Bob vs. The Columbia House Book Club: A Lifelong Game of Hide and Seek

So I was flipping through an actual book today—yes, a real one, not a Kindle, not a phone, not something with a battery that dies halfway through chapter three—and it got me thinking…

Is the Columbia House Book Club still looking for me?

Because let me tell you… I may have moved across Toronto, across Ontario, probably changed postal codes more times than I’ve changed lenses on my Sony a6000… but those guys? They had commitment.

Back in the day, you’d sign up for what seemed like the greatest deal ever:
“Get 12 books for a penny!”

And young Bob—future street photographer, part-time documentary legend, full-time deal seeker—thought:
This is it. I’ve beaten the system.

A stack of books shows up. Hardcovers. Real ones. Smelled like knowledge… or maybe just warehouse dust. Didn’t matter. I was now officially a “reader.”

Then came the fine print.

Suddenly, every month:
 A new book shipped automatically
 A bill
 And that little card you were supposed to mail back if you didn’t want the selection

Now let’s be honest—Bob in those days was not mailing anything back. I barely remembered to change film, let alone send postcards to cancel books about gardening in England or the history of naval warfare.

So what does Bob do?

Simple.

I move.

New address. New start. New identity.
Bob the Reader disappears… Bob the Street Photographer emerges.

But here’s the thing…

I sometimes wonder if somewhere out there, in a dusty office, there’s a Columbia House employee still flipping through records:

“Bob… Robb… last seen somewhere between the Quebec border and Lake Erie… possibly hiding behind a Sony camera… owes us for The Complete Guide to Bonsai Trees.”

And now here I am, years later, walking the streets of Toronto, documenting life, telling stories, shooting thousands of photos…

And I realize something:

I may have escaped the Book Club…

…but I still ended up surrounded by stories.

Just not the ones they were trying to send me every month.

Mine come from the streets:
– A guy fixing a bike on Queen Street
– A crowd waiting for a train at Union
– A hidden laneway no one notices
– A bookstore window with a display that looks better than anything Columbia House ever mailed me

And yeah… I still buy books sometimes.

But now it’s on my terms.

No monthly surprises.
No mystery packages.
No running from the mailman like I’m dodging a bill.

So if Columbia House is still out there…

Bob’s ready.

I’ve got a camera, a blog, and about 3,000 photos from this year alone.

If you want to send me something, make it a photo book.

Otherwise…

Good luck finding me.

I’ll be somewhere in Toronto…

Probably in a laneway…

Telling stories your catalog never could.