Knowledge - Is There Such a Thing As Too Much?

I have a Webinare on today's schedule - one dealing with the new sales tax laws. Oh joy! Still, I've already had to call the State Revenue department because of a sales tax question, so I'm hoping that spending an hour of time in this will make me more secure with the new sales tax laws. Frankly, I'd rather go to the dentist (and that's high on my ICK list) than deal with taxes of any kind, but as a businesswoman, I don't have a choice. 

I don't think today's Webinare is by these people, but the concept
is the same. It'll be a new experience for me. Too bad I can't use
my Bluetooth headphones for it - my main computer doesn't recognize
them. 

I've been looking through my store bookcases - my personal ones, not the "for sale" ones. There is no way I want to move all of the many volumes back home when I retire, and I shouldn't anyway. Aren't we supposed to be downsizing when we get older? Maybe if I had worked for another company, I'd only have a box to pack at my desk and then I'd be up, up and away. But no, I work for myself. I own and operate a store, and I have a backroom full of reference materials. When I finally retire, those materials have to go somewhere too. Home is not necessarily the answer. 

So many books are available in e-format now, but the reference
books I have are rare, sold-out, or were only in print for a short
time. They deal with specific beadwork stitches, history, trends
and historic use. It's a specialized audience, but there is an
audience out there for them. 

How do people who downsize manage it? We're both collectors - we have interests that are deep and varied, and we're asked to be knowledgeable about what we sell and collect. We're both trained in research and even though we don't have to be as in-depth as we were when we were professionals in the field or teaching, we still have the basic interest that drives us to find out more. I can cull a lot of things, and the physical stuff from the shop that I would take home from the shop are mostly craft components, but there's a TON of reference books - a TON! 

My reference library isn't quite this extensive, but it is deep
in my specific crafting areas. I've been involved in the
industry as a participant, teacher and vendor for almost
thirty years - plenty of time to accumulate reference materials. 

I'm giving myself a year to cull these. I want to sell most of them, and will have to start working out the best method to do that. I can photo them and list them on Ebay for personal sales, but I'm concerned about shipping. I'd like an easy way to ship printed materials without needing a stockpile of broken-down boxes or having to spend a fortune on padded envelopes. Businesses like Barnes & Noble and Amazon seal their books inside sealed cardboard that conforms to the various shapes and thicknesses easily. Is this something available to the more casual user? Have any of you used this kind of system to ship books? Any suggestions for me? 

It would be a lot less expensive to have rolls of corrugated
cardboard that I could cut to size than having to stock
different sizes of boxes for the variety of books I will
have to sell. I have to start some serious thinking. 

I have a feeling that I could relax a lot more if I could start moving out some of this material. I'm all for breathing - LOL - it's usually recommended for life, after all. Oh well, it's good to have goals, right? I think I'll call this an early "done" here, make sure I've got everything ready for the gym, and say "see you tomorrow and have a totally fabulous day" to all of you. Please leave me recommendations for book shipping if you have any, and Thanks! Enjoy your Wednesday.