I was looking for something to read the other day, and to save some bucks, Amy suggested I see if there were any books I wanted to read from the library.  Of course, the library!  That great place where you can check out books for free.

Steve's Old Chicago Public Library Card

I wondered why I never thought about that, given that my Mom was a librarian for a very long time… and I got a lot of free books that way over the years.

So I went to the Chicago Public Library website to see if I could put a hold on some books and have them sent to my local branch.  But apparently my library card, which I got when I was 10 years old or so, didn't even register as valid.  As you can see from the image above, it's been "modified" quite a bit over the years, with new bar codes and labels attached to it as the library systems changed.  You'll also note that it granted me the ability to check out "records and videocassettes," as well as gain access to a "typewriter."

Over lunch today I ran over to my local branch to see if I could get the card reissued.  The librarian just looked at this card and laughed.  "When was the last time you used this?"  To be honest, I don't think I have used my local library card since writing my senior year high school research paper, which would place that timeframe around 1992-3.  I had to use a regional library to write that, since it required a lot of microfilm and microfiche research.  My, how times have changed.  (Incidentally, my research paper was titled "The Tragic Kingdom"… I'll give you a Mouse-inspired guess regarding the topic!)

New Library Card

Anyway, I ended up having to get an entirely new card issued, since there was no record of me or my old library card numbers in the system.  And just like that, 18 year later, I'm once again an active user of the Chicago Public Library system!