A fascinating hobby

Posted by Tasha (Chicago, United States) on 24 April 2008 in Miscellaneous.

I saw this "behind the scenes", on one of the doors of the Field Museum Library. It's actually going to be a set of a few odd "comics" like this one.

When I saw these "comics", I thought of a woman I've never met.

One of my closest friends is a woman named Angelique. She has two very close friends from her college days, Emily and Adrienne. I have met neither, but heard a great deal about both. It's so very clear how much she loves these women.

Adrienne is, if I understand correctly, a book conservator. No, I'm not sure that's exactly right, but I do know she loves books and libraries and has the skills to do a good binding. So, when I saw these "comics", I thought of her and Angelique.

I asked the man in the office if he would mind if I took some photos of his door, "for a friend". I figured explaining the actual relationship would be too much, and hoped that Adrienne would forgive the trespass, if she ever heard about it. I originally planned to just e-mail these photos to Angelique to pass on to Adrienne, but then the kind man not only said yes, he told me the history of each one. Any mistakes in accuracy are mine in the remembering or understanding.

This was the cover of a pamphlet or book handed out to men exiting the Navy, while they were waiting to go home. It was instructions on how to bind books, partially as a hobby and partially as possible job training (I think). So, while they waited to get home they could bind books to keep their minds and hands occupied.

I admit, I never associated the navy with book binding.