Stella Kumar is still in the works so for today, I believe I'm going to rant.
I've loved books ever since I was a kid. I used to devour them. I read everything from the baby-sitters club to Harlequin romance novels stolen from my aunt. I LOVED IT. Much of the time, books were my escape. Every time I would get upset or angry about anything, I would read. It helped me calm down and put life into perspective. It also helped me escape. Flipping through the pages of someone's else's story and getting lost in their world is one of my greatest joys. Unfortunately, with the onset of school, homework and life in general, I haven't read for pleasure in quite a while. I know what you're thinking: this is just an excuse. It's true, there are many times when I chose to watch HIMYM when I just as easily could've picked up a book and read. But I haven't. It does however mean that I will never stop enjoying books.*
*DISCLAIMER: I don't enjoy all books. A good example is a textbook. They cost a lot, weight a lot and in general annoy me. Although some are useful, I can't usually sell them back and if I can sell them back, I get less than a third of what I paid for. LAME.
The onset of this rant comes from finding out that the Borders near my house is closing. It devastated me. I loved going there, browsing for books for hours on end. Fiction, non-fiction, architecture, trashy magazines, etc. were all amazing to me. This wasn't enough, however, to keep the store open. With online book sales and devices such as the Kindle trumping in-store book sales, Borders didn't stand a chance. This makes me oh so sad. I know it's been official for many years now but TECHNOLOGY IS TAKING OVER THE WORLD.
I would be a hypocrite to say I'm completely opposed to technological advances to the world. I use my cell phone as a five in one device, using it as my alarm clock, notepad, calculator, place to check email etc. There are many times I want to find out a fact about something and the first thing that comes to mind: GOOGLE IT. But I draw the line at the Kindle/eReader/Nook/iPad. I HATE THEM. They're making my precious books seem obsolete. I understand the appeal. You can fit 100+ books in one single device for the low low cost of $139 and a month long battery life. I get it. But is reading still personal then? I love curling up in my bed or the couch with a book in my hand, getting lost in the story. I love feeling the weight of the book, the grainy texture of the pages and the smell. Oh the smell. True, some smell like old man feet but those are the old books about boring topics like the triassic period. It's all of these elements that make me get lost in the story and escape into another world, much like in Narnia when they go through the wardrobe.
The dependence on technology these days is astonishing. I still can't believe it's gotten to this level. It is strange it took something like this to realize how much technology has taken over our lives. I belong to Facebook where I can find out almost everything about them on a day to day basis to the point where I'm a pretty big creeper and I'm astonished by e-publishing? Yeah, it's pretty pathetic. I guess it hits people differently.
I always wonder now what level we will get to with the many advances in technology these days. Will the world be taken over by machines one day? Will we become machines one day? What will the world be like when the Chinese twins I adopt will be 18? Will we ever find out exactly how many licks it takes to get to the center of a tootsie pop? So many questions and unlimited possibilities all thanks to technology. We see the light yet there will always be darkness...
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