Getting an eReader

I’m obsessed with getting an eReader because I ping-pong between desire and distaste.

On the one hand, I would love the luxury of not having to lug around books all day––especially because I’m a multi-reader. I typically have a novel, a history book, a writing book and several magazines in play all at once. (Not to mention my daily newspaper subscription and my love of crossword puzzles.)

It would be great if I could have access to all of these reading materials simultaneously. Right now in the mornings, I strategically select a piece of reading material. I place it in my bag like it’s a sacred object because I chose it above all others. But oh the horror! There have been so many times my mood changed throughout the day and I wished I had another book with me.

However, I’m turned off by eReaders when I think of their role in my life outdoors. That’s because my line of work centers on my computer. Like a carpenter with tools, I am 100% reliant on my laptop to help me craft my art and sustain a living.

I love my work and throw myself into it––but after hours of working, I very much like to step away from the computer, from its whirring fan, buzzing power cord and eye-piercing liquid crystal display. Therefore, for the same reason I do not write on my laptop outdoors, I like to step outside into nature, where none of it is manufactured and it is just raw and real.

Outside, my reading materials are a part of my experience. On a park bench, I like to curl back the cover and grip my paperback with two hands as the thriller plot grows intense. Relaxing on the beach, I use my magazine to shield the sun from my eyes, or I use it as an impromptu plate when a friend hands me a lobster roll. How can I bring along an eReader on a trek up a mountainside? When we camp at night and need kindling, I rip out the pages I’ve read and add them to the stone pit and the fire blazes and everyone cheers.

Indeed, when I am reading another’s words and am awash with my own inspiration, I whip out my pen and write in the pages of my books, newspapers and magazines––adding my own scribbled words to the printed words and sometimes right over them.