>Standard advice on grocery shopping tells us not to go to the store hungry.
I would add to that the following: don’t go to the store when you’re hungry for pleasure reading material.
A few days ago I went to the local discount store pharmacy for a prescription refill. While the pharmacists were filling it, I wandered the store and picked up a few things we needed. Shampoo, conditioner, bandaids, and the rest of my short list took only a few minutes of the allotted quarter hour. That’s when the danger began.
The snack and junk food department (okay, they call it “groceries”) was right next to Health and Beauty Aids. I dropped a Hershey’s bar with almonds (on sale!) into my basket, followed by a small bag of Hershey’s Kissables in Special Dark (also on special, of course). I did not buy coffee, and they didn’t have the kind of tea I was craving, so I left the area.
For the book section.
Pleasure reading for me can include anything from Time magazine to paperback romantic novels. I usually buy my books used, but sometimes I just have to have something new. Call it guilt (writers have to make a living!), impulse (oh, this looks good!), or just laziness (The second hand bookstore means yet another trip out of the house) and you’d be right on all counts.
I bought three books. Me and Mr. Darcy by Alexandra Potter, Dear John by Nicholas Sparks, and Jennifer Weiner’s The Guy not Taken.
I really don’t have much time for pleasure reading right now. I’m finishing progress reports, planning a new geography unit for Social Studies, and pulling myself out of the near-depressive deep blue funk that comes with a major Green Bay Packer loss. Who has time to curl up and read?
When I start thinking along those lines, it means I really need to take a mental health break. It’s time to set up the heating pad in the rocking chair, brew a pot of my favorite coffee, gather a small dish full of chocolate and a good book and settle down for a long winter’s, well, rest.
This ought to hold me for a while.
This post was written for Jordan’s latest Group Writing Project. You can acess the entry page at MamaBlogga or read her regular blog, including an updated list of entries.
>I am *so* with you, on all accounts!!
I have, oh… let’s see… FOUR books that I have started. Yep, that’s right… started. Who knows when I’ll get around to diving in even more??
And forget the $10 script at the drug store. Last time, simply waiting for it to be ready ended up costing me over fifty bucks!! But, don’t you know, I just *had* to have all of that stuff??? Especially all of the buy 1 get 1 goodies!!!
Thanks for stopping by 🙂
>Yep – CVS is just down the corner from me – I’ve spend more money there than I do in the supermarket!
It is Dantes Inferno, I tell ya’!
>Excellent plan–especially when you consider the weather coming back this week! I just started Atonement (LOVE it!) and have a huge stack of other books to read through before garden season starts. The heating pad is a great touch.
>i never seem to have the time to read either, but i have several books on my reading list.
btw, have you read mr. darcy’s diary? i’m in the middle of it right now and love it. 🙂
thx for entering my camera giveaway.
>At this point, reading is one of those little “vacations” I can take while my son is in the room (as long as I don’t mind some interruptions). I was planning to reread my favorite this week, The Great Gatsby. Thanks for the reminder, and thanks for participating!
>Give me chocolate and a good read ANY day and I’m a happy girl!
Great post! I found you via Mama Blogga’s January GWP.
Regards,
Michelle aka The Beartwinsmom
http://beartwinsmom.wordpress.com
>I could have written this myself! I am notorious for wanting to buy books even though I know I don’t have time for them. My friend sends me books (The Gossip Girl series) and I have 7 of them lined up to read. I’m only on book 3 and have been for months! Probably since October. I found a trick to get some reading in. I have been going to the dentist a lot lately, and I actually HATE the dentist. Yet, I get really excited and leave an hour early to my appointment just so I can sit in the waiting room and read! I don’t know what I’m going to do when my dental work is all done…I guess I’ll just have to read in the 8.7 minutes I get every night in my bath.
>Did Walgreens call you and tell you about me? I do the same thing…
Reading is my passion. I have a shelfari list and I think if you see it on my blog, I have 9 books going right now. Yikes!
Great post, I found you through MamaBlogga!
http://thesurrenderedscribe.blogspot.com/