I wasn’t sure until I read Literary Feline’s Sunday Salon that I was going to post one this week.

It’s been a rough road since the Read-A-Thon. I was completely unprepared for the physical toll it was going to take. I seemed to remember that pulling an all-nighter wasn’t such a big deal. But then that was over twenty years ago and I have learned that the bladder and gray matter are not the only things that diminish when one grows older.

Not that I am saying being in my 40′s sucks. It doesn’t. The benefits to being a woman my age far outweigh the detractions. For now.

However it is sad to realize that the next time I decide to undertake such a venture, I will need to ensure I am in tip top shape, as in a way, I am doing a marathon, and all good milers must be in good physical condition and understand how to pace themselves properly.

It didn’t help that NaNoWriMo came right afterward. This is my first time participating and yet again I find that my tendency to bite off more than I can chew is coming back to smack me hard on the behind.

Don’t get me wrong, both the Read-A-Thon and NaNo are two experiences that I in no way regret doing. I just went into both a little naïve regarding what was expected – and more importantly – what my capabilities are in getting both accomplished.

I did well in the former, and am confident that I will be fine in the latter.

But I digress.

This week Wendy wrote about cleaning out her TBR stacks. Great minds, or at least those that are book lovers, must think alike. After attending a quarterly used book sale put on by our library, I found that I had no more room on the shelf for any of the books I had purchased. No wonder as my family deliberately, and quite vehemently, balks at me buying a larger bookcase. I wonder why?

So, just as Wendy, I went through the stacks deciding which books I honestly (key word here!) believed I was going to read. And as she noted, “It is always a difficult process. How do I know I won’t decide tomorrow that I do want to read a particular book?”

For me? I don’t. That is why it is a very painful process for me to take one off the shelf and place it in the donation bag. (I always give back to the library. They have a wonderful store where I generally get all my books and a majority of the proceeds go back to them. Talk about a win-win situation.)

All in all, I only set aside a little than a dozen books. Which surprisingly enough, is about how many I bought. Hmmm.

Oh well. At least I was able to make room for the newbies without having to whine too loudly about the lack of space because my bookcase is just too small.

Drat!