Let it snow … or whatever …
Most of my younger friends have Kindles or something like them; but not me. Call it old age or just plain habit but I still prefer the feel of an actual book in my hands. I also love the feeling of finding those book “gems” for under a dollar at yard sales or thrift stores.
The experts say that maintaining an active mind is the key to staving off Alzheimer’s and I hope that is so because my two favorite mind exercises are crossword puzzles and reading.
I listened recently to an authority on sleeplessness and he stated that one should never read in bed. I guess his reasoning was that reading would stimulate the mind and tend to keep the reader awake. It acts precisely the opposite way for me and the last thing I do every night is read a chapter or two. It works better than a sleeping pill.
Joseph Addison has said, “Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body”. I would add crossword puzzles to that. A daily dose of the two of them presents me with a mental playground where I can romp to my heart’s content. I work the crossword puzzle in bed also...first the puzzle and then the book.
I don’t like to think that I have an obsession to working crossword puzzles but an unsolved one, wherever I find it, is definitely a lure. That’s why I had to laugh when I saw this cartoon.
posted by Ginnie at 4:34 PM
10 Comments:
I used to feel like you about books but when I downsized, there just wasn't room. As a purist, I am sure Kindles horrify you but right now I have 500 books sitting on my night stand in a 5x7 tablet. Not the beauty and comfort of the bound versions but no dusting either. Besides, when I am shuffled off to a nursing home, I can take my entire library with me. Kudos on doing crosswords puzzles.
My dad was like you with the them. He used to do the New York Times one in ink. I don't do them all the time and need a big eraser.
I think it depends on what kind of book you read. Sometimes, a real page-turner might keep me awake, but less and less as time goes on, maybe. :)
My grandmother always read in bed at night. And although I don't do much reading anymore I liked reading in bed as well. I love doing word search puzzles on my computer. My record is 5 min. 17 seconds which I missed beating yesterday by 43 seconds!! I keep trying and trying but have yet to beat it. I probably do at least three a day of those. It also gives the definitions of the words which I love as you can learn new words everyday!
Oh and my grandmother always did the crosswords too. She was a proof reader for over 30 years until computers took over and she retired. She was a great one to call for homework help!!
Love Di ♥
I too use a Kindle. I love the hard copies of books, but got used to the electronic versions when I was finishing my MA in History. Textbooks are far less expensive on Kindle.
Dianne
You and I are exactly alike in those regards. I read in bed and fall asleep too soon. I do a puzzle (or work on one) nearly every day (I keep a puzzle book in my bathroom....lol)
As I am finally getting rid of many of the 1000 or so books we have, I will try to get more used to using my ereader. I do prefer a feel of a book, though, and they are much easier to take notes in...lol
I have a Kindle, but I do my serious reading with real books. The Kindle is nice for free books, poetry collections and memoirs but not for complex books. I read at night as well, but I switch from intense novels to biographies or non-fiction.
Thats my plan as well. Reading and crosswords (and a little blogging) keeps the winter blahs away...:)
I have a kindle - it was a gift. Frankly, I hate it, give me a book anyday, especially for serious reading, notes in the margins, underlines AND highlighters. The kindle has free books or real cheap "junk" books, but mostly I play word games do crosswords or sudoku.
I just like the feel of paper and pages I can turn. Well, you have seen my house, a library!
Books--yes, I love the feel. But there is something great too about being able to "flip pages" on an ebook without making a loud rustling sound. Plus I can sneak by Kindle into places and surreptitiously read away.
I too read and fall asleep. Unfortunately, waking up to turn off the light wakes me up again, and I have to try to go back to sleep.
I read before bed too. And it generally puts me to sleep after about a half hour. I like being a member of Goodreads too so that I can check out what others are reading and get reviews from friends.
Post a Comment
<< Home