I took myself on a date the other day. I had a few hours to kill before meeting The Husband downtown for lunch, so I decided to go to one of my newest favouritest places on earth.

Oh Powell’s, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love it that you are so big that you provide a map for the newbies.

I love that you stock both new and used books, right beside each other, so I can decide whether I want to pony up for non-dog-eared or whether I’m okay with less than pristine.

I love that you colour-code your rooms. And that the “Coffee Room” has an actual coffee shop in it.

I love how smart you are and how everything is exactly where you’d expect to find it. And how you use alphabet dividers so I don’t have to remember if P comes before or after R.

Honestly, it really doesn’t get much better than a coffee, two hours, and wandering through a rainbow of reading rooms.