Good Gawd, what was I thinking?

[Stinky The Clown]

We're getting all new floors in our home offices next week. I spent the better part of today packing things up in preparation for the disruption of moving all the furniture, desks, filing cbinets, computer work stations, etc. Most of today was involved with packing boxes, pretty much as if to move.

Our offices have, as part of the "ambiance", our collections. Sparky collects old books on etiquette, charm, beauty, sex and mores, and physical culture. She also collects books on classical music and dance. In the end, we decided to leave her library alone and not do the floor in there. It was just too much to consider moving it all. There are over 50 feet of bookshelves, five tiers high.

In my office, I have glass display cases full of watches and fountain pens. I put the pens into plastic bags. They look like cordwood the way they're packed. There are easily a thousand pens; likely many more.

What were we thinking when we acquired all this stuff?

[grasswire]

1. hoarder!

(sez the person who has 12,000 pieces of sheet music, thousands of postcards, god knowz how much ephemera and about 50 vintage tablecloths)

Call yourself a preservationist or curator. That'll feel better.

[Paper Roses]

2. You are a member of a specially chosen group whose job it is to

preserve and protect all the great goodies from the good old days. As I say to my kids, "you may not think this stuff is very interesting but it is all here for a reason."

It's good memories, nostalgia, fun to look at, great story material, dust collectors, research requiring stuff.

It is also the culmination of years worth of fun. The search, the find, the enjoyment.

I don't apologize for any of my "stuff". I just shake my head, smile at the memories, polish, wash, dust and put it all back until the next time.

[Stinky The Clown]

3. Actually, the dusty old books led to something sorta useful .......

.... one of Sparkly's books.

[grasswire]

4. I must have a copy of that book.

What fun. I know someone who collects etiquette books.

[Kat45]

5. Sparky would probably love the book I found among my mother's possessions

It was in the bottom of a bureau drawer, under all the clothing, and it had been covered with a homemade paper book cover. I'm guessing she got it, perhaps as a gift, when she was getting married. The book is called "A Marriage Manual. A Practical Guide-Book to Sex and Marriage." It was written by Hannah M, Stone, MD and Abraham Stone MD, copyright 1935 (though this book is twenty-second printing). It even has a little tag in it that says "Old Corner Book Store, Inc. Boston - Mass."

I haven't had the opportunity to read the whole book as yet, but from a glance it seemed perhaps a bit more modern in thinking than I would have expected. I hope to eventually read it. I also wonder if it is collectible.

[grasswire]

6. you can find its value

...at www.abebooks.com, where booksellers sell used books. Be sure to use the advanced search feature and make sure you have the same printing and edition as the listing.

[Kat45]

7. Thanks. I'll have to check that out. n/t