A rethink

Once again - and I know this is tiresome for the two or so people that actually visit here - I'm rethinking my relationship to this blog. Not only do I not have many readers (and I have to remind myself that's not necessarily the reason I started this in the first place; it was to serve as a writing exercise, a place where I can gather the jumble of thoughts continually revolving in my brain and attempt to make some sense of them, to give them some coherency; yet, it would be nice to add a few more eyeballs), but I re-read some of these posts and think, "ugh." As I was telling my friend M. today (via e-mail), I think I've become intellectually lazy over the last couple of months. Yes, I'm reading wonderful, thought-provoking books (finished my re-read of Bolano's The Savage Detectives last week; not surprisingly, it was a richer experience, although the ending is still puzzling; on to Anna Karenina!), and my work is still (at times) challenging and intellectually stimulating, but I'm getting complacent outside of it. (Maybe it's stumbling upon this site that is providing the proverbial food for thought. After all, if I'm going to do this, I might as well do it right. She has.)

Thus, a temporary pause while I figure out what the heck it is I'm trying to accomplish here.

In the meantime, a couple of links to read. One on the Kindle, a device I'd love to get my hands on (despite the fact I'm an unabashed fan and supporter of the printed book; but hey, I'm open to conversion), and an older article on the future of the book (via an interview with Umberto Eco, sent to me by M.)