Friday, August 24, 2012

"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read."

This weekend, we'll be going through our things to decide what should come with us to the new place and what should go on to a new home with someone else. I'm really dreading packing and moving again; I joke all the time that I have PTSD from the last move. I got rid of a lot of stuff last summer, but you guys, the books are out of control! We have way, way too many books. I use the library a lot, and I donate often, but somehow we still find ourselves in a situation not unlike this:

(Source: My Modern Met)
This is an installation by Spanish artist Alicia Martín, part of a series called Biographies.

Anyway, I suspect that most of our books will be coming with us. I am definitely going to clean out clutter though, and probably donate some clothes to Good Will. Perhaps I'll do a "yard sale" online or a giveaway?

I did happen to see a timely article on Apartment Therapy yesterday with three "junk-busting" apps and websites, specifically how to stop junk mail, automatically organize email newsletters, and find people online who want your stuff. Definitely worth checking out, even if you have no plans to pack up all your belongings and shift your coordinates several miles to the west. Humans are so silly; why do we do this?

Hope everyone has a great weekend. xo, Mary

*Post title courtesy of Groucho Marx.

9 comments:

  1. You should do a yard sale/giveaway for some of your books! (If you can part with them.) I promise to give them a loving new home. They'll have plenty of new brothers and sisters to bond with on my shelves.

    Good luck with packing! When's D-Day?

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  2. Being an avid reader, I tend to collect an abundance of books myself. It is hard to get rid of them, they quickly become favorites. Donating is always a good option. I like to pass one on that needs a new home to a special friend or family member with a little note tucked inside. Good luck!

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  3. There is an app for that!?

    Do you know if the library in your area accepts donations? They are the ideal caretakers, and that way your books will be useful to many people. :)

    (I think I understand what you say about PTSD: we got rid of almost everything two moves ago, and it took forever to rebuild our cache of furniture & useful things. A lot of tiresome shopping and considerations went into it —wouldn't want to go through that again for a while.)

    Good luck!! Where are you moving to?

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  4. When it eventually comes time for me to move out, I think I'm going to feel exactly the same! Just this week I walked into a Save the Children secondhand book sale ($20 for 9 classics - Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Fyodor Dostoyevsky to name a few of the authors I collected), and then tonight I walked into a second hand book store and came out with yet another book! It's getting a bit ridiculous, but they are just so hard to leave on the shelf, and even harder to part with.

    A yard sale is definitely a good idea though! When I give books away or sell them for cheap I feel ok about letting them to, like I'm giving somebody else the chance to experience something great.

    Oh and re: your comment on my blog, a spy camera would be so handy! What a great idea!! haha :D

    Good luck with the move and the packing! Rhi xx

    The Wildest of Dreams

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  5. Good luck with the move :) Doesn't sound like much fun, but it's a good way to get organized again :)

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  6. Ha! That image is great. :) We really need to move within the next year but I'm terrified. Good luck with everything this weekend!

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  7. Isn't it funny how trying to get rid of clutter we clutter ourselves with digital crap? I wish you to decide quickly and efficiently. It's worth keeping books!

    Hope you have a light move! Keep us updated!

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  8. This pic is great! ;)
    Good luck! ;D

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  9. Omg... that email newsletter website is JUST what I need. Made my day. Good luck with the books! I'm probably going to be moving at least twice in the next year... one time being this weekend and it is such a pain!

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