Books, Books, and More Books

That's what my husband titled the two photos he took of yesterday's purchases.  He's right.  I had no business buying books when I have 50+ boxes of books waiting for shelves to be built.  They can't wait to get to their new home, or maybe I can't wait to have them there.  Why is it that when your books are right there, on the shelves or stacked on the floor, your bedside table, etc., you can ignore them for months, but when you can't see them, can't touch them, you need them?

If you've been reading my sporadic blog, you know that we've been moving since last October.  We bought a house just outside Lancaster, PA, where I was born.  We did some updating, some painting, and loaded the car with smaller items to move on each trip from Philadelphia to Lancaster.  In January, we put our Philadelphia house on the market and sold it in 24 hours.  Amazing and wonderful.  The sale closed this past Thursday, so we have cut ties with Philly and have become Lancastrians.

But there are still boxes and boxes of household items to unpack.  It's difficult to decide where things go.  Some are easy, but which drawer or cupboard is the best place for the bowls that seldom get used or the oversized utensils?  The blender doesn't fit on the counter under the cabinets.  Where can it live so it's available for the smoothies we plan to make?  I've been culling clothes and 'stuff' as I unpack.  I have two bags to go to Goodwill or some charity organization.  We've been stashing boxes in what will be my library, the guest room upstairs, and another room.  At least we can relax in an uncluttered living room, bedroom, and dining room.  But the boxes are waiting, or lurking.

We haven't used the stove or dishwasher yet, but I did laundry last week in the big, old washer and dryer.  I'm holding my breath because the dryer didn't roll the sheets up like cigars, one of my greatest frustrations with the new dryer we had in Philly.  I hope this one continues to just fluff up the sheets until they're dry.

Back to the books.  Lancaster Public Library has several book sales each year.  I saw the notice in the newspaper and a friend e-mailed me about the sale.  So, yesterday, Jack dropped me off at the sale while he went to fight with Comcast (no winners in that one yet).  I'm only in the market for paperbacks these days, books to read and pass along.  At the sale, they were $0.50 each.  At that price, I bought quite a few authors I'd never read, mostly mysteries.  I've never read the Peter Mayle book or anything by Richard Russo, so I'm looking forward to those.

I bought these books for Jack, hoping that, as an ex-competitive sailor who misses his boat very much, he could get a sailing fix from reading them.  In case the photo's too fuzzy to read, they're eleven books in Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and two stand-alones by the same author.  Truthfully, I've only read Master and Commander and am looking forward to reading the series, too.  Twenty-eight books for less than $15.00.  Really.