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Thursday, March 19, 2009

Weeding, not reading

For the past five days, I have spent about ten hours per diem sifting through the lowest level of 40 years of accumulated dreck. I could no longer stand the dust and clutter in the library. I've been cleaning stuff out for ten years now-- how can anything be left? But there is. The funny thing is that some people in the building think I am getting rid of "too much". Yes, it would be so much better to have the shelves clogged with books no one will read.

Tomorrow, it's the tape recorder and slide projector cabinet. Really. Not even joking. This is what I have been doing instead of blogging and commenting on blogs. When I get home, I'm too tired from hauling books around to read. Next week I'll be back to blogging.

In case anyone thinks that I should not be cleaning, here are some things that I found.
  • Carbon paper
  • Microfiche boxes with "Newsweek 1975" dividers
  • A hosiery box from about 1965
  • Videos with teachers with Mike Brady hair
  • A Christmas tree and two boxes of decorations (I have time?)
  • 300 metal magazine files
  • Slide projector cartridges that are square-- no projectors
  • Another film strip projector
  • 8 mm film of "Brian's Song"
  • 200 blank cassette tapes
  • 60 remotes for a media retrieval system that doesn't work
  • A gold spray painted bust of King Tut
  • Plastic cases for 5 inch floppies
  • A 1963 Encyclopedia Britannica film on videotape: Taro: Boy of Japan
  • A box of Kleenex from 1974. The tissues have yellow flowers printed on them. Keeping that one!

3 comments:

  1. Lol, I enjoyed your list! Lots of random stuff there...

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  2. Anonymous8:31 PM EDT

    This is too funny and too true! Whenever you weed books or supplies you run the risk of someone being a bit too interested in what you're doing. But if you don't get rid of what's not needed, how will you ever have room for new stuff? I sometimes take things home and toss them out there, or wait until the summer.

    BTW, I love your blog and read it all the time.

    ReplyDelete
  3. It's amazing how much accumulated stuff there is, isn't it? And I agree - it never seems like there can be more, and then, there it is. I'm impressed with your sticktoitiveness!
    I tend to get worn down and give up after a while.

    ReplyDelete