Get Sleepy: Sleep meditation and stories - A Snowy Night at the New York Public Library

Episode Date: December 6, 2023

Narrator: Thomas Jones 🇬🇧 Writer: Alicia Steffann ✍️ Sound design: distant city ambience, light snowfall 🌃 ❄️ Includes mentions of: Nostalgia, Winter, History, Gratitude, Fantastical ...Creatures, Animals, Architecture, Ice & Snow, US History, Travel, Shakespeare, Fantastical Elements, Fantasy, Literature & Literary History, Dreams. Welcome back, sleepyheads. Tonight, we’ll get a very special pass inside one of the world’s greatest libraries, in New York City. In contrast to our usual daytime library visits, we’ll find that there will not be any door that is closed to us, or any other patron taking up our favourite spot. 😴 Watch, listen and comment on this episode on the Get Sleepy YouTube channel. And hit subscribe while you're there! Enjoy various playlists of our stories and meditations on our Slumber Studios Spotify profile. Support our Sponsors - Shopify is the commerce platform revolutionizing millions of businesses worldwide. Sign up for a $1 per-month trial period at shopify.com/getsleepy. Check out other great products and deals from Get Sleepy sponsors: getsleepy.com/sponsors/ Support Us   - Get Sleepy’s Premium Feed: https://getsleepy.com/support/.  - Get Sleepy Merchandise: https://getsleepy.com/store.  - Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/get-sleepy/id1487513861.  Connect  Stay up to date on all podcast news and even vote on upcoming episodes!  - Website: https://getsleepy.com/.  - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/getsleepypod/.  - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getsleepypod/.  - Twitter: https://twitter.com/getsleepypod.  Get Sleepy FAQs Have a query for us or need help with something? You might find your answer here: Get Sleepy FAQs About Get Sleepy  Get Sleepy is the #1 story-telling podcast designed to help you get a great night’s rest. By combining sleep meditation with a relaxing bedtime story, each episode will guide you gently towards sleep.    Get Sleepy Premium Get instant access to ad-free episodes, as well as the Thursday night bonus episode by subscribing to our premium feed. It's easy! Sign up in two taps!  Get Sleepy Premium feed includes:  Monday and Wednesday night episodes (with zero ads). The exclusive Thursday night bonus episode. Access to the entire back catalog (also ad-free). Extra-long episodes. Exclusive sleep meditation episodes. Discounts on merchadise. We’ll love you forever. Get your 7-day free trial: https://getsleepy.com/support.    Thank you so much for listening!  Feedback? Let us know your thoughts! https://getsleepy.com/contact-us/.   That’s all for now. Sweet dreams ❤️ 😴 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Welcome to Get Sleepy, where we listen, we relax and we get sleepy. My name's Thomas, thanks so much for joining me tonight. No matter your age, a library is simply a quiet escape from the noisy world outside. Tonight we'll get a very special pass inside one of the world's greatest libraries, which sits at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Forty-first Street in New York City. In contrast to our usual daytime library visits, we'll find that there will not be any door that is close to us, or any other patron taking up our favourite spot. All the treasures inside will be at our fingertips.
Starting point is 00:01:06 A big thanks to Alicia Stefan for writing yet another wonderful tale, and there will be a few more festive stories coming up from her in the next few weeks. Thank you to Shopify for sponsoring tonight's episode. Selling with Shopify works so well, it's almost like magic. Shopify is your no excuses e-commerce business partner, giving you the freedom to sell without needing to code or design. Just bring your best ideas and Shopify will help you get started. It's way more than just a sales system. If you want marketing made simple, Shopify removes the guesswork
Starting point is 00:01:54 with built-in tools that help you create, execute and analyse your online marketing campaigns. I love how Shopify helps entrepreneurs to not only get started, but to go as far as they truly deserve by putting your amazing products in front of the right customers anywhere in the world. Sign up for a $1 per month trial period at Shopify.com, sashush Get Sleepy, all low a case. Go to Shopify.com, Sush Get Sleepy to grow your business no matter what stage you're in. SHOPIFY.COM Sush Get Sleepy Do you want to hear even more Get Sleepy episodes, receive weekly bonuses, and listen completely
Starting point is 00:02:49 ad-free? Well, my friends, I would love for you to try our supporters' feed, Get Sleepy Premium. It's the best place to listen to Get Sleepy, as you'll have access to our entire catalogue of nearly 650 stories and meditations. Thursday nights are extra special on the premium feed because we release an exclusive episode for our supporters every single Thursday. Like tomorrow when Vanessa will be telling us all about animal sleeping habits on a relaxing night-time tour of this sleepy zoo. The first seven days of your premium subscription are free and you can cancel at any time.
Starting point is 00:03:34 You can also gift a subscription to a friend or loved one this Christmas or any time of the year. For more information on all of our plans and on gift subscriptions, visit GetSleep.com-support or just follow the link in the show notes. Thanks so much everyone. Let's settle in for what is destined to be a serene night of rest. Turn your attention inward as you gently breathe. Try to just gradually slow your breathing down, which in turn will help the rest of your body to settle. As you breathe in a calming motion, I want you to repeat to yourself just in your mind. I am calm. I am calm. And allow that calmness to wash over you as you affirm it to yourself. Now, in your mind, say, I am ready to rest. I am ready to rest. And with those words resonating through your mind, since the stillness within, your breathing
Starting point is 00:06:16 can return to its natural flow. And all you need to do now is listen along and drift off whenever the time is right. Meanwhile let us whisk you away to the story island of Manhattan, where two iconic stone lions watch over one of the most marvelous library entrances in the world. You find yourself tucked up in bed in a very cozy guest room. You are on the 10th floor of an old apartment building in New York City's Upper West Side. An old friend has generously offered to host you as you take in some of the sights. You're not just here as a tourist, however. You're also working on a personal research project that will require a visit to the main branch of the New York Public Library. Your research appointment at the famous Stephen A. Schwarzman Building is tomorrow,
Starting point is 00:08:16 and you're excited to see the resources you've been permitted to view. While browsing the library website, you were quite astounded by what you learned about this very famous main branch of the State Library. For example, it doesn't just house books. Among more than 15 million items at this flagship location, there are many priceless objects. The library owns a copy of the Gutenberg Bible, as well as original documents once authored and distributed by the founding fathers of the United States, and these are just the beginning. Apparently, whether you seek maps, audio files, illustrations or films, you will find them all in this amazing place. You gently close your laptop and stow it next to the bed, turning off your little bedside lamp.
Starting point is 00:09:49 Snuggling down into the covers, you turn over and gaze out the window. You're on an upper floor far above the ground, but the ambient light of the city makes its way into your darkened room, making rectangular patterns on the floor. It's surprisingly quiet all the way up here. quiet all the way up here. The sounds of the city intrude only distantly through the thick walls of the building. This apartment is a cozy fortress that protects you from the constant heartbeat of the city outside. beat of the city outside. Your eyelids begin to feel heavy. You nestle your face into the crisp white pillowcase, breathing a few deep sides. eyes. In your mind's eye, you imagine standing in front of the handsome Bazar marble building
Starting point is 00:11:13 you will see tomorrow in the this turn of the century's style. Featuring many of the elements of classical architecture, those are buildings like the library also have more ornate Renaissance-era flourishes that enhance their beauty, sometimes to jaw-dropping effect. You envision the wide stairs leading you between the library's famous guardians, the lions called patience and fortitude. You see yourself standing at the top of those stairs under the neoclassical arches of the entryway. In your mind, as you pause there, it is almost nightfall. As you pause there, it is almost nightfall. As the gloom of twilight descends, the air has that wet, cold feeling that tells you
Starting point is 00:12:35 snow is coming. All is quiet, but you have a sense of anticipation. Something is about to happen. Looking around, you realize that the front steps of the library are uncharacteristically drastically deserted. In fact, there is not even any traffic driving by on the street. You are entirely alone here. Or perhaps you are not. You cannot believe your eyes, but one of the lions, patience, has moved from his pedestal and is calmly licking his paw nearby. As if noticing you are looking at him, the majestic marble beast stops bathing himself and yawns at you, rolling over on his side in a friendly way. You automatically look for the other line, fortitude, and realize he is walking in a circle some distance away.
Starting point is 00:14:12 He is playfully chasing a windblown leaf that is scudding across the stairway. In short, the imposing guardians of the library are lollying about like two enormous kittens. You feel oddly unafraid of these friendly looking cats, and you watch as fortitude lets his leaf fly away. He sits for a moment watching it go, and then turns and ascends the steps in an unharried manner. Then he sits down by the front door and looks at you as if he's waiting. You are oddly compelled to follow him and you slowly walk up the stone stairs. You hold out your hand and he dips his head as if inviting you to pat his soft fur. He no longer looks like a cold marble lion. Instead he is radiating warmth and softness. You bury your palm in his silky mane and he leans into your hand. After accepting your greeting, he pushes at the front door with his nose, dislodging it ever so slightly. Intrigued, you reach out and attempt the door yourself.
Starting point is 00:16:19 It is unlocked. You open the door wide and fortitude dips under your arm and enters the grand foyer inside, as if expecting you will follow. You look behind you and see patience waiting nearby. You open the door wider and he sides gracefully through the opening as well. Taking a deep breath, you enter the building and let the door close behind you. You stand in the echoing entryway in awe, gazing up at the ornate carvings on the tall ceiling and reading the names of the donors etched on the walls. As if someone was expecting you, the tall candelabra light fixtures are illuminated. There is also a warm light glowing from the balcony on the second floor that overlooks the foyer.
Starting point is 00:17:50 Turning around, you admire the very tall arched windows over the front doors. Great whileite filters through the glass. For middible columns hold up the ceiling, but it feels as if it is waitress, soaring in graceful arches above your head. This building has a feeling dominance, but it also conveys a mood of effortless space. As you turn in circles, taking in the majesty of this entryway, you realize that patience in your direction. He has a lanyard hanging around his neck. The friendly lion sits just an arm's length away and you reach out to examine his new It is an ID pass card. Scrutinizing it more carefully, you are amazed to see that it has your name and photograph on it. You gently remove the lanyard from your feline companion, pulling it over his head.
Starting point is 00:19:28 Having delivered his gift, he goes wandering into the recesses of the hallway. You don your new ID card, pulling it firmly over your own head, and tugging on it as if to confirm that it's real. Looking up, you realise both lions have disappeared down the dimly lit first floor corridor. Having never been inside the library, you're not sure what to explore first, so you follow them into a wing that leads south. The lights of the city stream into the enormous arched window at the end of this long hallway, which glows with the light from large hanging pendants. Looking up, you are transfixed by the ornate decorations on the ceiling.
Starting point is 00:20:48 You recall reading that they were made of plaster, but it looks for all the world, like carved wood. The artistry is stunning. Bringing your gaze down again, you see the silhouettes of the lions as they move down the corridor and then disappear into a room to the left. Passing through the doorway behind them, you instantly recognize this space which you read about yesterday. You can tell you are inside the library, you know this room is a window on the modern world. However, the cozy warmth of the furnishings also makes it feel like you've stepped into
Starting point is 00:21:59 the past. long wooden tables, now empty, are lit by low golden lumps. Elaborate woodwork graces the walls, framing a series of murals. These paintings all appear to be by the same artist, although they vary quite a bit in size. Making a circle around the room, you realize that they depict famous buildings in New York that are related to publishing. It seems a fitting subject for the periodical room. You pull out a chair and sit down on it, spreading your hands across the smooth wooden surface of the table. Then you look around the room, imagining it full of people who are reading newspapers from all over the world. The room almost tums with its own importance, as if it were waiting for another day to dawn and another influx of fresh publications to arrive.
Starting point is 00:23:39 Turning your head to the right, you can see into a long room with more rich wood and more study tables. In contrast to the periodical room, this soaring space has white pillars that create a sense of light amidst the wood and dark plaster. It's round-hanging chandeliers make you feel like you're looking into a medieval, great hall. You pick up a paper map from a nearby display stand and discover that this is the part of the library specifically dedicated to Hibreaka and Jideaka. You could stay all evening in just these two rooms, but there is more for you to see. Patients and fortitude have vanished back into the shadows of the main hallway. You step quietly after them as if your very footsteps might disturb the tranquility of these venerable rooms.
Starting point is 00:25:11 Looking down the hallway in the northerly direction, you see fortitude staring at something on the wall. Intrigued to see what it is, you approach. When you arrive, you discover an elegant marble drinking fountain. The water flows through through a golden lion's head. Fortitude cocks his head curiously to the side, appearing to consider this water-producing likeness of himself. You stand reverently for a moment, thinking that it is the grandest drinking fountain you've ever seen in your life. At this moment, fortitude seems to have seen enough. He turns and disappears down a nearby corridor. He turns and disappears down a nearby corridor. You're about to follow, but your eye is drawn to a heavy, double wooden door. Above it, in gold lettering, are the words map division. You pull down on the lever handles and the doors open without
Starting point is 00:26:51 complaint. You find yourself in the most opulent room yet. The familiar or natively carved wood surrounds you, but it's topped by the beautiful blue walls and a richly decorated, gilded ceiling. In the recesses of the room, you see bookshelves with neatly organized tombs. A gentle light emanates from the ceiling chandeliers, inviting you to spread out many maps and peruse them. The soaring arched windows are here as well. You can see the lights of the city outside twinkling through the glass in the darkness. You recall reading that there are some 20,000 books and atlases available here, ranging from the 16th to the 21st centuries. Much like the periodical room, this feels like a space where you could have access to far off places. There are city maps, antiquarian maps,
Starting point is 00:28:31 topographic maps. The materials here allow you to travel across the world and across the centuries. It's hard to conceive how many maps are in this room. You don't want to lose track of your lion guides, so you slip back through the double doors and pull them softly closed behind you. You see that patience is sitting there waiting for you. As you appear, he turns and walks back in the direction of the entryway. In a moment you find him sitting in front of another door. The first time you walked the hall, you hadn't even noticed their sentence. It's doors are not heavy wooden stores an octavi wooden ones like the others. Rather, they are made of elegant glass. Clearly legible in gold lettering, it says,
Starting point is 00:29:56 treasures the Polonsky exhibition. Peering inside, you see a room full of classical pillars and arches, with artfully arranged display cases. The light in the room is dim, but each display is illuminated so that the item inside is visible. The glass doors give the interior hall, the feeling of being in a carefully preserved vacuum, where all its priceless objects must be protected. it. On this night, no door seems off limits to you. Rapping your hand thoughtfully around the card at your neck, you gently push the doors of the exhibit open and let yourself in. You're standing in a breathtaking space. Many marble columns
Starting point is 00:31:14 and palaces in the classical style are holding up an intricately carved wooden ceiling. The geometric coffers in the ceiling soar above the marble walls and floor. The overall effect is a feeling of both gravity and lightness. It takes you a moment to draw your eyes away from the features of the room itself and focus on the treasures within. The exhibition at first seems like a random collection of items, including art pieces, documents, furniture, and even toys. Curious to discover what connects them, you begin to wander. You stop in front of a handwritten document that is browning with age in places. You can see the folds across the middle where it was once creased. Reading the information, you discover this is an actual copy of the Declaration of Independence, written by the Hand of Thomas Jefferson.
Starting point is 00:32:56 We hold these truths to be self-evident, you whisper to yourself as you try to make out the fine script. You've heard the words many times and now it seems as if they are calling to you, down through the centuries. You take a deep breath and hold it as if to avoid leaving your mark on this delicate document. Then you exhale smiling to yourself. The artifact is safe inside its climate controlled case. A little way ahead, you stop and examine the hunt Lanx globe.
Starting point is 00:33:57 This is one of the oldest known globes of the earth. Because it was created just after Columbus's first voyage, it emits North America. You vaguely recall that this globe is notable for being only one of two that ever bore the notation. Here be dragons. Your eye roams the brown and detailed terrain of this marvellous old piece. It shows a partial world, really. A time when the imagination was all that could complete the map. Your eye is drawn to the most massive and colourful book you've ever seen. In keeping with the theme of early exploration, the title is Birds of America by John James Audubon. You further discover that it is the largest book in the New York Public Library, and in fact, one of the largest ever printed.
Starting point is 00:35:29 Apparently, Audubon had wanted to draw every bird species in North America. This book was a bold effort to show them to scale. The colors in this piece are a feast for the eyes. It could easily be the most sumptuous book you've ever seen. Even your special ID card will not enable you to pull this treasure from its safe display case and page through it. However, you imagine yourself sitting case that contains numerous items. The theme seems to be literary, but there are many precious manuscripts and drawings here. It doesn't take you long to zero in on what turns out to be Shakespeare's first folio. What most people don't realize is that it was published after Shakespeare's lifetime. after Shakespeare's lifetime, yet it contains 18 plays that had never appeared in print before. Had it not been for this remarkable book, plays such as Macbeth and the Tempest would have been lost.
Starting point is 00:37:30 would have been lost. Even though the volume contains a reasonably accurate portrait of Shakespeare himself, his friend Ben Johnson writes in the introduction that Areeda seeking to know him should look not upon his picture but his book. And you do look upon this book with wonder, thinking about how it set the course for literature in the ensuing centuries. How lucky you are to see it in person. Circling around the display case, you pass by several precious books and manuscripts you recognize by their titles. However, there is also a walking stick which seems a bit out of place among these other items. The plaque says that it wants belonged to author Virginia Wolfe. You recall reading that the library also owned a large collection of wolf's manuscripts and letters.
Starting point is 00:38:53 Seeing the walking stick makes her seem so present and real. You are quite moved. You've just made a complete circuit around this case of literary wonders when you spy something curious all the way across the room. Almost tiptoeing on the marble, you set a course for a small display case along the back of the hall. Inside it are a plucky band of well-loved stuffed animals. You don't need a plaque to tell you what they are.
Starting point is 00:39:45 You can see clearly Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore, a teeny tiny little piglet, Kanga and Tigger. These are the original playmates of Christopher Robin Mill who inspired the classic stories with his playtime adventures. Seeing poo and his friends, you are flooded with happiness. It's so sweet to remember a time when stories held such magic. You think to yourself that Christopher Robbins' father, A.A. Mell, truly offered a priceless gift to the children of the world with his writing.
Starting point is 00:40:47 Without any sense of time passing, you continue your trip around the room, taking in treasured items that celebrate pioneers in the areas of equality and civil rights. You see letters, postcards, manuscripts and photos of key historical figures and events. You feast your eyes on sculpture and sheet music by great composers. So much is contained just in this one exhibition. A testament to all the New York Public Library has preserved for everyone. When you've finally seen the entire exhibit, you realize that you don't know where your lions have gone. Jenty pushing open the doors that lead back to the hallway. You see patience and fortitude, strolling casually about the entrance hall, waiting for you.
Starting point is 00:42:10 The arched windows over the library entrance, let in a soft white light from outside. But most of the foyer is glowing with the golden illumination from the candelabra fixtures. As you approach the lion slowly rise and walk towards one of the grand marble staircases that flank the room, leading to the second floor. You're looking forward to seeing the upstairs, especially the grand spaces on the third floor. Patients and fortitude seem to know this. Without stopping, they pass through the next level and continue to the top where some of the library's greatest delights still await you. As you finish climbing the stairs, your eyes are drawn to the ceiling of the third floor rotunda. Like other rooms in the library, the walls are richly covered in carved wood, lending a feeling of warmth and intimacy that belies its size.
Starting point is 00:43:50 The tall ceilings are the most remarkable detail, however. They are painted with beautiful murals that remind you of an Italian church. The figures in the murals float effortlessly in the sky, surrounded by gold detailing. Bringing your gaze down, you see that the room in front of you is called the public catalogue room. You leave the rotunda behind and walkified room has a stunning mural covering much of the ceiling. Framing the mural is another elaborately decorated ceiling accented in gold. Massive chandeliers hang from it, generously lighting the space. The room is filled with long desks that have computers on them. You know that many years ago there were actual card catalog files here. You stand wistfully in the centre of this portal, which gives the world access to all the
Starting point is 00:45:38 research materials the library has to offer. You think about how you would like to feel the old card drawers slide open and flip through their contents just like everyone did decades ago. Of course, a modern system of cataloging materials has its advantages. How else could the library offer so many resources? What intrigues you so much is that the domain of the library is much greater than what meets the eye. In fact, 120,000 square feet of storage space and 84 miles of bookshelves are nestled safely underneath nearby Bryant Park. underneath nearby Bryant Park. You're amazed to find that this is enough to accommodate 3.2 million books and half a million reels of microfilm. All this compact storage is made possible by the novel method of storing items by size,
Starting point is 00:47:09 rather than by title or subject. Apparently, grouping like size items together increases the storage capacity by 40%. is the storage capacity by 40%. All of this is just sitting no more than 6 feet below the lovely grounds where New York is stroll, relax and dine together in the park behind the building. It is the most fabulous secret you think. But the tale of the park storage holds even more delightful revelations. In fact, the method of delivering materials from under Bryant Park into the library is via a plucky little train. Librarians are stationed in this climate-controlled underground bunker where they await materials requests. Then they load the materials into little red
Starting point is 00:48:31 cars that are decorated with an image of a lion and send them chugging up to the appropriate room in the building above. An item could make this trip within an hour, magically appearing indoors without a shaperone, riding the rails to meet its eager recipient. This truly is a place of wonders you muse. Your lions aren't in the catalog room with you anymore, but you have no doubt where they have gone. You are filled with delicious anticipation as you face the door to the most famous room in the library,
Starting point is 00:49:29 the one you've most yearned to see. Patience and fortitude have preceded you into the famous's Reading Room. The space is divided down the middle by a circulation desk, so you have to decide whether to turn left or right. This, the largest room in the library, stretches 78 feet wide and 297 feet in length. That's nearly the size of an American football field. You choose to enter the right hand half of the hall, where you stand under the 52-foot ceiling and gaze up in wonder at the artistic masterpiece above. Turning slowly in a circle, you admire the three gorgeous murals. Each is embedded in its own intricate tray
Starting point is 00:50:50 of the ceiling. The scenes are filled with cherubs, frothy clouds, and gold detail. Huge Huge resets frame each mural like decorations on a cake. In contrast with other parts of the library, this room lacks the usual supporting columns. The ceiling appears to defy gravity, levitating effortlessly, far above. Due to clever feats of engineering, no support columns are needed. The lavish and unbroken space openly invites the visitor in. It says, welcome, there is room for everyone here. And there is certainly room for you tonight. On any other day, you would share this space with countless readers, researchers and visitors. The sound of turning pages and tapping keyboards would hover all around you, and that is usually a comforting aspect of the library. Tonight, however, you will have a rare and secret experience. This room, this masterpiece of architecture, one of the greatest spaces in any library in the world,
Starting point is 00:52:49 is just for you. Your eyes scan the majestic windows, and you see that a gentle snowfall has arrived. Impossibly large, downy flakes are drifting gracefully across every pane of glass. You are filled with a sense of quiet joy and the comforting feeling of being cocooned inside a luxurious snow globe. Only you are allowed inside. The entire centre of the room is filled with long wooden tables. Each is warmly lit by lamps that are spaced at intervals, casting just the right amount of golden glow. Best of all, in a nod to the true charm of libraries everywhere,
Starting point is 00:54:09 a nod to the true charm of libraries everywhere. There is an open-stuck selection of reference books that lines the perimeter of the entire room. Any of the 600 people who might be in the room at a given moment may walk up and consult to these books without a librarian. Luckily for you, there are not 600 people here tonight. The entire collection of beautiful books is yours to peruse. You turn to your right and slowly scan the shelves. The first stack is filled with materials about American literature. You pluck one book from that shelf and tuck it under your arm. The next row of books is all about English literature. You choose a volume based entirely on the fact that it's a colour you like. Circling to the other side of the room, you come upon Roman literature,
Starting point is 00:55:37 and then in a second row of bookshelves behind it, you choose an item from social sciences. When you've walked the full circuit of the room, you cradle the stack of books in your arms and stroll to the very centre, choosing a spot at the end of one of the long study tables. You lay down one of the books, running your hand over its cloth-bound cover, and straightening it nicely in front of the chair. Then you walk a few spots further and set down another one of your books. You do this until all the books have a place. You pause with a great feeling of satisfaction. Starting at the beginning again, you sit in front of the first book, tucking your chair comfortably under the table. You gently flip it open, inhaling its intoxicating, old paper scent.
Starting point is 00:57:12 You wonder to yourself how long it's been since another reader selected this book, and what they were researching when they did. The volume has pretty illustrations. You begin turning the pages and then settle in to complete a chapter. Every word fascinates you. You don't know how much time passes as you lose yourself in the book. After a while, you remember that you have other books here too. With a decadent feeling, you close this one and survey the rest.
Starting point is 00:58:14 You stand up carefully pushing your chair back in its place under the table. Then you change seats. This new vantage point has you facing the other side of the room. You run your hand across the carved edge of the table, feeling the detailed design that adorns it. Lifting your chin, you peer out of the windows. The snow falls silently and heavily without stopping. Delighted by your ongoing privacy, you confidently open the second book and begin to pour over it. The paper feels thick and substantial between your fingers as you turn page after page. At some point you look around for patience and fortitude.
Starting point is 00:59:42 Like sentinels, they are lying in the doorway. They are not asleep, but they appear to have settled in as if you are expected to stay for some time. As you watch, patience rests his head on his paws and blinks his eyes slowly. You stand up from your chair and walk to the information desk that divides the room in half. There is nobody there, but you can see the little red circulation train parked inside. It has one volume standing in it, and you feel you absolutely must see what this book is. Once again wrapping your hand around the ID tank at your neck. You slide across the counter and stand inside the circulation desk.
Starting point is 01:01:06 Picking up the book from the train, you see it is a collection of fairy tales. Delight it, you take the book and let yourself out of the circulation booth. Not wanting to leave any part of the Rose Reading Room unseen. You enter the left-hand side and choose one of the many identical empty places at yet another long table. There, you settle comfortably into your chair, and by the glow of the lamp, you begin to read. Castles, princesses, magic spells, and heroic quests unfold before you. Time loses all meaning, and this snowbound night in the library is all you know. You're not sure when it happens, but you have fallen asleep.
Starting point is 01:02:37 Your eyes are closed, and your head is resting on something soft. At first, you imagine it is one of your lions. As you become more alert, however, you realize it is a pillow. Opening your eyes, you find you are in your friend's cozy bedroom on the upper west side, and the snow is falling heavily through the lamp light outside. side. Closing your eyes again, you realize that you must have been dreaming, but the visions you had felt so detailed, so real, and you yearn to be back within the walls of the library once again. Snuggling into your downy pillow, you invite sleep to return. You imagine yourself once again ensconned in that magical palace of books, with patience and fortitude as your companions. You are again privy to every conceivable masterpiece of the written word.
Starting point is 01:04:29 You pull the cover up and tuck it around your shoulders. Then happily your dream continues. ... you you I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room.
Starting point is 01:06:18 I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. I'm going to go to the next room. ... you I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing. I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing. I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing. I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing. I'm going to do a little bit of the same thing. you you you you ... you you you you you you you ... you ... ... you you you

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