Arubaito

(Arubaito = Japanese for "part-time work")

Well, I guess I will finally post about working! (I've been there for nearly 3 months so I suppose it's about time!) I'm working part time at a local library where I do normal (and wonderful!) things like checking books in, shelving, sending books off through the interlibrary loan system, and reading shelves to make sure they're in order. In addition to those things, I also plan and put on a weekly storytime for our library's smallest patrons. 

I have fallen in love with our little old library (which we are expanding as we speak--so exciting!) and my awesome co-workers. I love even the most mundane of library operations, and I love being a part of a place where so many people's needs are met. People come to our library for books and movies, sure (which, by the way, is a great way for the community as a whole to save money), but they also come to make their lives better. Truck drivers check out audio books to listen to on long hauls, students of all ages use our computers to type up homework, parents and children separated by poor choices come for a safe place to see each other, and local writers pick up books shipped in from other libraries to use as research for their own books. 

It's a really great place to interact with people that are both very similar to me (yay book lovers!) and people who are very different from me (patrons who check out books by Glenn Beck).

Some other time I should really write about what it's like for me to be a working mom (I think being a working mom, much like being a stay at home mom, is different for everyone!) but that will have to wait, because I've gotta make some dinner for some hungry people!

And because I can't write a post without a picture, here's one of every Christmas-themed picture book we have in our library:

SO MANY. 

They vastly outnumbered our Hanukkah (12) and Kwanzaa books (2) but in suburban/rural Michigan, who's surprised?