“The way that I like to think of you on your birthday, my dear Papa, is standing out among the flowers utterly lost in thought, but with such a warm and appreciative smile on your face that the buds start out and every plant blossoms just because it is so sure of your sympathy.”

1) Is it in our local public library? Yes = borrow it. No? Move to step 2.

2) Is it in the local college campus library? Yes = pay the paultry sum for an annual borrower’s card (at WWU it’s only $25 for the year!) and BORROW IT! No? Move to step 3.

3) Is it on paperbackswap.com and do we still have credits there? Yes? Order it free! No? Move to step 4.

4) Go to amazon or abe or barnes & noble. Is it available? Most likely it IS available…for a price. So, then apply the following criteria to our situation:

**a) Is it a required text for class and do we have time? Buy the cheapest “good condition” copy from a used book seller.  Is it required, but we don’t have time? Buy it expedited, but let that be a lesson! Don’t we know how many more books we COULD have had if we’d planned ahead!!

**b) Is it not required, but we have read it and believe that we should have our own personal copy to refer to periodically in our personal library? Yes? Buy the least expensive “very good” or “new” copy from a used book seller.

**c) Is it not required, and we have not read it, but it has come highly recommended? Yes? Put it on our wish list OR get work to pay for it!

**d) Is it not required, and we have not read it, and no one has personally recommended it to us…but it looks really cool? Yes? Put it on our wish list…look at it in a few weeks…the “shimmer” will probably have faded and we can then “delete” it!

Of course, there is always our other problem, which is that the borrowing privileges from our libraries are considerably generous (WWU allows 100 books out at a time!). This, of course, leads to the constant need for triage…does it go on the stack on the dining room table? Or on the end table by the couch? or the stack on the nightstand? So many books, so little time…