Anodyne
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
 
Back from the scenic upper southwest coast and straight into Retail Hell. Thousands of lost-looking first year university students armed with reading lists or the manky out-of-date textbooks that the university bookstore buyback service wouldn't take. Eighteen year old girl who wants to know where the "books by Jane Eyre are." Health care professionals-to-be who don't understand why we don't have a used copy of the latest edition of the $275 nursing textbook they need for school. Guy who prefaces his request for Martel's Life of Pi with, "I know you won't have this, but. . . ." (For non-Canadian readers, this is a bit like assuming that 7-11 will be out of Wonder Bread or eggs). And colossal dickheads like the following:

POMPOUS HIPSTER [holding scarce, ultra-low-print-run Takashi Murakami catalog, $79.95]: Where's your other books like this?

CJB: Other Murakami books?

PH: No, man. Y'know...toys...cosplay...Japanese package design...

CJB: Well, we do see that stuff, but it's pretty scarce.

PH: Not in Japan!

And, less than thirty seconds later:

PH: Where's your books on projection holography?
- posted by cjb @ 11:50 AM


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