Must. Maintain. Control.

Today marks the beginning of what will arguably be the hardest week of summer term. Making it relatively unscathed to the end of class on Thursday (when I leave to go to Lagoon with my family!) will take determination, focus, hard work, and enough will-power to last a life time. It's not my two midterms I have to take this week. Or the mountain of Music History readings I discovered I have, because apparently taking a week off in summer term gets you 268 pages behind in one text book, and 143 in the other. Ouch! It's not even the nasty paper I have to write about Beethoven that is due tomorrow and is responsible for three of the worst nights sleep of my life.

Today marked the first day of the BYU summer book sale.

*eek!*

I've yet to meet a book I didn't like (at least one that I didn't have shoved down my throat for the purpose of educating me... then I would have some less than stellar examples, but only a few.) As a child when I got in trouble my parents would take away my reading privileges. My siblings had reading listed on their Saturday chores list. My chores list ended with a threat of what would happen to me if I decided to start reading before I was done helping around the house. What can I say, I'm a sucker for books. And it's not my fault either, this is a genetic problem... my Dad is the exact same way. I'm pretty sure I got every ounce of his love of reading.

That said, the summer book sale makes for the hardest week of the summer for me, because each one of those books calls out to me as I pass telling me just how awesome they are and telling me to take them home. And they are all half off. I wandered through the collection of books today, safe in the knowledge that I had not a scrap of money on me. However, they had soooooo many books that I want. I've gotten some real gems in past years, and this year there are tons of amazing options. I found life biographies of so many cool people, Rousseau, Catherine the Great, The Earl of Leicester (the one who supposedly was in love with Elizabeth 1 of England), and Bismark of Germany. Not to mention books on awesome world events, 3 on the French Revolution, one that looked amazing on the war of 1812, a world look at 1688, a portrait of post WWII Germany, and so many others. They also had two books on castles and one book that gave a history of medieval armor. (and you wonder why I'm not a history major... It's a long story, that mostly revolves around that concept that the university has that I ought to graduate in 4 years not 5...)

Walking away from books like that, especially when they were all half off was pure. and. utter. torture.

I was drooling uncontrollably just looking at them. For those of you who've been privileged to see it, I had that same half stupid half dreamy look accompanied by a manic grin that I get when I see pretty flutes, cool historical monuments, or you've guessed it, a book I really, really, really want. Only there were 20 books that I really, really, really want. And I am poor. Sad day.

So I've locked myself in the library with other books, maybe just by being near so many books it will ease the book hunger, but I doubt it. And yes, I'll probably end up buying one book. Because I just can't help it. And they are all of 8 dollars. Now to choose just one...