So it is Saturday and I am going to see Sin City and I have about twenty minutes to kill before I need to meet up with my friends so hey! there’s a Border’s I’ll just go in and browse, because browsing doesn’t cost money and I really don’t need any books as I have plenty of perfectly good books at home that I haven’t read yet. Right?
And hmmm, this looks like an interesting book, The Perfect Mile, maybe I’ll just get this one book. Oh what’s this, a book on Buddhism and Star Wars…what? Looks like a fun, interesting read, maybe I’ll get that also, just these two books. These two books and this other one here on Philosophy. Three books, that’s fine, after all I am not here to buy books, just to browse.
Just keep on browsing, still have ten minutes or so. What’s this on this table…GET 3 FOR THE PRICE OF 2. Well, I should at least look, probably noting books, but…hey, 1000 Places To See Before You Die. I’ve actually been wanting that book. Well now that I have this book, I might as well get two more so I can take advantage of the incredible savings of 3 for 2. And luckily this book looks good Flyboys and it has good reviews glurges on the back and why not? So all I need is book #3 and I complete the tifecta with a book on Hold’Em Poker which will be a perfect gift for a buddy of mine who’s birthday is coming up and it’s free, so there you go.
Well, I really need to get going so I can check out and I really can’t hold much more than the six books I never intended to buy in the first place and it’s $80 plus and I was JUST BROWSING. Honest! And of course I don’t really mind getting books…except for the fact I already have a decent stacked of unread books at home and I do this all the time and I should know better because that stack always is getting bigger not smaller, no matter how hard I try.
And I don’t blame myself…it is the evil bookstores who put books on display and let you browse and stuff. And books shouldn’t be interesting, that’s the other problem. STupd books! And did I mention I was just browsing and when is browsing suposed to cost over $80!!
Hell, I was wondering what you meant when you said “browsing doesn’t cost anything”. I swear, I can’t walk into a bookstore without buying something. No matter how much I have at home that hasn’t been read yet.
Ah, yes. I know the feeling well. Even worse is when it’s a used book store, because used books are cheaper. The effect is similar to what happens when you buy low-calorie ice cream…
This happens to me all the time when I hit Amazon, too. I’ve given up even pretending that I’m browsing on Amazon. It always turns into a spend-fest so I just force myself to visit it infrequently.
Wy wife mentioned a couple days ago that I spend a lot on books (both prose and comics). Which is true, but I looked her straight in the eyes and said I could easily spend 500 times what I do know and still not get everything I wanted to have, so she should appreciate my moderation.
I finally figured out how to break the siren call of Amazon. I use the “wishlist” feature and wait a week. Usually I find that what I had to have right that minute isn’t nearly so urgent a week later. If I still want it, I buy it. Plus, I pretty much never buy at bookstores anymore because Amazon is so much cheaper.
This doesn’t help my impluse spending on Japanese books where it costs as much as the book itself to ship. I always forget that part…
Since I spend faaaar too much money on books, and seldom get rid of any (I just can’t bear to part with them, even the not very good ones). So I have recently started availing myself of the local library.
Now the only problem is that I check out waaaay too many books, and end up with fines because I want to keep the books until I read them. Also, the library has a database where you can search for books by topic, and search for books that are similar to books you’ve already read, etc… Right now I have six books checked out and about ten on my request/holds list.
My mother once asked me why I buy so many books, so now I’m trying, and (mostly) succeeding at buying less books. And now she harasses me about reading too many library books! Gah!
:shakes head: Some people just don’t understand the allure reading.
The wife and I are redecorating the house. The first three items we bought were new bookcases. Now my piles of “to be read” books have a home, rather than being stacked in corners and piled in the bathroom.
Should I mention that my Amazon account has its own dedicated credit card?
Six out? Amateur. Try 16. With some renewed 4 times so far. Although to be fair, some of them are cookbooks. My library lets you renew up to 52 times unless someone wants the book.
I’ve been thinking about another credit card to try to improve my credit score. Although I’m not sure if having the card be with Amazon will help me - my credit score may be better, but my wallet might not!
That’s why I do my browsing at the library, where books for disposal usually cost either .25c or 1$, for paperback or hardcover. Then the only limit is backpack room or shelf space.
susan_foster - I wanna know where that library is. The EPL only lets you renew twice, (but for periods of 4 weeks at a time, perhaps that makes a difference).
Posers. I have seventeen to-be-read, with twenty-six on hold. And that’s not counting audiobooks, reference books (which won’t be read cover to cover), or books I’m checking out for my mom!
I’ve been thinking lately of asking our Doper librarians if librarians get pissed off about doing excessive inter-library loans…
I meet a friend at Borders most Sunday mornings. We browse and then get a coffee and shoot the breeze. I keep telling myself that I have enough in the queue and to STOP buying books! But this past weekend I bought 4 more.
I used to work at Borders. They were my enabler. I took that 30% discount and ran with it. They might as well have paid me in books. Would have saved me the time of depositing the check.
I envy those of you with libraries. The local “library” more resembles an outhouse to a VA hospital. Books are so scarce that there is no such thing as genre there. Everything, and I mean everything, is sorted alphabetically by author. I honestly wish this were a hassle, but with the selection there, it only takes a few seconds to see that they don’t have the book you want.
Sigh…
Well, I only started using the library about two months ago - I put those ten books on hold in less than a week. The library also has a suggestion form where you can request that they buy books that they don’t already have, and I’ve made five or six suggestions so far. Especially for the science fiction section - it’s somewhat weak.
Wow! I’m from Edmonton too! I hate that they don’t let you renew more than twice - even if there’s no other holds on the item. However, I’m now starting to abuse the “request” system. If I don’t have time to read a book when I have it out, then I’ll just drop it in the return slot, and then request it as soon as they check it back in.
Sigh. That happened to me this weekend also. We went into Half-Price books to browse and waste time in between apartment showings. 6 books later I make it out. I had to force myself to the cash register and stand by the door so I wouldn’t buy anymore books while my boyfriend looked around a bit more. Last time I went to Goodwill I bought 12 books. We have a flea market down the road that sells 11 books for $10. I search around just to make the deal. Thankfully they just let me know that they’ll trade genre for genre. Yay!
My town is too small for it’s own library and the closest one is 20 minutes away. Buying is easier and closer. Damn books!
I don’t think me working at a bookstore would work at all. I wouldn’t have any sort of paycheck left over.
