Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Change In Mood

I was primed to write a bit of a whinetastic entry today, with complaints about too much work to do, too little support, expectations that are too high. Blah de blah. The sort of day we've all had numerous times over in our lives.


I shot this pic in a laneway on the weekend, the rear exit of Lucky's pizzeria.

Scratch that. I had a pleasant walk-and-bus-ride-combo trip home with one of the girls from work, enjoyed a short stroll through Newtown and arrived home to find a book I ordered online only about a week ago waiting for me in the letterbox. Score! Bad mood gone!

BTW, it pains me to say this because I am a big believer in supporting the local independent booksellers, but I'm a new fan of the UK online bookseller The Book Depository. The books vary in discount, but many are really cheap compared to the Australian retail price, and they airmail all orders for free. I bought 3 books the other day for the same price as I would have paid for the most expensive of the 3 in a store here, and the first of them arrived today, only about a week after I ordered. Amazing service. I'll still keep buying books locally, but for harder to find books this is a pretty cool option.

Funny how a mood can change so quickly! What I need to remind myself is that all it takes is a change of perspective, maybe a bit of distraction, and perhaps a pleasant stroll. And finding a little 'gift' in the letterbox doesn't hurt either. I'm such a pushover for a new book.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I also love the Book Dep and buy there regularly. I also feel guitly about not supporting local independent businesses but ... not guilty enough to stop. Sorry guys.

Unknown said...

Have you tried fishpond? Free shipping for orders over $50, and if they don't have all of what you ordered in stock, they will part ship (unlike amazon, which either holds the entire order, or charges you for part shipping).

There is a link on my site :) I make 1c if you purchase after following that link, but I think if I refer you, you could get a $10 voucher. Let me know if you are interested :)

spyder said...

Umm, you do know some one was stabbed to death outside Lucky's on Sunday night?

The Other Andrew said...

Amanda, it's hard to say no when the prices and service are so good.

Lara, I'll check it out but everything else local I have tried can't compete for value. I haven't tried fishpond though. The Book Depository part ships too, that's why I got 1 book yesterday and the rest to follow in a few days. I'll check it out and let you know if I want to buy anything, so you can refer me first.

Spyd, it was some sort of domestic between the current boyfriend and ex-husband of one of the staff. It seems like they all either lived or worked together. 2 of the waitresses are sisters, the chef is the boyfriend on one of them... it was the ex-husband who died. I haven't heard anything else, but it seems it was related to that.