My friend and fellow blogger, KL, recently made a post on her blog about TV and reading. I actually typed out a comment to her post and then when I went to sign in - lost it. So, I decided to post a comment by creating my own post about the subject. (thanks for the idea KL)
Since I have only been teaching about 4 hours a week, I have a lot of free time. I try to fill my days with time at the pool with my boys, trips to Wal-Mart for something for dinner, swimming, biking or running (although swimming is still pretty painful in my shoulder), doing stuff around the house, driving Morgen to Sonic for 'Happy Hour' after his guitar lessons and scrapbooking.
But even with all that, I still spend a significant amount of time reading or watching the Olympics on TV. When I am not doing any number of other activities, I am reading. I would categorize the genre of books I like to read as 'chick lit'. I like stories that have a lot of descriptive details. I recently admitted that when reading a book, I take forever because I really try and envision what the writer is trying to portray in all of the descriptive details. This way, I get the story and can make the most of each book. At this rate, I only get through sometimes 2 books a month. I jokingly said that is probably why I took ten years to graduate from college, because textbooks have a ton of detail and I try to understand all of it. Although I did not take ten years to get out of college and graduated with flying colors, I did manage to do it without ever 'skimming' through a textbook.
There must be something positive I am gaining from all the 'details' that I'm reading because I do find that when I am reading on a regular basis I am able to talk better. Does that make sense? Meaning, I am able to put words, thoughts, and sentences together more clearly. Sometimes, until it is time to tell someone something that I have been thinking about saying forever and I can't quite get it out. The book I am reading right now is good (Breaking Dawn) chick lit, but pales in comparison to the book I finished this week. The contrast has opened my eyes to the details writers can put into their work to make it come alive and keep it real. More 'adult lit' I guess. I do enjoy reading and I enjoy being able to communicate effectively even if I am only reading the ever so pressing conversations that happen in 'chick lit'.
