Beware of unwelcome bonus at Little Free Library boxes

 

Without reservation, I enjoy visiting Little Free Library boxes in and around my own hometown. I even peek into them sometimes when I am traveling. I love the idea of passing a book I’ve read along for someone else to enjoy, and it’s fun to pick out another one to dig into.

 You're probably familiar with these. They are little take-a-book, share-a-book stations that can be found in neighborhoods, village downtowns, school entries, and plenty of other spots. 

 Santa, are you listening? I’d be pleased to set up such a station outside my own home, so neighbors and friends could swap books easily. This one is really neat, with an appealing design and plenty of room inside. There's also a smaller one that resembles an old English photo booth, although I'd probably fill that in an instant with all the books I could pass along. And there's a handy compact double-decker version, although it looks a bit like an outhouse to me. (Hey, if you've even been to camp, you know.)

 Having said all that, I cannot forget three incidents that pestered me about poking into Little Free Library boxes in the past few years.

 

MITE-y annoying surprise.

 First, it was the book bugs. I grabbed a paperback mystery a while ago and headed home with it. I settled into a chair on my patio, enjoying a mild summer evening, and cracked open the new (passed-along) book. Almost immediately, I literally felt my skin crawling, as tiny mites escaped from between the pages. (I've heard of bookworms, but this was something altogether different.)

 

Getting ANTsy about a new read.

 On another occasion, I placed a trio of paperbacks into another Little Free Library box in our town. Delighted to find a fairly new title I’d been hoping to read, I pulled a book out of the box and began flipping through the pages. That’s when I noticed dozens of tiny ants crawling all over the inside of the book.

 

WASP up with that?

 More recently, I visited still another Little Free Library near my home. Clearing out my own bookshelf, I went and piled a few volumes inside the book box. I noticed the contents seemed to be randomly tossed into there, so I began straightening up the proffered collection. 

Suddenly, I felt a painfully sharp sting on one hand. That’s when I noticed a cloud of wasps, swarming out of their nest, which was situated up under the rafters of the house-shaped book box. I reported this to the village hall, located across the street from it, and the staff there promised to alert the Boy Scout troop that managed that Little Free Library. Later, I noticed a handwritten note on the front of the box, indicating its interior had been wasp-sprayed. A few were still zipping around inside and outside of it.

 

I won't give up on Little Free Libraries.

 I am still visiting such book swapping sites these days, but I have learned to look closely before digging around for books to read. And I examine those quite carefully, especially the ones that appear to be well worn or water-damaged. If I really want such a book, I place it in a zippered plastic bag and freeze it for a day or two, hoping to do away with any mold or creepy crawlies.

 Book mites and ants and wasps, oh my!

 I guess it takes a bit more effort to host a Little Free Library than simply setting up the box and filling it with books to share. 

 

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Image/s: Wasp nest – public domain photo, Others - LAN personal photo/s

 

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Finding simple storage for baseball caps is a shoe-in

  

What’s an easy way to organize and store all those baseball caps?

 First, a confession. I guess I have something of a baseball cap addiction. And I don’t even play baseball. In fact, I may hold the all-time strike-out record for my middle school, having achieved that status back in the Dark Ages when I was a preteen student.

 Even so, I have amassed quite a collection of baseball caps – largely because I am loathe to toss any away. Many of them bring back memories. Some were purchased, while others were obtained through participating in various activities: 

• attending minor league baseball games on hat giveaway nights
• covering sporting events as media
• winning my (older and less competitive) age group in a race (and receiving a cap as the prize)
• strolling through foreign cities and other memorable locales (Souvenirs, anyone?)
• volunteering at marathon hydration stations
• running with a team, while sporting their merch
• working for organizations promoting themselves through logo-bearing swag

 

You get the picture.

 And I’m one of those girls who darts around all over town with a ponytail flapping out the back of a ball cap, even if I’m not coming straight from the gym or a trip on the trail. It’s just my style.

 For years, I kept my caps piled up in a plastic tote (like these) on the closet shelf. That meant I’d often wear the same couple of hats by default, rather than dragging out the tote and sorting through the various choices each time.

 Finally, while sorting through my stuff for a rummage sale fundraiser, I decided to come up with a more accessible way to store my baseball cap collection.

 

Enter the over-the-door hanging shoe organizer. It’s not just for shoes anymore.

 Here are a few examples from Amazon, although you can find them at most big-box department stores and may even some of those dollar-ish shops as well. (Can’t call them dollar stores anymore, because nearly nothing is just a dollar these days.) 

·     Amazon Basics 24 Medium Pocket Over-the-Door Hanging Shoe Organizer – This one comes in grey. It has three hooks that fit over the top of the closet door.
·     PAULONE 35 Pocket Over the Door Shoe Organizer – This one has more pockets, and they are a bit deeper, making it easier to fit stiffer ball caps or trucker caps.
·     Simple Houseware 24 Pockets - Crystal Clear Over The Door Hanging Shoe Organizer – This less expensive plastic one comes in several colors. With two dozen deep pockets (and four over-door hooks), it’s handy for hats.
·     Over The Door Shoe Organizer Storage Hanging Shoe Rack Organizer for Sneakers/Boots Storage – This one is a little different, because it features 8 sloped cubbies/shelves that are designed to hold shoes toes-in. It would work well for baseball caps too, holding 2-3 on each level. This might be the best option for storing collectible hats that shouldn’t be rolled or bent at all.

 

 This baseball cap storage solution has changed the way I rotate my cap collection for wearing. I’ve essentially rediscovered some of my old favorites, as it’s easy to pick out which one goes with which outfit on a daily basis. 

Maybe you’ll agree.

 

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Image/s: LAN personal photo/s

 

Feel free to follow on X. Like this blog?  Check out Practically at Home on Facebook. You are invited to visit my author page on Amazon.com.