(no subject)

I always think how it's quite interesting that there are two book camps people fall into -- those who take really good care of their books and scream if you crease the spine (that'd be me) and people who really don't care. Personally, I don't think it's some giant moral crime if you read one way or the other, although I will kill you if you hurt my Sandman series. matociquala has an interesting post on the physical act of reading and on loving the book for the story, not for the physical form of the book itself (she's a very hands-on reader). I agree with that in principle. It's just that I've worked in a used bookstore for long enough that most of me looks at a book for the story, for the author, for the content. The other five percent evaluates it for how much I would pay for it if I bought it for the store. Ha, I am so mercenary. Never invite me to your house, because that's what I'll do to your books. Well, unless you have books I personally want to read, in which case, I will just be salivating. Anyway. Also, after processing so many books, it was rather frightening realizing how many books are out of print. Most books have had large print runs and so are readily available, despite being OOP, but others... sigh. I've managed to hunt down most of the books that I've been looking for, but some are borrowed from the library. If I want it for myself, I have to scour used bookstores. And you never know if it'll be reprinted or not. And there's that sentimental value in having the exact edition that you read as a kid, with that specific cover art.

But mostly, they go out of print. Most people don't take good care of their books, so they get moldy, or water damaged, or pages fall out. I used to buy mass markets all the time (portable, cheap, etc.), and I still love them, except my old ones are getting to the point where some are falling apart. And yes, if I have to read something that's been dropped in a bathtub and sprayed with soy sauce and rubber-banded together because the binding's come loose, of course I will. But now I'm perpetually aware of the fact that my favorite books may go out of print and that I may never find a copy again (well, for years and years, or for less than fifty dollars, because we all love the internet), which goes a long way in persuading me to buy hardcover and to take really good care of them.

ETA: I'm horribly careful with my books usually, though I have this strange habit of crinkling page corners. And if a book really, really pisses me off, I will throw it against a wall. Yes, I'm still mad at Patricia Gaffney and Mary Jo Putney for that.

In real life news, the insurance claim seems to be going along and it is official, the other guy is at fault. Whew. I have my rental car, which caused a great deal of headache before. I don't actually like my rental car. It feels like the exact opposite of my car, which is very short, very heavy feeling, with a slightly difficult to turn steering wheel. The rental is all light and plastic-feeling, and it drives me crazy. Plus, it's an SUV. Rrgh. Hopefully I will not have to fill it up too often. Today I had to go to the towing place to sign a form to release my car. I managed to get lost twice -- once on the way there, once on the way back. I have no sense of direction. To put this in perspective -- my usual car has GPS, and I still manage to get lost. So this was absolutely terrifying, and I hated it, and it didn't help that the towing place was in a rather sketchy area. Ugh ugh ugh ugh. Stress. I'm also horribly behind on LJ because I'm getting home much later every day now.