If you’d hadn’t known better, you’d have thought it was a fall day yesterday. Very, very cool and windy. A strange one day occurrence. This morning is still quite cool but it’s going to reach the 70s, unlike the 60s of yesterday. I’m going to head on out later this morning and pull the enormous amount of weeds that have popped up everywhere. It’s supposed to be sunny all day long.
This morning I heard a car honking and knowing that usually means animals are crossing the road, I looked out. There was Mom with two fawns. I thought there was just one, but there are two. One had taken off into the woods but a few minutes later, I saw all three of them walking in the back forty. They sure seem to like hanging out on our property. Stay safe, little ones.
What else? I filled three large bags with books, then redid that particular bookcase which is in the bedroom. All three bags were unloaded at the library. That’s a very satisfying feeling. For those of you who say you could never part with your books, know that if I had more space, I’d probably hang on to all of mine as well. But we have over a thousand books here. Here, in our little cottage, which also holds lots of furniture, 7 dollhouses, and 15 musical instruments. There is only so much space. When you’re faced with that, you know something has to go. I have a lot of books I would never part with. But I read a lot and there are many books that are okay, but once I’m done, I’m done. I can easily part with them.
And what is better than donating those books to my small local library? They’re a source of badly needed income for the library. I’ve also seen some of books end up on the shelves. Pass them on to another reader.
Time to make another cup of coffee before I start in on my weeding.
Happy Sunday.
i know sometimes they eat the efforts of hard, not-inexpensive work in gardens, but i still root for deer … and for people watching out for/getting to see them.
very nice of you to donate so many books. am sure they will be appreciated and enjoyed!
that brief list of things in your home speaks to much creativity and many talents there … all wonderful. :)
took care of laundry, morning dishes and plants and will soon be out the door. going for an early walk before church (on tv) and before it gets any hotter. supposed to reach 95 today and most of this week (not a fan).
happy, safe sunday to everyone.
kathy
95!! Not at all fun.
Stay safe, Kathy.
I am curious why you buy books rather than check them out from the library. I can understand collections you are keeping but the books you want to read and give away could be checked out from the library. Of course, it is generous of you to buy books and then donate them to the library so maybe that is your goal in buying so many books.
I am just too cheap to buy books and I check out piles of books from my local library. :)
I do both. I’ve written about checking out books from my library. Just returned two the other day. I don’t always know if a book I want to read is going to be one I’ll give away. We don’t go out to dinner. We don’t take vacations as a rule. Music and books are an important part of our lives.
If it’s a book I know I’m going to want to keep – and there are many of those – I buy it. Books are collectibles for me. I love nothing better than seeing them on my shelves. To me, they give a home heart.
Stay safe.
I love donating books to my library. When I moved the last time I realized I could not keep all my books. I still have some VERY full bookcases and of course keep adding books so another donation might happen sooner than later. I wish I could keep it all.
I usually do a yearly purge, Linda.
Stay safe!
Choosing which books to donate is hard for me, but I too run out of shelf space. I have mostly non-fiction so not everyone’s cup of tea. Our library much prefers donations of novels and I can’t blame them.
Weeding is on the agenda here too since it’ll be pleasantly 70-something degrees all day. Next week we’ll hit the mid 90’s so it’s now or never. This is turning out to be a weird spring with the temps all over the place. But we’ve had so much rain that our gardens and beds are thick with greenery. Watching my milkweed patch intently since we haven’t seen many Monarchs this year to date and that’s concerning.
Take care,
K.
It’s too early for monarchs here. My milkweed is growing profusely, but here, at least, the monarchs don’t start appearing until August.
Stay safe, Kay.
Oh how I wish I could visit your library after your donation. Books are meant to be shared and passed on. Plus I love to free up space. Our local library doesn’t even accept donations any more. Isn’t that ridiculous?
My favorite color of rose. Just beautiful.
Enjoy your cool weather. Very hot here in Florida of course.
I wonder if the library stopped accepting donations when COVID hit. Ours did. But they started back up about a year ago.
Stay safe, Kay.
Our library stopped donations in the early days of Covid because it was when everything had to be decontaminated, much like Goodwill stopped accepting, as was explained to me (by them), because everything donated had to be sanitized before letting the public go thru any of it; I never asked more about that; maybe it was those big foggers they had to use, like in airports or medical offices or I guess any building (have to put one’s head back in 2020 of how things once were; I don’t know if those procedures are still in place today [anywhere], over two years later). Of course people were locked down and nobody was going to the library itself, much less the sales in the back stacks, because IT was closed down. But the next thing I heard, on good authority, was that they had ‘way too many donated books even though they have a large space for them; they needed to catch up I guess (all that unpacking and sorting; they need a lot of volunteers). I haven’t seen anything in the local newspaper for a long time about Friends of The Library holding a sale (wherein, at one point in time pre-pandemic, it was a weekly thing). Unfortunately, I know of people who are getting rid of books because they just use their Kindles (or other e-readers) instead. My experience with the younger set is that they simply don’t buy books, or very few (go in their houses, no books on shelves, just framed photos on the shelves instead, maybe a plant, but nary a book in sight).
I recently read an online article (I probably said this before) about anything one might have of value at this older age of downsizing and decluttering; it said no one wants our books, our grandmother’s china or her silver/silverplate flatware, her crystal or our load of Christmas decorations or DVDs (as it’s not how people watch movies anymore); and, for our old vinyl, there’s only a very few of the old 33rpm/long-playing records that would appeal to a collector or the equally very-few record stores still out there who offer up the vintage stuff. I hear this over and over again from people my age who, when talking of their adult children or grandchildren, “They don’t want any of our things; they look at it all as a bunch of junk; they want to choose their own stuff, like art, decor and furniture.” It kind of throws out the whole idea of the return of Granny Chic, which some of us used to call Shabby Chic, but I have to think that there are still SOME younger people out there who appreciate the family ‘heirlooms’ and special vintage collections; something that catches their interest from the past. Would be wonderful, in my mind, if that interest included a nice hardcover book! On a shelf; with bookends!
Our library periodically halts donations and that’s because they have too many books on hand. It’s a small space, so I imagine storage is a problem.
Stay safe, Vicki.
Well done on the book donation. I’m pulling a bunch for resale — I know I’ll probably never read anymore Ruth Ware. I just can’t seem to get into her. And a few novels passed on to me that aren’t my cuppa, that sort of thing. I’m headed for the 900-page-plus “New York” by Edward Rutherfurd this summer and have a good selection of mysteries for when I need a “fix.” (Once I’m into a book it is one at a time!) Lie you, I need the space. And, as they say, “we’re not getting any younger!”
It’s lovely the deer hang by your house but oh, they worry me on that road!
I purposely started mowing early yesterday, so they wouldn’t cross the road from our property. I worry about them all the time.
Stay safe, Jeanie.
Two fawns! They do seem to like your property.
I am not a keeper of books. We have 1 large bookshelf and it is only half full. Some of those are professional books which we really should part with as we have both been retired for almost 10 years. I do keep books I might want to read again, but I rarely feel that strongly about a book. I hate to spend money on books…but no problem spending it on yarn, lol! I read mostly e-books through the library. If I can’t find a book I want to read that way I will usually be able to get it from the library in an actual book. Libraries are so important to communities. Most have special activities for kids, etc. They certainly can use and appreciate your book donations.
I should weed but I hate going outside. The gypsy moths are bad again this year. Actually, we are now supposed to call them spongy moths…I guess they might be offended by the name gypsy!
Take care
Books are my favorite item to spend money on – more than anything else.
Stay safe, Marilyn.
The Entomological Society of America (ESA), through their Better Common Names Project, has indeed given a new common name to Lymantria disbar… spongy moth. This new common name refers to the sponge-like egg masses that may be found on trees, outdoor equipment and vehicles in infected areas.
ESA press release about the remaining: https://entsoc.org/news/press-releases/spongy-moth-approved-new-common-name-lymantria-dispar?fbclid=IwAR0W1-fZzdNFTNdvRKqQ6fLV80fZSN__loGGsdg8H8hQFZKVB22DkIK9kJA
We received a cool-down overnight and a huge decrease in humidity. So very, very nice to awaken to low 60s this morning as opposed to high 70s. And we’ll stay below 80 today & tomorrow. Temperatures are forecast to creep upwards beginning Tuesday, summer solstice, and through the remainder of the week. I’ll be spending the remainder of today outside enjoying this break in heat & humidity… pulling some weeds, taking a brisk walk, and reading a bit outside, etc.
As others have shared, I need more shelf space too, and that means sorting through books and donating to our local library. Have a few books to return to the library this week, and will most likely take my “donation stack” at the same time.
Have a wonderful summer solstice week, and stay safe & well.
You too, Amy! Have a lovely week.
Stay safe!
I would love to see the deer! All we get here are coyotes and javelina, and the occasional ducks and quail. Also the hummingbirds are very entertaining.
I think that is great that you donate the books. I do miss going into the library and smelling that wonderful smell. We also have a store called HalfPrice books that we could spend hours in. That is where I got most of my decorating and gardening books. My PCR test came back negative, but I still feel like I have a bad flu. A little better today. Have fun weeding! I always find that is very calming to me. Just want to thank you for doing this blog. I always look so forward to reading it everyday. Take care!
Sorry about the flu, but happy to hear your test was negative, Deb.
Stay safe!
Two fawns….so cute! Glad they’re safe with mom! What another gorgeous rose, too! It always feels good to clear space, and donating your books to the library is a great idea. Our library has a yearly book sale for those who like to own some great books at a great price…a good fundraiser! I usually check out books from the library….but, I will admit I have a small collection of old Nancy Drew books…I just can’t part with them! I even read them every couple years… nostalgia! Enjoy your day!
I also have a collection of Nancy Drew books, Barrie.
Stay safe.
Glad you are donating…I had a habit of keeping 100 books…buy one…donate one…eventually when I moved into the condo…I gave all my classics to my grands…kept one author…my favorite…my Little House Books…a few others..maybe 20 or less…since I have used the library for most of my reading the past 20 years, it has not been a problem…I also read online for Netgalley…hundreds and hundreds…I always appreciated the fact that others could read the books I enjoyed…instead of sitting on my shelf, that book would be in the hands of how many? As a teacher, I saw the value of this…good for you…love the photo…
I’ve wanted to reread the Little House books for a while. I loved them so much when I was a kid.
Stay safe, Brenda.
You know what I love? Children’s books. And I have no kids in my life. Some of the new books for kids and teens are just stellar. I’ve recently had to buy for a 13-yr-old neighbor and I had a lot of fun perusing what to get for her. Maybe she’ll think it’s old-fashioned to hold a hardbound book in her hand, or maybe she’ll like that she has it all to herself (family of boys; she’s the only girl!).
We’re hot in SoCalif, for the whole darned week; was 102 degrees this afternoon (Monday); a furnace. I went out after dark to pick a rosebud I’d spotted earlier because the heat otherwise tomorrow will just fry it on the bush; this way, it can be in my house in cool water of a vase, servings its purpose to delight me every time I walk into the room.
So many people are suffering from the heat right now – in the Midwest, too!
Stay safe (and cool) Vicki.