Wow... 1/12th of 2009 has already passed by. I'm off to a great start on many of this year's goals, and I'm hopeful that a few more will drop into the (completed) category in the next two months, namely #2) Secure a well-paying job, and #3) Pay off debt to Mom. Meanwhile, I'm hard at work on some of my longer-term goals. I make a point every day to read 1/365th of the Bible (downloaded a Bible-in-a-year schedule from the Internet), study a daily lesson from my Spanish book, and a section from an electronics text book I borrowed from the library. I also make a point of partaking in a bit of fiction reading every night before bed. This is a daily step toward accomplishing a particularly ambitious goal: #20) Read all the books I own.
Goal #20 has a particularly large element of baggage attached to it. Why is that, you may ask? You probably know lots of fanatic book-readers who buy or acquire far more books than they have time to read in a year. Well, I'm not really like that. I'm really more of a non-book reader. You see, I SAY that I love to read, but I don't really read much. I buy books because I enjoy the idea of being a fantasy and science fiction book fan, but I don't really read them. Does that make any sense? I've owned Lord of the Rings and the Chronicles of Narnia for 19 years, and to this day have not read either. I think I've read one book in 2008. Or was it less than that? I can't recall. Needless to say, as a fantasy/science fiction fan I'm a pretty poor example. There's a deep-rooted issue here that I still need to identify, but on the surface of it I can at least say that my lack of follow-through has resulted in me acquiring lots of books I want to read, but never really spend the time reading. I'm a sayer, not a doer. I feel pretty shallow in this way.
A lot of my demons have a common evil thread. That core thread is something difficult to put into words... Fortunately, 2009 is the year of rooting out demons! With its army of demons slain, that menacing root will have nowhere to hide :)
Bleh. I despise melodrama. Enough, I say! Where's the beer?
-Sailor Matt
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6 comments:
Does this post mean you have NEVER read The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss? I located your blog from reading your comments on Pat's blog. I liked what you had to say in the discussions, and of course I was intrigued by your returning to the civilian world after the navy. I should not have taken for granted that you had read the book.
I will admit two things: I'm a bit shocked that you could be such a vivid part of Pat's company of blog-readers without ever reading the book, and I admire your audacity in admitting it.
Ancient Reader
I did read The Name of the Wind :)
Actually, NotW was one of the few books I read in 2007. I literally picked it up off the shelf within days of its release, and totally fell in love with it. I also re-read all the Harry Potter books after the release of Deathly Hallows. It was a short-lived spurt of reading inspiration.
I used to read a lot more as a kid. The most memorable to me were the Belgariad and Mallorean series by David Eddings, The Dragonlance Chronicles by Weis and Hickman, and a handful of Xanth novels by Piers Anthony. But my activities slowly shifted as I grew up. I became very instant gratification-centric, and chose movies, video games and idle time-wasting over things that require patience and long-term commitment: reading, writing, art, schoolwork, computer programming, etc. I still enjoyed books, I just never took the time to read them.
I'm so glad you've read Pat's book; I couldn't believe someone so tuned in to what was being discussed in the blog about the book had not read it! I thought my perception of you was more accurate than that; I've been around a long time and pride myself a bit on finding out about people from what they say and the way they say it. Also, as I have recently said, I am impressed with your honesty or what certainly appears to be your openness. I continue to wish you the best. And I'm pleased you really ARE a reader--or at least have been one.
Ancient Reader
I'm right there with ya chief. I was really into my fantasy when I was a kid, but when I got older I started reading biographies, thrillers, horror and nearly everything else but fantasy. The truth is big Pat and Brooks got me back into the genre.
I also go through periods of not reading. My xbox360, wii and ps3 told me not to read so much. I obey their every command. Such is the life of a gamer!
Gaming! The downfall of my highschool career. Currently World of Warcraft is my addiction of choice.
Since my re-dedication to the old love of reading, I've read The Sword of Shannara and I'm currently plowing through The Subtle Knife. 2009 is the year of the book!
marky, my jaws quiver in reverence. A PS3, 360, and a Wii?! I felt pretty cool with my Wii, but now just a little lower. But Terry Brooks is an excellent story teller, and with that I can relate.
And Matt, I think I'm in the opposite boat as you. I do have a large collection of books, but I seem to spend too much time reading and too little time doing other things that I need to do. We all just need to somehow find a way to add a few more hours to each day...
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