I love books. Well, i love reading them. There are people who do love books, such as an erstwhile coworker that told me she cried when they were lost or damaged, or something like that. She convincingly conveyed to me that she was emotionally attached to her books. She also no longer works here.
I used to work at OLDE, which put me close to John King Books which has over a million books. Though he's just one match away from retirement, i visited a lot during lunch. It was under 10 minutes each way, leaving me over a half hour of perusing each day. Too bad i was only there a few months.
Regular bookstores seem to be going away. Also, there price of a new book at a decent bookstore is high. And, with the advent of online bookstores, the brick & mortars are even less attractive. Well, until i tried looking for a book on Java. There's a bajillion book's on Java, each with its own target audience. Then there's a bunch of versions of Java, how well the target audience is hit, and we have confusion. Even Amazon's reviews were to no avail.
So, off i went to the bookstore. Well, actually, off i went to Home Depot to get new drip pans for my range. I asked someone where to find drip pans, he pointed and gave me the aisle number, asked a second person when there. Minutes late i was checking out. Awesome.
So, i decided to go to Border's, which used to be close by, and found Books-A-Million in its stead. After some initial hesitation i walked in, walked around, didn't seem to be what i want, and left. Eventually, my sister called me back and found a Barnes & Noble not too far away.
Walking in to B&N had some (very) slight nostalgia, and had i had enough time, it'd feel like a candy store. I did have a half hour or so, so i walked around before asking for help. So many books. So many topics. So much variety. And people just sitting and reading. On closer look, they're not holding the books nicely. And look at all the bent covers. Don't you people know how to hold a softcover book? Hold the binding in one hand, possibly pinching a little above it with the thumb and forefinger, then gently push apart the pages. Otherwise, the binding breaks, the cover bends, and you just helped make a book unsalable at normal price. Part of doing business, right? Perhaps, but it still isn't right.
Ooh! What's this, toys? What's a book store without toys? And half price! I came back on my way out and got an Extreme Thumb Wrestling Kit for $5. List price is $9.95 and the big red sticker meant it was half price. There's no ring and only one cape, but who can resist your own mask and mask holder?
But where were the computer books? Ah, ask the man at the information kiosk. I was mildly embarrassed when he pointed to the next bookcase over, and was soon perusing what they had. I settled on Oreilly's Learning Java, 4th Edition, which seemed right, even though it's a version behind. The $50 is more than i would pay online, but i knew that i would be paying more for the pleasure of holding it in my hands before purchase.
I got in line to buy my new candy. In front of me were a couple teenagers. One wearing those pajama pants people call clothes, with a boy with two earrings. It's noting new, but i still find it remarkable. Eventually i was up to bat, and the twenty something asked me if i wanted to join the club. I knew i would hardly ever buy books at the store, so when i found out it is usually $25 a year, it was easy to say no. I told her i usually purchase online. I mentioned Amazon, she mentioned bn.com was comparable, i mentioned they (used to) filter their comments, she said she would look at it or something. It was goodbye at first fright. Well, she asked.
On my way out, i finally found the car which i had parked directly in front of the building. And while looking to back up, my younger brother drove by. I stalked him until he parked in front of the next store, said hello, and left. All in a day's work.
And now the paperweight is on my desk. It's about time i stopped posting and started reading.
