Do you remember when you got your first library card?

[obiebookworm]

Yes. I was 13. Pretty sad, huh?

[gali]

Why sad? At least you started to read. I was 7 years old.

[DATo]

Oh gosh ! At my age it's hard to remember my phone number let alone when I got my first library card. What I do remember is that I was still in grammar school and probably about 8 years old. Our parochial school (and attached church) was right across the street from the public library. The nuns walked us over, in a double column (we marched everywhere in Catholic school in double column) for a pre-arranged sign-up session at the library. Then the librarians gave us a speech about how important we were to have our very own library cards and showed us how to use them when we visited.

Back in those days the children's part of the library was separated from the adult section by a hallway with doors at either end. We would look at those doors with great awe and respect because important grown-up stuff was going on on the other side of them. In both the adult and children's section people were expected not to speak above a whisper. Today the county library system has merged the children's section and adult's section at all their libraries and it makes me mad enough to spit! I am not making this up ... the kids from a nearby school (not the same school I went to) are so disruptive at one of the county libraries I go to, so wild, and unwilling to obey the librarians orders that they actually have a police officer on duty to expel the rowdies when it becomes necessary. The cacophony of noise and talking experienced now is enough to make me throw up. I have almost, on several occasions, accidentally slammed into pint-sized, curly, dimpled, lunatics literally running through the library. And of COURSE, if I did, it would be MY fault. What in the hell is this world coming to when a POLICE OFFICER is required to make kids behave in a library?! Back in my day one glaring look from a nun (ANY teacher) or librarian was enough to make us hide under a table.

OK, calm down DATo. Take deep breaths. Think beautiful thoughts ....

[obiebookworm]

To gali: Well, if you can imagine this, my folks were kind of old-world thinkers and they thought libraries were a waste of time. I chose to break the mold.

-- 15 Nov 2013, 09:31 --

To DATo: We live in a different day and age, don't we?

[Dariaddpmb]

My mom got mine when I was six. After I um.. Mistakingly ordered a month subscription of children's books.

[obiebookworm]

To Dariaddpmb: Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! That's a good one!

[that1blondegirl]

I was 5 years old.

[obiebookworm]

To that1blondegirl: This is cool!! Did you get to write you name on it right away?

[riyanj]

Yes. And a funny story. I was supposed to be home but I walked to the library for a book and my neighbor caught me coming out of the library and ran right home to my mom and told on me! I was grounded for a week! For walking to the library! I still tease my mom about that to this day.

[obiebookworm]

To riyanj: How ironic! That's too funny!!!!!

[prisailurophile]

I must have been 9? Or younger, I don't remember. I'm 20 now, so my library card looks tattered.

[obiebookworm]

To prisailurophile: Lovingly well used!

[cschaubfalls]

Thanks for this great question! It took me waaaaaay back! I also went to Catholic school and mine had a library in the school. So, I had two cards ~ one for the school, one for the public library. I got them when I was in the first grade.

[obiebookworm]

To cschaubfalls: You are very welcome!! These are great memories!!

[shakeitkatie]

I got mine in a similar school field trip to the Library in the first grade, so about 6 or 7 years old.