All for Naught

I had been so good! Resist temptation left and right, but one quick lapse is all it takes for that hard work to come crashing down like a house of cards.

I had been in some book stores and record stores to kill some time, bask in the air conditioning, and see what had been popping up on the new music, movie, and book fronts. I was just browsing, though. I carried a few books around the stores while debating a purchase, but in the end I decided I didn’t really need them and was proud of myself for putting them back on the shelves. This scene had repeated itself a few times in the past week or so with clothes, DVDs, CDs, and groceries; each time my better judgment prevailing to leave the unnecessary items behind.

But then I cracked. I was having a bad day. Nothing dramatic, just a long day and I wanted some fiction to read (see below). I went to the Strand Bookstore (18 miles of books!!) near Union Square, found a cheap used copy of the book I wanted, paid, and started back toward the subway.

But the slope had been slipperied, and as I passed Virgin Records I remembered an album had just come out that I wanted to hear. I went in, listened, and decided to that if buying a book had made me feel better some new music would definitely help my mood. I ignored the CD sale racks on the way back to the register, but strategically situated next to the checkout line was a rack of $10 DVDs and I of course saw several movies that I had been meaning to watch. At this point I really had no choice but to pick at least one up. Movies in the theatre are $11 in New York, so a $10 DVD is a bargain, really.

I did well to go home with only one book, one album, and one movie, but I was shocked to see with what speed and ease the swipe of a Check Card annuls the efforts of the discerning consumer.