Bookshelf Wealth │ What is Bookshelf Wealth?

Powell's Bookstore.

This regurgitation of everything around us is more apparent than ever. Particularly in the media, from what we wear, to television, and movies.

As the rather morose but truthful verse from Ecclesiastes says, "What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again;  there is nothing new under the sun (Ecc 1:9).

The thing about living in this world, particularly with trends and styles, is this: it all comes back around.

The '80s and '90s, which I lived through as a young girl are back today (and have been for a few years, judging by the vintage fashion I'm selling and the television ads I'm seeing). 

From high-waisted denim for fashion to remade television shows of Magnum P.I. and Quantum Leap, it's as though entertainment and fashion can't seem to find something new to make, so they rework the old.

It's the same for interior design. My sister, as an interior designer, can attest to vintage trends coming back in style from the mid-century modern furniture design craze to brass bathroom fixtures of the 1980s.

It's all back in again - a cycle that has been with us for thousands of years. The high-waisted fashion of the '80s was loosely based on the high-waisted fashion of the '40s or before. It wasn't new in the '80s, even if we thought it was.

This recycling of ideas may be because folks are less creative (which I doubt) or because successful past creations incentivize directors, writers, and designers, to do it again. I mean, if it worked in the past, why not bring it back? 

It's not a bad idea to bring back the past, especially if we learn from it. But, some ideas - like some fashion concepts - just need to stay in the past (think stirrup pants and '80s bangs.)

Regardless of why life is so cyclical, have you heard about the latest fad word "Bookshelf Wealth?" What is this crazy two-word description and why should we care?

It's quite easy to explain. It's about showing off your books; literally, it's about making you "appear" wealthy all from your books and the plethora of knickknacks that go with it. I love picture frames and knickknacks picked up from around the world but faux "well-traveled" interiors reek of inauthenticity. 

You won't get beautifully curated bookshelves just by spending thirty minutes at Pier One Imports and picking up garage sale books. It takes time. Quality takes time. 

So, why do we need trendy word descriptions to do what many of us have been doing for hundreds of years? Why does the media keep renaming things? (i.e. fanny packs, now called sling bags, belt bags, and waist bags.)

With Bookshelf Wealth, whether you've read said books on your shelves or not is irrelevant. What is relevant is making sure people think you are well-read and well-to-do all because of your vast collection of books... and stuff.

There's an air of inauthenticity about all of this. As well as consumerism. Both of which I'm not a fan of. What I do love is true good books, true art pieces picked up from travels, pottery and statues from counties visited, and bazaars and estate sales perused for pieces that define you. 

That's authentic.

If you read and love books, you should have books. Hundreds of them (or in my case, a lot of my books on your Kindle.) If you don't read but have rows of bookshelves filled with volumes of things you've never read - or have no plan to read - what are they doing in your home?

And when this fad dies away with a new one in its place, where do those books go? Probably to the landfill. Or the overrun book section at the Goodwill.

Designer, Kailee Blalock from San Diego, who helped to trend this concept, said in an interview (an article that accentuates exactly how I feel) "I think to really achieve the look and the lifestyle, someone has to be an avid reader and has to appreciate the act of collecting things, especially art and sculpture." 

Exactly. That is the whole concept. True bookshelf wealth takes time; it isn't a trend, but a slowly collected treasure trove of books read and details carefully curated.

I'm not against books, shelves, or wealth, for that matter. But is this the only reason to own books? Is the goal to be well-read or look well-read? Pretend enthusiasm isn't attractive. And as a reader and writer, it rubs me the wrong way.

Again, my interior designer sister uses books with much of her interior decor design. And she has clients who want bookshelves. Great! I'm glad people out there love books and read them. (It's probably because they're bibliophiles though, not trendy hipsters.)

As with most things in my life, I'm trying to keep them simple. So here's the simple: If you like books, keep them, love them, and read them. Be the educated, cultured, inspirational, and creative person you are because of them. Books are worlds of exploration. 

As a minimalist, I've pared down my books to two categories: books I love and books I'd want to read again. They're essentially the same thing but with two different actions behind them.

If you're not a book lover, don't waste your time on bookshelf wealth. It'll be a faded memory of a trend a few months from now. 

But, if you are a book lover, forget about the term Bookshelf Wealth and carry on doing what you've always done: read because you love to and keep books because you can't live without them.

Happy reading.

Making Time for the Important Things

How Letting Go of What I Didn't Love Directed Me to Do What I Truly Love

I'm not sure where I went wrong, but for a while, I worked two jobs that I shouldn't have been working. These are two jobs extra besides my other two jobs of freelance writing and vintage clothing. 

I was working four different jobs alongside being a mom, wife, housekeeper, cook, and whatever else I missed here.

This isn't to say the jobs were bad. They weren't. In fact, they were very far from bad and actually improved my writing by leaps and bounds.

They helped me so much that I would recommend writers take these jobs if they want to be better writers.

So why was it both helpful and unhelpful?

Because I gave up my true love to do something I thought I should be doing rather than what I wanted to be doing. 

Turns out, there's a big difference between the two.

A few years ago, after feeling a little stuck in my writing, I picked up a magazine editorial position. Then a little bit after that, I picked up a social media writing position with a boutique social media marketing company.

Both jobs were amazing. I learned copious amounts of writing and editing skills that I thought I already had but didn't actually have. It empowered me to be a better writer.

But, a funny thing began to happen: the more I wrote for these other jobs, the more I felt horrible about the writing.

At the social media job, I wrote for other people. I was a ghostwriter essentially - which meant my name went on none of the material. 

In the writing world, that's called "going backward." The whole goal of a writer is to tell a story, but it helps to have their name alongside it. My name was nowhere alongside any of it. 

I felt like I was becoming even more invisible as the months dragged on with this job. This is the opposite of what I wanted and unrest began to percolate throughout my insides.

At the editorial job, I was writing and my name was on the material! Yes, I was progressing. But, if I'm being honest, the articles were mind-numbingly routine and boring. It was taking all the love of writing out of my writing.

Not a good place to be for a writer.

I was already a freelance writer, writing articles that I wanted, when I wanted, and to whom I wanted. So, this was my big question: Why did I feel like I needed to do more writing - writing I didn't love -  to be a better writer?

What's worse, as if writing I hated and invisible writing wasn't bad enough, it left me no time - or inclination - to write for myself. My freelance writing all but stopped.

I didn't want to blog and I didn't want to freelance because my creativity was shot by the end of those days. I would fill my writing quota with those two other jobs and there was nothing left for me to work with on my own projects.

Instead of adding those two jobs, I should've kicked myself in the pants, and gone full force into my blog writing and freelance writing like I've always wanted and loved doing. 

I love freelance and I love my blog. Why didn't I think I could just focus on those and plug away to get more published work?

Discouragement, I suppose, is the short of it. Rejection is a part of the writing business. Rejection is a part of most business, really. But it's very "in your face" apparent with writing. It's either yes or no and there is no maybe. (Okay, there are sometimes, but those are rare exceptions).

I should've hunkered down and wrote - wrote my heart out and wrote what I wanted. However, rejection from my freelance world made me wonder if I was missing out on different routes to get published. That's what pushed me to add those two jobs.

Just because you think something is right, doesn't mean it is. 

Just because things line up and doors open doesn't necessarily mean you're supposed to walk through those doors. One job came to me because I pursued it. The other job came because I happened to meet the owner and she was looking for a writer.

Turns out,  neither job was for me.

But, it took making a mistake like that to learn what I really wanted in my life and I know what it is: I want to write for myself, with my words, and for the work I choose. Oh, and of course, with my name in the byline. 

There's a quote by Courtney Carver, a minimalist and minimalism author of books like Project 333, a great book that I've written about here, that gives a perfect description of what I'm talking about and it's this: 

    "If you don't  have time to do what matters, stop doing things that don't."

I learned much from these two other jobs, and they were in no way a waste of time. As I said, I learned things at those two jobs I could implement in my own freelance writing. Most of all, it gave me confidence and courage. It made me say to myself, "I do know how to write! I know what I'm doing after all!"

After a few years, I bowed out of the two extraneous jobs, "restarted" blogging again, and added a few more blogs to the mix. My freelance writing has shot up (along with publication) and I love what I do.

 It doesn't even feel like work.

Have you found this to be true in your life? You think you're doing things that help you, but in reality, it's hindering your work/life situations?

If you want to do what matters to you, you're going to have to give up some things that get in the way of pursuing that goal.

What seems right isn't always right. And it's okay to change your mind. I thought I was "right" for adding two writing jobs to my already full queue. In my defense, in all obvious appearances, it should've been right.

But it wasn't. And I didn't feel peace about either of them from the start. That was the biggest clue I ignored.

Peace. If you don't have it, don't move a muscle. In any situation, stay put if peace is absent.

Moral of the story? Do what you want but don't take side roads to get there. Sometimes, things take longer than we think to get where we want. And if you don't have the time to pursue what you love and live the life you love (kind of important, you know) then let something - or many somethings - go by the wayside to get what you love.

Take the direct road, stay in your lane, work hard, and work long - longer than you think - and you will arrive. And remember, less is more. Always. Minimize the excess and maximize your quality of life.

I'm where I want to be doing exactly what I want to do. Both of my jobs - the jobs I love - don't even feel like work they're that enjoyable. That is the very essence of slow living. Loving what you do and doing what you love.

And that, really, is where we all want to be.

-Heather

What I'm Reading │ Historical Gold Rush Books

My dad gave me a book to read called The Age of Gold.  

It's a fascinating book about the California gold rush and the new American dream. It follows many people from various backgrounds who traveled West chronicling their harrowing journeys. 

While I'm only halfway through the book, it's enlightening. Particularly how arduous the journey was getting to California whether they traveled by land or by sea, whether they were married or single, with or without children, born in America, or emigrated.

Many feel the gold rush ruined aspects of the states, particularly the region, destroying the natural habitats, and endangering native Indians and their land along with myriad other issues. And for the most part, there were issues.  

But without this event, the West wouldn't be what it is today. It was a rush to stake claims, and of course, there was a whole lot of greed involved. But whether I agree with the past or not is irrelevant. It happened. 

While it doesn't make it right, greed has propelled the human race from the beginning of time. Learning from our mistakes is part of the human process.

Living in a part of California that is directly involved with the gold rush (I live in Gold River on the American River) and getting to know my history has been illuminating. I'm getting to see how this area was established and why. And while the gold rush ruined many lives, it also catapulted a few into growth, wealth, and progress. 

Simultaneous to this book, I also read a book called Levi Strauss: The Man Who Gave Blue Jeans to the World written by Lynn Downey.

As a Levi's fan times a million (eight of the ten pairs of jeans I wear regularly are Levi's), this book was beyond fascinating. I'm still in awe as to how a young man from Bavaria helped to create something we're still wearing - which still looks similar to the original Levi's jeans.

From how the jeans were created (and who really created them) to how the patents were acquired and how marketing them - and being at the right place at the right time - made Levi Strauss a worldwide phenomenon, this book delves into all aspects of his creations. 

One of the biggest ideas he brought forth was reimagining a fabric - typically worn as workwear - to the masses as clothing that could be worn anywhere (with the gold miners being his first steady customers.)

If you're looking for two books to read that actually go together, might I suggest these two.

Both are very well-written and detail the men and women who worked hard and risked everything to create a prospering future.

These two books are a great introduction to knowing more about why so many flocked to California... and stayed. 

California is a beautiful state. With weather to yearn for, and the prospect of creating a future that no one had yet made (think Hollywood as well as Silicon Valley), it's a state that created - and still creates - an avenue for the American dream.

Let me know if you've read these books. Comment below or if you get my blog via email, you can hit the reply button and the message will go straight to me.

Happy reading!