I had a ‘friend’ once, that used to warn her kids about her bad mood days by saying she was having a ‘bathtub day.’ She was referring to a show they had watched as a family where the mother had drown her children in the bathtub. When the kids asked why a mom would do this, she and husband told them it was because she was having a bad day. Kind of like this mom had sometimes. From then on, they used the ‘bathtub day’ as a warning to stay clear of mom. Now, frankly, I am very disturbed by this. First of all, why in the world were these little kids, 2, 8 and 10 year olds, watching that kind of television. Secondly, I don’t think filling your children with a fear that you may drown them is a good thing no matter how you put it. This is why we are no longer friends. Call me shallow….or wise.  Your choice.

I am not the kind of mom that has bathtub days. But, I am the kind of mom, or person, that has closet days. Today is verging on that for me. It is turning into a day where all I want to do is curl up on the floor in my closet and hide from the world. Why? Good question. The day has been pretty good actually. We got up before 10 this morning, the kids were pleasant, we had breakfast, I went and visited a friend for a minute, and when I took my car in for repairs they decided they didn’t want to charge me for labor, just parts. Can’t remember the last time I left the Honda dealership only having spent $30. Not a bad day. And to top it all off, I got to have some time alone with my daughter that has been visiting cousins for weeks.

I guess I can pinpoint the moment the day started to sour. As Sarah and I were driving home from Honda, we decided to stop by the mall and check out the ‘huge’ sale at Borders. I love Borders. I love strolling through the isles of books, waiting for one to jump out and say ‘read me!’  I totally judge a book by it’s cover and I have found some amazing books that way. I love the look of books, I love how they feel in my hands. I love the smell of books. Even old musty books. There is just something magical about opening up a book and being pulled into another world. It is a happy place to me.

So, there I was, strolling through the magic wonderland of books, when I realized….everything was on sale. Yes, I knew the store was going out of business, but it didn’t really register with me til I saw all the signs. What is happening to the world? I know we have an ‘economic crisis’ going on, but….books? Really? Bookstores have always seemed like a safe place to me. A stable place. A place to go hang out before you movie, a place to take a friend to laugh at funny stories and look at those taboo art books. A place to just sit and sample different books before you commit to one. A place where you can see, touch, and smell books. Sure, you can ‘read’ books on a kindle, or even listen to them on your ipod, but….what about those rare books you would never find if they cover didn’t call you from a far corner of a little traveled shelf? What about those books? Those are the books that have changed my life. They have changed the way I see the world and the people that live in it. Those are the treasures that I can share with my sisters and friends knowing they probably never heard of it. How can you browse a bookstore when it is gone?

I’m sad. I’m getting more sad the more I think about it. When is the madness going to end? What are we going to  lose next? Scrapbooking stores are all but gone, the fabric is mostly gone from WalMart, many other stores have shut their doors. Its just crazy. I don’t have the answer, and I’m not going to point fingers, but I hope we can somehow figure this all out. Let’s make sure we do it before Ulta goes out of business….nobody wants to see me without make up!

Cause I said so!