"Things I Learned on the way to Other Things"

Years ago there was a columnist that occasionally included a column called "Things I Learned on the Way to Other Things" or something close to that. I tried to find the reference to it and failed. I remember the stacks at U of M, U of F and FSU. Being in undergraduate and graduate school for a total of 13 years gave me lots of miles in stacks. Add a few public libraries and you probably get something like 15 or 16 years of perusing. Usually I had a quest of some kind, looking for something specific or some genre to consider. But in sweeping along the shelves often something caught my eye. I would pause, take out the book and glance through it. More often than not I'd sit somewhere and have a little read. I found a wonderful quartet called "The Book of the New Sun" by Gene Wolfe this way. The story of an apprentice torturer in a time when that was a legitimate occupation. And others. My point? Well, its this: when you are on the way to something, keep your eyes, ears and mind open to other things as well. You never know what you will find on the way. Oh, and yes, it takes more time too. Going to the library was always a risky business for me. Never knew when I'd get out.
Book cover from: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60211.The_Shadow_of_the_Torturer