Trying to cure my seasonal depression with a book
I haven't had any desire to write. What would I even write about? There's nothing new going on in my life. There are drafts in my notes app that I haven't touched in over a week. I could finish them, but I don't feel like working on them right now. Maybe, I'll get to them after the holiday or in the new year.
When I don't feel like writing, I don't write. It's better not to force things. Today, I wanted to write. I didn't know what I'd write about, but that hardly mattered, because I was excited to write again! It was important that I embrace this moment and write something/anything.
The truth is, I've been feeling pretty blah lately. I suspect, the weather might have something to do with it. I miss the sun and its warmth. The weather was nice for the first time in a long time this past weekend. The sun was out, and it was so warm that we didn't need our coats. It was nice to bask in the sun, if only for a moment. I like to think that the vitamin-D cured my seasonal depression, but it didn't.
Now that it's cold and gray again, I've been doing a lot of reading.1 I don't have the patience or desire to do anything else right now, even though I'd like to. So, I read to ease my restlessness. In the last week, I finished two books: Tokyo Ueno Station and The Hole; and started three more: The Bloody Chamber, Midnight Timetable, and Gliff. Of the three, I'm enjoying Midnight Timetable by Bora Chung the most. I think I'll read her debut novel, Cursed Bunny, as soon as I finish with this one.
It feels like I've read more in the last two weeks than I have all year. There's some truth to that. I read while I'm on my 15-minute break or while I eat my lunch. Really, whenever I get the chance to read, I read. I never used to read this much, even when I carried a book with me wherever I went. That was, until, I discovered a small, reasonably priced e-reader that can attach to a magnet on the back of your phone.2 I purchased it immediately and without hesitation. Let me be clear, I did not need a new e-reader. I already have a Kindle. The problem is it's not small enough. I'd been wanting something small, like the Boox Palma, for a while, but I couldn't justify the cost.
Sure, it's a little gimmicky and maybe the novelty of it will wear off eventually, but I like it. Right now, I'm reading Gliff by Ali Smith on it. This is my first Ali Smith book, and I'm really enjoying it. The characters are charming and witty. Things get weird and dystopian in a way that's really uncanny. Smith makes it pretty obvious that this is a book about identity and personhood in the age of new tech. It reminds me of George Orwell's book, 1984, for that reason.
We'll be visiting my family in Kansas for Christmas. Traveling gives me an excuse to read more, and I'm sure I will, but there's only so much a book can do. A change of pace would do me some good, and I'm looking forward to it - seeing family, that is.
I have a storygraph and bookshelf.town that I update regularly.↩