Visiting the library is often uneventful; take the list of books you don't want to pay for out of your pocket, type the titles into the search engine, go in search of something like 'J8Z-390A-K-160B,' and then give up looking and find a completely different book. The joy of book browsing in the library--unlike Barnes of Nobles-- is that no book is witheld from the browser. At Barnes and Nobles, shoppers cannot be looking for a John Grisham book, stumble across a fantastic Mary Higgins Clark book and get both without a change in price.
The browsing tool that is even better than the library is obviously the internet. A more ingenious invention never made the average browser lazier.
This week I met a 2010 goal: "Google a different type of culture you've always wondered about; get a book out of the library about it."
Travel guides to Spain count. Thanks to the library, I can now read about a culture that has always mystified me and I can check out random attractions in cities and refresh my history from the perspective of a Spaniard; how the muslims invaded Spain, how Fernando and Isabela ruled as Catholic monarchs in Spain and how Spain lost a naval battle to England.
Studying history in highschool forces the student to think beyond their own country, but still the student sees history according to how it affects his or her land. Reviewing history from the perspective of another country expands the perspective even more. It causes one to think: What if I were Spanish? How would my life, my people, my country be different?
Another goal: "At least try to learn a language." Learning a language is a huge step towards communicating with a different culture. Since I am majoring and minoring in English and Spanish respectively, it was only fair that I try a different language. My mother had this random notion once that her children would learn German, so she bought a set of Pimsleur German-learning CD's. The dust that collected on that packet of CD's was incredible; years later I found them, dusted them off and played them. I've officially spit my way through 10 tracks of German speaking. So I'm not fluent; at least if I go to Germany some day, I can say, "Excuse me. I speak very little German. I am an American. Would you like something to eat? Me, too! Where? At my place. I would like to drink beer...or wine. Two beers, please. Thank you." That dialogue is pretty much the collection of all my knowledge from the German Pimsleur CD.
Another goal met: "Try something you always thought you hated: food, golf, piano, classic book/video, camping." Besides facebook, which some people like my mother are still discovering, the wii is a time-consumer like none other. Today, my brother convinced me to play golf--on the wii. By the second round, I owned a sport that has had me grimacing for years.
The most recent conquered goal: "Set Starbucks aside and try a different coffee place." I'll take two large honey lattes, thank you. On a whim, my mother took me to a coffee place I've been meaning to try--Alterra. I could have eaten the place up; it was so woodsy and filled with computers and their people. My mother quietly folded the receipt that rounded up to $8, trying to act as if the price did not bother her, and then sipped casually. "It's not very sweet," she commented, sucking the latte swiftly through a thick straw. When we left there, I breathed deeply and exclaimed, "I loved that place!" My mother said, "It was nice. Seemed to attract the young, hip crowd, though." I looked at her and smirked, "Right. I love that place."
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