there's a word for that!

One of my interests is reading. But I confess to a bad habit; I am forever buying or acquiring new books, adding them to my shelves but never actually opening them.  Did you know that the Japanese have a word for this? It's TSUNDOKU. This is a combination of several Japanese words, including “tsunde,” which means to stack things; “oku,” which means to leave for a while; and “doku,” which means to read. They say a picture is worth a thousand words and this lovely drawing below (courtesy of whoever drew it) illustrates that beautifully.

Why do we do this? (I say "we" because I am sure I am not unique in this habit). First, I think it has a lot to do with the love of books themselves, their look, feel and smell. Second is the pleasure of buying and owning something (some call this retail therapy). Third - and here I refer to one of my own life philosophies - books piled up give you something to look forward to. I believe that having something to look forward to is one of the essentials of a contented existence. It's that Christmas feeling before the great day; it's that anticipation of an upcoming holiday; and it's the appetite before a restaurant meal.
So why don't I open the books then? Well, it was Robert Louis Stevenson who once said "To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive."  My interpretation of this is that, all too often, things don't live up to their promise. The anti-climax after the Christmas festivities; the carefully-chosen holiday hotel that turns out to be a big disappointment; the much-acclaimed restaurant that leaves a poor taste in your mouth and a hole in your wallet. At least leaving books temptingly on the shelf staves off a disappointing "arrival".