Rule #1: Always Bring a Book
Always bring a book.
I can’t tell you how many people have included this in their rules to always adhere to, but I include it in mine because I have found it to be more true than most people realize. Ever gotten to a doctor’s appointment on time and had to wait an hour to see him or her? Ever had the power go out on you, either at work, home, or school (Well, if you were at school it was probably utter mayhem for a good twenty minutes, but I think you get my point.)? Ever gone somewhere expecting to have something to occupy your time and been surprised when you had to wait for some reason? This is why you always, always, always bring a book.
Books don’t have batteries and they’re cheap. Concerning the latter, the books you take with you everywhere had better be cheap. Leave the signed first editions at home. You’ve probably read them a hundred times anyway. If you have a Kindle like me then you should probably carry around a large zip lock bag in case it rains. Kindles (and other e reading devices. We are an equal opportunity e book mentioner here at nicholasnonsense.wordpress.com), though, do have a battery, which can run out even if it isn’t for a long time. These days we have access to a plug just about everywhere we go and the Kindle plug is pretty convenient to travel with. That fact coupled with the fact that the Kindle’s battery can last around two weeks on a charge without the excessive use of internet (I don’t know what the new gens are capable of. I’m just going off my Kindle 3) means that relying on your Kindle or other e reading device is a pretty safe bet. Still, you never know what can happen so it’s always good to take a good old fashioned stack of cut, beached, and inked sheets of tree pulp around with you just in case.
Alright, now it’s time to move on to the benefits you can enjoy by following this rule. First, as mentioned previously, you will never be completely and hopelessly bored. Well, you might, but only if you choose poorly, so keep that in mind, because the book you choose, your entertainment, is in your hands and yours alone. Second, you will get smarter. You’re going to know more if you read every chance you get. It is just a fact. You may forget a lot, but that comes with time and poor decisions regarding alcohol consumption and hard drugs. For the most part you will remember what you read. It may not be on the surface, but when you see or hear something related you’ll say to yourself “Hey, Self, I remember that I read something regarding this particular subject when I was just a wee lad/lass.” Third, you are going to be more interesting. Part of this will be because you know more, but also because reading more is bound to open up your horizons and expose you to things you never thought of before. This is closely akin to becoming smarter, but not exactly. See, reading is basically looking at a code, decoding it and deciphering what it means. It’s like running track for you brain, at least one area of it. But the way you become a more interesting person is what happens after you’ve read a whole bunch. You run track, you get faster, but you look good too. It’s the same with your brain. You become more well rounded. Also, if people see you reading they are bound to ask about what it is you’re frowning at so hard. Then you’ll get a chance to tell them all that you’ve learned. It’s also a great way to connect with people on a slightly deeper level. When someone has seen the same rare movie you have you feel a kind of affinity with that person. Well, finding out someone has read the same book as you is much the same way, as you probably know.
Next I want to explain why books are a better thing to carry around than your Nintendo 3DS or 6000 sudoku puzzle book. The Nintendo is good because it’ll keep you entertained easily enough, but the battery is an issue. It runs out and fast. Also, it is expensive and isn’t waterproof and I don’t think it’d be much fun playing it through a zip lock bag. But more than that, it doesn’t make you more interesting as a human being. It can make you smarter if you’re playing puzzle games, but that doesn’t expand you’re horizons. The same can be said for a sudoku book. Its advantages are that it is cheap and so can be destroyed without many lamentations and it is a puzzle, so it is not mindless entertainment. However, it doesn’t open up the world to you the way a book will.
Now, look. I don’t pick up a book every single time I don’t have something to do. I play words with friends, I check my email, or I play Igo. You can play a game or break out the sudoku from time to time. But you’re going to be much more interesting if you don’t.
Nicholas' Nonsense 