Booking Through Thursday
No, not THAT kind of R.I.P.
Reading. In. Public.
Do you do it? Why or why not?
I read at the public service desk at the library when I'm between patrons. I always bring a book to read at doctor's office's, or at the vet's, or at a restaurant when I'm waiting for a carry-out order, or on an airplane or the treadmill at the gym. Sometimes I wish I could take public transportation so that I would have more built-in time each day to read, but alas, there is no bus or mass transit where I live, and I live only a couple miles from the library, anyway. I'm lucky to hear a couple songs in toto on my drive in to work.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
A bang, not a whimper
Two months into L.'s retirement, and I'm finished with the stockpiling of books. No more book purchases! Or at least, no purcha...
-
(See also Musee des Beaux Arts ) As far as mental anguish goes, the old painters were no fools. They understood how the mind, the freakiest ...
-
When I finished Kevin Brockmeier's A Brief History of the Dead last spring I immediately did a search to see if the Coca-Cola Corp. had...
I have often wished I could commute by public transportation so I could have more time to read. LOL I drive myself to work and it's not a long enough drive to warrant listening to an audio book.
ReplyDeleteGood idea to read while commuting :) Have a great Thursday!
ReplyDeleteI seldom leave the house without there being a book already in the car or one under my arm because Houston traffic is so unpredictable. Having a book to grab in stalled traffic, when waiting in a long line, or when sitting in a doctor's waiting room has kept me sane.
ReplyDeleteMy commute time was only 15 minutes each way but I was able to make good progress on audio books while driving the short distance to my office. All the public transportation in Houston stops well south of my ex-office but I was too close to the job anyway, and such transportation would never have been an option.
I love spotting readers in lines or waiting rooms...and sometimes exchange a knowing smile with them.
I take the bus home from work (I carpool in the morning) and I love having that extra half hour to read. It helps me decompress from any work stress and saves me a heck of a lot of money.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever visited http://seenreading.blogspot.com ?
I would appreciate some explanation of why not to read in public, frankly. Maybe meaning, can one?
ReplyDeleteThe Hood Company
I read on my way to work each morning. I ride the train which gives me about 15 minutes. I see a lot of people reading on the train, it's nice to see that people still do that sort of thing.
ReplyDeleteI have a book with me at all times. I read in waiting rooms, and in line to get my son from school. If I'm alone, I'll read while I'm eating in a restaurant, which many people consider very rude, but it isn't nearly as rude as my friend who read while sitting on the front row at church. Also, I try not to read at social events like parties to which I have been particularly invited.
ReplyDeleteIt's a joke with my family and co-workers -- I always have a book with me. I read on the train in the morning and evening, in the doctor's office, in a long line - anywhere and everywhere. What a wonderful way to spend "down time".
ReplyDeleteI was starting to think of buying a car, but then I realized I wouldn't be able to read and drive. What WAS I thinking? Snapped back just in time. Hooray for buses and trains!
ReplyDeleteI would honestly have to say that about 90% of my reading is done in public.
ReplyDeleteIn coffee shops.
Having said this, 90% of THAT reading is done with earplugs crammed into my ears. What I like to call "the Frankenstein bolts."
Wouldn't it be easier to just read at home, Cipriano?
Hey!
DAMN good question.
I am not sure why I prefer the craziness of people around me, but I do!
-- Cip
Of course! What reader worth their salt doesn't? :)
ReplyDeleteI used to love my commuting time using the train - it allowed me to prepare/decompress for work and get some quality reading time in.
I'm lucky to have a 45 minute commute to and from work on public transportation - bus and subway! I've started using it as my magazine reading time, since I never seem to be able to work it in anywhere else. Other than that I never leave the house without a book. My friends laugh but I think it makes perfect sense...
ReplyDeleteyou are lucky, we are not permitted to read between patrons at the library where I work. we must WORK. even if there is nothing to do. we must LOOK BUSY. sigh.
ReplyDeleteand one of my biggest everyday bummers in life is that reading on the bus makes me sick to my stomach.
I see the common threads here of those of us who take books with us where e'er we go, and read in coffee shops, on buses, and whenever we can snatch the time.
ReplyDeleteThe RIP I don't and won't do is walking while reading. Frankly, I find this stupid. It's not safe for you or others, and like any multitasking, each activity is done more poorly for the split in attention. Mindful RIP is a wonderful thing.
I too always carry a book with me wherever I go. There are so many "dead moments" throughout the day - if I didn't have a book with me, they'd feel like an enormous waste of time.
ReplyDeleteI read in trains and buses, whenever I have to wait in line for anything, and in-between classes at university.
I NEVER leave home without a book. If I do, I die. I will literally sit there and twiddle my thumbs. I get very very bored, very very quickly.
ReplyDeleteI have been reading in moving vehicles for 40 years so I never get carsick. However the condition of some of the roads the local busses have to travel over these days, are giving me cause for concern. I mean who can read while one is literally being BOUNCED out of the seat into the aisle.