Does this get easier?

@mchill said
I'm pushing myself to get in the habit of reading everyday, it's a good idea, but some days I hate it. Interesting stories are easy and fun to read, but material of a dry or technical nature finds me looking for a diversion before I open the book. So, does it get easier with time and practice, or does it always suck? 😕

Reading is a skill which, like many skills, must be tended to to stay proficient at it.

When we were younger and fitter, we could read anywhere, anytime, anything, and we consumed a lot of rubbish. Part of the joy of growing older, and we hope wiser, is becoming more aware of what is worthwhile reading, and leaving the dross unread. We did not pay attention to our bodies when we were younger; they did everything we asked of them implicitly. This is no longer so. As we grow older, we must make a few concessions to physical embodiment in order to do things effectively, including reading.

So:

Be rested before you start to read. If you try to do it late at night after a long day, you won't remember how the sentence started by the time you get to the period.

Get your eyes checked and adjust your reading glasses, if necessary. Our eyes change, and the left and right eyes do not change in sync together. If one is dragging and the other is doing all the work, it drains you imperceptibly. (Try shutting first your left eye while reading this, then your right eye -- read this with each eye singly separately, are both equally sharp?)

Get a comfy chair and a good reading light which casts no shadows across the pages of an open book.

Start with short stories, to get your juices flowing. I recommend Saki, Poe, Kafka, Tolstoi, or Twain.

@kevin-eleven said
Another possibility is that maybe you have reached some kind of tipping point in your accumulation and digestion, and it's time for you to start writing books or pamphlets (perhaps even broadsides!) or whatever right-sized projects seem suitable.

A novel idea.

@suzianne said
I don't think reading ever sucks.

You haven't read many governmental or banking API specifications, then.

@shallow-blue said
You haven't read many governmental or banking API specifications, then.

I haven't read any, why would the ordinary Joe bother?

-VR

@very-rusty said
I haven't read any, why would the ordinary Joe bother?

He wouldn't. But in this case, I'm not the ordinary Joe - implementing software linkages with banks, the government, and quangos is part of my job. When it works, it's a joy to see the results, but oh my the specifications...

@jimm619 said
@mchill
Gets a bit harder as you age..........
I really enjoyed reading books but now,
unless I'm in direct sunlight, it's a chore....
I've been young, now I'm old, take my word,
young is better.......... 😕

You look young, lean and sort of fit in your avatar.

Do you have an eye condition? Other than the usual presbyopia we get past mid 40s.

@shallow-blue said
He wouldn't. But in this case, I'm not the ordinary Joe - implementing software linkages with banks, the government, and quangos is part of my job. When it works, it's a joy to see the results, but oh my the specifications...

I still believe that computer software is a forum of Illuminati magic.

@divegeester said
I still believe that computer software is a forum of Illuminati magic.

LOL@ the gooster.... I use to wear glasses mainly for reading. I had cataracts in both eyes it turned out. The optometrist told me I shouldn't have been driving as I wouldn't be able to see the signs. I told her I as a rule drove in my own area. She said I was probably use what the signs meant.

I had both removed one then a month later the other one. Replaced with lenses I have cards I carry. Now I don't even need glasses. They did tell me though if I had a problem just to get a 2.5 or 3 pair at any drug store, or dollar store.

By the way you look like a fish in your avatar. 🙂

-VR

@mchill said
I'm pushing myself to get in the habit of reading everyday, it's a good idea, but some days I hate it. Interesting stories are easy and fun to read, but material of a dry or technical nature finds me looking for a diversion before I open the book. So, does it get easier with time and practice, or does it always suck? 😕

When I were a lad I read all the 'big' books, but I haven't read a book cover to cover for years, my concentration tends to wander....I'm a hobby novelist and write every day, usually in the wee hours of the morning. I find writing a lot easier, and although I can't say that I'm a good writer (that's for others to judge) I tend to look for style in a book rather than content. If a book's badly written, I put it down immediately and go and make a cup of tea.

@very-rusty said
LOL@ the gooster.... I use to wear glasses mainly for reading. I had cataracts in both eyes it turned out. The optometrist told me I shouldn't have been driving as I wouldn't be able to see the signs. I told her I as a rule drove in my own area. She said I was probably use what the signs meant.

I had both removed one then a month later the other one. Replaced with len ...[text shortened]... ir at any drug store, or dollar store.

By the way you look like a fish in your avatar. 🙂

-VR

Tell someone who’s interested.

@divegeester said
I still believe that computer software is a forum of Illuminati magic.

We secretly rule the world.

See, Metal? That is how you run a conspiracy - from the ground up, not from the top down!

@shallow-blue said
We secretly rule the world.

See, Metal? That is how you run a conspiracy - from the ground up, not from the top down!

MB is in so deep he can’t see the light from the top anymore. It must be awful to live with that level of delusion and fear about the entire world.

I try to get to watch the Royal Institution Christmas lectures each year. Some smart kids in attendance. Works for me though! 😆They ran one on how computers work a few years ago, I was enthralled.

@divegeester said
MB is in so deep he can’t see the light from the top anymore. It must be awful to live with that level of delusion and fear about the entire world.

I try to get to watch the Royal Institution Christmas lectures each year. Some smart kids in attendance. Works for me though! 😆They ran one on how computers work a few years ago, I was enthralled.

I bet you have brown eyes. 🙂

-VR

@indonesia-phil said
When I were a lad I read all the 'big' books, but I haven't read a book cover to cover for years, my concentration tends to wander....I'm a hobby novelist and write every day, usually in the wee hours of the morning. I find writing a lot easier, and although I can't say that I'm a good writer (that's for others to judge) I tend to look for style in a book rather than content. If a book's badly written, I put it down immediately and go and make a cup of tea.

At this stage of the game, I'm completely with you (regarding this particular topic). To style over substance! 😉

@divegeester said
I try to get to watch the Royal Institution Christmas lectures each year.

Ooh, good call! Thanks for reminding me. Is there a link where I can see this year's?