Thursday, May 24, 2007

I'm a mooch, be a mooch!

A couple of weeks ago, Saucy Betty shared a link with me that changed my life. As someone with a self-admitted book problem, I go through a lot of books. I use the library, but I prefer reading books I don't have to feel badly about trashing (has happened), I have to pay for if I forget to get it back to the library(no comment), etc. I'm enough of a cheap-skate that I don't like paying full-price at a bookstore. I tried half and amazon, but paying $4.00 at a minimum for a book adds up, and you don't always get what you agreed to buy (like missing page 1 of Lonesome dove--luckily I had started the book many years ago and remembered what it was).
I did find the Arlington County library bookstore a few years ago, which is awesome. Paperbacks are $.50 and hardbound books are $1.00. Many Pulitzer Prize and other quality books end up there. The selection changes weekly I believe, and I have to limit my self to bringing back $3 or $4.00 worth of books. The problem though is, I have a ton of books at the house..and no real desire to buy another bookshelf (I already own 3) at this point.
So, when Saucy Betty shared the link to bookmooch, I was a little skeptical since I'm already on goodreads. However, bookmooch is different--it lets you give books you don't want or need anymore in exchange for books you don't need! Its brilliant. You just pay for postage when you send a book, and there's no cost to you when you mooch. The website keeps track of how many books you send and mooch by a point system. It's brilliant!!


So, check it out...and if you feel like adding me as a friend, let me know or drop an add using my yahoo email address. If you don't have it, drop me a line.


Related Links:
Moochwiki (site user manual edited by the book mooch community)

Note: I apologize for not blogging or writing about Peru. I was dumb and didn't go to the Dr. before I went even though I knew I probably had a sinus infection. I was alright in Peru, but starting to get sicker the last couple of days as my lungs decided they needed to get sick too (the others in my group probably didn't know except for the fact I was probably a little grouchy and I did feel like the only person I wanted to hang out with was me--sorry guys).

By Monday, I knew I needed to get to the Dr. and got in yesterday. I'm feeling better, and my needy lungs got the attention they demanded. I'm feeling better, and only had to take a few hours of sick to go to the Dr. but I probably won't be writing about Peru until next week on the travel blog (partly because my roommates who went with me isn't sure where she put her camera). Oh, and Shannon--Macchu Pichu is must see but honestly, the ruins around Cusco are much more fascinating to me even if they haven't been restored like Macchu Pichu has. I'll talk about it next week.

7 comments:

Mrs. Small House said...

You only have 3 bookshelves? pfft. Amateur. ;)
It's fun seeing others like used bookstores too!

Joy said...

Yeah, I personally own 3 bookshelfs(2 being 5 shelfs) in a rented house I share with 4 other girls. I don't want to admit how many books I have at my parent's house that haven't made it to DC in the 5 years I've lived here.

Amateur? Whatever. ;)

Then there's the fact that I tend to give a book I've finished to someone in my family or a friend that I know that'll read it.

I like used bookstores and thriftstores, what fustrates me is the pricing. I wouldn't call reading a hobby to me, it's a passion-and its pricy when you tend to read fast and often. That's why the used bookstore at the library and bookmooch are godsends. Oh, I can afford my reading habit, but I also have a music habit, and I don't like to choose between the two.

HOO said...

I'm a little bothered that no one wants to mooch the books I've listed. Oh well. And also, the USPS has cancelled the book/media rate. Only first or third class now, and that adds up!

Shannon said...

Thanks for that link. That's such an awesome idea, I think I'm going to have to sign up. We don't have many books around here since we have to really limit what we bring with us when we move back and forth so that site would work well for us.

Joy said...

Hoo-I'm pretty sure media mail wasn't cancelled but I could be wrong.

HOO said...

Well that's what my local post office told me...but they could be liars.

HOO said...

If people are into book mooch enough to check it out, you might also want to check out librarything.com as a way of listing books you have read. It also generates recommendations from an algorithm based on what other people with similar libraries have also read. Of course I don't need an additional 300 entries to my to be read pile...