The 10 Stages of Bookshelf Reorganisation

It’s a well known fact, bloggers that I’ve been in desperate need of shelf space for quite some time. So long, that I have to squint hard and knock on my head to remember when I wasn’t double stacking or trying to squish books precariously into tight spaces. Well, this summer I decided enough was enough! After spending hours assembling two kamikaze flat packs with a lack of straight edges and a missing piece or two my new bookshelves were finally welcomed into the world! Once I decided where to put my new shelves I was faced with the somewhat intimidating task of reorganising all of my books. I was totally up for the challenge, but what I didn’t expect was the surprising number of emotional stages I went through during the process! So, I thought it might be fun to present thee with a post on the 10 stages of bookshelf reorganisation. 🙂

1.) Excitement.

At first I approached my book reorganisation task with excitement. I mean, who wouldn’t jump at the opportunity to spend the majority of their day hanging out with their books – staring at their pretty covers, dusting them, organising them? I went about the task with bookish glee, reminiscing about all the stories I had read and loved and all the adventures I had yet to discover doing my own internal happy dance.

2.) Exhaustion.

After lugging books back and forth from shelf to floor, shelf to floor so that I could move my original bookshelf into its new designated spot I began to suffer from some serious arm and back acheage, as well as general exhaustion because it was such a hot day. But my enthusiasm would not be quenched!

3.) Panic.

Half way though I began to realise the full scale of the task I had taken on. I could no longer see my bed, my floor OR ANYTHING FOR THAT MATTER. Moving one inch to the left or right became a serious issue, and for a moment there I was worried someone would find me weeks later hemmed in by books, dead from dehydration and book gluttony.

4.) Avoidance.

When faced with the sight above it seemed impossible that my books and room would ever be ordered again. My solution to this? Hey, I feel like a cup of tea! Yeah…a tea break is a good idea *edges sideways out of room*.
I put the kettle on, and then somehow managed to make drinking my tea last an hour. Then I searched out other means of procrastination. Exhibit A: Ohh look there’s an interesting wall! Shall I stare at it? Yeah, let’s do that.

5.) Determination.

After a while I realised I wouldn’t actually be able to go to sleep that night (because my bed was full of books) unless I got my butt in gear, so out came my determined face. I made a mental organisation strategy, I prioritised, I played the Rocky theme music in my head and added in some Aragorn swag!

6.) Misplaced hope.

With my new-found determination I began the long process of sifting though the books on the floor, working out where I wanted to put them (which consisted mainly of me snapping my head left to the books and right to the shelves repeatedly like I was watching a table tennis game) and moving them to my new shelves. After filling up three or four levels and feeling pretty happy about what I had achieved, I began to think that maybe this whole reorganisation thing wasn’t going to be so bad after all!

7.) Dissatisfaction.

Hours later when my books were finally all on designated shelves I sighed a happy sigh and stepped back to admire my hard work.
I was happy with it, but then I started to SEE THINGS.
Things that were out of place, that clashed or weren’t aligned properly.

8.) Frustration.

As a perfectionist, seeing books that weren’t exactly how I wanted them felt like nails down a chalkboard so I set to work like a manic, rearranging and huffing as I went! That book should be over here *huff*, this book doesn’t look right there *huff* wait, this ones both fantasy AND YA, so should it go on the fantasy shelf or the YA shelf? Urrrrrgg *DOUBLE HUFF*.

9.) Ultimate bookworm bliss/euphoria.

Finally, after about six hours of bookish glee, panic, huffing and arm ache I took another step back, looked at my bookcases and….. PERFECTION. I even had some empty shelves! I HAVEN’T HAD EMPTY SHELVES SINCE I WAS ABOUT 15. I can’t tell you how amazing it feels to have all of my books on show resembling some form of order. Bookshelf 1 is all about the fantasy, bookshelf 2 is for childhood favourites, classics and fancy dancy literary books and bookshelf 3 is the realm of YA and chicklit. 😀

So, only one more stage to go:

10.) Collapse on the floor in a heap.

Have you ever had to reorganise your bookshelves? Did you find the task daunting or revel at the opportunity to mess around with your books for hours? Did you experience any of the same highs and lows that I did?! 🙂

 

Image Sources:
Dumbledore gif. / Tina Fey gif. / Sheldon Big Ban Theory gif. / New Girl gif. / Aragorn determined gif. / Hunger Games gif. / Buffy squint gif. / Hermione gif. / Angel gif. / Kitty gif. / Pictures of books and bookshelf my own, please do not reuse.

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