Book Shelves and a Pop Quiz

After several weeks travelling up and down the east coast of Australia I’ve returned home to a house where everything is covered in a layer of dust.

Think I’m joking? I had a friend over for a roast last weekend as we hadn’t caught up since before the beginning of my travels. A satisfying meal, a few vinos and lots of laughs – I thought it went well. Imagine my horror later when I discovered that my friend had left a smiley face in the dust on my sideboard. 🙂

(Pop Quiz 1: Is this an indication of a good friend or a bad friend?)

So this week I’ve been dusting in earnest. Ceiling fans, picture frames, and bookshelves. Welcome to Spring Down under.

( Pop Quiz 2: Why is it referred to as Spring Cleaning and not Autumn Cleaning when there is dust all year round?)

I have shared previously that there are many books in my life. Not on my bookshelves as they were given a good cleansing when I downsized nearly five years ago. Even did the old smudge stick trick. All manner of books do come to me though, some via friends and neighbours, some through sources who know that the Little Community Library in the local parkland is always in need of preloved books, and some because people know that I know who needs books and do try to locate forever homes for them. For instance, I have a box of military books that used to belong to an ex Kokoda veteran in my Guest Room to on sell to a military book collector on behalf of his daughter. I have a box of preloved Harry Potters for a charity in PNG, and there are 50 paperbacks in my garage waiting to be rehoused. None are stored alphabetically nor colour coded incidentally.

(Pop Quiz 3: My daughter colour codes her bookshelf. I was not allowed to take a photo as evidence. Question : WHY?)

Earlier in the year I did have 27 books in my To Be Read pile in my bedroom. Two piles really. These were books for Reading Challenges, Book Clubs, and that had piqued my interest but I just hadn’t had time to make a start on. There were books that had come highly recommended from girlfriends, award winning books, and even a “classic”.

My dusting frenzy means the TBR pile in my bedroom has dwindled to a paltry 3 books. Yeah, I’ll take the applause.

(Pop Quiz 4: So where the hell did this one come from?)