Amazonaholics anonymous
internetmonk.com » Blog Archive » Purchasing Books With Wisdom
Michael, the Internet Monk, has written a useful post detailing his issues with buying books. Now this is a post that I can totally relate to. He mentions the perils of the Amazon “one-click” system and how he has ended up with a bunch of books that he may never read, but which felt “good to buy” and which look good on his shelves. Part of the reason for this change has been a an alteration in his financial circumstances.
It’s funny, but I actually wrote a long post about my book addiction last week, sympathising (a little) with Mel Gibson’s current dramas, and expressing the need to set up an Amazonaholics Anonymous group… but then the stupid computer here at work crashed and I lost the whole thing.
In my case my shelves are already full, and I have about a year’s worth of unread books backed up. My financial circumstances haven’t changed, but I’m currently going through a bit of a shift in thinking and priorities, and the couple of hundred dollars or so a month I average on books could be better redirected to other areas. Michael’s suggestions to manage this problem are a good place to start - shame he’s only got 8 steps instead of 12 though - perhaps we should add in belief in a Higher Power or something along those lines. In my case, part of the cure will be the same as for any addiction - don’t put yourself in a position where you might be tempted. And in this case, that means staying away from Amazon.com, which is easier said than done when you sit in front of a computer all day and read blogs like Scot McKnight’s, who spends half his time discussing cool books. Maybe I need to install one of those internet filter programs and put Amazon at the top of the blocked list? Anyway, wish me luck in my recovery.
Categories : Personal, books | 0 Comments
