Blame Dinosaur Comics!

I heard about Book Mooch via Dinosaur Comics yesterday, so as part of cleaning house, I listed a bunch of books I need to dispose. (Mostly ARCs, which I refuse to resell and aren't appropriate for the alternative high school I donate to, or weird stuff that the used bookstores won't take.)

Apparently, my books are hot. So far I've only mooched one, but I'm shipping eleven. At this rate (about $2.50/book for shipping) I won't be able to AFFORD book mooch. And of course, my wishlist is obscure. Mostly things I can't find at a nearby library, including recs from some of you. (Although I am picking up a copy of Letters to Alice..., which I'm giving to Marla for her birthday along with Lessing's essay on Austen. Consciousness raising, my ass. How dare she think it was better to live in Jane Austen's time? Without having read any Jane Austen.)

I'm in serious clean out mode, and not just because I'm expecting guests Tuesday. Sometime over the past few years I realized that books are just objects, not friends, and for the most part replaceable. I've sold a lot of my books, given away more, and still they keep coming into my life!

In addition to the BookMooch pile (which is pretty lame in my opinion, I actually listed a Care Bear coloring book, which is why I'm weirded out that people want them), there is the pile of books I need to read, the pile that are waiting to be Given*, and the box that goes to the alternative high school where a friend of mine teaches.

*Marla once introduced me as a Book Psychic at a party. I'm not sure I've forgiven her for trying to make a party trick out of a gift. I wouldn't call myself a book psychic, but I do have a touch for 'reading' people and making decent recommendations. (For instance: you can spot Bloomsbury people a mile away.) Most of this (and other spooky action regarding personalities) I chalk up to being extra observant. (I also have a theory that those of us who grew up with Difficult Families have acute sensitivities because we grew up reading the 'weather' around our homes. It's a sort of compensatory/survival technique, and believe me is not worth the price.) But occasionally I get strong feelings about particular books; currently I've got a pile of about a dozen that are supposed to be Given, but I'm not yet sure where or when.

There are also one or two that already have a destination, should I ever bother to see the person, or send them. Occasionally, I think of these books as my hostages, an excuse to contact a person, should I ever need to, even after the relationship has grown distant or strained.

For the record: I take hostages, but I rarely lend them. Most books I give to people I don't expect to see, again. If they find their way back to me I'm always happy to see them a frequently lend them to someone else.

This summer there was a hostage exchange; I'm still holding two Clint Eastwood movies in lieu of a relationship.

Weekend...

Friday I inadvertantly went drinking alone. This is how it happened. I ran into my bartender in costume. He recognized me and said, "Come on over to the party, have a drink on me!" and voila! I end up at this beer-fueled bash, one of the only persons NOT in costume (but dressed in my aviatrix outfit, so I still kind of blended in) and ended up surrounded by men telling me about their trucks and baseball.

The funny thing about this party: the cowboys were all dressed as pirates. And the non-cowboys were all dressed as cowboys. And there were one or two 'white trash' costumes that amused me because the people who were wearing them weren't exactly stockbrokers to begin with.

(Oh yes, and the Germans were all dressed as cowboys (or showgirls), except for one guy who came as Disney's Snow White. We did not have any German's dressed as Mexicans, however.)

Saturday and Sunday were spent cooking, cleaning house, and listening to the game. (For those of you who were NOT aware that the Rockies, my home team, went to the World Series, they got swept by the Sox who have officially lost their underdog status and now deserve to be hated as much as the Yankees. Some teams buy their greatness. Some earn it. Just because the Rockies lost the World Series doesn't diminish what has been a fantastic season.)

My yard isn't a total wreck, though it still needs some weeding and raking.

And I've read a lot of books this week, but I can't figure out when, or why so many. Usually when I'm reading like this, it's a sign that something is not quite right.

Ah, yes. I suspended my netflix account to save money. I've been reading in the late-night slot when I usually watch movies.

Something nice about today...

I almost forgave 'Quantum Cow is now a post office' for taking over the Gift Box when the owner gave me a free Darth Vader head filled with Halloween candy. It's sort of like an easter egg, but shaped like Darth Vader's head. It made me laugh, even though her juxtoposition of Darth Vader heads as a attention getter for UNICEF donations was a little odd.

I also bought a 'gummy rubber chicken' there for my brother's xmas stocking.

Haven't you always felt sorry for the kids with UNICEF boxes who aren't allowed to take candy from strangers?