oh, to be well read
So I’m trying to bring a new balance into life and it’s kind of frustrating. You see, I have friends in many circles, I’m associated with the geeks through work and some play, the jocks through the gym and basketball, the math nerds and bio geeks through various friend circles, religion scholars, business and finance guru’s, entrepreneurs and salesmen, English majors and Shakespearean critics, political science thinkers, and so on. Suffice to say, I’m in a lot of circles. Now in the last little while, I’ve decided I would like to be better read. Every circle or friend has their couple of must reads, and the ones that if you haven’t read them, they are shocked at how you are even able to function. Well I decided to remedy that, and I’ve started reading a bit more. Just hitting the library, I’ve been going for the gold. It’s been rather interesting, I’ve tried to sell myself to the epic science fiction novels (most recently, I read Dune) and have found some enjoyment there, while simultaneously I have been reading Shakespeare’s Othello and teaching myself how to enjoy him. My frustration comes in the fact that every book requires context, ever bit of art is defined by the era in which it was written and it’s impact on subsequent eras down to the present. In the end, I just don’t have enough hours in the day to catch up with everyone. The recommendations continually pour in, Les Miserables, various translations (as one is simply not sufficient), War and Peace as well as Anna Karenina from Tolstoy, Rich Dad Poor Dad, Flatlanders, and so on. It seems that every circle has an endless amount of books you “HAVE to read” and I’m stuck trying to prioritize and tackle the mountain, speaking of mountain, have you read that new everest book! Oh my gosh! It changed my life! Bah! I’m going back to my hardy boys, life was just easier then when all I was looking for Joe Hardy’s sneaky move that was gonna save him in this one. To try and be well read in every sense, it’s too much dirty work. But why not, I guess I’ll keep reading till something finally snaps and you’ll see me at a book burning trying to make my unread conscience feel a little better. 