Less Stuff - 2016 Update

My last update was over a year ago. So I decided to check in.

Books - I recently donated six tote bags (various sizes) to my library. The bin was about a fourth of the way full. Once I was done it was more than halfway full! Whoops! LOL! I should have snapped a pic. This purge was my "let's get real" purge. I may do another small purge before the year is out. I'm making an effort to read some of the print books I haven't read. I've gotten so used to reading on ereaders and my phone that I don't like reading print books anymore *sigh*. Some books are so awkward to hold especially since I read on my bed,

Clothes - I think it was a few months ago I donated two huge trash bags of clothes. I also tossed items that needed to go. I plan on doing another once over in my closet before the weather gets cold. Now I'm to the point where I have items I do like but a lot of similar items. For instance I have quite a few maxi dresses. I like all the ones I have and the fit fine. But there are some I reach for more than others. So do I get rid of the ones that I do like and wear but not as much? Then I'm kind of at a transition work wise. Where I work now, I can pretty much wear whatever I want. I've been looking here and there for a new job. So I don't want to purge a lot of say my more business causal clothes, if I end up somewhere that I have to "dress up" more than I do now. Then I have some items that I wear for certain activities that I need to keep on hand even though I don't wear them often like suits and some dresses. For suits, I have always wanted a three piece grey suit for the longest time but have never gotten one. So I may look for one. If I find one I like then I may get rid of the other suits I have with maybe the exception of one green one I have. I may do the same for some dressier dresses I have. I may keep two or three and get rid of the rest.

Handbags - *gasp* I know right lol! I've always pulled some to give to family and friends. I was watching one of my favorite YouTubers Jennifer Wan and she mentioned that she was going to sell some stuff to thredUP. I was said bwah?? So I went over to their site and they accept clothing items and accessories from various brands. I've mentioned before that I don't have the patience to try and sell stuff through eBay or Craigslist. So I checked the brands they accept and Dooney & Bourke is on the list. They also send you a packing envelope to mail your items. So I have some bags and accessory pieces pulled aside to send to them. Less expensive bags I'm planning to sent to Change Purse. They accept purses and their efforts help raise awareness and help victims of human trafficking which I think is a totally awesome concept.

Nail polish - I had post a video on Instagram Stories of some of my nail polishes and had gotten a couple of comments from a couple people that I know that really irritated me. I deleted the video. They go away after 24 hours but I didn't want to be bothered by other's comments. One said I should be embarrassed. I know she was "joking" but I didn't find it funny. Anywho. I don't know what to do with nail polish I'm ready to let go of. Most places will not accept used nail polishes. I've given more than enough away to family and friends. So I'm drawing a blank. I know I could just toss them. I may check and see if it's ok with my hairdresser if I bring some to my next appointment and just leave them in her shop and ladies can take what they want and she can trash what no one takes. *shrugs*.

Makeup - this is forever ongoing *sigh*. I think I was watching one Jennifer Wan's vlogs and she was mentioned how she was seriously going through her makeup collection and blog selling items that did not absolutely love. Now she's a totally makeup /shopping girl so I know her actions were not on decluttering or downsizing her stash. So I got inspired to go through mine. I got rid of a TON of lippies. Then while Google searching on what to do with used makeup, I came across the site Glambot. I remember Jennifer mentioning that she sent some makeup to them and from what I remember her experience with them was good. I did search on some reviews for Glambot. The "bad" ones I ran across were from people mad about the amount they got. They felt it should have been more. One review I ran across was sensible and was like look keep an open mind. They are providing you with a service and you're not going to get "full price" for an item. Which makes sense and I'm fine with that. I just want stuff gone and if I can get a little something for it then cool. They provide you with a shipping label which I like. Whatever they give you for the makeup first comes as a credit to use with them to shop and I believe after 14 days you can get the cash. If you're not satisfied with their offer then you can get your stuff back.

So I'm still chugging along. I'm happy with the progress that I have made but still have a ways to go. Hopefully I've given you some ideas on what to do with items that you're ready to part with. I'll follow up on my experiences with thredUP and Glambot.

Onward and upward!

October 2015 Top 5 + a book bonus

Happy Halloween!

I hope everyone has had a fantabulous October.

A quick update to my Makeup Geek pigment rant. I got an email on the 12th saying that my order has shipped. I was like say what now??? I looked and it was the order that had the Kaleidoscope pigment. So I emailed them and said, hey I haven't ordered anything and what is this about? I get a response saying that they were sending my replacement empty jar. Nesssaaaaa girrrrllll I was fit to me tied! I responded back saying I did not want the empty jar and that it's pointless since I have lost half of the product. I get a response to that email the 13th apologizing for the miscommunication and that a full replacement of Kaleidoscope was coming to me. I was still skeptical after all the hoopla. So I waited to see what would actually show up. I got the order on the 16th but did not get a chance to open the box until the 19th. It was a replacement of the pigment. The sifter was separate from the actual pigment which I don't mind since I think it was the culprit in the first doggone place. I may transfer the product to the empty jar I ordered from eBay. So I'm glad that they made this right and replaced the product. The handling of the situation overall leaves a lot to be desired. I still don't plan on ordering any additional pigments from the company. I'm undecided if I will purchase anything else from the company in the future.

Ok enough of that! Here's my top 5 for October and a book bonus!

LaFemme Blush in Bordeaux

This has been my go to blush since last month. It's just an easy shade to wear and goes with just about any look. It reminds me of Mac's Raizin. They could be cousins.

BH Cosmetics Forever Nude Aqua Gloss

I've been eyeing these glosses for a while and I finally ordered two when they were on sale for $3. If I didn't like them then I wouldn't be crushed since they are inexpensive. I picked up Cinnamon Stick and Chai Latte. These glosses are fantastic! They remind me of MAC Lipglasses but better! I've never been a big fan of MAC Lipglasses but I do have some that I like. These have a vanilla scent similar to MAC but they are not a sticky as MAC. They apply nice and feel good on the lips. They  are very brown girl friendly nude shades.  I'm definitely going to pick up some more shades. My friend said you can practically get stuff for free on Black Friday since the deals are so good. *patiently waits*

Fresh Cream Body Polishing Scrub

Once I used up philosophy's Living Grace Olive Oil Scrub, I cracked this open. This has been my Saturday morning treat in the shower when I wash my hair. The Fresh Cream scent in the body polish is amaze balls! This applies nicely on the skin and rinses easily. That's my one gripe with some body scrubs, some are hard to rinse off. I was all set to get another tube of this but recently found out that the Olive Oil Scrub in now available in Fresh Cream! I'm working through the last of Fresh Cream Shower Gel. This indirectly on my use up list.  As soon as I use it up, I'm ordering the Olive Oil Scrub. Woohoo!

Formula X Nail Polish in Beyond

This is another one of the Formula X polishes that I got at a ridiculously good price at Sephora Inside JcPenney. This has been my go to, midweek polish change. I grabbed it one day because I didn't know what I wanted to change my polish to and instantly I was like ooooooh. I wore it I think 3 times this month and I really don't want to put it away. It applies easily and smoothly on the nail. It's dark teal color. If you can find this shade, I highly recommend that you pick it.

Urban Decay Naked Smoky Palette

I already knew I was going to add this to my stash but I was going to wait until November during a promo/sale. I ended up exchanging an item for it and I think all I had to pay was $30. So not bad. I knew I would like palette since I like the Black and Smoked palettes. I reached for this palette more than the two BH Cosmetics palettes that I pulled out to play with for the month. I've seen complaints about it being too dark. Yes, you can go dark but you can do some simple everyday eye looks as well. To me it's an easy palette to use. I was going to take some Bobbi Brown shadows with me on my work trip next month. I think I may take this palette instead and some Mally shadow sticks. This is another item that I highly recommend.

Book Bonus - Ramsey/Tesano Series by AlTonya Washington

Ok I'm cheating here but I had 6 items this month and I wanted to talk about all 6 in this post lol! I had mentioned in one of my book lovin posts, that one of my book goals was to get caught up series that I fell behind on. One series is the Ramsey/Tesano series by AlTonya Washington. I had read most of the books in the Ramsey part of the series but hadn't read the Tesano books of the series. The Ramseys are in the later part of the series as well. I decided to reread the series and then tackle the newer books. This series is so intricate, blink and you could miss something. As I was rereading, I did remember most of it but I did forget some parts. So it was nice to have a refresher. This series has a bit of everything! I'm talking mystery, suspense, intrigue, murder, love, and so on and so forth. I can't wrap my head around how AlTonya crafted this series! There's one more book due out that will end the series and then there's supposed to be a book on the Tesano Elders. I'm currently on a Lover's Control. If you looking for a series to get into or new author to check out, then check on the Ramsey/Tesano series and AlTonya Washington!

Not too bad this month. On to November! November??! Jeez!

Book Lovin - The Time Has Come

Some earlier pics from when I started purging my print books.

I think I'm ready to do my FINAL purge of print books. I was talking to friend earlier this week and she talked about making the transition from print to ebook for some of her books. So you know it got me the thinking again about my book mess.  I went on Amazon to see if I could return 2 print books from a series that I'm reading, but I'm past the return period *sigh*.  I've talked about my "dilemma"/issues with print books vs ebooks back in July 2013. I'm revisiting it again since I'm still in my declutter/lightweight minimalism phase.

This whole thing is taking up a good chunk of my mental space. So I think over Memorial Day weekend I'm going to tackle what I'm hoping to be my final print book purge. Then I'll see what's what from series and authors that I've slacked on and go from there. I probably will make some good old fashion lists in a notebook I have.

My friend also mentioned that she misses the reader that she used to be and I was like YESSSSSS!!!! Ugh! There were months that I would read like 10-15 books like it was nothing. Reading was fun and not a chore like it is now. It was also a release, form of relaxation, an escape from the day to day grind, so on and so forth. So I just gotta be serious and have a come to Jesus meeting with the print books that I haven't read. Deep down I know that I will probably never get into them. Then I'll tackle the ones I've read once and have no desire to read them again. Shoot they're taking up space for the GOOD stuff. That's prime real estate...ha!

This whole thing makes me want to bang my head against the wall repeatedly! :D But it must be done!

*ends ramble* :D

TTFN - Ta ta for now!

Book Lovin: 2015 Non-Fiction Reads

Here are my non-fiction reads for 2015!

Forbidden Fruit: Love Stories from The Underground Railroad

I picked this book from a African-American book store during a book event featuring on of my favorite authors. I got this a long time ago and never read. I'm always up to read anything about black history.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

I picked this up from a bookstore in Portland during a work trip in 2013. When I got home I gave to my mom to read. She enjoyed and she read it no time. I had heard about what happened to Henrietta Lacks and it struck a nerve with me. So I wanted to read this book.

Dreams from My Father

Once President Obama was elected, I went out and purchased several books he authored. I think this was his first book.

Steve Jobs

I picked this up based off of a recommendation from my boss. She loves all things Apple and Steve Jobs. Our office is a Mac shop. I do like my iMac. I "claim" to be lightweight anti-Apple lol.

Nellie Quander, An Alpha Kappa Alpha Pearl.

And we have a bonus book! I originally said I was going to pull out 4 books.  Fancy I know. I bought this book in 2008 during our Centennial celebration. I have a ton of books about my sorority. Some I have read a while ago and some I haven't read at all. So why start with this once. Along with black history, I love reading about women's history as well. This encompasses both.

Let the reading commence!

Book Lovin - 2015 Reading Goals

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

Well this thread didn't get a lot of love this year lol. I only read 53 books this year. Which is down from last year. In years past, I would set a goal of how many books I want to read. Not sure I'm ready to do that for 2015.

Last December I posted my reading goals for 2014. And well yea...I had good intentions. I did tackle my wish list but it needs some more work.

I have gone through my books again for the year. This time there was no wishy washy going on! I have a bag now ready to donate. I have my "library" on a spreadsheet and I would like to inventory my books. Especially since I feel like some books are MIA.

I saw a reading challenge floating around on Facebook that made me go hmmmm. One of the items was read a non-fiction book. I was going to try and read one non-fiction book a month. Now I think I may aim to read one a quarter, ending up with 4 for the year. I may go ahead and pick them out and I may do a post of them.

Then talking with one of my book loving sorority sisters, I realized that I am behind on a lot of series books that I have started. I was like oye vey! So I am going to try and get caught up on those.

Also I'm going to try and take advantage of the library bit more. Mainly borrowing eBooks. Borrowing print books from the library sometimes gives me the hebejebes lol. Some people are trifling with how they handle library books!

Doesn't seem like much but I think this is doable. It's enough to not get overwhelmed.

Let the reading begin!

Book Lovin - 2014 Reading Goals

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

I'm such a nerd right lol.

Anywho....for 2013 I read 80 books. Not bad. I was messing around creating my reading spreadsheet for 2014 and a few random things popped into my head (like they always do) on how I wanted to tackle my reading for 2014.

• I am going to limit myself from rereading books unless it's for a series that I need to refresh my memory on. A lot of the time if I can't decide what to read, I'll end up rereading a favorite book. Nothing wrong with that but when you have a crap ton of unread books then well yea, it can be a problem. Now if I do end up rereading something, I'm not going to beat myself up over it. Keyword here is try.
• Speaking of series books, I have quite a few that I've only read the first 2 or 3 books or none at all. So I need to incorporate at least one book into the mix each month. Or for shorter series books, read the whole series in a particular month.
• I also need to review my wish list for book purchases and update it accordingly. Some of these books have been on my list for a while now. If I haven't picked it up by now then it ain't gonna get picked up. Or look and see if my library or the Kindle Lending Library has it.
• I donated 343 books to the library. I also gave some books away to friends in 2013. I still have a good amount of books left (both read and unread). I am going to make an effort to pull from the unread books that I have. I think maybe come the summer of fall, I will go back through what I have and maybe do another purge of the unread books that I haven't gotten to.

I think that's all for now.

Book Lovin: Attachment to Books

I think I stumbled across this blog post via Twitter (Breaking The Sentimental Attachment to Books). I was like how fitting since I am currently going through the process of purging my books. I didn't think it would this hard but it so is! It has been HARD! Some books I was able to go through and put them into the "to go" pile instantly without any issues. Other books not so much. Some I won via giveaways, some I got from the authors personally and they signed the book(s) for me...I could go on. It got to the point I got so frustrated with this process that I stopped. But then I got mad because I'm tired of looking at all these books. Also this process is taking me away from the enjoyment of reading.

I did follow some points from the post. I did get rid of most of the multiple copies of books. Keyword being most. I didn't "write down" my thoughts on each book, that would take forever. For the "questionable" books they did get some extra thought to help me decide if it was a keeper or it was going. This last batch of books I showed no mercy. Also I do realize that this is a process. I plan to go through stuff again, do another drop off and then do a "final" purge for the year around Thanksgiving. Then I'm just going to leave it alone for a while and see what I actually read. I'll revisit everything again in 2014. If I keep this current process up I'll go bonkers.

I found this on Instagram and this pretty much sums up my dilemma.

I just have to realize that, no I can't read everything by everybody. I have some identified favorites authors and heck try keep trying to keep up with them is a task within itself. I need to figure out a way to keep track of books that I just want to read but not necessarily buy. My library does let you borrow ebooks and have borrowed a few. So that's a potential route.

I'm far from becoming a book minimalist. I don't think I could get down to only 20 books like the author of the blog post. But then again I don't want to end up like this lol!!

The struggle continues...

Book Lovin: So We Throw Away Books Now?

At the halfway mark woohoo!!! Remind me never to do this again!

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

I stumbled across this article from The Washington Post on Twitter (Fairfax County library revamps system, discards books, reduces librarians). Needless to say I was shocked and appalled! Especially since it involves my county AND I have been going through my books and donating them to the library! I showed this article to my boss and she was shocked as well. She has also been donating books recently. A cousin of hers has worked within the library system in another Virginia county. She asked her about it and she said that this is typical process called weeding that all libraries do. She all said that the public has no idea what libraries do with books that are not circulated. Typical of what we truly don't know what goes on in our various levels of government, public agencies, etc.

Again I was shocked. With all the natural disasters that have occurred here in the US, and the schools and libraries that lost all their resources...hell even school systems and other programs that are struggling with limited funding and resources, y'all are just going to throw books away! Wasting taxpayers money too!!? I know that they can't hold on to books forever, but there has to be a more responsible way to purge books and not just throwing them in the damn trash. I heard that a town hall style meeting was held and that this issue among others highlighted in the article were addressed. There was a high turnout. I'm glad that residents showed up and showed out!

Just sickening. Makes me leery to keep donating books that I'm purging from my collection. I have three bags sitting in my trunk now. I will take those but I may look into organizations that actually have a NEED and will  DO something with the books that I donate! Plus as someone who have utilized the library in my county since middle school, I am not pleased with all these yo-yo changes. Then to read this article...smh.

Book Lovin: The "Series" Trend

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

Ok soooooo...before the explosion of ebooks, I know authors would do a series. But I feel like authors didn't drag them out (in some cases) as they are doing now in the ebook world. The e-serial seems to be a new "popular" trend. Some of them are so "bad" you have authors selling a few chapters at a time. Having the price ending up being more that a doggone print book!

This trend makes my azz itch! A bunch of times I'll run across a free book or on sale for 99 cents and it turns out to be an e-serial with 4 or 5 books. I'm like come on now! If it's the first book that's offered up as a "deal", I don't trip as much. BUT when it's like the third of fourth book, I'm like really....REALLY! In some cases you may luck up a find a series that you don't necessarily have to read from book 1. But that doesn't happen all the time.

Hell even larger "traditional" series books are working my nerves! What happened to authors writing trilogies and quartets?! *sigh*. There's only so much you can draw out a series before it becomes redundant.

*sigh* and *ends rant*

Is it just me? I've had this conversation with one of my book lovin sorority sisters and she feels the same way.

TTFN - Ta ta for now!

Book Lovin - Book book vs ebook

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

Yes I said book book lol. No but seriously as an avid reader the whole physical book vs ebook has me going in circles!!! I purchased a Nook Color as a graduation gift to myself in 2011 when I finished up my Masters and I love it. I love the ease of reading on it in terms of adjusting the font size, the back lightening and even the ease of accessing a book (which can get you in trouble since it is so easy lol). I'm debating if I want an Android tablet or a Kindle Fire (another discussion for another day).  I also feel that at times, I read faster on my Nook Color vs reading a print book. Of course that depends on the story at hand. If it's good I can read through a print book like it's nothing. From previous book related posts, I'm sure you have gathered I own a lot of print books. The dilemma now is, do I buy the print version or the the ebook version? Some books I have are part of a series or are from authors that I had purchased the majority of their books in print. My "collector brain" is like of course buy the print book. But in some instances the ebook is cheaper and I don't have to worry about finding space for another book. So that part of my brain is saying buy the ebook. Then there are occasions when an author will do special pricing on a new release of  book in ebook format.

One thing that makes my azz itch is when the ebook is the same price of the print book!!! I'm like are you kidding me!?!? That mess needs to stop! I've read various things were it is being "worked on". We shall see *insert eye roll* There have been times that I want to buy the ebook but it pisses me off to pay the same price for it as the print version. I may sound crazy but I'm not alone in feeling this way. I have talked with other book lovers who are facing the same "dilemma". Having an ereader or tablet was supposed to make things "easier" but now it seems to be making things more difficult when it comes to book buying purchases So I'm still at a loss lol. Readers what do you say? Anyone else facing this "dilemma"? Do you prefer a physical book or an ebook? Is there a happy medium? Chime in!

Take the Passion's Prey Pledge!

(Courtesy of acarthur.net)

Calling all readers! For those of you that like paranormal stories, check out The Shadow Shifters Series by A.C. Arthur. She is one of my favorite authors. Ms. A.C. can write ok!! Book 3 in the series is out today! She is doing a contest along with the release. So check it out and Take the Passion's Prey Pledge today!!!!

Limit Reached...

There's an interesting declutter vlog series that pinksofoxy, a YouTuber I follow started doing. It's called "Less Stuff, Less Stress". She's in the process of decluttering and reorganizing a lot of her stuff. She's already on 3 part. It's been interesting to watch and has refueled my efforts. Within the last few months or so I've been in the same mindset of trying to reorganize items, getting rid of stuff and focus on using what I have.

Clothes and shoes are never a big problem. I go through my closet and gather items to donate often. I've tackled some of my less expensive handbags and given those any to family and friends. The more expensive ones I've started. I'm going to try and see if I can get a little something for them. If not then I will contemplate giving them away. Beauty stuff wise I think I'm at a "good" place and I want to reorganize my stash.  There are a some items I am contemplating on that have been released with holiday collections that I more than likely will purchase. But I'm being very particular on those items.

Come January that's it. I will only repurchase items that I need to repurchase once I use them up like primer, eyebrow stuff, etc. When it comes to bath and body stuff, I'm kind of over it. All I need is a shower gel and body lotion and that's it. No more special scented lotions other that the ones I'm trying to use up. I have perfumes and body spritzes that I want to use up, so I need something that they can mesh with. The holiday season is the best time for beauty buys so I will try to hold out for that unless it is something super duper awesome that I don't already have. I've also been looking at various items to help reorganize my stash. I think I've found a drawer organizer that just may do the trick. I was looking at one of the acrylic on eBay but they were more expensive that this. So I was like spend less and get something more substantial. Hopefully I can get it in month or so.

As for books, I've gotten rid of some but there's still a lot to go through. It doesn't help that most of them are in storage. I'm going to start bring some of them home so that I can continue the purging process. This will be an ongoing process for the next few months. The battle continues with actual book purchases and what to download on my Nook. I've peeped the library a few times but the books I brought home just sat and I didn't read them. So I'm going to try to firm up my book buying habits by January also.

So onward and upward! I have other things that I need and want to do, so it is time to refocus my energies on other things. I don't want to be stressed or frustrated over the things that I have. I should be enjoying them without issue! It ain't that serious. So it's time to get stuff in order and that's that!

Stay tuned...

I think I'm a hoarder...

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

Ok sooooo...

I'm in the process of purging some books. I'm an avid reader and at one point I was buying up books like crazy. I still have authors I purchase books from but I have slowed down considerably on book purchases. Then when I was in grad school I didn't have time to read like I wanted to. Now that I have the time, I'm kind of  "overwhelmed" with trying to get through the books I have.  It has kind of taken the joy out of reading. I'll sit and contemplate what I'm going to read next. I stare at books or think on what I want to read and come up with nothing.  This sense of  "being overwhelmed" can be said with other items I have.

Now I know I'm not as bad as some of the people who do appear on the show Hoarders. I do frequently give stuff away, donate items and pitch things. At times I feel it isn't enough. I shouldn't feel overwhelmed by the items that I have. Don't get me wrong I am very fortunate and very blessed to be able to  purchase the things I want. I guess I'm getting to the point of asking myself is it too much? Are you enjoying these things or  are they burden of sorts? I guess I'm in downsize mode and instead of it being a liberating process, it's kind of stressing me out.

So I guess I have an inner hoarder/pack rat... -____- Well I want her gone! *stomps foot*

Book Lovin - Rediscovering the Library

Ok back to our regularly scheduled blogging. Sorry for the tangent. It happens. Anywho...

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

I read an article on Huffington Post about earlier this week titled "Wasting Money: 29 Ways To Stop Throwing Away Cash".  The article didn't highlight anything new for me.  It reinforced some things.  Number 8 on the list was "Buying Books".  For a book lover like me I was like well then hmph! *arms crossed* But I do get the author's point.  The author indicated that she is an avid reader and hadn't paid full price for a book in years.  Well alrighty then.  She highlighted the library, book swapping services and going to garage sales to check out books.  I will say in the last few weeks I have rediscovered the library.

This week I've checked out 4 books. Two were items I placed on hold which I love doing.  I get an email saying the books are ready for pickup.  Now they have hold items where you can get them yourself.  They also now have self checkout.  So it's an easy breezy process.  It wasn't bad before when they were behind the checkout area and the librarian had to get them for you and check you out.  I'm sure the new process had to do with budget cuts and how to streamline certain processes.  The other two books I stumbled upon when I was browsing the new books section.

My county also has e-book borrowing which I've tested our recently.  So it got me to thinking that maybe I should check out my library more often.  For newer books this will work. I might not be so lucky with older books but we shall see.  I did notice for some of the popular titles you'll have to wait for them.  For one book I was going to place a hold for there were already 300+ people ahead of me!  I was like yowza.  Also I noticed on some of the newer titles they are nonrenewable and are limited for check out.  Typically you can borrow a book for 3 weeks and can renew it up to 3 times (unless someone puts a hold on the book).  On some of the popular titles you can only borrow them for two weeks.  Which is plenty of time but you just have to be prepared to read the book when you get it.  So overall the library ain't half bad.

Now I will say I have some favorite authors and I will still buy their books because they are my favs and I don't wait to wait on the library.  Or be restricted to a time limit.  And of course if I like the book then I want to keep it for my collection.  So for the remainder of 2012 I'm going to try and be more discriminatory when it comes to my book purchases.  The hope is that this will help me not spend as much on print books and ebooks and help me get through the many books that I already have.  Oye vey lol!

Book Lovin - I'm so behind!

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

I am so behind in my reading!  Some my favorite authors I'm behind on and that usually does not happen.  I'm behind on several series books.  I have books on the ereader that I want to read or new ones I want to download.  I have some books that I got out of our storage unit and brought home.  It's already June and I've only read about 33 books so far for the year.  Oye vey!

I've started purging some books that I know I'm not going to read.  Around 2005/2006 I went on a book buying craze on sites like half.com, sellers on Amazon, eBay, etc and the bargain/sale section at Barnes & Noble and Borders when they were still around.  I did find out that the place where I donate clothes and shoes to takes book donations.  I was like excellent!!!  Was going to take them to library but I know they only take so many books per visit.

Now I'm trying to figure on how to get "caught up".  Doubt it'll really happen but I need make heads or tails on this some kind of way.  In the past I would list whatever books I'm going to read for the month on a spreadsheet.  Yes I track what I read from month to month.  I told y'all I have a lot of books! (And have nerd...I mean intellectual bad ass tendencies).  LOL!  I may do this again and try to stick with it.  It works for the most part unless something comes out that I really reallllly want to read or if I get the urge to reread a book.  I'm going to make a go of really sticking to it for the rest of the year.  Let's see how this goes....

Book Lovin - Still in disarray

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

So I'm in the process of moving some books around and trying to decide what I want to read next.  I have a few books that I will be purchasing soon (ebook, hardcover and possibly paperback).  As I move books from my bookshelf to a bin under my bed I pull some books aside to get into today.  I do have a spreadsheet with a catalog of my books, a spreadsheet to track my current reads and I use Shelfari.  As I go to add one book to "reading now" on Shelfari I see that I have already rated the book.  I was like bwah??!  Sure enough I had already read the book! *head palm*.  I'm still somewhat at a crossroads with some of my books being with me at home and rest being in storage. Grrrrrr!  Hopefully this will get sorted out next month.  Or at least the process of getting everything sorted out can begin next month.  I'm trying to hold off on purchasing some books I already have in ebook form.  But I'm also frustrated by not have access to my books.  When I do get into what I have in the storage unit, the plan is to give some away to other avid reading friends or donate them to the library.  I don't have the patience to do the eBay, Amazon thing.  Again we shall see. Stay tuned............

The trials and tribulations of an avid reader...

(Courtesy of Microsoft)

Ok mini rant --- since our abrupt move (which was a while ago now but a move is a task enough when you plan for it.  worse when it just happens) we had to put some stuff in storage.  I put the majority of my books in storage but I did keep a few out and I have been buying stuff (of course).  Now 3 books that SHOULD be on my shelf are m.i.a and I got reaaaallly frustrated last night!  I'm kind of in re-read mode plus I have some other connecting books that I have the most recent book at home but the book before it that I haven't read is in storage...gah!  I have a Nook Color which I love.  Halfway tempted to just get it on my Nook buuuutt yeaaaah....Ok I'll shut up now *end rant*