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Books
Oct 23, 2008 7:55:57 GMT -5
Post by morningglory on Oct 23, 2008 7:55:57 GMT -5
When I posted to the the "How many..." thread, I began to realize that the area of books is one where I still experience hoarder tendencies. I recognized that I need to get rid of some books--probably can let go of at least 2 shelves worth (50). As I get going, I'll probably have a better idea of the number.
But I need help. I am having trouble with the whole idea of letting go of books. As I described in my other post, I am talking about things like 20-year-old textbooks, with outdated information, that I haven't opened for years and am not likely to open. I have this idea that things should be saved for historical value (I even feel this way about old checkbook registers and receipts). So, especially when it comes to my own profession, I want to hang onto these books.
On the other hand, I DON'T want to hang onto them, because they are taking up space that I need for things we really DO use. I even considered storing them away in boxes, but realistically, do I want to give over cubic feet to boxes of books that won't be read?
Here's how I'm thinking at this point--maybe pick out 2 or 3 books for "historical value", books that represent a good overview of the field, and boxes them away. The rest get dumped.
Then I also have books that are real classics. Those I want to keep, as I may at some point refer to them, for research purposes. Perhaps they could be boxed away, too? All clearly labeled?
Of course, I also have books about things like pregnancy and baby care. I want to save them both for sentimental value and for "historical" value, and also because they represent research into different philosophies. Oh, my.
Anyone who has dealt with this book sorting dilemma, please help!
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Blackswan
Banned
Joined: October 2008
Posts: 6,388
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Books
Oct 23, 2008 8:24:53 GMT -5
Post by Blackswan on Oct 23, 2008 8:24:53 GMT -5
I had a hard time letting go of books too, because each represented knowledge to me. I didn't want to need some information some day, and not be able to find it. But my bookshelf was overflowing, so I set out a box on the porch, and took the books out that I knew I didn't like/want. Then I called the salvation army to pick them up, along with ten bags of other items. The textbooks went, and the boring finance books, and baby books written in the seventies (before I was even a baby yet). The best thing I can think of to help is to remember that the internet is always going to be more current and easier to access than your old books, and books will all be in electronic format within the next ten to twenty years anyway. (Amazon Kindle, Sony Bookreader, etc. It's already happening!)
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Books
Oct 23, 2008 8:41:52 GMT -5
Post by AnnieOkie on Oct 23, 2008 8:41:52 GMT -5
blackswan wrote: "...and books will all be in electronic format within the next ten to twenty years anyway. (Amazon Kindle, Sony Bookreader, etc. It's already happening!)"
That thought actually scares me! I love curling up with a good book.
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Books
Oct 23, 2008 16:53:30 GMT -5
Post by margarita on Oct 23, 2008 16:53:30 GMT -5
MorningGlory, I'm a long time book hoarder, so I understand where you are coming from.
Books are magical. They are wonderful and they are so helpful.
But, quite often they become outdated and quite often it is just time to "let them go." All of them? NO WAY!
I have learned to let go of many books, and - amazingly, have not missed them. But, I also keep too many.
You have 50 books you are not sure of. That's alot of books to decide about at one time.
What if you picked 5 that you really don't want anymore and start from there? 5 is a nice number. Not too many at one time.
Maybe get rid of just 5 at first? Or even 3?
When I go through my books, I pull out the ones I don't thinkI want and put them elsewhere such as a closet or a box for quite awhile. Then, when I'm sure I don't want them I go through them again and get rid of some more.
I still have a big stack in my closet to go through in the next few weeks. So, I know how you feel.
But, I have managed to get rid of 100's of books over the past several years by doing it slowly.
Margarita
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Books
Oct 23, 2008 17:20:01 GMT -5
Post by messymimi on Oct 23, 2008 17:20:01 GMT -5
About 5,000 volumes in my house.
Some I read as a child.
Some are valuable collections.
This is my hardest area.
I only buy what I love and read.
I'm going to have to put the brakes on it.
I'm going to have to start trusting that the library will always have more. That if I really need one volume, I can find it with a used book seller. That the info is not lost to me if the book is gone.
I'll get rid of 5 in your honor, morningglory. It's a start.
messymimi
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Books
Oct 23, 2008 22:16:48 GMT -5
Post by morningglory on Oct 23, 2008 22:16:48 GMT -5
OK, Margarita and Messymimi! I'll try for getting rid of 5 books within the next 5 days! I'll let you know how it goes!
And, yes, I relate to all of the feelings and reasons for holding onto too many books.
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Books
Oct 24, 2008 1:47:34 GMT -5
Post by CaringFriend on Oct 24, 2008 1:47:34 GMT -5
I, too, am a book person. Rather, was a book person. I agree with your ideas of it being information, and although outdated, can be informative and/or valuable to someone. Long ago I went to a gigantic used book sale - to buy more books of course! While there, I saw people buying such old and outdated textbooks and books of all sorts. I talked with some of these people and discovered that some were doing research while others had a special interest in collecting books with certain information. This was all before the internet. My point is, if you can't use the books right now at this point in your life, someone else may be able to do so. But they won't be able to find that book if it's in a box in your house. I used to be of the mindset of "But this will be valuable to someone someday." Then through reading, I discovered that that is true, but how was I to match the book with the searcher? That's when I realized that I did not want to be a matchmaker of "things". It made donating so much less painful. Now I take books to my local public library. Then, when they have their huge sale of used books, someone finds my treasures!
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Books
Oct 24, 2008 3:50:21 GMT -5
Post by Arid on Oct 24, 2008 3:50:21 GMT -5
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Books
Oct 24, 2008 6:17:51 GMT -5
Post by morningglory on Oct 24, 2008 6:17:51 GMT -5
CaringFriend, as with the other book-hoarding rationales, I am very much with you. But also on the idea that I don't have to spend my life coordinating "things" with people. I actually have already applied this thinking to other areas of my life. I used to keep clothes and other objects around, waiting for the right person to pass them onto, at the right time. Finally I realized it holding me back from overcoming my squalor problems, so I just decided I would bag things up and give them to Goodwill and be done with it. I don't worry about the fact that maybe someone I know would have been able to use it at some point in the future. Someone will find it to use NOW. Actually, I even point out to myself that such things are more useful now than later, when they will have deteriorated more with time, become obsolete or whatever, and that clothing a child today is more important than maybe clothing some future hypothetical child.
Arid, I love those sites you posted! I may do those things to some extent, but I think I should first jump in and start getting rid of things in the quickest and least complicated way, then later explore those options in more depth. Thanks!
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Books
Oct 24, 2008 14:58:42 GMT -5
Post by hypatia on Oct 24, 2008 14:58:42 GMT -5
I'm in the same spot with books. I graduated from college 10 years ago, yet I still have the textbooks from the upper level courses in my field (and, of course, the notes that went along with them). I'm not sure why I can't let them go, realistically I know it is time to.
And paperbacks. Whew. I culled a lot of paperbacks before our cross-country move a few years ago, but I still have about 400. Right now I'm starting to get rid of the ones that I didn't enjoy and know I won't use again, so that's a start. But many of them are like old friends, I pick them up and read them again and again. We are on a pretty tight budget right now with not much room in it for new books, so I'm also listing some on PaperbackSwap. It's not decreasing the number of books I have, but at least it gives me some new ones to read without adding to my collection.
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Books
Oct 24, 2008 18:51:09 GMT -5
Post by Arid on Oct 24, 2008 18:51:09 GMT -5
Be advised that I, for one, will not be participating at bookmooch.com. After reading over all the "fine print" very, very carefully, I became concerned about some of their "practices." I had my resident "computer genius" take a look at it, and he concurred that it represents a HUGE security risk. Had I realized the extent of the risk, I never would have posted that link. It's a shame, too; the initial idea of swapping books is a fine one. It is the way that personal information of the users can be accessed via their computers that is an issue for me.
Sorry 'bout that!
Arid
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Books
Oct 26, 2008 17:37:08 GMT -5
Post by fluffernut - now Jannie on Oct 26, 2008 17:37:08 GMT -5
I love books. I love visiting bookstores and libraries. I have bookshelves throughout my home, stuffed with books. Over the years, I have had a few book clean-outs. I had such oddball items as "Europe on Five Dollars a Day" from about 1976, and my high school Algebra Regents review book. Who can travel on $5 a day? And when will I ever take ninth grade classes? I have a Masters, but not in math, teehee!
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Books
Oct 26, 2008 20:37:36 GMT -5
Post by scribbles on Oct 26, 2008 20:37:36 GMT -5
I have so many books I'm afraid to count them. I don't want to know exactly how many I have. But I did manage to let about 500 of them go over the past few years.
What I did was go to each bookcase. Then I counted the number of shelves in that bookcase. If there were 6 shelves, then I needed to weed out 6 books from the bookcase. Not one book per shelf, because I shelve the books by author and if the entire shelf was one of my favorite authors, I knew I wouldn't be able to get rid of any of them.
Every month, I would weed out the bookcases again. Three shelves in the bookcase? Three books needed to go.
I think this method worked for me for two reasons. One, I didn't have to make all the decisions at once. Doing the weeding over a period of months was easier for me. I could let the books a bit at a time. I think I would have been overwhelmed if I had tried to sort out which ones had to go all at once.
Two, by looking at each bookcase and figuring out which books could go, I was able to prioritize the books in that bookcase. The problem of which books to let go was broken down into little pieces. If I had tried to look at all my books at once, I would have been frozen with the enormity of the task. Looking at one bookcase at a time; that I could handle.
When I started, the books were pretty much disorganized. As I went along, I started to put all the mysteries in one bookcase, all the science fiction in another bookcase, etc. Then I made the decision that I would have one bookcase of mysteries and no more. I spent several hours moving books around to get all the mysteries in one place. And I realized that I had a 6 shelf bookcase, but 9 shelves worth of books. But I was able to prioritize which books I liked the best, which ones I would always be able to find at the library, etc., so I was able to give some of them away.
I also realized that while I have favorite authors and I have all their books, I don't like all the books equally. So I was able to let some books of some authors go, while keeping just my favorites.
I moved last year and bought three new bookcases to go along with the ones I had. None of my books are double-shelved anymore. But I have decided that this is it. I'm not buying any more new bookcases. If the shelves get full, I will need to release one book for every new book I bring into the house. I have bookcases in every room except the bathroom. It's time to admit I'm running out of space for more books.
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