Round 2: #nerdlution

#NERDLUTION
Ding.  Into the ring we go for round two of #nerdlution.  I took a few hits in round one, but managed to stay on my feet.  I read 50 minutes of fiction most nights.  Each evening I tried to be done with school work as well as day to day chores by 9 p.m. so I could begin reading.  The first few nights I would watch the clock for my 50 minutes to be done; not because I wasn't enjoying the time, but because I felt like the clock owned me.  I didn't really enjoy this feeling and thought about how our students must feel when we give them "assigned times" to read.  After I realized #nerdlution was a bit flexible, I decided to quit clock watching and just read each night.  Before I knew it I was reading for much longer periods of time.

What I Learned
I'd consider myself more of a nonfiction reader, but I was reminded during the challenge how much I miss getting lost in a story.  I had missed meeting new characters and making them a part of my life for a few days.  Reading fiction also gave me a chance to catch up with all my #nerdybookclub friends who manage to read for hours each day and keep up on all the latest books.  Without Karen Terlecky, Katherine Sokolowski, Katie Strawser and Stephanie Shouldis I would have been lost.

During the event I created a "tissue book rating scale."  It seemed every book I read somehow had me in tears before the end of the story.  Here are a few examples:

• The Center of Everything:  4 tissues out of 5 (grandma stories get me every time)
• Counting by 7s:  4 tissues out of 5 (tears for sadness and joy in this one)
• The First Phone Call from Heaven:  2 tissues out of 5 (who wouldn't want to get a call from someone they miss, but….)
• The Book Thief :  5 tissues (I had to leave the room as I was worried I'd wake my husband I was crying so much.)

What's Next
During round one I was enjoying reading fiction, but I was also not entirely happy with my #nerdlution.  While I was getting to know characters, my nonfiction reading pile was growing.  I wanted to read The Power of Quiet, Thinking Fast and Slow, and Becoming Scientists.  I was also missing spending time with the blogs I enjoy stopping by to read and comment.  There are only so many hours in a day and deciding how to use them is a trick.

This time around I want to be able to diversify my reading a bit.  I want to keep growing the number of fiction books I read, but I also need to have time for nonfiction and blog posts.  I'm going to find time to read each day and will continue to work toward being done with everything by 9 so I can curl up to read.  However, some days just don't work like that so I may have to find my time in a different part of my day.  Each week at the #nerdlution round-up Michele is hosting on Thursdays, in keeping with my #olw DISCOVER, I'll share a book and a blog post I discovered in the previous week.  We'll call it my #BooksandBlogsDiscoveryTour.

The Community
Most of all, I look forward to laughing and learning with everyone tweeting about their triumphs and road blocks.  If you'd like to join, stop by Colby's blog to link to the event.