Yes, I Am A Hypocrite

Today, to my panic-inducing horror, I noticed that my local Borders is closing. Upon arriving home, devasted and with a crushed spirit, I researched the insanity. I got the full story here. I am not alone in my perils. Over 200 Borders stores are closing, most-likely due to recently unloyal customers like myself.

Truly, I think it is a pity that we live in such an age of technological abundance, and while I have had my muffled of-a-whim worries before, this is the first time I have ever been seriously distraught over the absolute power that technology holds over our society. Amidst the Nook, the Kindle, and Amazon itself, bookstores are being made obsolete. Borders can only be the first of many. The beauty of wandering around a bookstore, reading, browsing, and smelling all the wonderful new books for hours on end is slowly being effaced from our world, and it makes me want to cry.

But I am not above this travesty. Nay, I have contributed to it most generously. While I do not own a book-belittling device such as the Kindle because I still cherish being able to hold an actual bound book in my hands, admire the covers, physically turn the pages, and see how far along I am by glancing at the dog-earred section, I am an avid Amazon shopper. (I've turned completely over for digital music, but I hope I never totally give into the surge of ebooks). 

As much as it saddens me deep down, I buy books offline like crazy - because honestly, why would I pay over $20 for a book from Borders when I could get it from Amazon for half the price (or sometimes much less) plus a little shipping (and sometimes not even that if it's under my Prime), and get to share in the excitement of getting a package in the mail? Some of those cheap books from Amazon are even new, and if they're not, they have their own little history, and that's interesting. Not to mention, Amazon has like, everything. The only element that is truly lost, the browsing atmosphere, is even apparently much more easily relinquished than one would think, for a cheap book-hoarder like me. I'll admit it, though I'm not proud.

I just have to pray that something miraculous occurs, and the novelty (ha, did you catch that?) of book stores will hit again, before the sad fate Borders becomes typical. Or, maybe their new plan will work and they will be able to salvage themselves before all hope is lost. Whatever the outcome, I will probably always be a devoted Amazon shopper, even though a world without bookstores would just be..downright scary, for many reasons. So I guess I have proved my post title right. In my perfect reality, I would have bookstores to go into whenever I felt the desire, to simply look in, and then go home and buy the books for cheap off Amazon. Yes, I am a hypocrite, and I give Borders a sincere apology. I wish you the best, my former favorite bookstore!