Did you find that certain types of places were more open to walk-ins than others, like small shops versus chain stores? Ask yourself if the timing of day mattered too, since walking in during a rush probably gets you brushed off fast. Curious what the vibe was at the three spots that actually talked to you.

Reading that you guessed 600 and the real number was over 1,000 made me laugh out loud because that is such a gut punch. Honestly the 300 unbagged con books is the part that got me the most, because that is basically a whole short box just sitting there in the dark, unread and unloved. My system is pretty simple, I bag and board anything new the same week I get it and I keep a running list on my phone so I can see the count creep up in real time. Once the list hits a number that makes me sweat, I stop buying for a month and just read what I already own. Have you thought about doing a no buy month and working through that Chicago pile first?