Owning Up

Ok, it's time to face the music.

I have a confession to make. I have an addiction, which is costing me money, and affecting my quality of life. It's time to confont it.

Hello, my name is Christopher, and I am addicted to books.

My backpack currently contains 11 books. Some, I read very fast and then trade.

However, in an effort to (1, not be made upset when I have to discard them, and 2, get good value for weight, in terms of reading time), I have bought along a few "classics". These are great, in that they're cheap, and take ages to read.

However, they are also the worst. Don Quixote has been in my backpack since I started the trip - the same for Crime and Punishment. Both I bought this xmas in Thailand, and never got around to reading. They're both heavy, and are weighing down my backpack.. and every time I open the bag, they taunt me, crying out "why won't you read me? Aren't you man enough?"

The truth is, every time I try to read one of them, after a few pages, my eyes refuse to read anymore. However, they're "classic books", and so I know that I must read them.... but until then, I carry them around like a cross.

Yesterday, I traded one book, and bought 3 more. I'll probably pick up another one today. In part, this is because most cities have such a crap selection of books (Grisham, Dan Brown, Harry Potter, Romance novels) that whenever I find a few decent books - I gourge myself... but it's also because well, I have nothing else to do, and reading is fun.

It does cost money. I spent more on books yesterday than my rent and food costs for the day (admittedly, only 5 dollars).

Will it stop? Doubtful. But eventually, i'm going to crack, and get rid of that bloody Don Quixote.. in the mean time, I'll keep hauling it around, and feel a twang of guilt every time I open my backpack, and find it staring me in the face.