I have a problem
16/02/24 01:58
My name is Ted and I have an addiction to purchasing books.
Before I go farther, however, it is important that I not make light of serious addictive illnesses and that I not mock Alcoholics Anonymous, whose 12-step process has provided a path to resumed health for millions who have suffered from alcohol and other chemical addictions. This is not my intention.
I do, however, have a serious problem. The problem is not with my love of books. One can support a love of books with regular trips to the library. And I do love libraries. I carry library cards from two library systems and I am a regular visitor to libraries. I check out and read books from the library regularly. The problem is that I also have a love of bookstores and of purchasing books.
I ignored the problem for years - for decades in fact. When we moved from Boise, Idaho to Rapid City, South Dakota we set a record for weight loaded into a box van of the moving company that did the hauling. We moved ourselves from Rapid City to Mount Vernon, Washington and from Mount Vernon to Birch Bay. As we did so we downsized in both moves. Before leaving Rapid City we gave away more than 30 boxes of books, and divested ourselves of roughly half of our bookshelves. You might think that such an experience would have taught me a lesson, but that is not totally the case.
I have become a bit less consumptive in my book habits since the move, although we did replace some of the bookcases we moved with new ones purchased from my sister that have more capacity and those bookcases are all full. When we completed our service as Interim Ministers of Faith Formation, the church graciously gave us a gift card to our favorite local bookstore and I accepted that gift as the generous gesture that it was. Five months later, I still have a bit of unused credit on that card. I am trying to discipline myself.
On my shelves are some really wonderful books waiting for me to read them. I am currently reading “How to Tell a Story,” a guide to storytelling from the producers of The Moth Radio Hour and Podcast. It is delightfully well written and a book to which I know I will return many times.
Waiting for me on the shelf are other books. “Between the Listening and the Telling” by Mark Yaconelli was included in the registration for a conference I recently attended. Mark is one of the most captivating storytellers and preachers I have ever encountered. “Feathers” by Thor Hanson is another book I had autographed by the author. Hanson is an incredibly detailed and rich naturalist and writer. His book “Buzz” was part of my inspiration to become a tender of honey bees. John Edgar Wideman’s “Philadelphia Fire” is a novel and winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award. I’ve been meaning to start that book for months, but others seem to have received more attention. “On Fire” is a collection of essays by Naomi Klein that combine a passion for justice with a love of nature. I thought that I might have read enough of Karen Armstrong’s books over the years, but “Sacred Nature” is such a prime candidate for the church library that I bought a copy which I intend to donate to that library as soon as I have read it. David B. Williams is a Seattle-based naturalist, whose book, “Spirit Whales & Sloth Tales” about fossils of Washington State was a recent purchase that delighted me.
I can’t say for sure how soon I will get around to reading those books because I confess that there are two books on their way to our home that I purchased online from a bookstore just over the border in Canada. “Hope Matters” by Elon Kelsey and “The Sacred Balance” by David Suzuki are books that I hope to have read before a major event hosted by our church in April.
It isn’t just printed books with which I have a problem, though I do confess to a definite bias towards reading books on paper with heft that I can hold in my hands. I have learned to travel with an electronic reader that allows me to carry extra books without extra weight. A recent trip prompted me to load several books onto that reader. “The Adversary” by Michael Crummy, “Church of the Wild” by Victoria Loorz, and “Two Women Walk into a Bar” by Cheryl Strayed are loaded onto that device, and as yet unread. Perhaps they wait for my next trip, but I believe that I will get around to reading them before that.
In my defense, my addiction to books did not leave our children wanting for food, or clothing. I did not spend the money for their educations on books, though I confess there was a phase of my life when over use of a credit card was a problem. I didn’t blow our retirement savings on books - at least not yet.
Common sense, however, might dictate that I at least refrain from purchasing new books until I have read the ones waiting for me on the shelf next to my recliner. I have vowed to find a way to donate a volume from our existing collection for each new volume that I purchase, but I have not kept up with that promise. I think I need to go through our library with serious eyes for books that we no longer need to own soon. Although a certain amount of book clutter is an interesting choice of decor and provides conversation with guests who come to our home, I don’t want our house to become so cluttered that it is not welcoming. Nurturing friendships is one of our retirement goals and we have a list of friends we intend to invite to our house for dinner. Each time we do that, we are delighted with the experience.
As the situation currently stands, I have not sought help with my book addiction. It hasn’t gotten serious enough for me to recognize it as a problem. It feels a bit more like an indulgence at this point. I don’t know if my family is talking about an intervention.
Before I go farther, however, it is important that I not make light of serious addictive illnesses and that I not mock Alcoholics Anonymous, whose 12-step process has provided a path to resumed health for millions who have suffered from alcohol and other chemical addictions. This is not my intention.
I do, however, have a serious problem. The problem is not with my love of books. One can support a love of books with regular trips to the library. And I do love libraries. I carry library cards from two library systems and I am a regular visitor to libraries. I check out and read books from the library regularly. The problem is that I also have a love of bookstores and of purchasing books.
I ignored the problem for years - for decades in fact. When we moved from Boise, Idaho to Rapid City, South Dakota we set a record for weight loaded into a box van of the moving company that did the hauling. We moved ourselves from Rapid City to Mount Vernon, Washington and from Mount Vernon to Birch Bay. As we did so we downsized in both moves. Before leaving Rapid City we gave away more than 30 boxes of books, and divested ourselves of roughly half of our bookshelves. You might think that such an experience would have taught me a lesson, but that is not totally the case.
I have become a bit less consumptive in my book habits since the move, although we did replace some of the bookcases we moved with new ones purchased from my sister that have more capacity and those bookcases are all full. When we completed our service as Interim Ministers of Faith Formation, the church graciously gave us a gift card to our favorite local bookstore and I accepted that gift as the generous gesture that it was. Five months later, I still have a bit of unused credit on that card. I am trying to discipline myself.
On my shelves are some really wonderful books waiting for me to read them. I am currently reading “How to Tell a Story,” a guide to storytelling from the producers of The Moth Radio Hour and Podcast. It is delightfully well written and a book to which I know I will return many times.
Waiting for me on the shelf are other books. “Between the Listening and the Telling” by Mark Yaconelli was included in the registration for a conference I recently attended. Mark is one of the most captivating storytellers and preachers I have ever encountered. “Feathers” by Thor Hanson is another book I had autographed by the author. Hanson is an incredibly detailed and rich naturalist and writer. His book “Buzz” was part of my inspiration to become a tender of honey bees. John Edgar Wideman’s “Philadelphia Fire” is a novel and winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award. I’ve been meaning to start that book for months, but others seem to have received more attention. “On Fire” is a collection of essays by Naomi Klein that combine a passion for justice with a love of nature. I thought that I might have read enough of Karen Armstrong’s books over the years, but “Sacred Nature” is such a prime candidate for the church library that I bought a copy which I intend to donate to that library as soon as I have read it. David B. Williams is a Seattle-based naturalist, whose book, “Spirit Whales & Sloth Tales” about fossils of Washington State was a recent purchase that delighted me.
I can’t say for sure how soon I will get around to reading those books because I confess that there are two books on their way to our home that I purchased online from a bookstore just over the border in Canada. “Hope Matters” by Elon Kelsey and “The Sacred Balance” by David Suzuki are books that I hope to have read before a major event hosted by our church in April.
It isn’t just printed books with which I have a problem, though I do confess to a definite bias towards reading books on paper with heft that I can hold in my hands. I have learned to travel with an electronic reader that allows me to carry extra books without extra weight. A recent trip prompted me to load several books onto that reader. “The Adversary” by Michael Crummy, “Church of the Wild” by Victoria Loorz, and “Two Women Walk into a Bar” by Cheryl Strayed are loaded onto that device, and as yet unread. Perhaps they wait for my next trip, but I believe that I will get around to reading them before that.
In my defense, my addiction to books did not leave our children wanting for food, or clothing. I did not spend the money for their educations on books, though I confess there was a phase of my life when over use of a credit card was a problem. I didn’t blow our retirement savings on books - at least not yet.
Common sense, however, might dictate that I at least refrain from purchasing new books until I have read the ones waiting for me on the shelf next to my recliner. I have vowed to find a way to donate a volume from our existing collection for each new volume that I purchase, but I have not kept up with that promise. I think I need to go through our library with serious eyes for books that we no longer need to own soon. Although a certain amount of book clutter is an interesting choice of decor and provides conversation with guests who come to our home, I don’t want our house to become so cluttered that it is not welcoming. Nurturing friendships is one of our retirement goals and we have a list of friends we intend to invite to our house for dinner. Each time we do that, we are delighted with the experience.
As the situation currently stands, I have not sought help with my book addiction. It hasn’t gotten serious enough for me to recognize it as a problem. It feels a bit more like an indulgence at this point. I don’t know if my family is talking about an intervention.
