The library: So hot right now.

The American public library system has been around since our country was just days old. Libraries in general stretch back to Persian and even Greco-Roman times.

But man, I'm telling you.

Libraries are so hot right now. The library is the place.to.BE. The ultimate Recessionista tool.

Did you know, fellow Dallas citizens (far-flung dear friends, I'm sure its not so different where you are either), that you can walk into any branch, get a card for free in about 45 seconds, and instantly start getting every magazine, book, CD, or DVD that strikes your fancy for absolutely free?

Or, that you can go online, type in the phone number associated with your library card, and request that any magazine, book, CD, or DVD you can think of be sent to the branch nearest to your home? They'll call you when it arrives and you just flounce in and pick it up- gratis.

In theory, I knew this happened already. But in practice, this revolutionizes my life.

Remember how I was interested in Crazy Love yesterday? It's retailing for $11 on Amazon. In the grocery store yesterday, I was inches away from buying the August issues of Vogue and Martha Stewart Living, which retail for about $6 or $7 each. I've also been thinking about buying the DVD of Mad Men, Season 2 (in anticipation of the Season 3 premier next week!), which sells for $25.

Instead, I went to the library and all four things were freezy. Can you imagine how much money we spent in a year on things that are available for free?

For example, did you know at http://books.google.com/ you can get hundreds of titles for free, in PDF form? Especially those of you still in school, most classics are online for free- they have 4,690 copies of The Scarlett Letter.

(Incidentally, read this fascinating article from Vogue about 34-year-old fashionista/top Google Executive Marissa Mayer).