[djulian]

So, I was putting on my socks this morning--though I should say "afternoon," as I didn't put on my socks until about 12:30--and my Kindle was staring at me from my bedside table. We had a good evening together. I read some articles from Longform, read some Psalms, checked out James Brown's Wikipedia article, and the Kindle provided all of this without a complaint. It even powered my little book light.

But two days ago, I was wandering through a Barnes & Noble--the same B&N in which I used to drop $50 on books and stumble home with a stack of discoveries. This most recent trip, I saw a few new books of interest, made a note of the titles, and then added them to my Kindle wishlist. I still haven't bought any of them. I've got about fifty unread ebooks sitting on the device that I'm still working my way through.

I think I'm spending much more time actually reading, and much less time looking for something to read. But I kind of miss the thrill of the hunt, so to speak. I miss disappearing into the stacks at a used bookstore and resurfacing with a nicely-priced copy of Kierkegaard or P.D. James or Tolstoy or some other author of interest. And an added bonus, I knew my dinner guests would see these books on my bookshelves and know something about me--that I like philosophy and mystery and Russian literature. And I would smile and organize my shelves at home and feel fairly well-satisfied in my books. This doesn't happen anymore.

Has this happened to you all too? Do you still spend hours hunting for books and cultivating your shelves? Or do you now just tap, "Add to Wishlist" and grab it when you have the funds and the time?

Is this even a bad change?

I don't know. I just don't feel like going to Barnes & Noble again, which makes me feel a bit like I've lost something important.