Notes From the Dust Bowl

Here in the Dust Bowl life is getting interesting. Not only can you write your name with your finger on any surface in my house, but the scent that wafts through the air is Eau de Wood, a lovely smell unless there is immediate sawing going on, in which case face masks are strongly encouraged. I’m not really complaining – just whining a little – because I am so anxious to have it all done. We have the world’s nicest and best contractor, so I shouldn’t even utter one tiny negative thing, but the truth is, I WANT MY HOUSE BACK!!!! I want to be here all by myself screaming at the computer when needed, slouching around in my in pjs all morning if I want, and even lolling in the bathtub just before Eric gets home. There IS one  bright spot though --  the kitchen will be ours again this week. As I write this, World’s Best Contractor  is installing the new island and tomorrow the granite countertop is coming and then he will put up new pendant lights. After that we will still need to do a little painting ourselves, but we can at least scratch one thing off the list. And in six more weeks or so it will ALL be done.

Today I don’t really have time to worry about it though because I am preparing for three library talks and the first one is tonight. Remember back when I was doing publicity for the antiquarian book fair and signed up to give programs about collecting books and ephemera in the digital age hoping to get some gigs before the show? Sadly, I didn’t succeed because everybody wanted them to tie into their summer reading programs in July. So now it suddenly became July which means it’s time to pay the piper. Actually, I'm pretty revved up and ready to roll, but wondering whether people really  participate in such events in the summer. It would seem like you’d get a better crowd in the fall or spring, but it is what it is, so I will sally forth laden with ephemera and high spirits.

I looked myself up on each library website yesterday to see if I was still viable and, if so, what exactly they had called my talk and how they’d explained it. Just as I suspected, each one is a little bit different. Two veer toward book collecting and one is strong on ephemera. I love the title they gave that one --  “What Is Ephemera and Why Should I Care?” Yeah, one could wonder about that, couldn’t one! Hopefully when I pull my fifty carefully hand- picked goodies out of the box they’ll be stampeding to the next flea market to get in on the craze. It’s been fun preparing, though a  bit hard to decide what to bring for show and tell.

When I was writing I used to give talks all the time – at libraries, schools, bookstores, organizations, book groups, conferences and even once at the American Booksellers’ Association (talk about STRESS!). But I haven’t had a gig in probably ten years, so I should probably  be anxious, but I’m strangely not. I love this stuff so much that it fuels my enthusiasm and excitement to do it. At least I hope that will be the case! I want to talk about the difference between amassing and collecting, the reasons to collect, how to collect, and how to store and display your collection. With the ephemera I will also talk about what ephemera IS and why, for example,  something as pedestrian as old luggage labels can shed light on what it was like to vacation during the Golden Age of Travel, as well as how ephemera can deepen your BOOK collection. (See luggag labels below)

I also have lots of stories of course  – I LOVE stories – but  I have be careful not to spin too many at the risk of not offering enough solid information. Once I did a storytelling program at the west Akron Border’s bookstore. A blizzard raged outside, and for awhile it looked like I’d be telling stories to the wall which I actually thought might be okay with me since I had a massive case of stage fright for some reason. But then they  came -- lots of theys came -- including an entire book club. Nancy was there with me and it turned out to be a  blast. A strange energy took hold and everybody got in the groove, telling stories and laughing until perfect strangers became instant frends. By the time the store was supposed to close they had to flick the lights three times to get them to go home!

That’s what I’d like to see happen tonight. But I'll be happy if people  just show up and have a good time.