I have been bothered since learning that Borders was closing its doors for good.

Magic lives in bookstores. I have a particular fondness for Borders because I have many precious memories of otherwise gray afternoons spent reading there, gourmet coffees and syrups perfuming the air. Hundreds of people could have fit in the store, but the almost reverent stillness would continue.



So many treasures lined the oak shelves—many diamonds in the rough. I liked finding those. I haven't been on a proper treasure hunt in years.

Once school started, the idea of reading for myself would have produced maniacal, wild-eyed laughter. Reading dry textbooks sucks the life out of me. I know that a proper student should puff their chest and exalt in the knowledge garnered. Not me. I'd much rather extract meaning from the obscure: it's just who I am. I am bored by anything that spells everything out. Sadly, my last book purchase at Borders was last December when I bought a GMAT study guide.

I am only recently recovering the bits of myself I had to give up when I traded my free time for a education (or at least one on paper). You want proof? Click on the archives page. My classes began in September of 2007…pay attention to the telling drop off in monthly counts.

Meanwhile, I killed Borders. You killed Borders, too. We let life get in the way and steal the joy of that bookstore magic. Throw e-readers into the mix, and this is but the beginning of a foregone conclusion. Even though I take blame for contributing to this, I am unaccountably sad. Losing our bookstores isn't about losing the product—books can be sold through many mediums—losing our bookstores represents losing a very precious experience.

We are slowly forfeiting our option to browse, and we're giving up the right to not know what we want.

So why am I ambivalent when this soliloquy is decidedly lopsided? I am conflicted because I wholeheartedly endorse innovation. I support any medium or device that facilitates bringing literature into someone's life. The problem is, I want it all…and I don't think that's possible anymore.