It's crunch time for clearing out the clutter around here. Anything that belongs to someone else has to go home. Nor will anything that is not essential or that does not hold great sentimental meaning be making the move with us. Why?
These two books are outta here. It's not that they aren't interesting or good reads, mind you. In fact, I enjoyed the beginnings of both but that is as far as I got before reality kicked in.
The Zombie Survival Guide is a very serious-minded how-to manual for surviving real life zombie attacks. Reading it was a bit disconcerting as not one bit of tongue-in-cheek humor slipped through the cracks. I probably would have eventually finished reading the whole book but other obligations and books that took themselves less seriously interfered. This guide will be entrusted to a friend at my CSA who is interested in horror lore. Should zombies attack locally, I have her phone number and will contact her for advice.
The second book, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, was a loaner from a friend. I started it and was thoroughly enjoying it, especially since the humor does come through on the pages. However, I simply don't have the spare time to read it right now so I regretfully returned it to her this morning. As she is quite a fan of the classics, it's probably wise to avoid mentioning that I've never read the original version. (Does watching several movies based loosely on the tale count?) Someday perhaps I will have time to read the classics but not this year.
Sorry, folks, but this is no time for zombies. And quite probably there is no good time for zombies. I may be preparing for climate change, peak oil, and the possibility of economic collapse but I'm really not ready to start worrying about the zombie hordes on top of all the rest.
11 comments:
With my luck, zombies is exactly what will do us in, but in my heart of hearts I don't believe it, and I believe we have enough to worry about without being concerned about zombies and super flus ;).
I enjoyed I am Legend and I believe in the possibility, but I don't believe it would ever be a reality ;).
If I'm wrong, though, would you be kind enough to share your friend's number ... ?
Wendy - I think you're going to have to find your own regional zombie expert. Calling someone in Arizona for help at the last minute is probably not going to save you from the undead.
Haven't seen that movie yet, but might after we get moved. We've gotten spoiled in town with free broadcast TV. Rumor is only one channel - and a Mexican one at that - comes in up there. Maybe I will have time to read and prepare for the zombie hordes...
Well, you're definitely going to need SOMETHING up there -- if not zombies, maybe wind spirits -- it could be anything. But, if you see any zombies, make them help you move. At least, they won't complain!
Love you philosophy and I'm usually pretty good at following a similar thinking, but, when it comes to books, I'm really really bad and just can't seem to get rid of them. They're my friends...
I like your rules for deciding which things need to go. I have a lot of stuff to get rid of this year.
I can't say zombies are something I'm mad about....nor classics although I have read this one.
New meds are ok so far.......
viv in nz
Sharlene - we've had a number of people offer to help us move, none of whom seem to exhibit symptoms of zombie-ism. To quell the complaining, I'll just break out some of my homemade liqueur!
I grew up with lots of books - two walls of the living room were covered in bookshelves (full) from floor to ceiling from the back of the room to the front. I love books. However, books are heavy and after marriage, we ended up moving a number of times. Through necessity, we learned to part with books we no longer "loved or used".
Callie - that one rule covers almost everything you need to think about when de-cluttering. Just remember that it's okay to keep a few seasonal items that are only used once a year like the special ornaments for holidays. Don't get carried away there, but keep what's important to you and enhances your life. For more de-cluttering suggestions, scroll down on the sidebar to the challenges. There's a month's worth of posts on it from the "Cut the Crap challenge" - here's the index to all those posts. (This may move to the top 'pages' eventually at which time this link will be broken...)
Viv - glad the new meds are working! Naw, I'm not a zombiehead either; I just picked up the manual at the used bookstore as a lark since Sharon often refers jokingly to preparing for the 'zombie hordes'. And I have not read a number of the classics; when I was younger I had this stubborn streak and refused to read them simply because they were "classics". I read all the time, but not them. 'Course they're classics for a reason so perhaps I should check a few out of the library now...
Thanks Chili, for the "cut the crap" link. Last fall, when prospects were pretty bad for any financial improvement, and winter was a month away, we boxed up our 'stuff' and waited for the business bank to get back to us. They didn't bother until the snow began to fly. Over winter, things improved, and just yesterday, we began to move that 'stuff,' (some now covered with wet and ice) back in. No way we can live with that clutter again, so major give away and tossing is in order. (and we thought we did so much last fall! I get stuck in that "I might need this" headset.
Books are my big problem, too. I have a really hard time getting rid of any book I think has any merit in it whatsoever. And, having majored in English Lit, some classic are, well, stuffy, but others are awesome. I recommend Austen's Persuasion any day over Pride and Prejudice (and NO, movies don't count!) Off to do some decluttering of my own.
The zombie survival book sounds interesting, I've never heard of it before. Also, I think that seeing several movies about a book (!) is a valid claim to know what the story is.
I love you reason for passing stuff on or keeping it! :)
peace to all, Shamba
Congrats on the house! Moving is stressful. So much for me that I threw away what I could not sell before I moved. I only kept a few sentimental items, which were either mailed to me or my parents have been kind enough to hang on to for me for now. I was surprised at how unattached I felt the day of my garage sale. Whatever didn't sell just sat on a curb in Philadelphia and was gone in an hour. My stuff was now someone else's problem. Outside of some key cookbooks and kitchenware (which is tougher to replace than I thought), I haven't missed a thing. This may not work for everyone; too extreme. This is where Chile's philosophy can cut in and make it more manageable for those who think - no, I could never get rid of (fill in list of essential items you cannot live without). Now for me the trick is to not go back to accumulating so much stuff again that it feels like a burden once more.
Kathy - we experienced something similar years ago when we put 80% of our belongings in a shed while we lived in a 25' RV. When we unpacked those boxes after 2 1/2 years, we wondered why we ever kept some of the stuff in them. Great way to downsize!
Simple Poppy - yeah, it's hard to part with books, but....they are heavy and take up space. As it is, our bookshelf is full and I'm not sure we'd have room for another one.
Shamba - the movies did indicate the story line, but I do realize it's not the same as reading the original prose. Some day...
Carrie - oh no, I couldn't part with everything! However, we've parted with a lot and I can truly say that 95% of what we own now is used or loved (as per the rule). The remaining bit will be used in our new place or soon. :)
Now that we're planning to stay put somewhere, there is the danger of accumulating again...especially since we can now start scavenging and cruising craigslist for "useful stuff" that we haven't wanted to accumulate prior to the move. Ack!
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