I want the Fast and the Furious theme to be playing as I write this. Okay, there we go… I’ve been giving a lot of thought into the role music used to play in my life vs. what has been going on. I have been adrift from the core of me in many ways, but the two I keep coming back to are reading and music. I love listening to music and used to do it nearly non-stop. That stop was generally to read a book or engage in some practice where I couldn’t use music. I listen to good music, bad music, all music and judge only occasionally (yes, I judge country and listen to country at the same time… I be like that). I read (as in past tense) good books, bad books, and judged only occasionally. Now both seem to be tertiary to my daily life, which is problematic to someone who is a writer.
The culprit is Amazon. I blame them for everything. Amazon is the real life version of Wall-E’s Buy and Large. They’ve gotten me with the Firestick and got me even more with the Audible service. I listen to books now. I’m not sure when was the last time I finished a print book. So we know the culprit:
Ease.
Yes, I know I said Amazon, but that is just the symptom. Things that are easy are things that we (I) tend to do more. It is easy to watch a trash show you’ve seen a dozen times (Hello, Friends.) instead of hunting for a CD you like. It is easier to listen to a book while handling mundane chores than it is to sit and take the time to focus and read. I fear I’ve lost my capability for the latter short of time on the beach.
So, what is the solution? Good old fashioned hard work. Gotta want to do it in order to do it. But do I?