So Many Books, So Little Time

I read a news story the other day about a woman in Saskatchewan who is trying to save her house. The house is under duress because it contains a collection of 350,000 books. The very structure of the house is threatened. The foundation is sinking, the walls are collapsing, and the roof is falling apart.


The vast library is the problem. The books are too heavy--the weight about 60,000 tonnes--and the house cannot stand up under the weight. In fact, the woman had to buy a second property with a hosue on it in order to store the books.


The collection had belonged to a neighbour. When he died, the plan was to burn the books, some of which date back to the 1700s. Shaunna Raycraft came along and bought the entire library for $823.


Some of the books were donated to charity. Some were given away, but about 225,000 books remain. Shaunna's life has changed direction: she is now a single mother of three. Her ex is wanting to liquidate the family assets. What will become of the books that Shaunna saved from flames seven years ago?


Once again the books are headed for a bonfire. July 7 is the deadline date. Unless someone comes forward, to the flames they will go.


To most of us, the idea of burning books has overtones of 1984, repressive governments, and new world orders. Have books lost the importance they once had? Are there better ways of getting knowledge?


I'm not sure what the answer to Shaunna's dilemma is. There is something awful about the idea of burning books. I have been a book-lover all my life. I myself own many books, probably only about 1,200. I have books in every room in my house, and one room devoted to a library. I am hardly one to give advice about gathering books.


I am, however, on to something new. I am "plugged in." I have downloaded many free books onto my new Kobo reader. I am enjoying NOT buying books that take up space on a shelf.  I am working towards freeing myself from the weight of books. I'm not doing anything in a hurry, but I am thinking towards the future.


Who will want the books I have? How can I make my collection smaller?


Letting go. Maybe that's the problem. It's time to let go of some things.

Thinking about Trains

I took a walk last night. It was a beautiful warm evening, and the sky and the few fluffy clouds were rosy by the time I left the house. The walk had two purposes. First, I needed the exercise, which brings "earned calories" to balance the calories I consumed at a fast-food place with my family! The second purpose was to find out if I could multitask while walking.


Of course, millions of people listen to music on their iPods or other listening device while they walk, jog, or run. Some people have a friend to walk with and so can carry on a conversation. I wanted to find out if I could read and walk at the same time. If a 45-minute walk could equal 45 minutes of reading time, how great would that be!


I set out with my new Kobo e-reader in hand. I had just started Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Arthur Conan Doyle. His clear thinking and explanations appeal to me. I set the font to a fairly large size so I would be able to keep my eye on the words as I walked. Indeed, it was not difficult at all to read and walk at the same time.

Past the park, around the corner to the east, turn north then east again--I even made an extra loop so I could continue reading. When I came to the bypass road just south of the railroad tracks, I heard the whistle of a train. I could feel the thunderous vibrations in the road. Standing and waiting for the train to pass, I thought of how many times as a kid I had counted the number of cars as trains sped past. Sometimes, I couldn't keep up with the train and lost count of the cars. As the triple lights of the engine came into view, the whistle blew again. I smiled and waved as hard as I could even though I couldn't see the engineer because the silhouette of the train was backlit by the glowing sky in the west.

As the train passed, the whistle blew two short sharp blasts to say "hello!" to me and acknowledge my wave.

There is something thrilling and satisfying about the deep, sonorous sound of a train whistle as the engine and its cars rumble past. That train was going slow because of the near-by level crossings. I didn't lose count; there were 23 cars.

Even though I've lived here a long time, I wondered where the train had been and where it was going and what it was carrying.

There is always a mystery about trains, but to be acknowledged by the driver of that great beast was somehow very satisfying.

Almost Done!

We are slowly rolling to the end of the school year. Three days this week and three and a half next week, and then we're done till the end of August!

I find that no matter how much I love teaching and how much fun I have at my job, when the end of June approaches, I'm glad.

Some students have already gone home for the summer. Some take a few days here or there to travel. Let's just say attendance has been a bit spotty lately.

Tomorrow, we have something fun planned. One of my classes is coming to my house and we're going to make banana bread. I've picked out the recipe, checked for all the ingredients and can almost smell that delicious smell pervading my kitchen.

It should be a great afternoon. We make some banana bread and some memories!

The Rabbit Whisperer

I'm learning lots about rabbits. I have a friend who breeds rabbits. Now he's introduced the idea of keeping rabbits to my grandkids, and today is the day! Inky, a female, who will have her second litter in about ten days, is being moved to her new home.

The kids are very excited. We went on Sunday to pick out the rabbits they wanted. Noah was smitten by a black Silky. She (we think!) is very soft and very calm. Noah held her in his arms and she didn't try to squiggle away, like many of the others. He informed me that rabbits can be trained to sit, stay, come, roll over--like a dog! Who knew?

In addition, he has to think of a one-syllable name because, apparently, although they are smart enough to be trained, one can't overload their brains with a two-syllable name. I suggested "Breeze" but was told that it had to be a four-letter name. I'm not sure how the rabbit could tell the difference between a one-syllable six-letter name like Breeze and an ordinary one-syllable four-letter name, but the name Breeze was definitely rejected.

I think Noah is going to be the rabbit whisperer in the family. He's already proven his training ability with the dog. This is just the next step.

Sunday, June 17

The first sound I heard when I woke up this morning was rain on the roof. It was really raining hard. When I looked out the window, I saw that the U12 (Under 12 years old) soccer team was out in force on the school--rain or shine, they practice and play. They are dedicated. The only thing that calls off the games is lightning.

I pull out my binoculars and easily spot my grandson: blue team jacket, bright yellow socks, fluorescent orange soccer boots. He's running for all he's worth.

Those kids are learning valuable skills. How to be a team member. How to work together. How to have a goal (pun intended). How to yield to one another. How not to take the glory for themselves. How to be good sports, win or lose. How to do their best. Give 100 per cent.

These are not just soccer skills. These are life skills. Organized team sports can be a training ground for Life itself. It's not the only training they need, but it covers a lot of learning outcomes, as they say in the educational system.

Can kids learn these life skills without joining organized sports?

Of course they can, but soccer is an intensive training course.

It Is Never Too Late To Make a New Start!

No excuse! There is no excuse for not blogging for five months. So I won't tell you how busy I've been, how lazy I've been or any of those other things that are tumbling through my mind at the moment. All I'll say is that this IS a new start.

I'm dog-sitting again this weekend. One good thing about having a dog is that it gets me out and gets me plenty of exercise. Last week, I was minding a large dog. I walked him before work. I came home on my lunch hour to walk him. I walked him as soon as I got home from work at the end of the day, and then, around 9:30 at night, he'd look at me with those big brown eyes, put his head on my lap, and then, I'd have to walk him again. That's okay! It was a personal-best week, with more than 120,000 steps. I'm closing in on that number this week, too.

That's what I've been busy doing--getting in shape. Seriously! Since the last week of April, I've been signed in to myfitnesspal.com. What a great tool. It seems that during the winter, during those cold winter nights when I was sitting in front of my computer, I was eating . . . anything, everything. It was Out of Control. Or maybe I should say eating was In Control--of me! A friend introduced me to myfitnesspal.com and although my goal was not a large weight loss (only 10 pounds), the web site, which helps me keep track of calories and exercise, at the very least made me aware of what I was eating. Even better than that, I've already lost 7 pounds. So I'm nearing my goal. Just being aware of my intake has been a huge step forward.

In other news today . . . I am now "plugged in." My daughter and her family gave me an electronic reader (a Kobo e-reader) and I am on my way to shedding those thousands of pounds of books that occupy one of thirteen bookcases in my house. It's time to pare down. I've already practiced downloading a couple of free books and exploring the fine features of my Kobo.

I'm preparing for an exam, so I'd best stop procrastinating and get writing those remaining essays. This was a warm-up.

I'm writing again. I'm happy.