I haven’t been very public about my thoughts on the end of Borders. I think most of that stems from the inability to accept that the Borders I know and love will cease to exist by the end of the year. In the back of my head, I feel like if I ignore it, things will be just fine. Well, as someone who works at the home office for the next two weeks (4 weeks more than most of my department), it’s hard to ignore it any longer. The halls are empty; the cubes and furniture have (over)price tags on them, and I’ve moved to the third floor to finish up my time as a Borders employee. The joy and energy that once filled the halls of the big white building are nothing more than memories. I worked at Borders for seven years, so the folks I worked with became a second family. It’s a bit harder than I expected to say goodbye.
One of the things I promised myself was that I wasn’t going to go into one of the stores now that the liquidation is going on. I just didn’t want to see the store I know and love defamed like that. I was downtown Ann Arbor today interviewing for another job and it just so happens the place I was interviewing at is close to Store 01. There was a book I’ve been wanting that I knew was in stock (and I refused to buy it from Amazon), so I went back on what I decided once Borders filed for Chapter 7. I walked into Store 01, ignored every single liquidation sign (which wasn’t an easy feat), and said goodbye to an old friend. Luckily, the book I wanted was tucked in the horror section on the first floor, so I didn’t need to go upstairs and see the cafe roped off or to see what was left of a once great music and video selection that was decimated by years and years of inventory reduction initiatives. I don’t think I could have gone upstairs anyway. I had to draw the line somewhere. It was weird enough walking into the store I love after a job interview. Here I was dressed from head to toe in black for the interview (which was fitting since walking into Store 01 today was almost like a memorial service or a viewing. Thoughts of how packed the store was when Dog the Bounty Hunter or Billy Corgan or Bruce Campbell visited went through my head. Thoughts of John Hodgman’s book signings (which were way more than half full – my guess is he was going for comedic effect….) and the awkward cocktails beforehand went through my head. All the authors I’ve had the pleasure to meet these past seven years who may now never have a reason to come to Ann Arbor ever again….it’s just tragic.
Borders was my first….bookstore. It almost felt like I was cheating on her by walking into the store in my interview attire. But, upon further thought, I think Borders would want me to move on with my life. Regardless, it felt almost wrong walking in there today. But, Borders did today what it always did for me – offered me a great book. The book I bought today was from a small press that wouldn’t probably get placement in a B&N or an indie bookstore, so another thing I worry about as I move on to a life without Borders is how will I find these diamonds in the rough? I’ll find a way because Borders would want me to. So, I’m going to put my big boy pants on and prepare myself to move on. I have a week and a half left as a Borders employee and I’m going to make the most of it, even if I spend my last days cleaning up and prepping the building for winding down operations. I’m going to be strong because Borders would want it that way.
I had a lot more I wanted to say for this blog post, but when writing it, I had trouble composing my thoughts into a cohesive narrative. I may write more about Borders, I may not. I think you kind of get the jist of what I wanted to say, right? Just know that I will find a new bookstore to shop at because I refuse to buy books from Amazon. I may not like it, but I will find a new bookstore to try to fill the Borders-sized hole in my heart.
Thought of another one: Europe- The Final Countdown
I actually posted that song (and the REM song) on my Facebook page yesterday.
Excuse me, I had the wrong tab open. Also a former Borders employee a long time ago, and reading some of the various Borders closing posts. Please ignore my previous comment. I’d delete if I could figure out how to.
Thanks for your thoughts, Dane. I work in a PA superstore as a merch supe. (former IPT, Training supe. Operations supe.). Over the past few weeks, I’ve really gone through a range of emotions; sad, angry, impatient, worried, punch-a-customer-in-the-face-angry among others.Im pretty good at hiding these feelings. Until I’m in the stockroom or the backoffice. And I can defuse by talking about it with my coworkers.
I suggest that you go back to 01 and talk to the employees. You must know some of them. You’ve worked at corp. for seven years, right? It’s possible that some may not be very receptive, but others may need some moral support. We could sure use some in our store. Show that all the suits at corp. haven’t forgotton about us grunts at the store level.
Wayne – that’s a great idea. I may just have to visit 421 as well since I spent equal time at that store. Thanks for chiming in.
Also, for the record, I’m a corp grunt, not a suit.
Thank you, Dane. This is coming from someone who never worked for Borders and tried so hard to get into the Novi store. I worked for Barnes & Noble in Brighton and hated it. I worked there and still would shop at Borders. I went into the Novi store yesterday and it was worse than I could ever imagine. Seemed torn apart. Music was a shell of what it used to be, the shelves of DVD’s empty because they’d be cleaned out. It’s a shame. I don’t think it’s as depressing as it is scary that we’re losing one of the best stores as well as companies I’ve ever known. It broke my heart the first time I walked into the Brighton store and saw the cafe cleaned out. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to cry about it. What I’m trying to say is if it helps you get through the loss of something that is a little more important to you than it is to us, the people who shopped there but didn’t work there by writing, please do. We all will read it. Thanks again for sharing, kind sir.
Thanks for the kind words Keith. I’ll definitely keep writing.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Dane. I look forward to whatever you have in store in the future. I came here by way of Babel Clash and the Twitter feed and I really hope that you continue to write and/or curate a blog with a focus towards science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Like you, I love discovering the “diamonds in the rough”, especially in sci-fi and horror and it’s strange that as the internet grows and grows, finding those diamonds seems to be becoming a little more difficult. That’s why I like finding curators that I trust.
I had that once with an indie store in my hometown (now closed up and vacated after nearly 40 years in business…very sad) and like you, I actively avoid Amazon. Have you checked out IndieBound (indiebound.org)? Just a thought.
In any case, I’m rambling so I’ll cut myself off. Thanks again for a great post and I’ll be bookmarking your site for future updates.
Hi Kyle,
Thanks for responding. I’ll definitely find a way to stay in the publishing biz, even if it’s just as a blogger. A life without books is a life not worth living is one of my favorite quotes, so I’ll do what I can to keep them in people’s lives.
Completely agree with you regarding how hard it is to find books even with the growth of the Internet. In fact, the four weeks I worked at the home office after we announced the liquidation, I almost felt lost. I didn’t really know who, or what, to turn to. I didn’t like that feeling one bit.
We have a nice indie about five-ten minutes from my house. Conveniently, it’s also right next to the library, so between those two resources, I should be all set.
Thanks again for stopping by. Until I have the new blog set up, I’ll use this blog as a stop-gap of sorts.
Sadly, I guess you’ve got time to finish the Dark Tower series now. No reason to wait for 4.5. Best of luck in the future!
One of my plans is to actually do a Dark Tower reread for the new blog (was going to do it for Babel Clash) including a “first read” for the second half of book seven. I have all seven books ready to go.
Thanks for the kind words!
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