By I am finally, officially and proudly in Nadia’s camp of having absolutely no idea how much I read last week. In fact, I was enjoying reading so much yesterday afternoon I forgot all about posting until I started getting lots of good notifications that folks were hanging around here. Whoops! I am really honestly shocked & surprised at how different this reading session felt than the previous ones.
As a scientist, specifically someone who works in quantification of things systematically, I am very well suited to track my pages. In fact, it’s harder for me not to track progress on something. I also do not work normal hours for work– I work when there are things to be done (which is always) but I am not linear in my approach to accomplishing things. So I set goals and try to make them and putter along my life.
This is why me not knowing what page I am on is actually a breakthrough of sorts. Having a set page number, as opposed to a set number of books, afforded me a freedom I had never even thought I needed. I am changed!
Anyway, yesterday I was sitting on my couch in my office, which is really an art studio of sorts, and read Emily Dickinson poems for several hours– the window open, the breeze coming in, sun shining– It was a lovely way to spend a little free time. I also am still reading the Wes Anderson book, and am currently in the middle of The Royal Tenenbaums essay and interview– I am having fun.
So, my total page number is unknown though I think I am short on pages based on last week. I hope to do better next time, but this reading session was by far my favorite simply because it helped me get out of my own way.
I hope to hear from others about their experience, and I’ll look forward to opening up an ‘open reading session’ until the summer. I was also considering expanding posts to movies or other art forms during the open session– anyone up for it? I am really bad about watching movies (ask Gina, I know like 3 actors total) and reading about Wes Anderson has made me want to work on that.
Thank you for being here the past ten weeks! I genuinely enjoy learning about your reads and thoughts–
Open Arts Spring 2023 
Yes Yes Yes!! But I’m really sorry that my slovenly ways have brought your scientific training down to my level of imprecision. I WISH I’d done a better job documenting my progress, but I completely agree–the whole point is to fall into reading so that the hours and the pages and any objective measure of that progress just vanish utterly in the enjoyment of the process–the language, the story, the feelings and the mind-pictures that reading always bring. And to have spent the afternoon with Emily Dickinson–what could possible be better! Bravo! Well done!
I’d be completely thrilled to include movies and other art forms–museum or gallery visits, readings, concerts–in sharing and discussing here in the on-going open reading session. Though here in the hinterlands what we get is just a fraction of what others in more urban places experience. Oh well–at least this gives me plenty of time for…more reading!
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I am thinking the open sessions might just start being called ‘Open Art’ !
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