Obsession

My friends, I have developed an obsession.

It started innocently enough. I was walking down the street one evening, passing time while waiting for the bus, when my eyes spotted the neighborhood thrift store. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve passed this store by, as it’s located a block away from the train station where I begin and end my lengthy commute every day. I just never paid much attention, I guess. Too busy making eyes at the much flashier soft pretzel factory across the street, and the windows of what used to be a bridal store a few doors down. Naturally the poor little thrift store was overlooked.

But the bridal shop is no more and the pretzel place was closed for the day. And it was cold outside. So that thrift store started looking reeeeeal good. Sigh. The most life-changing events can start so innocently, I’ve found. Because not long after entering, a light bulb clicked on in my brain. “I wonder if they have books…”

Backstory: I’ve been forcing myself lately to lay back on my book buying. It’s not easy. One of my favorite places in the world is the bookstore – just walking in and smelling all those books, wandering from stack to stack, taking my time picking my latest purchase(s, depending on whatever awesome “Buy One, Get One Half Off” sale is going on). A gift card to the bookstore is pure joy, and it’s usually spent before I even step through the doors because there’s almost always a book in the back of my mind that I’d like to read. However, gift cards aren’t always available, and my Borders Rewards card doesn’t save me all that much money. When you read like I do, you gotta either be prepared to say goodbye to some serious coin or find a cheaper alternative. But not for me the library, either. I like to own the books. I like to go back and reread the ones I particularly love. Plus I pass the really interesting ones on to my husband when I’m finished reading.

So I started looking around the store for any bookshelves. And sure enough there they were, in the back of the store. Rows of books. I stood, pie-eyed, gazing at all the loveliness before me. Of course, on closer inspection, I found that I didn’t have much use for much of them – just random books by random authors (seriously, a biography on Barbara Mandrel?), but there were some real gems there, too. I looked around, wondering how much the store was charging. 35 cents for paperbacks, 90 for hardbacks. Gasp! I had to stop myself from pulling a Supermarket Sweep right then and there.

That was just last week. Seven short days ago. Since then I’ve purchased 5 books and have read two all the way through and am just starting another one. I’ve spent a whopping $2.15 (they’re even having a 25% off sale! I almost capered in glee!). And after last night’s perusal there’s at least three more I’m thinking of buying. Gotta love supporting your habit on the cheap.

Now if I could just find some super hot, wearable (read: fungus free) shoes there…and perhaps awesome, gently used Food Network caliber cookwear…