It's been a while since I've spent any significant amount of time at a public library. Back when I was teaching, there was a library right down the hall, complete with interlibrary loan. Besides that, most books are available digitally, which is a quick and easy way to get them. But today was the day this month for our cleaning lady to come, and even though my grocery shopping was finished, she was still working, so I headed down to the library to hang out for a bit.
I found an empty table complete with a plug to charge my laptop if necessary and sat down to read the news online. Then, after checking the door cam and seeing Estela was still working, I checked my email and did a few word puzzles, then stretched my legs and looked over to the fiction section. Just then, a guy in his mid-thirties sat down across from me and started unpacking a bag of takeout.
My eyes grew wide-- how could this be allowed? I surreptitiously glanced toward the two staff members at their counter. They seemed completely unperturbed by this display of, ahem, EATING in the LIBRARY! Clearly, things had changed in the time I had been away.
I wasn't quite sure how I felt about these new policies, plus the smell of the burger and the sound of my tablemate's chewing was rather distracting. I checked my phone again. There was Estela, heading for her car, so I packed up my things and left the cafeteria, I mean the library.
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