My New Library… Not Really

Posted on by Lashaan Balasingam @ Roars and Echoes

Hi there!

As I’ve previously mentioned before 2022, my girlfriend and I purchased our first home together! This last week, we were in fact moving into our new place and doing everything in our power to quickly establish our new routine in our personal lives, academia, and work. And, for anyone who is accustomed to these kinds of big moves, they never really go perfectly! 😉 While we did survive in the end, it did come with a bunch of unpredictable obstacles that really did their best to annoy us one way or another.

For one, the pandemic has made it near impossible for many people out there to get there hands on what I call the Big Five (stove, fridge, dryer, washer, and dishwasher). The whole chain of production has been altered for the worse and there’s very little that’s actually in stock nowadays. Luckily for us, everything we needed to purchase would get delivered within a week into moving in but we had to improvise during that period to feed ourselves since there was no appliances left behind by the previous owner. As of today, that’s all solved and we’re happy to have everything we need to continue on into this new chapter of our lives.

The other major hassle was Internet. I did everything to make sure they get it up and running the day after we moved in but one thing led to another, a couple of unexpected and insane snowstorms, some pretty bad company service, and we finally got Internet almost a week later! This explains why I couldn’t do much on my blog these past few days. But now that’s all solved as well and I’m happily typing away in my Batcave (actually, half a Batcave since I’m sharing this room with my beloved second half.) 😛

As for the click-bait post title, it just so happens that bookshelves are also very hard to come by and IKEA is one of those big companies that’s suffering the most from this pandemic. After waiting long enough for their stock to refill (which it hasn’t), and searching everywhere for decent looking bookshelves and that could hold everything I want it to hold, we’ve opted for a local handmade bookshelf that should arrive in less than 2 weeks. For the time being, enjoy my pyramidal box collection of books curated to only contain what I love or plan to read! 😀

P.S. I’ve been hearing people talk about how heavy and insane it is to move around their books from one place to another for a couple of years now but I never really realized HOW insane it actually is until now… Books are HEAVY. You better love them a lot if you’re willing to break your back for them! 😉

TILL NEXT TIME,

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Published by Lashaan Balasingam @ Roars and Echoes

Reader. Reviewer. Researcher. Criminology Ph.D. Candidate. Montreal, Quebec (Canada). Want to know more? Connect with him!

63 thoughts on “My New Library… Not Really”

      1. If you would have weighed them all together maybe 😂 I still say you should add them up and make a contest of it. Nearest guess wins honor points or something;)

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  5. Loving that new library Lashaan! If only eh? 😂 Glad you got all your appliances and internet sorted and hope the bookshelves are worth the wait! We ended up donating loads of our books when we moved last year. We had so many that we were never going to read again and no room for them so sadly they had to go!

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    1. It was a wild couple of days but we’re getting more and more used to our new home now. And culling books is probably one of the saddest things I had to do too. If only bookshelves could just magically fit everything you own and will buy in the future!

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  6. I feel you so much on this!! I moved last October and it was hard, even though I didn’t have to worry about appliances as much since I moved into a mostly furnished apartment. But still, the BOOKS! SO HEAVY!!! I did it in several trips with my parent’s car and it was especially hard to move the comics and graphic novels, because more of them fit into one box, but they’re even heavier than a box of hardcover books. It’s wild!
    I hope you’ll settle in soon though and make this new place your home ❤

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    1. You know exactly what I went through, Kat!!! Some editions I own and cherish look so innocent on a shelf but once put together in a box, they’re heavier than the world! I was quite lucky that I had a couple of friends who were willing to endure the cold to get things done though. 😛 Thank you so much for your kind words, Kat! 😀

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  9. I am sorry to hear about all the difficulties you faced with your move, but glad most of it is sorted, Lashaan. This is one reason I have pulled back on building for another year or so. I am definitely going to cull my physical bookshelves when I get home from Florida. I do not relish having that many bins full of books. II do love the look of your new library.

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    1. Thanks, Carla! Yep. There’s so much mental and physical preparation required to just move or build a new place; it’s quite stressful too! I did know that someday I would have to cull my collection but I always pushed it back until it was absolutely necessary. Having done a 1st cull, I can definitely say that it’s not easy at all ahhahah!

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      1. Good for you to do a 1st cull. I look through my bookshelves every now and then and pull something off the shelf, and put them in a box. Of course the box is still in my office. 📚😂

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  10. Hahahahaahaa! I have to admit, I laughed pretty hard at your last paragraph. Because I know exactly what you experienced. And I know how heavy boxes like those can be 😀

    I know you are trying for all new stuff, but if you have to, look on the second hand market for book cases. Whatever the equivalent of canadian craigslist is good for the cheap stuff. Second hand/thrift stores are better if you want classier things.

    I am very surprised you had to buy all new appliances though. Usually that kind of thing stays with the place. I am glad you were able to get what you needed without too much pain, because man, “shortages” seem to be the regular thing now 😦

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    1. I kept on thinking about how you had to sell so many of your books and everything you’re doing nowadays to only keep what you REALLY love. I dreaded this day but here I am. 😛

      We should be receiving our shelf this weekend but we did in fact look into the equivalent of craigslist here and, no surprise, everything goes just as fast as in stores. Anything related to wood is tough to get nowadays because of the pandemic and whatnot…

      Yeh, the last owner had to take everything with them since their next home didn’t have anything. It is indeed common in other places that they leave the appliances or that you can negotiate something to get them but in this pandemic, it’s a lot harder to get into the negotiating game since there’s always someone else who would gladly pay more for the place even it contains less…

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  12. Congrats for the new flat and for making it past the no-appliances-no-internet stage! 🥳 I am very impressed by the organised pyramid of book boxes ahah, and I can’t wait to see what the final library will look like! 😍

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  14. Glad to hear it’s all working out. Yeah, these things never go exactly as we’d like. And you’re fortunate to be moving a fairly short distance. When you move longer distances the weight of those books can add to the cost the movers charge. We had to get rid of lots of stuff in the past before moves. And it seems the farther you move the more likely that not everything will actually make it to the new home, at least when you’re using movers and not doing it yourself. As for bookshelves, there’ve been times I’ve created my own with boxes or metal cans and boards between them. Anything is better than nothing until you can get what you’d like. 🙂 Good to have you back online again.

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    1. You’re absolutely right. If we had to move VERY far from where we were previously, I don’t think moving all these books would’ve been an option. Luckily, I only needed a couple of my friends to get this done so, hopefully, if there’s a future move, they’ll lend a hand once again, for the evergrowing collection! 😛 Or… I’ll definitely have to cull my collection again!

      Hahahah that sounds like a nice style that would definitely look neat! Of course, something tells me it can also be a hazard if not done right. 😛

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  15. Ah, I hate all the practical stuff in connection with moving. There is always something, which doesn’t work out as expected. Internet after one week doesn’t sound too shabby to me after my experience here in the UK. Love the photo of your book pyramid, hope the new shelves arrive soon!

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    1. Oh man… I can see why people end up giving away their books when they move to places that are VERY far. I can’t imagine what I would’ve done but I doubt I’d have the means to ship it all to a new location that would require an airplane or boat…

      Thanks for the warm and fuzzy thoughts, Goldie! 😀

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  19. Your book boxes all look so organized though!!! On our last move we put the books in the big bags we usually use for groceries… which had to be unpacked before the shelves were moved because we didn’t have enough bags to move everything in one go 🙈 it was a mess…
    I have to say we find life without a dryer perfectly fine, and husbands make for great dishwashers 😋
    Congrats on the move, and I hope you get settled in nicely soon 😘

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    1. I was incredibly lucky to even have these boxes for the move. I honestly have no idea how else I could’ve done it except do something like you guys!

      I have lived my whole life, so far, without one, but I’m learning now to make use of it and save time. I’m usually like your man. I don’t know why I enjoyed washing dishes hahaha

      Thank you so much for your kind thoughts! 😀

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  20. Lol!! Yass!! Books are so damn heavy. I did the stupid thing of getting a big box and dumping a bunch of them in it and feeling accomplished until I tried lifting it. In the end, I packed them out in smaller boxes to move.
    And I totally feel you on the frustrations regarding the pandemic affecting things. It actually took 4 months for my bed to arrive. Luckily, I actually moved in a month before the bed came.

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    1. Hahaha! I can so imagine the weight of that big box. I had my friends help me out and luckily for me, they’re twice my size and have quadruple my strength. One thing’s for sure, they got a good workout of all this in the end! 😛

      Oh man, we had to really search for the bed just so we didn’t have to wait that long too. Times are rough! 😮

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  23. I moved into my house 2 and a half years ago, and I’ve still got some boxes piled up in my basement. Mind you those are comic boxes and I haven’t yet bought a shelf strong enough to hold them, but still. And yes, books are heavy. Easily the heaviest thing I had to move around, and that includes my weights.

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      1. I actually have all of mine in tide boxes that I got for free from my old job. They’re all about the same size as long boxes, they’re sturdy (they carried liquid laundry detergent after all, and that’s not light), and if you cut their lids right, they fold open and closed easily.

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  24. Pingback: My Monthly Wrap-Up | January 2022 – Bookidote
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  26. Well, shipping books is really hard work. Last year we just opened up another library room in our house and were only moving about 6000 books from our main library to the new library room. We just moved our art books – especially heavy – and books the polar regions but that took us more tan a week. It’s always a big job to get them in order and change the place in our library program.
    Fortunately, we had no problems with IKEA shelf.
    Keep well
    The Fab Four of Cley
    🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

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    1. Now, that has to take a lot of brute strength and determination to get things done! I think we might have to handle up to 200 books and it was more than enough for a first experience! Just to imagine the whole process for 6000 is driving me nuts already hahah Thanks for reading, Klausbernd! Stay safe.

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      1. Hi Lashaan,
        you wouldn’t believe it but we organised a bookfair in our church. We had to move 12000 books for that
        https://fabfourblog.com/2021/09/02/book-sale-in-cley-church/
        Actually, in our private library as well as for this bookfair the most time consuming was to get the books in order. We organise our books alphanumeric. Here you can see one of the library rooms in our house
        https://fabfourblog.com/2019/04/26/much-more-than-a-room-full-of-books/
        Thanks for answering 🙏 🙏
        Keep healthy and happy
        The Fab Four of Cley
        🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

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  27. Wow! You are managing well. I know that feeling of rearranging and settling in. Best regards! All will be better than before. XOXO

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      1. Hello Lashaan! Big congratulations! Your transitioning and aspirations sound exciting. Love and blessings to your new endeavors. More visits are in order to your new blog. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

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