English: Books on shelves at UWI Library, Trinidad and Tobago (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
We come into the world with nothing and we will leave the world with nothing. It is what we amass in the middle that is interesting. It helps if a couple likes the same things.
During the dating/mating ritual, Steve and I didn’t hang out at Barnes and Nobel because they hadn’t been created yet. We didn’t talk a great deal about books, but we both read, he more than me. Now, all these years later, we have many books. Every room in our house, except the bathrooms, have books.
We decided to go through our books and decide which ones we would take to Vegas when we move. I took about 100 of the extra heavy – coffee table type books – to the flea market. I sold 49 for $1.00 each.
The reactions of the people were interesting.
- Walk bys without looking. – A totally perplexing reaction to me.
- Why are you selling this book for only $1.00 – Because I am moving.
- You want $1.00 for this book.
- Do these books belong to you?
- I don’t read.
- I have no place for books.
- I already have that book.
- I’m too busy to read.
- You have nice books.
- Did you read these books?
The best book I sold was to a man who didn’t have a dollar. He looked at the book and really wanted it, but he said he didn’t have any money with him. I gave him the book and told him to give me the money when he could. I didn’t care about the money. I was happy the man liked the book. Later in the day, the man returned with a bag containing 100 pennies.
Fortunately the world is made up of many types of people. Those of us who love books are one type. I recently meet Angel Djambazov at SOBCon. He is very likable, but he became an instant compadre when I learned he and his wife have some 15,000 books in their house.
When I glance at our book shelves I can pretty much tell from a distance, the names of the books on a particular shelf. When our realtor glanced at our book shelves, all she saw was books. She suggested maybe we could put a few books away and to break up the view and add something for eye appeal . We did that on one unit and it works. She is viewing the books through a different lens.
When Catherine McKinney came to our house, she slowly glided to the book cases as if she was pulled by a magnet. Soon we were in conversation about many of the books we had both read. It was a delightful way to break the ice and get to know each other.
Just for the record, I do read books on line. I love Kindle and am thankful for the convenience. Nothing beats instant delivery when I get to the end of a book and realize the book I just finished is book one of a trilogy.
Google+ for Business was available on Kindle before the book was released. I was trilled to read it on line. It was the first book I read on my iPhone – another wonderful convenience. Although I appreciate Kindle technology, nothing will ever replace the feel of a book in my hands.
What is your take? Do you prefer digital books, paper books or both?
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Diane Brogan