Gentle Readers and Dear Friends I wanted to thank you for your kindness - and your sweet comments on yesterdays posting!! I do appreciate them!! A warm moment on this cold damp morning. We are supposed to be getting warmer around here, but I doubt it... I'll just enjoy the cold and fog!!
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Today's post refers to a trip I made over the weekend - as most of us know Borders has finally thrown in the towel and is going out of Business - how very sad, but I think inevitable - for many reasons.... but this also means that the stock still held in the stores is being sold at various discounted prices - from 10% to 40% throughout the store. I almost passed on going but then thought I should take a look - well, of course I found a couple of things....
I wanted the Tracy Hepburn collection since it first came out - all 9 of their flicks are included - a great collection and good transfers. The two Blu-Ray's I din't have and had always meant to get and the book... how could I pass on a book with "Notorious " in the title... so racy and decadent!!
I will probably stop back by as the discounts increase - not expecting to find much, but you never can tell. I think the saddest part of this whole thing is that with the onset of the "Big Box" book store, it drove the little book stores out of business years ago.... so now we are left with Amazon. Don't get me wrong, I do like Amazon, but it does not replace actually shopping in a store. Here in SF there are really no book stores left, I can only think of two actual book stores in the city. Close to the city there is a Barnes and Noble, but that is down in South City and about a 20 minute drive. There a few used book stores left (I do love me a bargain on a used book) but that really doesn't replace the "new book" store. At some point in the far distant future I will probably break down and get a "plastic, magical flat book" - but like all other new formats that I have had to adapt to in my life (ie. - cd's, vhs, beta, dvd, blu-ray...you get the idea) - I will fight the "plastic book" tooth and nail for a few more years.
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Not much on the stitching front - I think I crossed about 4 x's - I just sort of passed out in my stitching chair while impersonating a dog bed. Where the who hounds get off thinking I am just a warm lump to sleep on I haven't the foggiest...... :)
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There you go sports fans. Thanks for stopping by, do stop by again!!
Take care,
edgar
Edgar, I feel the same way as you do about the closing of the bookstores. Sadly, I think eventually there will be no store front book stores and we will most likely see fewer and fewer actual books as everything will be some form of the evil plastic reader. I have yet to cave in and get one but did give my son one for Christmas last year. He travels a lot and I thought it might be a good thing for him to have. He was reluctant at first but really loves it now. Our closest store happens to be a Borders and I am seriously considering a Kindle as I never have time to get to the other side of town where there is a B & N. It's very sad...
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad to hear that I'm not the only dog bed impersonator!
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous day!
I know how you feel about Kindles and Nooks and the like. I like the feeling of a real book in my hands and have been known to wear out a favorite book. When the Modern Library Edition The Collected Works of Jane Austen that I purchased with my first paycheck was so tattered that it was held together with rubber bands, I finally splurged on a new copy but I missed the copy that had given me so much pleasure for nearly 45 years. I know all the arguments in favor of virtual books: they save space, they are more portable, you can read something new in that format and then decide if you want to make it a permanent part of your real book collection, soon they will be more readily available than real books so you may as well get used to them. I am still not a convert.
ReplyDeleteAnd I, too, lament the small independently owned book shop. At present all we have in Rockland County are two B&N branches and one used book store in Nyack. Before you know it the only place you'll be able to buy books are flea markets and library sales. From there it will only be a short step to antique shops!
Bah, humbug! And again: Bah, humbug!
Nice finds at Borders! Yes, I find it all very sad. I so miss the old mom and pop local bookstores. We had a couple of really good ones in this area. And you're right, the used bookstores are there (not very many, but one or two) -- but it's not the same. I confess, I converted to that e-reader thing. lol! I didn't think I would like it, but I actually like it a whole lot. The one thing I miss is buying actual books. lol! Sounds weird, but it's true. I still pick up the occasional hard copy book though. Nice change when I do. I think the compromise of having both formats is nice.
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way you do about the book stores Edgar. I like browsing through a store and reading an actual "book". I've been thinking about a Kindle but haven't broken down and gotten one yet.
ReplyDeleteHave a good day. Wish we had some of your cool weather:))
Sad t o see bookstores closing. Borders was never my favorite, though they always seemed to have a good DVD selection. Independent bookstores seem almost obsolete now and we're left with the occasional B&N. I do have the plastic thingy but I still buy real books and love bookstores. For me, the plastic will never totally replace the paper.As for used books, we are so lucky to have The Strand in NYC. It is my guilty pleasure to spend time there as often as I can! Hugs, Nancy
ReplyDeleteI understand your feelings completely on bookstores closing. It makes me so sad to see this happening. I love books! I love the way they smell, I love turning the pages and holding it in my hand. I DO NOT want a plastic reader!! I like technology (even though I embrace it reluctantly) but this is where I draw the line.
ReplyDeleteI refused to get an ereader too and end up getting books to read at the library. Don't forget Books Inc. And I love Green Apple Books when I can get there. It's half new/half used.
ReplyDeleteI love books and and bookstores - there something is opening up a new book and having a good sniff - yes I am a closet book sniffer! I have succumbed to Kindle which I like but it will not replace my love for books. It will however saving me a lot of luggage space on trips abroad. Will I still buy a book at the airport? Of course I will!
ReplyDeleteI'm not a convert to e-readers either. I love holding books! Besides, an e-reader is gonna hurt when it lands on my face when I'm drowsing off in bed reading:))Nice looking haul you got there from Borders. We have two new book stores here and about 3 used book stores. I've found lots of super used books but there's nothing like having a brand-spankin' new hard back in my hands!
ReplyDeleteI am down here in hot Southern California and would almost kill for some of your temperatures! I need to move! I am torn about going to Borders for the sales, because my daughter is one of the people out of work from the last round of store closures. I feel a little bitter. Even though a good sale is a good sale...I love browsing a good bookstore, I love my Kindle too, but I think eventually there will be no bookstores because of the readers, which makes me sad. I sure hope B&N can stay afloat.
ReplyDeleteI don't think the e readers are going to replace books anytime soon, too many people like me who want the feel of a book and real pages, too much fear of obsolesence (video tape anyone?), and too much initial outlay
ReplyDeleteI am a longtime lover of books and bookstores as well. I know there are quite a few good stores in the City, with City Lights coming immediately to mind. Actually I Googled "bookstores San Francisco" and got a decent sized list. Hopefully some of them are close enough for you to have a chance to go browse :)
ReplyDeleteYour comment on bookstores reminded me of the movie I adore and have seen dozens of times You've got mail with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. The big supermarket bookstore eats up the shop in the corner. Anyway I detest plastic books. I love second hand books. Recently at an antiracist festival some people were selling old books and I got some really great bargains if you see my blog. AriadnefromGreece!
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry as well to see so many of these bookstores close. Here in Canada we still have Chapters and Indigo stores but I wonder how much longer before they succumb to the same fate
ReplyDeleteMy DH gave me a Kobo ereader for Christmas. It's great to carry with me and pull out when I'm stuck waiting somewhere but I still prefer to have the real thing in hand. There's also nothing like the smell of a new book!
No bookstore in the city?!?!?!? You must pack up and move! right now! LOL...I am so with you on the whole "flat plastic" book thing...I'm sure that by the time my daughter gets to highschool the "Textbooks" will all be on the kindle! I am an avid reader, and get alot of people always questioning me "Why don't you have an e-reader yet?" I can't explain it, but I love my paper books!!
ReplyDeleteOh I am so, so sad about Borders as I commented to you yesterday and my "tooth and nail" will be right there with you and many others - I don't want a flat book...I want to turn pages and shopping from home on the internet for a downloaded book doesn't have that smell of a bookstore! It is a love that is only second (or maybe third) to fabric, fibers, stitching and quilting!
ReplyDeleteSounds like the who hounds have been consorting with my brother's boxer. He's at least sixty five pounds, and thinks he's a lap dog, lol. Sorry you didn't get much stitching in, but maybe you needed to veg out for a bit. Sorry to hear that your bookstores are all closing. We're having the same problem here. I do have a couple of used bookstores, but the B & N nearest me is over half an hour away. And I agree with you on fighting the whole book reader thing. I want pages in my hands!!!
ReplyDeleteEdgar, I scoffed at the idea of the "plastic book" but after having one for two years, I have to say it's one of the best purchases I've made just for me. I've read so many authors that I wouldn't have picked up if I only had print to choose from. I've also read a number of the books I "read" for high school English. It's amazing the different perspective you have a few years down the road. Will it ever replace my love of "real" books, no, but it certainly makes it so much easier for me to carry books with me on the train and when I travel.
ReplyDeleteNo dogs, but I do a really great impersonnation of a cat bed.
Like you, I love my books. I love the feel of holding a book in my hand, I love seeing all my books on my bookshelf, I love that sense of satisfaction when I turn the last page. However, this winter when I was on crutches for 8 weeks, not allowed to do any weight bearing on one of my feet after surgery, I hated trying to hobble around carrying a 900 page hardback while navigating with crutches. I broke down and bought a nook. I totally love it and won't go back. There are so many free books out there, and some of my old favorites did make it onto the nook. Never again will I have to worry about overweight baggage fees on flights to ensure I don't run out of reading material.
ReplyDeleteI don't want a book reader either... but will likely break down one of these days. I still need to get out to our local Borders and check out deals. Could be dangerous.
ReplyDelete