Growing up I remember my mom taking me to the library often for story times, educational events, or to just check out books. As I grew I remember participating in the Summer reading program sponsored by the library and earning free books for completing it. Before I went to college I even volunteered with the library to help others sign up for the Summer reading program. Sadly, as I became an adult and life got busy and I traveled for my job my connection to the library waned and I became a typical consumer. Instead of checking if my library had the book I wanted I would just buy it on Amazon. As I traveled more and more I would just pop into local bookstores never giving my home library a second thought. Thankfully, being on this frugal journey has reignited my love of the library and I believe it is one of the greatest life hacks, even for travelers who are rarely near their home library.
In just this past week alone, while being over 600 miles from my home library, I have watched two movies on my Apple TV checked out from my library as well as listened to an audio book from my home library. Doing a quick Amazon search these three items would have cost me $32 if I had fallen into my old pattern and just purchased them. The majority of my reading is done on my Kindle and thankfully most libraries these days have programs that allow you to borrow digital copies of books. I have borrowed numerous books from my library while never having to set foot in the building or even be in the same state/country. The best part about borrowing digital books from the library is that if you keep the wifi turned off on the device you are reading it on you can keep the book past its due date and not be charged a late fee.
So, full confession, I typed the above paragraphs and then decided to hop on my home library’s website to refresh myself on the other amazing and cost saving benefits a library offers and pretty sure I just fell in love with my library even more! I was expecting just to find the things I remembered from growing up; things like story times for children, quiet study rooms, video game systems for rent, adult technology classes, etc. While these things do still exist and I highly recommend you seeing if your home library offers them and take advantage of them, the other things I found blew my mind.
One of the branches of my home library has a 3-D printer available to use FOR FREE!!!!! I am a big fan of technology and have been intrigued by 3-D printing since first learning about it. I had assumed that I would never really get to use one as I have no need in my life to purchase one and can only think of one friend who owns one and he also travels all the time for work so makes him difficult to see. I have now learned that when I am home I can sign up to take a one hour learning course and then have access to my library’s 3-D printer.
A cost saving benefit I learned from reading the website that I would have never expected is that every branch of my home library offers free notary service. Owning a real estate business my family and I have to have paperwork notarized fairly often. While we have been blessed in usually finding people kind enough to waive their fee, there have also been instances that we have had to pay between $15-$20 to have documents notarized. Now, we have a guaranteed free and close to home notary option.
My home library has a telescope that you can rent for up to 7 days. How many homes have you been in that there is a telescope set up in a corner that was bought for some holiday or birthday and then rarely used? They also have a robot that you can borrow that helps teach children how to code. Amazing free educational opportunities.
While browsing the website I also learned my library has an agreement with Rocket Languages for use of their programs. I studied Spanish for numerous years in high school and college, but have sadly forgotten the majority of the language. I have been interested in relearning Spanish, but did not want to pay the fees programs charge to do so. I have now signed up for Rocket Languages for free through my library, while still being 600 miles away, instead of having to pay the $150 the course would cost through the company’s website. I have also seen flyers in other libraries through the years for language immersion where they have classes/events for people to get together and practice a language.
Okay, this article is getting long so one final one before I close. I was well aware that libraries have computers and wifi available, I actually used the wifi at the NYC library near my apartment when I first moved in and was having trouble with our home wifi as opposed to going to Starbucks and spending money just for a wifi connection. Reading the website I learned that my home library, not NYC, has wifi hotspots that you can rent for up to three weeks with unlimited data FOR FREE!! This is a huge cost savings and would be great to take on a domestic vacation or the like when you don’t know what wifi availability will be.
As you can tell I have become a huge fan of the library as of late and think it is one of the greatest life hacks. Other benefits I found on my home library site were things like tax preparation, high school diploma programs, educational seminars, genealogy classes and records, access to a seed library for home gardening, and many more benefits. The library literally saves me hundreds of dollars every year and I highly encourage you to investigate your home library and discover all of the benefits in your area!
P.S. As I was about hit publish I remembered going to the library as a teen and checking out CDs and then burning them onto my computer. I guess I have always had a bit of a frugal streak.
