms of this "community kitchen" or "kitchen library," as well as other types of libraries that we could have, and should.Peggynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-18582151454192266572010-03-18T07:27:08.438+00:002010-03-18T07:27:08.438+00:00Thomas,
You bring up a good point -- people with...Thomas, <br /><br />You bring up a good point -- people with a shared experience often feel responsible for one another. Americans once felt that for one another -- many measures of civic duty, from voting to club membership to hitchiking, were once more common than they are now. How can we revive that in the USA?<br /><br />Jenny, Sam, thanks for the compliment. Grunthos, freegovinfo, Anonymous, thanks for the information. <br /><br />Brian, good point, and similar to the military idea. If groups of believers were to revive this practice, it might also have the potential to spread.Brian Kallerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11082602126850605083noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-88653450386169945372010-03-12T20:46:33.802+00:002010-03-12T20:46:33.802+00:00This is an excellent article. You raise some very ...This is an excellent article. You raise some very good points.Sam Diamondhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08229173316955774256noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-39686090171470322462010-03-10T23:47:20.344+00:002010-03-10T23:47:20.344+00:00This is one of the best things I have read on the ...This is one of the best things I have read on the whole internet. The idea of having many items accessible to communities through item libraries is closely akin to early-Christian church practices, and something I think would bring a strong community dynamic back to U.S. churches.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07049635807702048459noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-73368744647385244762010-03-10T23:35:03.822+00:002010-03-10T23:35:03.822+00:00The military has MWR (Morale, Welfare, and Recreat...The military has MWR (Morale, Welfare, and Recreation) which functions as a kind of library for sports and recreational goods. I checked out a tent once, which saved the expense of buying a new tent which I'd hardly use.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-23443215321120313572010-03-10T21:25:11.664+00:002010-03-10T21:25:11.664+00:00Thanks for the library love. Did you know that Ber...Thanks for the library love. Did you know that Berkeley, California has a <a href="http://www.berkeleypubliclibrary.org/about_the_library/neighborhood_branches/tool_lending_library/index.php" rel="nofollow">tool lending library</a>? And libraries don't just collect physical objects. A lot are creating <a href="http://collections.stanford.edu/" rel="nofollow">digital collections</a> and <a href="http://www.archive-it.org/" rel="nofollow">harvesting, organizing and preserving Web content</a> too! (disclosure: I work at Stanford :-)).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-5041217279960992642010-03-10T18:35:08.126+00:002010-03-10T18:35:08.126+00:00I found your article on the "No Tech" Ma...I found your article on the "No Tech" Magazine site. <br /><br />It's so funny that you wrote this (and that I found it). I was just speaking about this exact concept with my husband less than 48 hours ago.<br /><br />I am a librarian and we live aboard our sailboat. Our marina is fantastic in that this is a community of people who share their tools, their expertise, and their food. We often gather to have dinner together. We pass the eggs, flour, butter, etc. around when we seem to have run out of our own source. There is no real need to have your own angle grinder when your neighbor has one for you to borrow, and it is easy to repay him/her with an invite to dinner.<br /><br />Anyway, I wanted to thank you for writing about this, and wanted to let you know that libraries are often expanding their ideas of lending (I know libraries who lend tools, fishing equipment, some even loan out a hamster!)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02163881120683653083noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-48116693786519038562010-03-10T18:03:06.054+00:002010-03-10T18:03:06.054+00:00I recently heard about a tool lending library in P...I recently heard about a tool lending library in Portland Oregon<br /><br /><a href="http://www.northportlandtoollibrary.org" rel="nofollow">http://www.northportlandtoollibrary.org</a>Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12981404802344746869noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-51196697032847283872010-03-10T10:26:51.441+00:002010-03-10T10:26:51.441+00:00Hello Brian:
Thanks for another common sense post...Hello Brian:<br /><br />Thanks for another common sense post that highlights what is possible if you just open your eyes. I see that one of your commenters (Amanda) said she was from a military family and used libraries to help her adjust to the frequent moves. What she may not remember is the other "libraries" her parents used when they first arrived at a new duty station. Most if not all military installations had a community service center where you could sign out free of charge for a few months just about any item used in a modern household. These items included dishes, pots and pans, silverware, small appliances, furniture, and just about anything else you can think of that would make a house a home. The purpose of the "library" was to tide the family over until their personal belongings were shipped in from their previous location, which sometimes took several months. There were many of these types of "libraries" at these community centers. Others included libraries full of recreational equipment from bats and balls to boats - all of which you could borrow and return as needed. So why did this system of libraries work so well in the military? My opinion is because the military is a tight-knit community with a common cause and common experiences. From the time you enter the military, you are trained to sacrifice some of your individualness for the better of the group as a whole, whatever size that group may be. This mindset is rare in the civilian world, especially here in the USA. Here's an example. I've been farming in a small community in West Virginia for 10 years now and have managed to influence a handful of people to take up farming in the area as well. Despite my offers to share resources such as hand tools, implements, reference books, etc., they prefer to go out and buy their own - even if they only use it once or twice per year. This is a good example of just how far the individual and self-sufficient mindset has progressed in our society.Thomashttp://www.oohf.typepad.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-47285368530257278172010-03-10T07:35:18.730+00:002010-03-10T07:35:18.730+00:00Anonymous, Amanda and Diane, thank you for the com...Anonymous, Amanda and Diane, thank you for the compliment. <br /><br />Keith, good points. It's true that many people would want the same cooking items around the same holidays, although many people also cook and eat together on holidays, or split up the dishes they bring. <br /><br />I wasn't thinking that a medical library would substitute for an on-hand first-aid kit, but provide a common backup stock and more extensive materials.Brian Kallerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11082602126850605083noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-6762783413279472732010-03-10T03:35:28.031+00:002010-03-10T03:35:28.031+00:00Great post. If only towns and cities really would ...Great post. If only towns and cities really would work together like that. We love our libraries and use them every week. It would be great to do the same in other facets of life.<br />Blessings<br />DianeAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10214322750183022876noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-72862199870788211422010-03-10T00:54:28.147+00:002010-03-10T00:54:28.147+00:00First, yay libraries!
Second, I think the possibi...First, yay libraries!<br /><br />Second, I think the possibility of expanding the concept to other things bears serious consideration, and sounds really good.<br /><br />Until you get to the kitchen stuff. I foresee major problems with that one. First, everyone doesn't take care of kitchen stuff the same, and subjecting quality cookware and equipment to the foul abuses of people who were raised on five-dollar-teflon and serrated knives from Target makes the Baby Jesus cry. (He told me so.) The first time somebody washed the good seasoned cast iron with soap, there'd be a homicide and it would all be over.<br /><br />Second, in the case of larger specialty items (big roasting pans, turkey fryers, etc.), there's a distressing tendency for people who would only use such things a few times a year to all want to use them at the same time -- Thanksgiving being the perfect example. The system would fall apart in this specific instance, I fear. <br /><br />But for tools, supplies, etc., I think it's a great idea. How often do I need a drill or a saber saw? Once or twice a year, if that? As long as it works reasonably well, at my level of need, who cares what brand it is? There could even be a centralized workshop for big things like table saws or stationary belt sanders.<br /><br />(I confess I would want the first aid stuff closer to hand, though, at least the supplies for stopping bleeding and preventing infection. Also, I don't know that I would trust my whole community to keep the stuff clean enough to be sanitary.)Keith Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17932831036341396115noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-51593881206389981482010-03-09T21:41:53.661+00:002010-03-09T21:41:53.661+00:00I grew up in a military family and at times found ...I grew up in a military family and at times found it very lonely and hard to adjust to the multiple moves, but no matter where I went I had my libraries to comfort me. I think that is why once I made a new move to my college I immanently applied for a library position and worked there faithfully for the time I was there. I can surly say that if it wasn't for my libraries I don't think I would have adjusted so well to the military moves I was put through as child. <br /><br />Thank you for the post.Amandahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03912847131565403451noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5811749743523633503.post-79165919080505971962010-03-09T15:45:24.101+00:002010-03-09T15:45:24.101+00:00You've given me a lot to think about beyond my...You've given me a lot to think about beyond my love of libraries...thanks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com