Lost to Reality Reading

I love it when I can just get so completely sucked into a book that I lose track of time and all I want to do is go back to it. There was a little cartoon going around on Facebook recently:

My comment was that I'm often one of the last two pictures, so approach with extreme caution and the understanding that I may not hear you the first twenty times. When I was a kid, I would get so absorbed in a book that my mother would stand in the doorway and say my name over and over, and five minutes after she gave up, I would look up. It was like I was hearing words spoken through a long tunnel, and by the time the sound traveled to me and registered as something wanting my attention, the source had disappeared. I'm sure it was utterly frustrating to my mother and anyone trying to get my attention. I'm just glad she never forbade me to read or yanked the book away (that I remember), but she has to know I get my love of reading from her!

Another person who loved to read was my friend Helen, who passed away two years ago. I remember one conversation in which she said that she didn't watch much tv, but rather came home and started reading and couldn't tear herself away, but in much the same way as people can't tear themselves away from the tv. In an effort not only to simplify my life, but also be a little more like Helen, who was a great role model and who I still kind of want to be when I grow up, I'm trying to make more time for reading. For me, this doesn't really require turning off the tv, but rather, closing the laptop.

This will not be a problem tonight. I have to admit that I was not overly excited about starting our new book club book, Dairy Queen (by Catherine Gilbert Murdock), but tonight, about halfway through, I hit a patch of plot twists that really intrigued me. Now I can't wait to get back to it! So what am I still doing up and online, you ask? Good question... good night!