Couple Finds Love Volunteering at Library, Let's Do Some Happy Valentine Crap

The following story link is about a couple finding each other after they volunteered at a local library book sale.  It is cute.  And above my paygrade for a cheap Valentine's post, so here's my synopsis of my favorite Valentine movie, Predator.

A military group goes into the jungle to kill all kinds of stuff.  An alien comes to a planet to practice the most dangerous hunt.  What they find is love.  A story of mudwrestling, heat, and barechested violence, Predator is a story that warms the heart with its explosive conclusion.

LOVE AMONG THE STACKS: Couple finds romance volunteering at local library book ... - Baxter Bulletin

Community in Conflict, Book Donation Business Told To Move On

Marin, CA library supporters are waging a boring war on book donation boxes placed around their city.  The book donation boxes are placed by the Thrift Recycling Management company, a for-profit venture that recycles the items.

"Of the books collected in the bins, approximately 25 percent are resold, another 25 percent are donated to nonprofits, and the rest are sold for their value as pulp, [TRM co-founder Phil] McMullin said." MarinIJ

"Friends of the Library" groups complain that the books take away donations to libraries that could be used to fund the library through book sales or replace old library copies.  TMR has been under suspicion for not being as charitable as they claim, selling most of the items instead of donating them as they claim.  Marin Independent Journal

Okay, in this corner we have people profiting from old hippie ideals about saving mother earth.  They weigh in at approximately the size of capitalism and are looking to make a buck on the feelings that people are doing good by the planet by recycling.  They have made millions.

In the other corner we have people looking to enrich their lives by saying the library can benefit from a cubic ton of old National Geographics and books that may or may not have been pooped on by a rat.  These people may or may not collect and sort the materials donated to the library, but do feel a sense of satisfaction when they vote to buy a computer or maybe that god-awful book shaped reading furniture for the children's department when they meet once a year.

Solution:  Put the bins at libraries.  Allow the library system to sort the materials it wants and give the for-profit the leftovers.  Or just let the company do what it does until the Oregon Department of Justice shuts them down for being a fake charity.  Or a five on five deathmatch, Friends VS Thrift in a winner take all pay-per-view for the fate of the county.

The Big Book Sale Begins!

For those of you in the San Francisco area or those who really like book sales, The Big Book Sale Begins!  I do not know why I like typing that so much.

Apparently people really like book sales.  Who knew?

And I thought my desk was big...

So when I think library furniture, I think functionality and durability.  Maybe some random wood.  Apparently these people think in terms of books.  Lots of books.  I wonder how many people think this is the book sale?

And here's where I got the goods...

The Booksale: Yes, We Will Throw That Away For You

Ah, the book sale.  For most libraries, it is there only real money marketing venture. Hidden away in a little corner, stacks of the unwanted and unused sit, ready to be plucked at garage sale prices.  But what is actually in that monster pit of refuse and bile?  Well, before you plan your appearance on Antique Roadshow, let's take a look:

National Geographic and Reader's Digest Condensed Books
By far, the most plentiful items you will find in a library book sale are these two.  Why you ask?  Because for some reason, everyone, and I mean everyone from your great-grandfather to your milkman collected these or knows someone who did.  That there are still folks out there willing to continue collecting these items is amazing, yet they sell.  So the next time grandma kicks it (hopefully for the last time), remember your library when you find that collection of National Geographic behind those antique "spoons from around the world."

Library Discards
Does everyone know why the book sale really exists?  It exists because the library cannot contain everything it has ever collected.  Sure things get broken or stained, but often things just do not get used.  So it is out with the old and in with the new through a process called "collection development" or "weeding" or "media-ectomy" or my favorite, "The Buffalo Theory."  So libraries discard* materials and hope to get enough money in a year from them to buy at least one toner cartridge.  Thanks for supporting.

Paperbacks*
Another donated item that rarely gets collected are the paperbacks.  Paperbacks, the bastard red headed mule boy of the publishing industry, are kicked around until they can be recycled into something useful, like toilet paper.  Sure, they have their uses.  They are portable, cheap and come in a variety of colors.  Because of this, though, they do not fit well on shelves and suck when it comes to longevity.  So let us sell the bastard mule boys.

Old-Format Media
Honestly, this is my favorite type of book sale item.  Where else but the public library can you find a laser disc of the first six episodes of Trapper John, M.D.?  You wanna know where?  Ebay.  Other than them? TrapperJohnonlaserdisccausewhynot.com.  Anywhere else?  No where.  And why is that?  Cause most popular media checks out so fast the bastards are ripping it out of your hands before you catalog it.  Libraries jump to stock things that will check out.  When the old format goes away though, what's gonna happen to those Betamax copies of Battlestar Galactica (OS)?  The book sale, that's what.

Handouts, Flyers and Miscellaneous 
What else can you find in a book sale?  Fliers for the heat centered yoga training for your pets? Why not? Handouts from local boy scout troop about spotting terrorists? That's where they are!  That local newspaper that nobody reads but is really good for litter boxes and blankets on park benches when your girlfriend kicks you out for making a pass at her mother? Right over there, Smelly Jim!  A Mouse corpse?  Hell, yeah!  There's TWO!  This endless supply of crap will haunt the bowels of your mind forever.

* "Discard" is actually and old Myan word that means "to make fun of cards"
* "Paperback" was my stage name in college.