Part V of my ongoing quest to archive all the items I find in my books. Sometimes people store money or checks in their books. My friend Heather once found $20 in a book she found on the street. I cannot imagine getting rid of a book without carefully going through it to see what might be inside.
Some of these items are quite plain and boring. But they mark what my life was like at the time. Once I moved from NYC, I slowly started going out. Tentatively. And then it became quite aggressive. The flyers denote my club life and the muni transfers represent my scholastic side. Taking the bus to and from school. I have another few batches of books to go through. But those books have been at my parents’ home in Pacifica for a few years now. I haven’t lived with them for about three years so while I feel a bit detached from them, I cannot get rid of them. I’m still hopeful of one day having a large room filled with bookcases for my books.
Archiving my Life through Random Placeholders I find in my Books
Volume I
Volume II
Volume III
Volume IV
Goth Grammarist 
[…] This project is really fun but sometimes it’s a bit sad. It reminds me of things I’d forgotten, things I meant to forget. I’m not referring to this particular entry, just this project in general. We store things away to hide them because we can’t throw them out and yet we don’t want to see them anymore. And one day we find them and all those emotions reappear just as that item has. Archiving my Life through Placeholders I find in my Books Volume I Volume II Volume III Volume IV […]
[…] A flyer for leisure, one of my favorite parties. And an actual bookmark, one that was part of a card that my friend Dug (the writer) gave me. Last year I went to see the Barry McGee exhibition at BAM with Scott and his boyfriend Jason. Interesting, this is the only Contemporary Jewish Museum ticket I found being used as a placeholder. I thought there’d be more as I’ve worked there for almost four years. A tabletop ad (that was being recycled) for an exhibition catalog at the CJM Store and a bookmark for Book Passage, the store that I bought the book in. Here is a card in hand for the Contemporary Jewish Museum, with a flyer for a show my friend produced. (2012) So looking over this collection of items, I’ve got a lot of plane and public transit tickets, some club flyers, some bookmarks, and some museum tidbits. I used to travel a lot more when I was still considered dependent on my father. For my dad’s work, at the time, the rule was, under 25 was considered dependent, even if you lived in your own place and had a job. What a lovely time for me. Able to fly cross-country just for a party. Those days are long gone. If I have to take muni to get to a party, it’s iffy I’ll make it. I’m just used to walking everywhere, and my life has grown a bit insular as my flight benefits are non-existent and I’m living in one of the most expensive cities. Archiving my Life through Placeholders I find in my Books Volume I Volume II Volume III Volume IV […]
[…] my Life through Random Placeholders I find in my Books Volume I Volume II Volume III Volume IV Volume […]