Attention All Book Lovers

Monday September 21, 2009

I am a serious book lover. My love affair with books started as a small child when my grandmother would read me stories. I would gaze at the pretty pictures and confusing letters, not yet able to read, but already certain that this was an activity which could bring me great joy. I was right. My literary love affair has endured for over half a century.

I consider some books to be faithful companions who have accompanied me through different phases of my life. Given my enduring devotion to my books, it is wrenching for me each time I must leave them during an evacuation. I worry that this might be the time Mother Nature will claim all my old friends. If anyone has similar feelings for their books, let me share the best plan I could come up with to safe guard your volumes.

You must start by deciding if you will have any available transport space to evacuate your books. If so, record the dimensions of your transport space at the back of your Wine and Chocolate Evacuation Plan book. Next spend some time with your books and decide which ones you would want to evacuate. This can be a difficult decision. Should you take a much loved book you have already read several times, a favorite book from childhood, or a first-edition which has monetary value?

There is no right or wrong answer. If you are strongly attached to a certain group of your books then these should be taken. If you are having a difficult time deciding, you might consider taking a representative book from each category. Perhaps you could take one book that was a favorite from your childhood, one book that is a prized first edition, one book that helped you through a difficult time, etc. These books could then serve as the foundations for a new library if you were to lose everything.


If there is adequate time, you should transfer some of your remaining books to a more secure location. After I have disconnected the water hose, I load up my washing machine with some of the books which must be left behind. The weight of the books gives the washing machine a better chance of not being washed or blown away. The water tight interior of a washing machine also helps to protect the books from damage.

As I said at the beginning, "I am a serious book lover." If anyone out there has additional suggestions on ways to safe guard your library, please write me and I will pass the information on.

Additional evacuation information available at www.wineandchocolateplan.com