The Bookstore

There is a place that I can stay for hours. It's comfortable, safe and never too crowded. Whether I'm alone or with friends, I'm always entertained. It's convenient and the perfect place to just drop in for a few minutes or spend the whole day. The bookstore is like my second home.

By the bookstore, I mean whichever bookstore is most accessible in my current location. It is true that some bookstores are better than others. Some are shiny and new, complete with a coffee shop and super clean bathrooms. Their books are neat and organized; the covers shiny and crisp; the smell of fresh pages fills the store. Others are vast and disorganized chaos. Rows and rows of different shaped and sized bookcases wind throughout the store. Sometimes you have to squeeze through tight spaces or wander around running into dead ends and tiny rooms, just to find the book you're looking for. The floors are uneven, the temperature varies every couple of feet and it would probably be easier to find a rare baseball card than the bathroom. The books, of course, are worn and used. It would be a special case to find a book without a little bit of wear and tear and it smells like coffee, without the coffee shop. But no matter the bookstore, they all have one thing in common, that makes them home- books.

I've loved to read since second grade. Until that point, I can honestly say, that I pretty much knew nothing about reading. I suppose I had some interest in reading, because my parents bought me plenty of books and we went to the library, but when it came to reading in school, I have no good memories until second grade. In kindergarten, I went to the school's library. The whole class had to cram inside a tiny room with no air conditioning and look at books set up on folding tables- no bookcases in sight. In first grade, once I'd moved to a different state, I remember watching in horror as one of my classmates read a book aloud to class with no help from the teacher, something I could only dream of doing.

In second grade, though, I learned that I loved to read. My teacher helped me catch up to the rest of my classmates and soon, I was ahead of them. My teacher put me in a smaller group of classmates for students with high reading levels. From then on, I practically devoured books. In middle school, I was reading literally every second I could. I read in the hallways, walking to my next class and always had a book on my desk, so that if a teacher stopped teaching for a minute I could have something to read. The few times a teacher has ever scolded me, have mostly been about me reading when I shouldn't be.

So, I love books, but that's not enough. Bookstores have memories for me too. I have good memories with all the people I care about in bookstores. It's not just a place I go with friends, but a place I've made friends, run into friends and seen a few people I'd like to be friends with. The funny thing is, that the familiar faces I see at bookstores are always friendly ones. I don't think I've ever seen someone I didn't like at a bookstore. There are the occasional groups of bratty middle schoolers, but they don't cause too much harm and never stay long. Everyone else, from that guy who sits in the chairs with a pile of books and his laptop, to the super adorable, cute, totally sexy and funny cashier, to the person I haven't talked to in years, is wonderful.

I love bookstores! Why do people not appreciate them as much as I do? Instead of McDonald's and nail salons, there should be a bookstore on every corner. I would go to all of them.

Wardrobe Changes: 2
Showers: 1
Temperature: 97