Upon alighting the bus, I realised I was in an unfamiliar place. Yet there was an odd sense of tranquility to it. a flight of stairs seem to lead to a park. I made a mental note to explore when I had the luxury of a free day. The library is across the road.
The library itself felt unfamiliar too. It wasn't cold inside unlike the usual libraries I go to. It was a simple 2-storey library, though it looked relatively spacious. It is somewhat dim and had a touch of old hotel smell to it, which I would've liked if there wasn't a rather overpowering musty/damp smell that could be related to the humidity or the sweaty library-goers.
As I made my way up the unassuming steps, I suddenly appreciate the feeling of entering a new place – however ordinary. You'd never get the same kind of experience revisiting a place. That little feeling of mystery and discovery.
I wandered amongst the shelves for a bit and mindlessly picked up a book on tacos before realising that the fiction books were on the ground floor.The library is fairly empty, mainly with elderly folk (not surprising considering its the middle of a school day). The few youth that were present were bent over thick textbooks and stacks of notes at the tables. As I found the adult fiction section, there was one single young guy, possibly around 20, quietly walking amongst the shelves, stopping to add one book to the one or two already in one arm. That made me happy for some reason.
I scanned the FLY section and the neighbouring shelves but there was no sign of the book. My heart sank! I rechecked the catalogue and it clearly shows 2 copies of Flynn's Gone Girl as "Available". I checked it on Overdrive which showed 46 people on the waitlist for 6 e-copies. WAH. Its recent availability on Netflix must've kindled peoples curiosity on the book itself. I reasoned that since I made the journey on a school day, it didn't make sense to give up now. I hesitated a little and then approached a librarian for help. She scribbled some notes on a scrap piece of paper and went to look for the book, only to apologetically redirect me to a librarian at the counter. She checks and realises the records have not been updated to reflect the missing and damaged copies :( She scans the main list and marvels at how it is actually really popular. She proceeds to help me call the toa payoh branch to reserve the one copy left available and sends me off with a quiet passion
"Go! Go now and pick it up at the counter" she whispers with a gentle pat on my back.
I felt oddly touched and hurried my way to toa payoh library. In the newly renovated space, the information counter was nowhere in sight and I had to approach more librarians for help and got redirected again. The librarian at the main door slides open a little hatch in the wall next to the desktop catalogue and speaks to whoever is inside. A second later a door slides open to reveal a little room where a conveyer belt carries the returned books to a little work area. Another kindly librarian, young but very stereotypically librarian-looking asks for my name. "Shannon" I said. She nods, turns and came back, and hands me Gone Girl with both hands. which surprised me a little and made me feel a bit paiseh for some reason. I thanked her very much and left feeling once again strangely moved and accomplished.
Snippets are slice of life writings/journals - attempting to document everyday thoughts and encounters. Remembering the little and the big things. or it could just be me trying to be poetic and then sounding somewhat melodramatic.
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