Top Ten Tuesday: The One Where I (Bookishly) Brag and Confess

It's Tuesday and you know what that means...it's time for my favorite weekly book blogging event! Today's TTT prompt is: Top Ten Bookish Brags or Confessions (What are you proud of or not so proud of in your bookish life?). This topic was suggested by the incomparable Lydia Schoch, who deserves a shout-out for being so awesome at leaving thoughtful comments on everyone's TTT posts each week. Bragging is something I try not to do and I can't think of any big confessions, so this topic is a bit tough for me. How about I do half and half and see what I come up with? 

As always, Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely Jana over at That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top Ten Bookish Brags and Confessions

Brags

1. I'm lucky to be at a point in my life where I have a very flexible schedule that allows me to read pretty much whenever I want and for as long as I want. Yes, I have a house to clean (which is where audiobooks come in handy), a family to take care of, a church "calling," several volunteer positions, a couple other hobbies, and more, but I also have a lot of free time. If I want to read all day, I can! (And often do.)

2. I have a lovely home library. Is it the Beauty and the Beast library of my fondest dreams, with books to the ceiling and rolling ladders to help me reach them? Not exactly. But, the long wall in my living room is lined with stuffed bookshelves that extend far above my head (I'm short, but still...). Pretty much the first thing people say when they come into my house for the first time is, "Whoa! That's a lot of books." I'm a proud book nerd and I love my cozy home library. It makes me happy.

3. Speed reading is not a skill I've ever learned, but I do read faster than the average person. That helps with #4:

4. I consistently read over 200 books a year. Like I said, I've got a lot of free time in my schedule; I don't watch tv; I listen to audiobooks whenever I'm driving, cleaning, or exercising; I don't have a lot of other hobbies; and I read quickly. 

5. I've been blogging here at BBB continuously for 18 years without ever taking a scheduled break from it. Some years I've put in a lot more effort than others, sure, but I've been hanging out here for almost two decades. I'm still having fun with it, so I'll keep trucking along. Thanks for all your support over the years!

Confessions

1. Like many (most?) of you, my TBR "pile" is thousands of titles long. I'll never read all the books I want to, even in several lifetimes (not that that's ever stopped me from trying)!

2. Even though I've become much more selective about the books I accept from publishers, authors, and publicists, I still get many more than I can ever possibly read/review. And yet, I can't stop myself from greedily perusing publishers' catalogs on NetGalley and Edelweiss, saying yes to email queries offering me the latest and greatest new releases, and loading up at bookstore sales. When it comes to books, I'm just a girl who can't say no. No one else can relate, right?

3. Despite my college degree in English, I'm not big on the classics. There are tons that I have never read, a bunch I have DNF'd because they were boring me to tears, and several I suffered through but didn't enjoy. These days, I don't even pretend to prefer more highbrow choices; I just read what I feel like reading!

4. I've never experienced a reading slump. Ever since I learned to read at 5 years old, I've done so voraciously. When other bloggers talk about their months-long slumps, I just can't relate at all. Some months of reading are better than others in terms of how much I enjoyed what I read, but I've never gone more than a day or two without reading at least a couple pages in a book.

5. I rarely buy used books. Is this weird? I love a good book bargain, but I prefer to purchase volumes that haven't been read by anyone else. I adore brand new books with their crisp, unblemished pages and delicious inky smell. Even though they cost so much more than used books, it's worth it to me to buy new. Since I'm not made of money (more's the pity), I am (paradoxically, perhaps) also a huge library user. I just have to grit my teeth and ignore the evidence of other readers who have gone before me—you know, the food stains, stray hairs, folded-down corners (*shudders*), torn pages, etc. Library book sales always tempt me, but I never end up buying from them because I just...can't. It's weird, I know.

There you go, five bookish brags and five confessions. Do you relate to any of them? What are your bookish brags/confessions? I'd love to know. Leave me a comment on this blog post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog. I also respond to comments left here (although I'm still a tad behind from last week).

Happy TTT!