Hitting the Books

I was inspired to pick this thing back up after an idea was sparked by graduate assistant interviews yesterday and fed by a post today from +Amma Marfo. Reading is fundamental, to be sure, but is it the only marker of continued intellect?

Yesterday, when interviewing for graduate assistants, we asked the ubiquitous "what do you like to do for fun?" question (quick tangent: If ever I ask this question of you, it's not a trap, Admiral Ackbar. I'm not trying to trick you into connecting it back into work. I legitimately want to know what you do for fun.). It quickly morphed into "...and what was the last book you read for pleasure?" Each of the candidates had an answer, but what if they hadn't?

I'll be honest with you. There was a period of time - probably a couple years, if I were to put a number on it - when I did not read for pleasure. I did such on a very limited basis when I was a graduate student, and in the year or two that followed, after 19 consecutive years of schooling, I simply didn't want to look at a book.  If asked the question, I surely could have reached back for an answer, but it wouldn't have been current.

The reason for the question is clear, and at most levels, pretty sound. As a culture in general, and as a higher education community specifically, we place a premium on reading as the mark of a learned citizen. Reading expands the mind, entices the imagination, and gives you something interesting to talk about at cocktail parties. On an individual level, this is by no means my personal Fahrenheit 451; I consider a love of reading to be part of my life's foundation and a favorite pastime from childhood that endures to this day. But I'll also admit that I consider myself "in the middle" of three different books right now, and yet there are many times when reading falls pretty low on the depth chart of things I need to do or even leisure activities. I like reading, to be sure, but I don't love reading as I once did, at least not if we consider books to be the sole currency of worthwhile reading. I read newspapers (not nearly as often as I should, I'll admit as the son of a copy editor). I read articles, online and in print. I read magazines, both scholarly and frivolous. It's entirely possible that I'm flexing that muscle without having a book on my nightstand.

What's more, I engage in conversation. I think critically. I write. I compose music (also not nearly as often as I should). I cook. I travel. I attend local theater. And yes, I spend a ton of time online, much of it frivolous, but much of it learning, often from others, whether directly or indirectly. Are these to be placed at less value than reading? If my answer to the last book question were "I don't really read," or even more damning, "I don't really like to read," how would that be received? For some, that could be the honest answer, and yet I suspect it would weigh negatively, consciously or subconsciously, on the evaluator's assessment. There's an expectation that we all like to read, or should like to read, and it simply isn't so. What's more, a learning disability or visual impairment could keep reading from being enjoyable.

By no means am I suggesting that anyone shouldn't love to read, I'm simply saying it's not a crime if one doesn't.

We Need a Resolution

I'll be honest. I've never really been one for New Year's resolutions. I could get all high and mighty about how we should be seeking to change for the better no matter the calendar and yadda yadda yadda, but it's not that deep, I just don't do it. I especially don't do it one word (sorry, significant portion of the student affairs twittersphere). But that doesn't mean I'm not looking to change or better myself, and when I get an idea or see an opportunity, I jump on it. Earlier this week, I had one of those times.

We had an open house for our office. It's a program that needs some assessing (but that's a different story for a different day) but the gist was that we had some food set up in the area adjacent to our office to entice people to come in and learn about what we had to offer. Because our office is tucked a good deal out of the way in our student union, our primary traffic was folks for whom we were a destination anyway. At any rate, I was sitting out by the set up for most of the duration, and a coworker of mine took a shift as I ate lunch. When I returned, she shared with me an article from About Campus that she had been reading to pass both to pass the time and because it related to some assessment she's looking to do, and invited me to read it while I sat out in the often empty hallway.

I was hit with a simple truth: I'm often piss-poor about reading in the field, especially if it's not on the computer screen in front of me, and/or hasn't been assigned for a meeting. I resolved--ok, made the decision--right there that I'm going to start setting aside an hour a week for some form of reading in the field or related topics. It doesn't have to be anything in particular, and can be a lowbrow or high-falutin' as I feel like in any given week, but I intend to do it, and I've made the deal that while I can move it if my schedule calls for it, it can only be rescheduled, not canceled.

Today I did it for the first time, and while I'll admit I did a bit of bookshelf channel-surfing before landing on what I was going to spend my time with, but I upheld my bargain--for the most part. I'm easily distractable and a thing or two required my attention during that time, but I think, by and large, I got my hour in. I think I'm better for it, and hopefully will be as it continues.

In related news, I'm well aware that I haven't written anything in here since July. Maybe I should resolve to keep up more, but you know me and resolutions...