This is something that I do quite often. I’m an overachiever, for sure. My mouth is full again, and that’s why I’m finding what’s coming up hard to swallow.

I got this Festival of the Books thing going because the wheels would not stop turning. And now I am having a hard time keeping up with the cart. Today I got the books that are going to the general public boxed and ready to go. I cut the lids off so readers can access them more readily, and I put signage on the front of them.

It is amazing – the books are salvaged and sorted – categorizing them is what makes them marketable. Like books are grouped together. As I categorize, I remember what Steve Brown, the former executive director said about readers – he said that they enjoy cherry picking; that is, looking through disparate books and picking the ones they like. I could not disagree more. Book shoppers have specific interests, and they like specifically homing in on what’s before them.

Home repair books

This is why Bill and I are so judicious about monitoring the bookcases.

On Friday, I’ll move the boxes over to Turkey Red, and Saturday morning the staff will get the books onto tables and set up the chairs. I am hoping all this will be done before 10 a.m. when Bill Schmidtkunz, Book Project volunteer extraordinaire, is scheduled to read.

This is what is now giving me reason to pause. I am going to both have to do the introductions and hang out at the donation table. Is it possible to be in two places at once? I am going to find out. I might just have to grab a kindred spirit and have them sit at the table and tell people what’s going on.

I have been losing sleep, mostly because I have been thinking about the details of this event. There is just too much for me to do. At this point, the best I can do is just be efficient and as organized as is humanly possible.

Maybe no one will show up. Readers will then read to one another. That might not be so bad. There would then be no performance anxiety. And at the day’s end, we’ll just load up the books and in a few days get them on bookshelves.

Right now, the fact that temperatures are in the negative single digits, is also making me anxious. Today it was -7. When it’s this cold, I become less flexible, both mentally and physically. Add to this the darkness. The morning and evening chores, done while wearing a headlight, are more difficult because I then tend to move more slowly.

I have never before seen it this cold so early in the winter season. What gives? Well 20 F is going to seem balmy. But then it will snow again.

Whoa is me. Tomorrow Sarah Welton has surgery.

Next: 318. 11/17/21: Ho Hum