I Am A Smart Girl

Don't get me wrong. I'm very girly. But I am also quite smart and very literary.


I just wanted to get that out in the open and make sure it was clear. I didn't want anyone to have any misconceptions after the revealing of my pink room.



I am sure there are people with more books than me. But I have a lot of books. We have five tall full bookcases and also a couple shelves in our library. Most of these volumes I have read, however there are still a few on my list that I have not gotten to yet. I look at them longingly...

I even have the wingback chair next to the lamp and table to sit and read to my heart's delight. The cats all tend to like to sit and read with me. Or at least to sit on the book I am reading.

My main problem is that I also love accumulating books. There is something in me that gets so excited at having a new book. Even if it's used. I don't know if it's materialistic or what exactly in me that enjoys this so much. I need to pay better attention this year to when the local library sales are. If any of you hear about any, let me know so I can put it on my calendar! One of my fondest memories as a kid was packing up brown bags with my mom at the library. It was like a dollar a bag for as much as you could cram inside. And boy could I cram!

When I was little, it took my parents a while to figure out that punishing me by sending me to my room just didn't work. That's where all the books were. The only punishment that ever worked (aside from spanking and soap-in-the mouth) was taking away my books. That really made me cry. I would read every where I went. When I was little enough I would sit on the very bottom of the grocery cart and read while my mother shopped. I could read while I did dishes or cleaned. Though I think I probably got in trouble for that too. When I really didn't want to do something, I'd take my book with me into the bathroom so I'd have a good excuse. "But Mom! I'm going!" I'd be in there for a half hour and they'd start to worry.

I don't think books will ever go out of style. I know people read the internet more than the newspaper now and that since the growth of tv, video games and other random diversions, that the hobby of reading has probably decreased. But there is always going to be something wonderful about holding a book. Creasing back a page, finishing a chapter, getting to the end. (And those of you who skip to the end--shame on you)

I hope I teach my kids --someday-- to love and read mountains of books. Mountains, I tell you!