E-Reader Love

I like to read. No, I love to read. I love everything about it. I love the sense of excitement and adventure a new book contains between its covers, the unknown about to be revealed. When our children were small our budget was so tight my one big treat was my annual $9 subscription to National Geographic. I read the covers off those magazines, traveling in my mind, starting each article as an adventure. The budget's looser these days, but I still read, every single day, without fail. I have always prided myself on the fact that I will read nearly anything. I am one of those people who believe e-readers are a great invention. Look! I always have multiple books with me, wherever I go! Shakespeare to Henry James to Booth Tarkington to Nevil Shute to Dave Barry, always with me, always available. I personally think they rival the wheel.

I'm big on accessing books for my e-reader from our local library. I like to buy books I know I'll read multiple times. For most others I'll check them out of the library. So the other night, I'm looking through the offerings on the library website and discovered to my shock and horror, I will not read almost anything. I have identified a few categories that are "no goes" as far as my reading sensibilities go:

1. The cover shows a guy with no shirt? I'm not going to read that.
2. The cover shows a guy with his shirt unbuttoned down to his navel? Nope.
3. The cover shows two guys with their shirts in various stages of unbuttoning? Not interested.
4. Period clothing on the cover? I don't think so.
5. Geometry problems on the cover? Not for me.
6. In a foreign language? Not my thing.
7. One in a series with an impossibly cute name? No, just no.

I like things of substance, books that inform, educate, make me laugh, make me cry, books that take me places. I've not got unlimited reading life left so I don't hesitate anymore to chuck a book aside if I'm not enjoying it. I don't feel obligated anymore to push through a steaming pile just because I started it. The only downside of e-readers, so far as I can tell, is that there's been an explosion of tripe being offered up as "books." Anyone can, and does, self-publish in hopes of being the next big thing. Checking out the category of "Best-Selling Free Books" on Amazon reveals that people like tripe and fluff. It's hard to come up with things worth my reading time in the free category. Except for classics and believe me, I'll read those all day long.

Quality Alone

My spousal unit had a consulting job out of town overnight. I had some much-needed time alone. What did I do with it? I spent yesterday reorganizing my side of the closet. I know, right? Such adventures! Such tomfoolery! Such a gay, mapcap thing to do! I know, I know. It's almost too much, even for me. 

I got rid of three black trash bags, mostly full, of stuff and you really can't tell. It made me realize I don't need any more clothes, probably ever. But I can't stop thinking about a couple of things I saw while I was out with a friend Tuesday afternoon. And that's how it continues. The new things are always, always, better than the stuff I already have. I'm not sure exactly at what point the new things turn to crap, but I know they do. I can stand in there, looking for something to wear, and find nothing I'd ever want to be caught dead in, even if there's something new, still with tags, hanging in front of me. I am going to go through it again sort of using Marie Kondo's idea of "sparking joy." She writes you should have nothing in your house that doesn't "spark joy." Which is all well and good, but some things can't spark joy but you need them anyway. Things like yoga pants, tank tops, and socks, for example. How much joy can you get from workout socks? I did eliminate stuff I liked but didn't fit (keeping it until it does fit doesn't work, especially if it's currently too large---I'm not going back), and things that had stains that I'd wear around the house to do scut work in. 

Shopping is like eating for me. I really, really have to work at not doing as much as I want to of either. I could eat myself up to looking like a stuffed tick and could shop myself in to the poorhouse, so budgeting and calorie-counting work. Well, the calorie-counting does when I actually do it, as does the budget. But I'm being pretty strict now. You know, except for those two or three things I saw Tuesday. I'm trying to hold out until they go on sale.