Skip to main content

Public Properties

Of all the silliness in America there are a couple of institutions that do wonders for its people or anyone who cares to visit.

First on that list would be the public libraries across all states, counties and towns.  Funded by taxpayer money they have seen a slow degradation of service in terms of open hours or staffing levels (both physical and mental) but nonetheless they serve as a vast treasure for someone just hungry to read.  You will be surprised at the content they carry - in some geographies in several languages.

Inspite of the lack of enthusiasm on part of the staff, that I too (inspite of dulling of the senses) remember from two decades ago on our first encounter with this system; the librarians are largely a friendly bunch with the information desk glad to assist if you had a specific query.

The library also provides a place of refuge in times of local crises, fires or displacing events.  They serve as a shelter in case of extreme weather and for people who could not afford a clean environment that could harbor them for a few hours till the inclement event has passed.  Not to mention the availability of clean restrooms and drinking water.

A lot of today's public (the very same for whom this service remains available) take things for granted and does not pause to think what it means to have access to such a resource.  With their 'face's buried in their virtual 'book's they ignore or remain unaware of places on the planet that do no such thing for their citizenry.  Shame.

The next set of wonderful properties come in the form of large tracts of OUTDOOR space with amazing vistas reserved for public generations to come.  They are the NPS or National Park System under the Department of the Interior.  Not sure if there is a Dept of the Exterior but the naming seems convoluted.

Be that as it may the former thinkers and presidents, specifically Teddy R and Woodrow W played the crucial role to formulate the concept and sign laws that allow such amazing vistas to be preserved for us to enjoy.

So I say - Enjoy while it lasts!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

But What If We're Wrong?

I attempted to read this book by author Chuck Klosterman backward to forward but it started hurting my brain so I decided to stop and do it like any other publication in the English language.  Start from page 1 and move to the right. Witty, caustic and thought provoking this is a book you want to read if you believe that the status quo might, just might be wrong. At times bordering on being contrarian about most things around us it tries to zero in on the notion of what makes anything believable and certain in our minds.  The fact that there is a fact itself is ironic.  Something analogous to the idea that you can never predict the future because there is no future. Many books and movies have tried to play on this concept - best that I recollect (I think I am) was 'The Truman Show'.  This book by Klosterman attempts to provoke the reader to at least contemplate that what they think they know may be wrong. He uses examples like concept of gravity, and how it ...
2 comments
Read more

Peru, South America - Week well spent

Growing up in India the only Peru I knew of was a tropical fruit (Guava for those whose lingua is English).   Not until high school did I discover that it was also a country in the South American continent. So it was this early April week that we decided to hit up Peru - the land of the once glorious Inca people that lived 500 years ago.  Today Peru is the third largest country on that continent with a diverse geography that stretches from the drier Pacific coast plains to the high mountains of the Andes and the Amazon river valley to its east. Our trip was primarily a pilgrimage of sorts to visit the last remaining, lost (now found and documented), large scale, mostly undamaged, city of the Inca nobility, called Machu Picchu (MP).  The Inca were great architects and builders.  MP is a UNESCO world heritage site affording it high visibility to the tourism trade and therefore crowded year round.  Our timing was not quite high season allowing us...
1 comment
Read more

You are important to us

Followed by piano music.   Followed by 'we are experiencing heavier than usual call volume'.  Sounds macabre like bleeding during menstruation or after a ghastly attack with a weapon on a hemophiliac.  Sorry Mrs. Johnson but it appears little Gertrude here has been bleeding heavier than usual what with her night time activities competing with the woodchucks in your neighborhood. Some services even go as far as to pick a random day to say - 'if you were to call us during the Chinese lunar month when the moon is axiomatically hugging the polar star with Jupiter intravenous when call volume is light'.  Well I will be damned.  I thought  I had checked with my astrologer before I placed this well focused call but  I guess this is what you get for listening to a quack. Umph! I am not sure which marketing genius came up with this personal touch concept of informing the caller that you are really a jackass for actually calling the customer serv...
Post a Comment
Read more