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May 15

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  100 Words:   When I was in Powell's in Portland, I wanted to find some books that would spark my reading again. I used to be a super avid reader, but as life has gotten busy, I sort of stopped entirely. So when I walk in a book store, I end up aimlessly walking around, oftentimes more frustrated than happy. I simply can't figure out what to read and have somehow lost the ability to get back into the flow of reading. I imagine it's like an athlete who can't play his sport the way he used to. It's depressing and makes an entirely enjoyable activity a frustrating one. Anyway, I decided to look up the best books of the 2000s and this book was high on the list I happened to check. The cover is interesting, the title equally so, so I added it to the pile of books I grabbed that day. Summary :  The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet is set in feudal Japan around the turn of the 19th century. Jacob (of the title) is a clerk for the Dutch East India Company, trying to make ...
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May 12

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100 Words: I'm trying to take a more embracing approach to blogging about reading. I don't want to feel defensive or like a failure, so there will be days when I don't read, and I want to be ok with that. On this vacation I've made it a point to disconnect from work, the soccer website, everything. Just enjoy my family, the vacation and everything that isn't home. It's done wonders for my brain, allowing me to enjoy myself in a way I rarely do at home. Not that I don't have fun, but I feel like there's always something in the back of my head that I'm behind on. Ruins too many good moments, worrying about other shit I haven't done yet. Today's reading was done on the flight home to El Paso.  Summary:  In the Seattle airport, waiting for our transfer to the El Paso flight, I passed by the SubPop store. I wandered in and avoided the vinyl (I had bought plenty in Portland). What caught my eye was a long row of the 33 1/3 books along the wall. Th...
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May 10

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100 Words:  On vacation in Portland, we've visited Powell's books, a downtown institution of a book store, massive, a block-sized store that goes up multiple stories. It's an amazing place. As we walked the aisles, I just felt so motivated to start reading again. I'm too smart to not feed my brain. Reading ignites my passions and I feel like I just stopped reading some time back. Maybe this blog is a glimmer of a spark in the dark of midnight, but I hope it's the beginning of me focusing on reading again. It's good for me, like the deep part of me, the "soul" of me, if I can borrow a word. Today just felt good. Like medicine good, like exercise good. I'm probably overdoing it, but I feel great about reading at this moment. Summary:  Trying to describe what this novella is about sounds simple. It's the life of a man born in the 1880s and dies in the 1960s. But it's so much more than that. It's a series of moments in his life, both the go...
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Day 4

Tonight I decided not to read. I worked a long day, then came home and edited my website for about 4 hours. So I will waste the evening and relax.
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Day 3

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Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls: Essays, Etc. by David Sedaris 100 Words: A friend of mine, who I work with on a project, was texting with me today. We batted around some ideas, some big, some small, mostly day dreaming, before talking about what we were doing. He was bathing his kids, how he texted I'm not sure, while I was reading this part of my book. When I mentioned this blog, I shot him a link so he could look at it. He texted back, I'm not sure how you have time for all this. And I really don't. I can't tell you how 30 pages stretches me when I have other things going on, but we're doing this! Summary:  Finished "Loggerheads" today. It's about some sea turtles that young David finds on the beach. He takes them home and they eventually die, which is depressing, but this is Sedaris, so that should be expected (and I'm not complaining here). His work reminds me of David Bazan, lead singer of the Pedro the Lion, even the music that i...
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Day 2

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Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls: Essays, Etc. by David Sedaris 100 Words:  So I've actually met David Sedaris. He was on a speaking tour and came to El Paso. Incredibly funny in person with that dry, Sedaris whit. After the show he was signing books, so my wife and I got in line. As we waited, we noticed there were people in line who had baked brownies for the author. When he got to David, the author immediately began sharing the brownies with all the people in line. I think the gift-giver was a little let down, but they were tasty. Meeting the man was a pleasure I will never forget. Summary:  So I began "Memory Laps" day 1, and finished it day 2. What was once about swimming became a story about fathers and their expectations. David attempts to be a competitive swimmer but all his dad can do is praise another guy who is in the class. It's depressing as so many stories of his childhood are. The second short piece today is "A Friend in the Ghetto"...
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Day 1

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Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls: Essays, Etc. by David Sedaris 100 Words (on what I'm thinking): Decided to give blogging a chance to help trigger more reading. Some might remember my old blog project, 55pages. I decided to reduce that goal, because 55 pages can be a burden. 30 pages is more realistic for my current reading strength. Computers and cell phones seem to have really sapped my ability to read, so I'm lowering the bar to where I am now. I have a house full of books I haven't read, so I want to force myself to read. David Sedaris is a great place to start because he's funny and easy to read. Saw him live and he was fantastic. Summary: This book is a collection of short pieces, mostly stories about himself, which Sedaris sort of specializes in. -"Dentists without Borders" was about his trips to different dentists while living in France. Different personalities, different approaches to patients, all pretty funny. -"Attaboy" wa...
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