Remote schooling, remote work, facetimes and texts radically adapted the way we spent time. Unemployment, closed dining rooms, gathering limits and canceled vacations introduced us to new hobbies and a return to lost ones.
Amy Campbell, the Public Services Supervisor at Pocatello’s Marshall Public Library, read we have entered a homebody economy.
“Whether that’s spending more money to cook gourmet meals, or they’re doing home repairs, people are spending more time at home,” she said.
So, of all the homebound hobbies keeping our idle hands busy, here are four local libraries can get behind.
1. Vegetables, Flowers and Mushrooms
Libraries have books on just about anything you can think of, and that includes outdoor home improvement.
If you’d like an edible garden, they have books to guide you through growing different vegetables, fruits and herbs. If flowers intrigue you more, their books will direct you how to plan, plant, and care for a beautiful landscape.
If you’d rather search for plants out in the wild instead, your local library can still help.
“I was interested to see people wanted books on hunting mushrooms and wild herbs,” said Stephanie Jewett, the Library Direct at Fairfield’s Camas County Public Library.
Rather than see their gardening books go more frequently, she received a couple of requests for books on foraging.
2. Gaming Both Ways
Did you know libraries offer more than just books? Among their DVD collections, many also offer video games and board games. At the Gooding Public Library, puzzles and games have become popular check-out items.
“They’re not books,” said Cindy Bigler, Gooding Public Library’s Library Director. “They’re objects, but people want to disconnect from the screen.”
They also offer STEM kits to help kids learn more about science, electronics, astronomy, math and more with hands-on activities.
3. Kitchen Time
Amid the shortages of toilet paper, flour and canned soup, the Hailey Public Library and the Coeur d’Alene Public Library observed lots of cookbooks leave the shelves.
“I think it’s just that animal comfort of the smell of a fresh baked loaf of bread,” said Tyler Mclane, a librarian at the Coeur d’Alene Public Library.
While the trend in meal making has focused on quick meals made in 30 minutes or less, the shutdown has offered families more time to spend in the kitchen.
“I think people have more time on their hands and that need for certainty and security,” Mclane said. “Following a list and having to wait for steps in between was probably comforting for people.”
4. Reading
Locked at home with nothing to do can stir you crazy, especially with no guaranteed end in sight. But many people have used this time to read and rediscover old favorites, myself included. I have found myself picking up fiction novels again, and I love it.
“If you’re getting back into books, I can’t see that stopping" Mclane said.
Libraries have rows and shelves of books about anything and everything you can imagine. While it may seem daunting to try and find something to read, the book experts will make sure you walk away with a good one.
“People being at home more, they had time on their hands,” Campbell said. “And of course, one of the best things to do when you’re at home is read.”
So, give your local library a call and see if they can't pair you with a page-turner.