465. Library Thing; Updates; Here and There

First, my apologies for being away. No excuses.

*****

I was reading my friend Bruce Maples' blog, appropriately reached at www.brucemaples.com. On his blog is a widget that caught my attention called a Library Thing, which I am sure is a copywrighted thing, so consider that said. Reached at www.librarything.com, it allows a person to enter into a database their library.

I have for years thought about cataloguing my library. I've rolled ideas around in my head as to how it would be done or not done, what categories to use, whether to try and numerically catalogue them as they would be at a library, and so forth. Although I have no idea how many books I own, my guess is there are nearly 3500, if you count the four or five sets of encyclopedias, some of which spell encyclopedia with an ae after the p. And the books are everywhere in my house, not just on bookshelves where they should be. The truth is I've never owned enough bookshelves to house them all. They are in boxes, on the floor, on the desk, in the bathroom, and more than a few are in my bed where I read two or three or four at a time, most every night before going to sleep. If that sounds boring as hell to you, it is. But it is also a most pleasurable way to wind oneself out of the day's work and into the night's slumber.

There is some trepidation at putting one's library titles out there for the world to see, for if there is truly an insight into a person, it can be readily discerned by viewing their library. It is a bad habit of mine upon entering most anyone's house or office to look around to see what books they own, how they are housed, and if they appear to be there for looks only. A bad habit, but one I will not give up.

So, here is this application and I've decided to put it to use. Although it won't be done systematically, as I rarely do things entirely systematically, despite some obvious methods to my modus operandi, I will enter the books and include the widget here on the blog (over on the right), such that any of my six faithful readers can link onto the widget and enter the world of Jeff's library. I'm rather excited about opening this door into my life for those on the outside to read. I've only entered a handful of books so far, and will enter others as time and willingness allow.

*****

Yesterday I attended funeral visitations for two deceased friends, although neither were close friends (they were both 94), they were people I've been around most of my adult life, especially those years I lived in Camp Taylor, which were 1982 to 1999. I knew one from the business her family operated, and the other from their having attended Bingo at my (almost former) church, and both were a part of the fabric of Louisville's Catholic culture, a culture I am departing from ever so slowly, but also ever so surely. At each visitation (at two different funeral homes) I encountered people I've known through my nearly 30 years as a Catholic. As most people do at visitations, we caught up on old times, laughed out loud at how we used to be, and complained about muscles and eyesight and getting old. And I'm only 48 - Damn. But these discussion were with people some of whom I've known since I was 18. Life does go on, and one can't really go home, and that is really a bitch to deal with. Melancholy can set in in a moment's notice.

*****

This weekend is the Kentucky Young Democrats State Convention, being held Friday and Saturday in Lexington. Along with KYD president Chad Aull, I will be conducting a workshop on Saturday morning with discussion focussed on demographics, registration, and turnout - numbers, numbers, numbers. There will be other workshops as well, and they will likely be far more exciting than mine.

*****

That's all for now. See you in Lexington.