A fine mess: Every couple of weeks I renew my vow never to pay another library fine. The first such vow came about a thousand years ago when I had an actual visit by the library police.
Back then, in my West Coast city, if you had remarkably overdue books the library would phone you and then, if you didn't respond within the appropriate time frame, send out a man who banged on your door, demanded your books back and handed you a bill for the fines, plus the expenses incurred. If you didn't pay they not only cut off your access to the books but sent a collection agency after you.
The man was very efficient, listened to none of my patently outrageous excuses and outright lies, took back the books, presented the bill and was gone. I have no idea these decades later what the heck I was doing with six books out for three months. Not a clue. And I admit I was wrong, but I was young and there must have been a reason, stupid though it probably was.
I still take half a dozen books out at a time, knowing logically that I'll never read all of them in three weeks, but still believing I will. I start all of them and then, leave them bookmarked and start others. I will, with luck, complete two. Those will go back immediately. I honestly believe I'll read the others and then they go back, late.
I imagine that I buy the library a new large, non-fiction volume, every couple of months.
Recently, the library in the small seaside community where I now reside has begun setting out on its shelves books it calls "speed reads." These must be returned in seven days or you face a fine of a dollar a day.
I took one of these out and was so frightened by the prospect of the major fine that I completed it in two days. The only thing is, that I then let it sit around until the seventh day when I had to leap in my car and got it back with perhaps half an hour to spare.
Stop me before I borrow again.
4:16:15 PM 
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