Time for a Nerd Post!

I've thought long and hard about this.
And I haven't changed my mind for seven months.
I want a kindle.

Does everyone know what a kindle is?  It's an electronic book.  And it holds an entire library worth of books on it.  You can get a bunch of books for free online, or buy large quantities in ebay, or buy them individually on amazon.  Its screen is not back-lit in any way so you do need light in order to read it...just like real paper.  But it does not create a glare of any kind, and it doesn't hurt your eyes to stare at for a while (unlike this computer I've been attached to all day.)  And it's super lightweight and doesn't get hot and burn your legs (again...unlike this computer.)

Yes i know it doesn't replace a real book.  And I agree with that comparison.  There's not many things better than laying out at the beach with your water, large sunhat, and book and frying for the next three hours.
And I love books.  I like having them, especially series, lined up on my book shelves.  I like being able to go through and pick one that I've read over and over (Matilda.)  And I like owning my favorites.
And I love going to libraries and discovering new releases or just browsing until a title jumps out at me.  And I love Barnes & Noble or Borders, even if it's just to rummage through the bargain section in the hopes of finding a ridiculously cheap and awesome coffee table book I'll probably never actually read, but rather just look at the pictures.
But you know what?  Not every book is worth keeping.  And not every book is worth re-reading.  And not every book is one that I need to ever own.  And right now I'm traveling.  And I can read quite fast.  And four books takes up a lot of space in luggage.  And after you've finished reading them, they feel quite useless in your bags.
Which is where the kindle (finally) steps in.  I already have it planned out...on my kindle I will have...
- All of the Shakespeare's - so that I may reference them at any point
- A whole bunch of "classics" - you know those ones that you should probably read before you die that were on your high school summer reading list, but instead you stuck to "Of Mice and Men" because it was only 100 pages long?
- Whatever ones come with the $5 CD of 25,000 books to upload onto your kindle that I'll buy on ebay.
- Ones that I find online for free that sound interesting.

And then, you know what I'll do?  I'll read them...on trains, and in hostels, and on my couch, and on airplanes, and in the metro, and in the park.  And I'll never have to worry about lugging a whole crap-load of books wherever I go in the fear of finishing my current book and being left with nothing.  Because I hate finishing a book and then having nothing.  There's something really quite disappointing about that.
But it's expensive.  And you would probably also need a case for it.  And maybe a screen protector.  And living here, a cord adapter.  And right now, I need to focus on spending my money on things like train tickets, and worry about the lightweight electronic book later.
But when I do have it, you know what else I'll do?  Continue to buy real books.  And those ones will be for the beach.  Or because I like them.  Or because sometimes, you really do just need 400 pages of adventure in your hands.

Word of the day: boek - book