dagblog - Comments for "Heirlooms"

Thanks. And no, no, I

LisB — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 23:58:52 +0000

Thanks. And no, no, I didn't see any judgment in your comment at all. You just reminded me of how lovely libraries can be. This is the one I visited a lot as a kid and it happens to be in Tarrytown, where my new office is. So, if I'm able to find a studio apartment close enough to the office, Warner may just end up being my library again. I wouldn't mind that in the least!

My comments only meant to

wws — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 23:43:27 +0000

In reply to Excellent point, WWS. Though

My comments only meant to share my own experience, Lis -- fwtw. Not meant in any way as a judgment about anyone else's choices ... other than that I made, to Donal, as a gentle comparison to greater imperative vis a vis healthcare or whatever.

You have a new job, for which I congratulate you; you've earned it and then some.

Excellent point, WWS. Though

LisB — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 23:27:55 +0000

In reply to That's what I used to say,

Excellent point, WWS. Though I have to admit a lot of my books were bought from book clubs where you buy six or seven at discount in order to join the club, and a lot of them are paperbacks bought for me by others who thought they knew my reading taste, but didn't. Those books I will happily donate to the library before I move, yes. They make up a good 50% of my collection. The other ones, however....I can't give up. Not yet.

My sister is amazed that in the seven years I've lived here in Pelham, I have never gone to the library. Never obtained a library card. All my life, up until now, getting a library card in whatever new community I moved to was paramount. It was one of the first things I did upon moving in. I don't know why, this time around, that changed, but I can assure you that when I move next spring I will be getting a library card wherever I end up. I miss the same things you mention in your comment above - the requests, the searching....even the plastic jackets and the way they crinkle under your hands. The hush of a library, the whispering, the rows and rows and shelves and shelves of books....yeah, I miss it all.

That's what I used to say,

wws — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 22:54:49 +0000

In reply to You can have my books, "when

That's what I used to say, because I believed it, Donal. So I recognize and value your point of view.

However, would you keep your books until they are pried from your cold, dead hands if, by selling them, you were able to afford one month of critical healthcare for yourself, or for your wife or for anyone you hold dear?

All is relative.

cmaukonen,The joys of

trkingmomoe — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 22:50:37 +0000

In reply to Ah downsizing. If it were not

cmaukonen,

The joys of Florida. I set my stuff out on Sunday afternoon so all the pickers can have it carted off by night fall and what is left get picked up by trash on Monday morning.

You can have my books, "when

Donal — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 22:39:13 +0000

In reply to There's a middle ground to be

You can have my books, "when you pry them from my cold dead hands."

There's a middle ground to be

wws — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 21:43:01 +0000

In reply to Heirlooms

There's a middle ground to be desired in this downsizing business that has very little to do with "market value."

I lost most of the material things I had acquired (paying for them myself) to Hurricane Ivan. Big things, small things; didn't matter. What I did hoard was at least half my books, paintings, plus the things I had inherited.

Times toughened; I realized that in the things I had inherited, I still had, ironically, some things of "market value" although I had kept them as things of "family value."

So I sold those -- recognizing them, anew, as sources of independence. I felt remarkably free, thereafter. Yet still I hoarded some boxes of books and paintings and a few pieces of sculpture and the odd thing, worth nothing, that had sentimental value based on its association with life experience.

I still have some of those things. Because, curiously, the big freedom came from giving up my books.....GASP ..... Why?

Why? Because now I am free to enjoy the public library again that was so much a positive part of my childhood and adolescence. The search, the ability to reserve, to request, the relationship with a librarian who, wherever, wants nothing more than to sponsor READING.

The only down side? Of course, no allowance for margin notes, no tolerance for turned down tabs on pages worth revisiting; rather, it's now back to Post-Its and the discipline to type in passages that seem to have relevance or meaning. Sometimes I turn in a book and then realize that there was one, or two or three references I wish I had captured before the book's return. But hey -- the library lives to serve.... and so any good librarian -- and they are everywhere -- will reserve the book again, and again -- as one of the great government services of our culture.

Go ahead. Downsize. Keep what matters. When you really think about what that means.

I do 90% of all of my own

chucktrotter — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 20:28:17 +0000

In reply to Ah downsizing. If it were not

I do 90% of all of my own repairs and construction. When I need hardware, parts or material, I must make a 50 mile round trip in order to procure what I need. In order to avoid additional trips, I usually purchase more items than I require. I have a full three car garage with material on shelves and items hanging on nails. I am, now stacking things on other things. Finally, I placed plywood floors across my rafters and started storing stuff up there (Not recommended as the garage was not built sufficiently strong for excess weight across the rafters.)

Over the past few years, I have become the last descendent of my immediate family. I have been responsible for the the disposition of my loved ones possessions upon their demise. All of us were, basically, blue collar and own little of value. As I went through the homes I became aware that one person's treasure is , basically, so much junk once one has tipped. I guess one could have yard sales, etc., but why go through the trouble when the buzzards offer a penny on the dollar? Now, I realize that I'm in the process of smothering my wife with the same conflicts that confronted me (She's 8 years younger than me.)

Damn...All "my stuff" is so critical to my sense of well-being!

I have a standing invitation to winter in a two-bedroom condo on the beach in Puerto Rico. Won't accept the offer because my wife is still working and I wouldn't have access to my "stuff!"

Very perceptive, Oxy Mora.

LisB — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 16:16:55 +0000

In reply to LisB, nice post. I know the

Very perceptive, Oxy Mora. And isn't it incredible that even facing such an awful situation firsthand, your neighbors choose to vote against their own best interests. Amazing.

Excellent questions, Gregor.

LisB — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 16:14:48 +0000

In reply to I'm not a regular commenter

Excellent questions, Gregor. Thanks for adding to and enhancing my post.