Why I’m even thinking of taking the MCAT’s is beyond me. Yes, those MCAT’s. As in Medical College Admissions Test. I must be part nuts, part masochist.

I’m not even sure what spawned this urge to do this. It was always one of my childhood dreams to be a doctor, but I instead settled for a different route in the medical field. First it was x-ray, then CT, now I’m learning MRI. I work closely with radiologists every day. More and more, I find myself wishing I was one of them, rather than in my current position. Even if I take the MCATs, I’m still not sure if I intend on applying to medical school. Part of me is just curious to see how well I’d do, for bragging purposes I guess.

So what do the MCATs and Borders have in common? Technically, nothing. However, I did make a trip to the Borders on Michigan Avenue to pick up a review book. I figured if I’m even remotely serious about taking an exam like that, some preparation is expected. I picked up the Kaplan MCAT 2009 review book and almost choked at the price. $120.00. Seriously?! Keep in mind this isn’t even a text book. I whip out my trusty iPhone and quickly search Amazon to compare prices. Amazon list price: $75.60. To humor myself I also checked Barnes & Noble: $86.50. Sorry Borders, who do you think I’m going to buy the book from? Certainly not your store.

I did buy a few other books since I hate leaving a bookstore emptyhanded. Did you ever notice that Borders uses their own barcodes instead of the ones that are on the book already? Don’t ask me why but I hate stickers on my books. I peel them off. Naturally, this means I peel off the Borders price tag/barcode. Guess what? Borders charges $.99 more than the list price on the book. Why???

No wonder the Borders on Michigan Avenue is closing. Too bad it’s the nicer of the two here in downtown Chicago. To end my mini-rant on a happy note, I bought the review book from Amazon. In a few days I’ll have the book on my coffee table and still have $45 in my pocket.

Which bookstore do you prefer to shop? Borders? Barnes and Noble? Amazon? Or are you a fan of the private owned or secondhand bookstores?