Too fond of books.

I go through phases with blogging. A couple of weeks ago, I was really excited and typing up all sorts of drafts. But lately I just haven't felt like posting at all. I'm not quite sure why...I guess it's a combination of things: not wanting to spend so much time online anymore, wondering why I feel the need to write about such small and insignificant daily happenings for people to read about (sometimes it feels so important to me and then other times it just feels silly), and just life in general {not going into details, but one of my aunts is sick...any prayers for her and her family would be much appreciated}.

Having said that, I do have some older posts that I want to finish and get up soon, even if I'm not writing many new ones. And I have some crafty things to share. And I promise the bookbinding tutorial is still in progress. It's taking so long because that thing is a monster. I don't know if I went completely overboard with taking pictures or what, but the tutorial is so long that it will have to be divided into at least two posts, maybe three.

Anyway, on to a different topic...

Sometimes I think I am too fond of books. Sometimes I think that's impossible.

You may remember that one of my book-related resolutions back at the beginning of 2012 was to limit my book purchases to two a month. This is, honestly, one of the few resolutions that I have completely kept, 100%, so far. Here are the rules:

- Only books that I actually spend money on count. Giveaways, free books for review, books given to me with gifts or purchased with gift cards or store credit do not count.

-If I buy less than two books a month, I can carry over that to another month. I bought one book in March, so I could buy three in April (this works out well because if I order from Amazon, I usually have to buy two or three to get free shipping). But...I can not jump ahead and use up June's two books in May, etc. :) Or things could quickly spiral out of control.

-There are rare exceptions. Like super-amazing, once-in-a-lifetime thrift store finds or library sales. So far I haven't made any exceptions. But I believe there is a library sale this month...

Here's the thing. I love books. I love to read them. I love to buy them. I love to collect them and smell the pages (new or old) and touch the covers (I'm sorry, but I despise e-readers. Ew. I truly believe I will never, ever have the desire to own one). I know I'm a nerd, okay??

But...I don't want to buy them just to buy them. I don't want to have bookshelves full of books that I don't particularly like and probably will never read again. I want to curate a lovely collection of my favorite stories.

Up until recently, I honestly had a hard time getting rid of books, even if I didn't really like them. But this year I've been forcing myself to let go. To get rid of the clutter and get rid of books, movies, and records that I don't read, watch, or listen to. And guess what? It's sort of a nice, freeing feeling. :)

The best thing about this resolution is that I think out purchases so much more than I used to (books and otherwise). I think, do I really want this book? Is it worth one of my two purchases this month?

{I don't allow myself to do nearly as much book browsing as I used to. Sometimes I just have to avoid bookstores and the book sections of Target and Sam's because the temptation is too great. :) }

I finished this bookish cross stitch piece a few days ago. The pattern is from Pixy Stitches (some of their patterns are inappropriate, but they do have some cute HP and HG ones) and features a quote from Louisa May Alcott. The books took a ridiculous amount of time, mostly because they're so detailed and it takes a while to thread a needle for just a couple of x's in each color. I'm really happy with how it turned out, and now it's sitting on one of my bookcases. {I forgot to get pictures before I framed it, so sorry for any glass glare.}

Thank goodness the library is always there to feed my book addiction, free of charge. :) I got these last week.

 Are you too fond of books?

P.S. Totally unrelated to this post, but as a huge fan of The Andy Griffith Show, I couldn't not mention the sad news that George Lindsay, who played Goober Pyle, died a couple of days ago. I've never been a fan of Gomer, but I just love Goober.

I love his quirky beanie hat and the tire gauges in his work shirt pocket. I love the fact that me and my family always refer to ourselves and others as "goobers" when we/they do something that's not very bright. :) I even love his awful Cary Grant impressions:

Until next time,