Random thoughts

I have always liked to read. I remember as a kid walking to the tiny library just off Ocean Avenue in San Francisco. I'd come home with a dozen books and spend the next week binge-reading. I think that's where I got my habit of reading fast. I read a variety of books - archeology, science fiction, mysteries, classics, and poetry. Most of my young adulthood we either didn't have a tv or seldom watched it, so I continued to read a lot. I come from a family of college educated, literary, intelligent people and the fact that I had only a GED always made me feel inadequate. I remember when I was around 20 or 21 I found a list of required reading for high school and college graduation. I started reading from the list, and the exposure helped me get over my feelings of inferiority. Middlemarch even helped me get through my divorce. When I went to college the workload and reading required for class put me off personal reading for a while and it was hard to get back into it after a few years absence. I felt like I had to re-learn how to read, or at least how to enjoy it. Since we've been living on the Key Peninsula I am back to reading a lot. One of the main pleasures I have now, though, is books on cd from the library. Both Paul and I rely on them for our commute and work pretty hard to make sure we're never without a good book. If you haven't enjoyed Faulkner in book form, check out the recordings of his book by Mark Hammer - they are incredible. One of the great things about recorded books for me is that they are read by talented actors, and because they are spoken, it is like I am forced to read them slowly. My retention and appreciation of recorded books is amazing, and I know I am reading slower and retaining more because of them. My best friend Jeannie and I laugh about our similar attitude about books. Both of us need to have a quantity of books in the house waiting to be read, sort of like an insurance policy. And we "save" books that we think are really going to be good. I've always liked to write, too. This blog is the first time I've ever really applied myself to it with any earnestness...and it has started me thinking that I might like to try my hand at a real writing project. I don't know exactly how I will get going, but I know that I need to try.