Starbucks, La Grange Library Packed with WiFi Seekers

With the power out at my home today, I felt like a nomad, searching up and down the streets for just a little internet.

With Caribou Coffee on La Grange Road closed because of a lack of power, I decided to head down the street in search of a strong cup of coffee and a strong WiFi signal at Starbucks. 

Lo and behold, when I got there, it seemed that every other resident in La Grange, La Grange Park and Western Springs also had the same thought. Patch contributor Thom Rae was at the counter when I arrived.

"If you stick around, a spot will probably open up in about ten minutes," he told me. Apparently, things had been a little crazy at Starbucks all day. With many of their other nearby locations closed down, the La Grange location was taking all the overflow, Rae told me.

But I had things to post and meetings to take, so off I went again, this time down the block to the La Grange Library. 

Little did I know that the library was in a similar situation. Western Springs' library was still open, as was Brookfield, the librarians told me, but La Grange Park and many others had never opened, having lost power last night.

Walking up and down the stairs I searched for an outlet and a place to sit to grab my WiFi connection, and actually post some content today. Sitting in every chair, taking up every meeting room, and even doing their work on the floor were residents in the same desperate situation. 

"The line was out the door there this morning," said Nikki Zimmerman—who does public relations for the library—about the Starbucks down the street.

"We have almost the same situation here today. People are sitting on the floor."

According to librarians, as I write this, about 35 people are currently using the library just for internet access.

Finally, I found a seat in the basement level to plug in the old computer and log on to a WiFi connection.

I even could have got a hot cup of joe at the library's new space-age looking coffee maker—if only I carried change!