The Last Library Sale

Book hunting has always been the greatest joy of my life. From my earliest days of working and having some pocket money, I’d go every weekend. I’d go out, usually first thing on Saturday, and hit the used bookstores in my area. Back then I didn’t know about thrift stores and library sales.

For me there’s no greater thrill than the moment of a great find. But thanks to technology the finds have been much fewer and farther between in recent years. People have scanners and can sell on ebay.

Yes, I am a dreaded reseller, but I think I do it right. I see myself as more of a procurer. I spend my time, gas, and money, then do a small markup. I sell cheaply. In fact, we’ve been told time and time again that we do not charge enough. It’s my way of being part of the community.

We promote literacy by having a Little Free Library for kids at every show we do. We also have a free library in our front yard. These books cost us money too, but we love doing it.

There’s a monthly sale at the Chesapeake Virginia library. I’ve been going nearly every month for a decade. Back then there was a core group of us diehards. We’d get there early and be among the first ones to enter the sale area.

It’s fun and I’m always excited about the prospects of a great haul. Something to look forward to every month.

Us old timers had unwritten laws. We respected each other and we honored the line. First arrivals are the first to enter. If anyone has to run to a car or to the bathroom, we hold their place.

All of us were looking for different types of books, so we helped each other out. It was always enjoyable. I didn’t even mind waiting an hour or more to get in. We had plenty to talk about.

As the years passed people began to change. More started showing up. You’d think a book crowd would be decent people, wouldn’t you? Well, you’d be wrong.

People got louder, ruder, more disrespectful. Me, me, me. I come first. Get out of my way.

I like to be first too, but the difference is, I do the work for it.

There are a couple of new regulars I can’t stand. Obese, dumb, loud. You can feel the brute stupidity coming off of them in waves. They are the type that give geeks a rotten name. They talk, very loudly, like they are in Middle Earth. That is, when they aren’t bellowing about how no one is going to take their guns. Defending themselves is their right! I sort of get it. I bet a lot of people would like to shoot them.

Unsurprisingly, they are after used video games and comics, not books. I know this because they talk about it at the top of their lungs.

Now, allow me to go into detail about my current health situation. I worked as a machinist for forty years. You know what my retirement present was? Acute pain in my left leg from strained veins. Authorcon attendees saw me limping around at this year’s show. I’m doing better through rehabilitation, but I still limp and I’m always in pain. I can't get surgery until December.

So, last Saturday I got to the sale extra early. I was the first to arrive, an hour and a half before the doors opened, and I stood there waiting in the blazing July sun. It was miserably hot.

Throngs arrived and instead of forming a line as we’ve always done, they clustered by the door. I was feeling sick about it, and when they opened the doors, the two orcs rushed in and the others followed suit. Even though I was right in front of the doors.

A few years ago, I wouldn’t have allowed it to happen, but I am in pain. As I tried to jump in, people were pissed as if I was the one trying to cheat.

Needless to say, I was enraged. It didn’t help when I got in I saw some punk with a stack of Stephen King hardcovers in his arms. Thinner, always a welcome acquisition, was right on top.

I was seething. I told the volunteers, and they were sympathetic, but what are they supposed to do? Library Friend volunteers are invariably elderly. They shouldn't have to deal with a group of unruly animals.

We are talking about the kind of people who purposefully brush off a sixty-five-year-old man with a bad leg. Most of them obviously don’t even care about books. It’s a way to make a quick buck.

I honestly don’t think some of them were even aware of what they were doing. So many people are stuck up and oblivious of anything other than their own appetites.

It’s like babies. They come into their worlds with no awareness of anything but their needs. They throw tantrums when they do not get what they want. As human beings grow up, they learn that other people matter just as much as they do. Well, that’s the theory. A lot of Americans obviously go through their entire lives without achieving any sort of maturity.

I bought a few things, but it wasn’t much. You need to be quick to get the good stuff.

My annual Friends membership was about to expire so I paid up for another year. The staff continued to apologize to me, for what it’s worth. I should have saved my money.

On the way home I decided I am not going to go back. I can’t fight the troglodytes. I don’t have the stomach for it. It’s like back when I paid to see a favorite band and some assholes would start pushing and shoving everyone. Uncivilized behavior. I can’t stand it.

My anger faded, and deep sadness took its place. I am so tired of rude, selfish jerks. I don’t want to hate people. I am tired of that kind of thinking, but it's impossible to have a good attitude about people. What happened to the Golden Rule? What about helping out older people? I know, young people are taught to hate the older generations, and the idiots eat it up.

So that’s it. Library sales are out now. One more thing that brought joy and anticipation into my life is ruined by cretins.

Thanks to phone scanners, thrift stores are proving to be a waste of time. I often see this dreadlocked white boy scanning books and when he sees they have no worth, he literally throws the book. I wish his head would get attacked by a flock of crows.

We will get through this year and maybe next year, but our days of bookselling are nearly over. It’s been a lot of fun, and we made some great friends in the process. Between our dwindling stock and the difficulty in obtaining more merchandise, we have no choice.

Written by Mark Sieber