Trustee at the Howe and AM Sighting

For whatever reason, I was asked to be a trustee for the Howe Library (talk about scraping the bottom of the barrel), and to be honest with you, I'm not even sure what a trustee does. In fact, before I moved up here, I hadn't even really heard the word, and suddenly I've become one. Funny how the world works.

Now I'm a trustee at the local library, and it's a really fun and casual atmosphere. We make decisions regarding the library, and it's a really enjoyable time. I had a sense the big city library was a little more serious, and as a consequence, I felt a little more anxiety about going to the big meeting, which only happens once a year.

The situation was compounded by the fact that there are nearly 300 people in the group. I felt like I couldn't be my usual sloppy and casual self, so I actually wore long pants that were not jeans and a nice sweater. I even shaved.

Another complication was that I had the kids and had to find a way to entertain them while I was busy making policies. They also had music lessons right in the middle of the meeting, so I arranged with R to have her pick them up at the library and then she could take them to their lessons. I had made supper during the day so all they had to do was heat it up, and I picked up some bread at the market.

I also ran into our old friend AM, and surprisingly enough, she didn't stop and talk. In fact, she saw me and walked right by. I didn't know whether I should have been thankful or offended. To be fair, she had a deadline she had to meet so she was running around, but I sense a cooling between us, perhaps fueled by the fact that we never speak and I haven't seen her in months. Even during the FM, there were times when her husband, TM, would come over and buy dumplings and chat, but she never stopped by, even when she was at the market (I saw her walk by)

Oh well, you can't worry about making everyone happy when you're so busy worrying about making everyone happy.

I also didn't have time to chat, and rushed by her because I had to return a boatload of books, get the kids situated, then fill the book bag again before rushing off to the meeting. As a consequence, I missed the social mixer before the meeting, though there was some degree of design to this.

When I finally made it downstairs, it was quite a scene. Big city folks for as far as the eyes could see, and here I am, not knowing a single one of them. As you can imagine, it had a very clubby feel, with people sitting around and chatting in familiar tones. I actually ran into a couple whom I recognized from the library and the market, and of course I immediately latched onto them, even following them in and sitting next to them.

The meeting was actually reasonably painless, though I had to stand up when they introduced the new members. If I'd have had to have said something, I would run screaming, but that didn't happen. They went over the budget, then the new projects and future fundraisers, and took care of administrative business.

The scene was more serious and maybe a bit stuffier than our local library trustee meetings, but in all fairness, the Howe Library is a truly amazing library, and they do amazing things over there. It's a fabulous place, and the reason for this is because they have the resources and the people to make a difference.

I guess I'm a part of that now, just don't ask me what I'm supposed to do.

The meeting ended a little early, so I had time to jet over to the Coop and get some needed food items, then I headed home and made it in time for supper, which was good because I had the bread.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to Jonathan Adrianzen for the pic.