I have to do this. It’s a necessary evil, a vital push towards chopping down this never-ending tree that sprouts books as fruit. I need to do this. Mantra! Lol.
For 2012, i’ve decided to place an embargo on my book purchasing—with two caveats: one, i have six get out of jail free cards, which allow me to purchase only six books throughout the year, mandatory school books excluded; and two, receiving a book as a gift is all right.
By my estimates, i have at least 300 titles (not too sure if my Shelfari or GoodReads accounts are current), and i would say maybe a third of them i haven’t finished or even started reading. Book purchasing is an addiction of mine: i love having more and more tomes, even as my space for them is dwindling almost daily. I cannot—yes, it is impossible—for me to walk past a street book vendor and not peruse the wares. If people believe my turning down an offered (free) drink is damn near unthinkable, they’ll know now it has a match.
I want 2012 to be a year of progression and productivity on several fronts. I know it will be too difficult to go cold turkey, and i also do not want to risk missing out on a great or rare find (i love first editions and worn titles). So, i think six books, which would equate to about one every two months, is a fair compromise.
There will be an accompanying section on this site chronicling my book collection and reading list. To create accountability and constant awareness for myself, i will review each title—or, at the very least, an aperçu of the book.
I’m toying with the idea of having a schedule, something along the lines of each month(s) dedicated to specific genres. But, then i know how my mind works and reading only one genre for an extended time without any mixing up will be mundane, definitely putting me in a dour mood.
This restriction will also help in my endeavor with designing and coding my first WordPress theme & plugin dubbed Scholar, which i hope to release by the final quarter of 2012.
Wish me luck and enduring willpower—i’ll surely need it for this book embargo. Oh, and some encouragement, too, would be great. Thanks!
Peace.
i am a life-long knowledge-seeker; writer; blogger; auto-didactism advocate; individualist; antitheist; web+graphic designer; WordPress manipulator; g33k; Brooklynite: human. And, just in case you're wondering why i don't capitalize 'i' throughout posts, except when starting a sentence, read thoughts of self: conventions of naming. A more in-depth "bio" can be found on the about page.
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4 comments
Stephy says:
Dec 24, 2011
Good luck!! Look into reLITNY.org free books. If you can part with any you have now, they take book donations as well.
macariojames says:
Dec 24, 2011
oh! thanks for that site–will check it out.
PearceHansen says:
Jan 22, 2012
@macariojames I know what you mean about reading: I’ve been a bookworm since I was a little kid growing up in Oakland. Did a little street time, and it was an in-joke in my circle that when we’d be prowling around up to no good, if we passed a bookstore they’d have to physically restrain me to keep me from going inside — still, a self-education is better than none at all, and the public school system sure didn’t cut the mustard.
That Kindle has changed the game for me. It’ll never replace books, but my library has dwindled from five bookcases at it’s peak to only two now, mainly first editions or daily-use-references. What the Kindle WILL damage-to-possible-destruction IMHO is the public library — the ereader is like having one in your pocket, you have untrammeled access to all the public domain stuff — the Library will increasingly be where the homeless go to snooze indoors.
Off topic: liked how you quoted TS Eliot & Emerson on Twitter, RTed both. I’m more a Robinson Jeffers guy when it comes to poetry; maybe it’s a Left Coast thing. And Emerson, he’s the man — he’s so friendly, reading him is like chewing on a mouthful of broken glass sometimes LOL.
Well, this got a little longer than I intended but there you are. Take care, eh?
macariojames says:
Jan 24, 2012
@PearceHansen i appreciate the comment! I ordered your book the other day, but haven’t had a chance yet to dive into it. I will soon, though!
I, too, love the Kindle, although i don’t have one of the standalone devices, i use the app on my desktop, laptop and ipod! It’s great when on the go, which i usually am on lol.
I’m going to check out the poet you mentioned, Robinson Jeffers; not sure if i’m familiar with his work or not. Peace!