I love books. I love the smell of them and the feel of them and sound of the pages turning. I can lose myself in a good book very easily and once I’m in I’m deaf and blind to things like ringing telephones, kids wanting things, repeats of repeats of The Simpsons etc, etc. It’s what happens when you’re an avid reader I guess and could explain why I get all fidgety when I don’t have one on the hop.
Fortunately I have a good library at my disposal in my closest town and a bloke who is also a big reader and doesn’t mind me casing his titles when I’m at his place and, to make it fair, I will happily lend him any of mine that he hasn’t read so it all works out even in the end.
I can’t say the same for films though. It’s not that I don’t enjoy them but they obviously don’t have the same all-consuming effect on me because the telephone and the kids etc, can actually break in, even when I’m really engrossed in what’s happening on screen. With a book you can pop in a bookmark to save your place and pick it up again whenever, whereas with a flick on television you can’t. Sure, with a DVD you can pause it and even go back to a bit you missed because of kids or telephones but it’s just not the same thing at all. DVDs don’t have that lovely smell either.
Fortunately, Twin I is also a reader so if I’m buried in a book he totally understands and will actually go and make his own snack (he’s definitely old enough to do so and food is usually what he’s after) whereas Daughter is only really discoving the joys of the printed word (outside of Facebook, emails, texts etc) now. She does like books though and despite her penchant for words on screens she is drawn to actual books for the same reason I am; the feel, the smell and the sound. At this rate she may actually read one from go to whoa one day, unlike during her school years when the thought of having to read an entire book almost sent her into a decline and then we all suffered.
Being a big reader though means I have to be very strong and resist the urge to pick up the latest one and start reading when I know I have other stuff I need to do because I know that once I’ve picked up that book…!!! So it’s a great exercise in will power and I’ve found the exercise can even carry over to other areas of my life. I actually walked down the confectionery isle the last time I visited the supermarket and did not..repeat…Did Not…grab a couple of packs of Peanut M&Ms on my way past. That’s a biggie, I’m tellin’ ya!
Meanwhile, I have three unread books beckoning from the coffee table. I haven’t decided yet which one to read first but that’s okay, I can work that out while I’m doing the dishes.