Filipino Friday 2013 (3): The Pinoy Book Drop

And just like that, it's Friday again! And in the Fridays leading up to the Filipino ReaderCon (November 9, boys and girls!), we have our Filipino Friday meme.

This week, it's the culminating activity for the Pinoy Book Drop, the instructions of which you'll find here. And for this week's topic:

Did you participate in the Pinoy Book Drop? If yes:
- First, kindly detail all the books that you have dropped, and where and when you dropped them.
– Next: tell us all about your experience. How did you feel before and after you dropped the books? How did you choose the places where you dropped them? Did you check back and see if the books were still there? Do you have any idea who might have found them?

Here are the books that I have dropped for the entire week:

• Book #1: The Red Tent by Anita Diamant, dropped at Fitness First Manila on Friday, Oct. 18 at around 7-7:30pm

• Book #2: Riding Lessons by Sara Gruen, dropped at the waiting area of Sofitel on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 11:30am

• Book #3: The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel, dropped at the Court of Appeals Centennial Building on Monday, Oct. 21 at 8:30am

• Book #4: The Shack by William Young, dropped at the 4/F of the Supreme Court Annex Building on Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 8:30am

• Book #5: Case Histories by Kate Atkinson, dropped at Jollibee Robinsons Ermita on Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 5pm

• Book #6: Barefoot by Elin Hilderbrand, dropped at Starbucks Robinsons Ermita on Wednesday, Oct. 23 at around 6-6:30pm

• Book #7: Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helene Simonson, dropped at the Supreme Court Skywalk on Thursday, Oct. 24 at 11:30am

• Book #8: Citizen Girl by Emma McLaughlin and Nicole Krauss, dropped at Wendy's Robinsons Ermita on Thursday, Oct. 24 at 6pm

My experience was all sorts of exciting and funny. At first, I was worried that people who would see me leave the book would think that I only forgot it, and consequently, run up to me to give it back. Taking photos of them before I left them in random places wasn't a problem for me either - I would rather take photos of the books than do a selfie, which in my opinion is more embarrassing. So my initial and only apprehension was in making people believe that I left the book there on purpose, for them to find it and claim it for themselves. After the first two books, though, I just learned to let it go.

As for thinking about who will actually get the books, I didn't worry about that either. If the fastfood crew or the gym utility personnel found the books and decided to keep it for themselves, that's fine with me. If they decide to give it away because they're not into reading, that's okay, too. My particular mind-set in approaching this activity was, whoever found my books were really meant to find it. And I very much welcome the shelf space that dropping books has given me, so yay!

I also didn't worry too much about where to drop the books. My house and office are within the same walking-distance area as the mall, so I could easily pick places for the drop. I even dropped two books while buying pasalubong for my little girl. :D

Someone asked me on Twitter if I have read the first book that I dropped, and truth be told, I said no. In fact, the only book that I've read from the pile is The Shack - the others are waiting on my TBR pile. Why did I drop them? Simple: I know that I won't be able to have time to read them anymore, and that the little extra time I have for reading should be devoted to books that I would prioritize. These books were bought on a whim because, well, they were from a bargain bookstore, and some of them I only bought because they sounded interesting (at the time). So instead of me mulling over when I could find the time to read them, I thought I'd give them away - to a complete stranger, yes, in the hopes and positive thinking that I could spark an interest for some of them.

Would I do it again? Absolutely. :)

For more book drop experiences and stories, please hop on over to this site. Happy (long) weekend, everyone! :)