Bibliophiles Unite!

I'll be you never suspected that I, Philbert, Pink Phlamingo Extraordinaire, Leader of the Phlamingo Phlock, is also an avid reader. I get this from the D half of the dnrseekers, who loves to read. To be fair, the R is a library lover, but he is not as into the reading as D and I are.

So. In the course of our geocaching and waymarking, we found "Bookcrossing Zones". A book crossing is a place where people have dropped off their previously read tomes so that someone else can pick it up, take it home, read it, and then pass it along. It's not exactly hopping with popularity. But it's still a fun way to go.

Bookcrossing has its own vocabulary. Placing a book isn't called "laying a book", which is what I would have called it. Placing a book is called "releasing it into the wild". Finding a book is called "catching" a book. I've had to get used to this vocabulary. As a bird, being released into the wild conjures up thoughts of NO MORE FREE MEALS! Getting caught is eerily reminiscent of a bird cage and BECOMING SOMEONE ELSE'S FREE MEAL! But Diane and Rick have assured me that this is not the case.

It is fun for me to release a book into the wild...or "lay a book" as I would have called it. Just today we dropped one off at a local sporting goods store...someone had left one there before. So we logged it as a waymark visit since someone else said it was a waymark, and logged it on the Bookcrossingzone.com website. It will be interesting to see if anyone picks it up and logs it in as found.

I've never known anyone to release an ebook into the wild. Wouldn't that be great? Instead of one book, it would be TONS of books! But in the meantime, what a great way to recycle and show concern for the environment. Free books...free reading...life is certainly grand. OH! And just so you know, it's not unheard of for a geocacher to leave a book hidden in a geocache. There's a little extra incentive for you to go out hunting...

Since I don't have any photos of me actually "laying" a book, I thought I would show you some of the things I have mistaken for Phlamingo Eggs. Uncle Philbert got caught reading outside a Carnegie Library in Union City, Indiana. Here's the proof! Until next time...

Happy Reading

Philbert

(just for the record, sometimes I get confused about the difference between "on" and "in". And I just learned eggs are more oval than round. Who knew?)