I Miss Bookstores

julie-bordersAs a former Librarian, I’ve always loved bookstores. Not to a fault, mind you  – I’m not paying twice as much for a book at retail if I can get it online instead. Starting in the mid-1990s, I’ve very much enjoyed the big bookstores such as Barnes & Noble, and especially Borders. Yes, those chains have hurt small bookstores, but in general I’ve chalked that up to changing times. For about 15 years, those chains have had a really good run, but now Borders is closing many of it’s stores.

I’ve gone out of my way to support physical bookstores. We enjoyed visiting the stores after going to the movies or after dinner at places like the Fremont Hub or McCarthy Ranch. In recent years, I’ve been given the opportunity to choose gift cards from several vendors while participating in a rewards program at work. In those cases, I’ve often chosen Borders cards and used them to purchase books, movies, and CDs at their stores. As the kids have grown up, we have regularly taken trips to these stores to browse or more regularly purchase books for them to read.

But, as we know, Borders is closing many of it’s stores. And this has made me really sad. Some of it is nostalgia – the Borders shown in the photo is at McCarthy Ranch and Julie and I went here a lot when we were dating or after we married without kids. And on a recent date night we made one final trip to the location. Inside, it was a bloodbath as people were seemingly picking over the bones of a dead carcass.

So, so sad.