THESINGLEFRUGALTON

  One of my favorite places to go and spend a few hours in has always been a bookstore. Browsing through the thousands of books available for sale and catching sight of possible new authors which I might want to try out, finding a quiet place to sit and thumb through a magazine, or just watching people as they read a humorous book, can all be relaxing ways to spend a few hours.

The problem, for me at least, with bookstores is that I have a hard time leaving without having found at least half-a dozen books that I want to take home with me! This of course can become quite expensive for someone who enjoys reading as much as I do.

The solution of course, for me, has been taking advantage of my local library. Every time I have moved to a new city or area, one of the first places I go to is the local library. The library is a treasure trove of not only a variety of books and magazines, but it is also a wonderful way to watch numerous movies for free (or very cheap.) If you come across a book that you would really like to borrow, but your particular library system doesn’t have it, then all you have to do is use the Inter-library loan, and more than likely, if the book is to be found, you’ll have a chance to borrow it.

The library where I live has numerous branches spread out around the city and various suburbs. I am able to search the library catalog, reserve books and other media, and renew my materials all through the online system.

Now I don’t know about you, but there is just one hitch in this great system of borrowing books and other media. Late fines.

Over the years, I have paid a lot of late fines. More than once I had late fines of over $100! Yeesh, you think I would learn right?

Through much trial and error, I have found some methods which help to reduce, if not eliminate the dreaded . . . . Late Fines . . !

1. Designate a specific area in your home where you keep all library materials. Anytime you take anything from that area, make sure to return it when finished with it.

*In my apartment I have a 5 shelf bookshelf near my front door. On the top shelf I keep all materials that I have borrowed from the library. Then, on the second shelf I put all materials that are ready to be returned.

2. Set up weekly reminders in whatever calendar program(s) you use on a daily basis.

*I have a weekly reminder set up on my home computer that emails me every Friday telling me to renew my library books. At work, I also have a weekly reminder set up with Microsoft Outlook.

–Word of warning - This isn’t a fail-safe method. There is a danger of becoming complacent and deciding not to check it one week, then ignoring it again the next week. That lesson cost me $18. Gulp.

3. Anytime you have more than half of the materials you borrowed read, watched or listened to, return them! Even if you still have time before they are due. It’s better to return them early, than to have to pay late fines because you decided to wait.

OR

4.  Anytime you go to the library to pick up something that is on hold for you, bring back any materials you are finished using. If you’re anything like me, this means you probably are stopping by the library at least once a week, if not more often.

5. Place the materials you are wanting to return in the way of the front door. This way there is no way you can leave the bag of books you put together the night before right next to the bookshelf as you head merrily off to work.

Hopefully, by following the above tips you can avoid contributing to the Librarian’s salary.

If you have any tips for avoiding late fines, please feel free to share them.

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