Far Fewer Leaves

Further to last night’s post and in certain consternation to those of your few happy readers patiently waiting to see what I can hack out next, I am compelled to go read. Unstopably compelled.

Though I can be waylaid for a bit to make mention of my compulsion—and to justify. If I can’t write then reading is certainly the closest thing I can do. I wrote less in the winter when I couldn’t tear myself away from some football game, so it wouldn’t be fair to to put up too strong a fight to sit here in the dark with the keyboard and screen.

Just as I decided I ought to get the grammar book out and figure out how badly I’m botching comma splices, dashes, and parentheticals the book has gone missing. From here I can see the slot on the shelf it slid from—between “20 Master Plots” and something about screenplays. This void indicates to me that the form of the book should be on my nightstand or under it or under the bed: no, no, and nope.

Word count: 184
Day 210

A Few Less Leaves

I’m reading again. When I was younger I read books voraciously—one after the next. I read late into the night frequently. Once, I read an entire novel in a single sitting. Once I uncovered an author I read everything they wrote then reread it all when I couldn’t find anything new.

Not now.

These days I’m surprised when I’m reading late at night or even remembering to pick up the book I put down last night, last week, or last month. I’ve had to restart books I’ve abandoned afraid I just couldn’t figure it out unless I started over. Worse and more surprising I’ve chosen to not read when I could have easily done so.

The events of a family’s life clog up a day like fallen leaves bunch together to dam an overland stream. The first leaf catching on an innocent obstruction in the flow. Subsequent leaves piling up blamelessly behind the first. Individually none takes up all that much time. Even several in a bunch can’t significantly waylay my plans to read. Incrementally they build till their ceaselessness and unpredictability overwhelm me. Watching television becomes easier to accomplish.

In any case, for now, I am reading again.

Word count: 209
Day 209