Solo Dating: Secondhand Bookstore

The first Sunday came around and it was time to pick my first date! So I put my hand in the “Queen Bee” canister, shuffled the little papers around, pulled out my first date and read “go to a secondhand bookstore”. I was so excited!

I was so nervous about my first date, that I honestly postponed it as long as I could. So the following Sunday (a whole week after picking the date in the first place), I knew that I had to go to the bookstore or my experiment would be blown on the very first date.

After waking up Sunday and completing my morning routine, I took a shower. I got out of the shower, and was looking at myself in the mirror, trying to get up the courage to go to a bookstore I had never been to, all by myself. I decided that if I was going on a date with another person, that I would put myself together. I would put on a cute outfit, do my makeup and brush through my hair, and if I would do that for someone else, why wouldn’t I do that for myself? So that’s what I did! And let’s be honest, it was also a way to procrastinate just a little but longer.

Once I was ready, I found a few secondhand bookstores that I thought would be a good fit. There were quite a few options, but I decided to go to West Side Books in Denver, CO. It was about a 20 minute drive from my apartment, and the whole way there I was trying to convince myself to walk through the door once I got to the bookstore.

I finally got to my destination (I say finally like it was a long trek) and I hyped myself up a little bit before getting out of the car and going inside. Now imagine how NOT surprising it was when I realized that no one in the store cared that I was there. When I walked into the place I was overwhelmed by how many books were there! There were books stacked on shelves from the floor to the ceiling. There were rows and rows of shelves, and stacks of books across the floor. It was incredible and I fell in love the moment I walked in.

I did a lap around all the different sections to get my bearings before settling down in the thriller area. In case you didn't know, which most of you probably don’t, I like three kinds of books: horror/thriller books, sappy/smutty romance books or self-help books.

So I started in the thriller section, which was really more of a thriller/sci-fi section. I was taking my time looking through all the books, when all of the sudden I heard a voice behind me telling me to look at a specific author, but I had no idea where the voice was coming from lol. After searching for a minute, I saw someone looking at me in-between two stacks of books on the floor. I’m honestly not sure what this person’s name was, I didn't even ask, but they came over to me and started talking to me about an author named Grady Hendrix. I found a book called My Best Friend’s Exorcism by said author, and although it isn’t my typical book (I don’t do sci-fi, I do thriller), I decided to give the book a try. After all, this experiment is about trying new things.

Once I was done in the thriller/sci-fi section, I made my way to the self-help section. Here I was looking for a specific book, I’m sure you’ve heard of it: Atomic Habits by James Clear. At first I didn’t see it and was kind of bummed out, however I did see another book I wanted to grab: The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van er Kolk. This is a book that one of my MANY therapists told me to read a long time ago, but I never did. I didn’t really see any other interesting books there, but before walking away, I decided to check one more time for Atomic Habits and I found it! I was so excited to see it, so I added it to my basket.

After going through those two sections, I took a quick peak at the romance section, but didn't find anything that really caught my eye. I made one last stop in the cooking section, again looking for a specific book: The Mediterranean Dish by Suzy Karadsheh, but I didn’t find it on the shelves and when I asked the front desk, they told me it was on backorder.

I took one final walk through the bookstore before making my way up to the counter to checkout. I made small talk (the good kind) with the clerk who was helping me and then grabbed my books to head home. I got back into my car and was honestly so proud of myself for completing my first date. I was proud of myself for getting dressed up, and putting my makeup on and fixing my hair. I was proud of myself for looking for a bookstore, and making a decision about where to go (making decisions is something I struggle with, more on that later). I was proud of myself for getting in the car and driving there, even though I was nervous. I was proud of myself for getting out of the car and going inside. I was proud of myself for not running out of the door as soon as I made it in the store. I was proud of myself for taking my time and really enjoying the bookstore and all it had to offer.

My date to West Side Books was the first step in doing things for myself and I am incredibly proud of myself for taking that step even though I was scared. So, if you made it this far, thank you for sticking around. I can’t wait for all the future dates and all the future lessons to come.

The books I got at West Side Books:

My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix

The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van den Kolk

Atomic Habits by James Clear

Disclaimer: any links in this blog post are NOT affiliate links, they are just links to places and books I am excited about.