Life is like a library...weeding makes things grow.

One of the hardest things that any librarian will tell you they have to do is "weeding". Do you know what I mean by weeding? It is a lot like it sounds. In fact, I recently read an authoritative article about weeding in a library that likens a collection of books to a garden. The basic idea is that you have to preen a good collection of books. Things that were once well thought out purchases or generous donations to accept at one time gradually become irrelevant, outdated, unappealing, even inaccurate. So the time finally comes when the harsh judgement call needs to be made about what stays, what needs replacing and what is simply no longer useful to the rest of the collection. And as pretentious as it may sounds, it really does take a professional to do that. Not because it is "rocket surgery" or "brain science";) but rather because you really need to take the emotion out of throwing out a book for the good of the collection. Or for the good of the library. Indeed, there is even a science behind being discreet while going through a thorough weeding process because there are all kinds of well meaning people who will do everything they can to stop you (some public users or teachers just can't tell the difference between necessary weeding and Fahrenheit 451). But the librarian must persevere. A whole collection of resources is at stake.

It is a well known phrase in the library world that "weeding makes things grow". In real terms, getting the weeds out of the collection bring ups circulation and betters the entire collection. Truly, a well weeded collection is a healthy one and thus creates a healthy library. Leaving the weeds in the collection makes resources not only less appealing but less accessible. It forces the library users to search through more than they would need to find what they are looking for (you can see how this could be a serious problem for an institution that can only compete with Google in the quality of results they offer and not in the quantity).

Can you see where I am going with this though? The whole life metaphor and everything?

Matt and I got home last month with just 2 suitcases each, from which we had lived for a year. It was hard to only have that much space to work with up when we headed out to Scotland but surprisingly easy our way back home. The surreal part began when Matt flew out to OK to load up a Penske truck with everything from our storage unit. After moving the stuff into our apartment and unpacking it, we had forgotten about so many things that we had once owned. Everything from clothes and shoes to kitchen utensils and books. How had I never realized how much stuff we owned? And as irony would have it, we have seen fit to send at least half a dozen boxes of some of this stuff to Goodwill after having moved it here! I hear it is easier to do this before a move but I suppose I will just have to keep that in mind for the next time.

Just like the book weeding process, weeding out the stuff from life can be an ongoing process or prolonged until it is a big annual project. At any rate, I think it really ought to be done at least once a year and ongoing may make it more of a habit than an emotional event to have to dread every spring.

And also like book weeding, I think I could have benefited from some kind of unbiased business professional a couple of times. There is guilt with getting rid of stuff. Things people gave you as a gift - things you appreciated but simply no longer need. Things that you once found useful but just no longer can think of a reason to keep. Things that remind you of something significant you never want to forget but really just doesn't have a place in your everyday life now. I feel like I am waxing a Real Simple article here (may I should submit this to them? ha!) but seriously, it can be tough stuff to get rid of things. But what I have found useful to remind myself of is that not only do I have a Master's Degree in knowing what is useful and what is not in a collection of information, I also probably have loads of pictures, blog entries, or dear friends to remind me of whatever I think I may forget. And for all the rest, it was nice while it lasted but I need the space for new things to grow.

Scrumptious Living.

So, in an effort to feel at home and begin to embrace what this place has to offer, Matt and I decided to spend our Saturday evening exploring "Scrumptious" in Old Town Arvada. The missionaries recommended we check the place out after talking to them about all of the sweet and chocolatey wonders we discovered in the UK. The elders promised quality bottled sodas, ice cream and of course Roald Dahl-esque (my words not theirs) variety of sweets. With the description they gave us, we knew it was our duty to check this place out in a timely manner.

Indeed, the shop did offer a good spread of our favorites - both the classics to the delicacies, the new and the old, the American staples and the international specials. This included Curly Wurlys and Chico Sticks, M&M and Jelly Belly assortments, Nerds Ropes and Gummy hotdogs/ hamburgers/ fries/ etc, Boston Baked Beans and Black Jack Chewing Gum. It was your basic collection of confectionary delights you would expect from a proper "candy shop". What truly caught my eye though was the Valomilk...

Maybe it is just because I am coming off of year of the Tunnock's Teacake but still, good use of mallow is hard to beat when it comes to confectionary and I had to give this one a go. It took a bit of commitment too as this indulgence costed me a whopping $2.25 (the Curly Wurlys were $1.50 - UK price was 30P!). For this reason, I am not so keen on the "Scrumptious Scene" as they were charging this same Valomilk price for a simple Snickers bar...shameless really. That said, I will indeed be looking for another source for this wee treat. It was this impressive mix of chewy and sticky, chocolatey and creamy and of course oh so sweet. It may just be able to make everything right about coming back to the Teacake-ignornant U.S. Now to find something which fills my sultana scone and clotted cream empty soul here...though perhaps with me driving a car to work again, I may need to find contentment without as much British influence in my diet.

PS - Do you like conversing on candy? Do you fetishize it like I do? If so, may I suggest a listen to Chase's Kandy Korner? Matt is even featured on Episode 3: Milky Way Simply Caramel. Listening may inspire you to try something new that could change your candy paradigm.

New Places

Looks like buying a car, driving to Denver, finding an apartment, getting the car temporarily registered, doing (and passing!) emissions/inspection, flying to OK to truck up our stuff (I forget we have more than 2 suitcases of possessions sometimes), finishing up school, getting a license renewed, moving in and starting a new job really is doable in 2 weeks. Though I wouldn’t whole heartedly recommend trying it unless you were in a time crunch like we were. What I am trying to get to though is that we are now Denver folk these days and even have the address to prove it:

7805 Allison Way #107
Arvada, CO 80005

Okay, so I suppose we are technically “Arvada” people since we chose a place halfway between the city and my job in Thorton. Still, I have to say that this area offers some nice rolling hills that can’t be found too central or East of city centre.

The drive over on Sunday was actually one of our easier days. We only had to complete one pretty straight forward goal that day as opposed to all the other days that were full of bureaucratic catch-22s that befall anyone ambitious enough to try and get legit enough for employment and housing after not living in the country for the last year. That said, we tried to take it in stride and appreciate all the sites of Wyoming along the way – especially while having our lunch snack of Appleauce, Cheeze-Its and Red Cream Soda (nothing like eating like the locals:)...

No doubt you have road tripped through Rawlins, Wyoming. Is it not the most poetically sad Western spots you can think of? That sky! That landscape! All those out-of-business hotels – can’t help but think of the poor housekeepers that once tried to keep the place tidy and neat looking...

Needless to say it was nice to see the geography change to the familiar Rocky Mountain fare that looks like the homeland. It was funny to me that I am moving to Denver for a couple of reasons. First, I realized that I had always lived in a capital (Salt Lake City, Austin, Edinburgh, now Denver). But what struck me as funny when driving in past the skyline that normally gives me a thrill when going to a new place is that I didn’t know what this place was all about. It seems like when I have moved to a new place in the past I have always thought that I would be taking in a new, unique, rich culture. SLC – the Mormon culture! Austin – the liberal, hippy Texas culture! Edinburgh/Scotland – just about the richest culture you could expect for a place that size. But when I think of Colorado my mind just goes blank. What does Colorado do exactly? Aside from mountains – what are they known for? What do they eat? How do they talk? What offends them – other than all the general things that would offend any other average American? Although, I did get my first wee taste of the flavors I might get here while at the pool last night swimming laps. A mother called to her daughter who was swimming about, “Aspen! Don’t go that deep!” So they name their kids “Aspen” here. Now that is something unique. We will see what else unfolds…

The lack of cultural identity I perceive Colorado has is not at all to say I am not keen on being here. All I seem to hear every time someone figures out I am moving here (whether past or current locals) are all kinds of great reviews. Oh the recreation! Oh the fun things to do! Oh the sporting events! I am hanging on firm to all of that right now because I keep reverting to the dangerous but tempting practice of comparing everything to Austin. I must be careful that nostalgia doesn’t ruin the great things of now. It can be a damaging exercise to indulge in, if not kept in check. Must let this place grow on me instead of wishing it was someplace else.

So I think my Matt and I are up for the new experience (or perhaps less new and more just easy and familiar as it may be) that this Colorado place has to offer. I have said it many times since my big move of ’08 – the more cities I go and stay, the more I realize how many great places there are to live. Though, there are some exceptions…and I think one of those would have to be poor Rawlins Wyoming.