I decided to take a little break for Easter week and at the same time try to raise a little money. I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I was planning to sell off a few books to make some space on my groaning shelves... well, I've started work on that.
I'm working my way through some reference books to see what I can get rid of and I should have some sorted shortly. I'm thinking that some will go through eBay, some through Bear Alley and some I'll put out for charity. I did this with some books during last summer and not only did the books go, the box they were in was also taken! I guess people were short of reading material during the first lockdown. (I put out runs of books by Ian Rankin and Colin Dexter that I'd built up over the years, so quite common and not the sort of book that I could ever hope to sell ... just in case you were wondering.)
I may change my tactics slightly: there's a nice couple who live about a quarter mile away who put out tables of goods — books, children's toys, knickknacks — and sell them for charity. They have a box firmly attached to their fencepost so it can't be taken and they empty it regularly. Given the number of books I have, it might be worth putting a table up and seeing what I can get rid of once we get a nice run of warm weather. I don't own a car, so I'm at the mercy of others if I want to do a boot fair, but I've done reasonably well in the past, so that, too, is an option.
I've spent a couple of days sorting out and disposing of quite a few DVDs and CDs and have sold over 100 for about £55, which isn't bad given how bad the market is for these nowadays. People like streaming music and film, and if you're a cineaste, you probably have a blue ray player or you're watching films at 4K Ultra on your 100 inch TV. I think I did pretty well.
I managed to write one short introduction to one of the upcoming books, and we've picked up the pace on our walks now that the tow path is dry. There's a route that takes us along the River Colne and then folds back along what's called the Wivenhoe Trail, a cycle route and footpath that we have been avoiding over winter, as it is often a bit of a mud bath. One side of the path is the railway (for train fans, it's called the Sunshine Coast Line), while the other is Ferry Marsh, a wild marshland area that is home to a range of wildlife, especially nesting birds (and otters, apparently, although we've yet to see one).
This year, everyone we met was commenting on how high the water was, almost encroaching on the pathway. Asking around we discovered that it is down to a sluice not being open. The reason it is not open is because it has become an point of contention between Anglia Water, the local council and some other organisation, who are each arguing that the sluice is not their responsibility. Thankfully we've had a couple of nice days weather, which has dried out the pathway, but there's a chance that the path will disappear at some point, cutting off the cycle path and making it impassable to walkers. Hopefully they'll sort out who needs to do what soon.
Hopefully I'll have some books listed either here or on eBay over the weekend. I'm not sure when as we have a couple of things planned, but I'll try to let people know here, and also on Twitter and Facebook for the social media savvy.
In the meantime, have a wonderful Easter.
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