Skip to main content

The decommissioning of library books

Today I am having a day at work and really I could not have picked a better day. It's a little cold and a slightly miserable outside and the staff in the LRC are decommissioning books. Any book that has not been taken out of the past 12 years is being recycled or rescued and re-homed. I am not officially a member of the LRC but as a Drop in Support Centre Lecturer, I am based in the library and therefore have been invited to save any of the books I like the look of and there are quite a few.



I am rather fond of any book that comments on the history of domesticity in the home and have managed to pick up some real gems:

  • Laundry Work (Third edition printed in 1974)
  • Modern Home Laundry Work - the latest and completely revised edition which covers the thinking and methods in this field right up to the end of the 1960s
  • A Woman's work is never done - A history of housework in The British Isles 1650 - 1950
  • The Kitchen in history (Published in 1972)
  • Complete book of cleaning - which includes a whole chapter on the lazy's person guide to housework
  • Tacheometric Tables - Reprinted 1950

    I had to do a little sketch and take a few pictures. There is just something about old books. The print is different, the quality and texture of the paper is appealing. I love the sketches, the old photo plates and advertisements. The students for whom these books would have been bought will have lived their lives, established their careers and dreamt their dreams. Young people who attended Canterbury Technical College (as it was once known) would have had different aspirations to the students who I work with today but they would have still possessed that excitement about the future. I do wonder how many dreams were realised, what became of all those students who read these books that are now being recycled. In 1959 this college was organised into two departments: Building and Engineering  and Women's subjects.



    Domestic science is no longer one of the subjects available on Canterbury College's modern app, website and prospectus but it is something that I learnt at school. I did sewing, cooking, home economics (cooking and budgeting), woodwork, metal work, technical drawing and domestic science. During my education which has spanned from the 1970s to now, I feel that I have learnt a huge variety of subjects, some useful and some which are locked in a dusty cupboard at the back of my brain. And now I have a whole pile of old books full of stuff, I would never have even thought about........



    "They that wash on Monday have all the week to dry;
    They that wash on Tuesday are not so much awry;
    They that wash on Wednesday are not so much to blame;
    They that wash on Thursday wash for shame;
    They that wash on Friday wash in need;
    And they that wash on Saturday, Oh they're sluts indeed." -- Robert Hunt

    Comments

    Post a Comment

    Thank you very much for taking the time to make a comment, it really brightens my day and everyone loves getting a little bit of feedback. If you are viewing my blog through Facebook on an iPad, then you need to open my blog in Safari to comment....such a pain but I can't work out any other way to do it

    Popular posts from this blog

    Ridgeway Cottage Anyhow - How to add social media buttons to your blog

    I know not everyone is excited by learning code and techie stuff but in my quest for website geekiness, this post is just one step closer. For all my lovely friends and family who do not care one hoot about what goes on behind the scenes of Ridgeway Cottage, here are some lovely photos of October life. (Those who do want to know about the buttons, social media and coding, please read on.) Social Media Buttons Anyhow You will need. Your blog open in layout  The URL of your social media places you want to link to Some lovely pictures of social media icons that you would like to use as your buttons A photobucket account which you can easily open here A small understanding of how the coding works  A rather large smattering of patience unless you are super clever at all techie stuff   What social media icons are you going to use? You can find some very lovely ones by searching on the internet or there are some here, here ,  or here . I liked these...
    5 comments
    Read more

    Granny square Christmas

    When I was younger I fell in love with the granny square blanket my Nan had made. It was in her tiny little Welsh cottage near the mountains and was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen. So many colours and combinations of colours, it was just truly amazing. I'm not sure if it's the happy childhood memories or my ever increasing passion for crocheting, but granny squares (and doilies) are something I could fill me life with. Even more delightful are the variations on granny squares. Star burst blanket, which used to be my favourite, but I have recently had a go at African flowers. They are quick and easy to make and so very pretty. Thanks to the brilliant free pattern that I found here , I have managed to make a little crochet Christmas stocking made out of 16 1/2 motifs. I am happy with the how the little Christmas stocking turned out and am now rather fond of African flowers, star burst and granny squares, well actually, all...
    3 comments
    Read more

    The Pink Ladies

    As we sat in our classroom inspired horseshoe, designed to encourage conversation, there was a slightly uneasy silence. Those of us who knew each other, stole furtive glances, others returned our smiles politely although they were not privy to the planning and discussion that had occurred in preparation for the evening. The time had slowed, 8pm seemed an age away. The silence was intermittently interspersed with brief attemps at small talk and the rants of a drunk outside on the city streets. The commanding presence of our WI advisor Dorothy, had the air of an experienced headmistress or well respected senior relative which in the event of such formalities made me feel foolish in my .....excitement. Some of us stifled giggles as advice was provided on the process, as we had already made the majority of our formal decisions but it was with noticeable nerves, that I raised my hand to the question of who wished to be President.   So that's it, another new chapter has open...
    2 comments
    Read more