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Do I believe in
Santa? Of course, I do and I have proof. Santa came early this year to
the City of Vision. He carefully placed our present under the
southwestern sunshine on top of a hill on Loma Colorado. It is a
sleek, contemporary building in the shape of a giant bird that holds
many quiet hours of enjoyment.
I realize there have been many articles written on our new library,
but I don’t think any of them have touched on the really important
points we all would like to know. I had the chance to attend the
Library’s dedication last week when my girlfriend invited me to join
her. As we approached the front of the building, the glass doors
opened and the aroma of vanilla nut coffee welcomed us in. I almost
felt like we were walking into a Starbucks. All the elves were on hand
scurrying around as many people were finding their seats before the
show began. When Mayor Jackson and Toni Beatty, Library & Information
Services Director, cut the ribbon I wanted to scream “Merry
Christmas”!
First, I have to tell you the décor is phenomenal. It is like walking
into a sleek high style hotel; big registration desk and comfy lobby
seating. All that is missing is the stacked stone fireplace and my
room key. The color scheme is a relaxing palette of sand, stone and
natural wood tones with sunset purples and reds for accent; all over a
natural bamboo floor. The artwork on the walls is incredible. Huge,
floor to ceiling landscape paintings in the realistic genre. Alright,
it’s just the windows, but what better choice for artwork than the
beauty of our own southwest environment. And from this vantage point
the “paintings” include the Sandias, northeast Albuquerque and on a
clear day, downtown. Forget the books, grab your iPod, and steal a
seat by the window and escape.
The queen is much bigger than her little princess back on Pinetree
Road, who is getting a facelift for the next four to six months. One
area in particular that is much more enjoyable with its larger square
foot is the Magazine and Quiet Reading Room. The walls are displayed
with monthly periodicals you probably never realized were available
for reading. There are plenty of big chairs, some with their own
built-in half tables. You don’t have to worry about bothering the
person next to you when you open your newspaper.
With so many new residents moving into the area, the Local History
Room is something you won’t want to miss. The pictures of Rio Rancho
from the not so distant past are really interesting. One in particular
is a photograph of a family standing out in the middle of nowhere
among the tumbleweeds and goats heads; the intersection of NM528 and
Sara Road before Intel was built.
Another great feature of our new library are the Private Study Rooms.
Completely enclosed by glass, these 2-person and 4-person incubators
of knowledge reminded me of the seventh floor cubbies in the library
at Ohio University where I spent so many hours. Here is a private
space conducive to concentrating and absorbing trigonometry or
indulging in the latest trashy romance novel.
Okay, it’s not the Library of Congress, which is a little overwhelming
and lacking in the interior décor category and who wants all that
anyway? The Loma Colorado main library boasts bigger aisles, new books
to discover and a pleasant environment to spend some time in. But the
biggest thrill of my whole visit was being the first to open one of
the many new books I found. I felt like I was unwrapping my own gift
with each book I opened.
So, thank you Santa. I look forward to visiting my new present every
three weeks.
Quote of the Week: “I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I was six.
Mother took me to see him in a department store and he asked for my
autograph”. -Shirley Temple
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