Thursday, July 30, 2009

Leaving home? Bring a book to read

When you leave your house to enter the Universe, make sure you're prepared...


Pack a full water bottle, a snack (I like Luna bars, Chai Tea flavor) and the current book you're reading. It doesn't matter where you're going, who you'll be with, or what the plans are. Bring a book for contingencies. The instant a dull moment presents itself, crack open the book and read a sentence, paragraph, or chapter. Carrying a book provides quiet, unobtrusive entertainment in just about any situation. Waiting for the doctor to call your name in the crowded waiting room is no longer an inconvenience--it's a reading opportunity.

When life intrudes on your reading time, you'll have to relinquish the book and wait patiently for the next reading opportunity.

It never fails: on the extremely rare occasion I don't grab a book on my way out the door, I end up waiting for someone unarmed with my preferred entertainment. This results in an annoying waste of time spent contemplating cloud formations or cleaning out my purse.

One might think reading a book in tiny unplanned snippets of time amidst life's busyness would compromise the storyline and make it difficult to maintain momentum, resulting in re-reading a page or paragraph each time one picks up the book. A problem like this is best solved by strategic book shuffling, a topic I'll tackle in my next blog.

Stay tuned!