Reading: Stillness and Attention.

 I often struggle to read though it is one of my greatest passions. It comforts, informs, develops, and stretches me. I think it's one of the best uses of my time.

I usually have a goal to read 8 books a month. That's up from the 6 books per month goal (which I often didn't meet) that I had when I was working full-time. But last month, I read 15 books. Some of those books were graphic novels or poetry books, which can take less time. I count them as full books anyway because I think they are important and I want to experience a lot of both. But most of the books were novels or short story and essay collections.

So when I didn't read for two days this past week, I wondered, what worked last month?

My not reading is usually a sign of depression or anxiety, situational or clinical. But reading is also just hard for me. I'm a slow reader. I'm easily distracted. I usually have a lot going on with my son who has special needs. So what did I do that made a difference?

Two words came to mind: Stillness and Attention. 

I have to be still to read. I have to stay in one place and not get scattered and not think of the rest of my to-do list. And if I need to get up to tend to my son or pause to pay a bill, I return to that stillness as soon as I can.

I have to pay attention to read. I have to put aside anxiety, random thoughts, and other forms of input. Put my phone down. Focus my curiosity on what I'm reading rather than every thought of "What's this?" and "Does this exist?" I have to quiet my mind.

It's still not easy, but I know what I need to do if I want to read. And I do want to read, daily, widely, and deeply. It's a careful investment.

How I Feel about Office Supplies.

I've not worked in about four years, but office supplies are still important to me. Is it a writer thing? I know one does have to self-identify as a writer to obsess over pens and pencils.

In my first office as a full-time English professor, I barely personalized my space at all. I had a roommate, and I didn't want to be rude. But my boss was ordering pastel file folders, colorful sticky notes, and Precise VS RT pens in my favorite colors: purple and green.

I moved to a different office, and I decided to give some life to it. My roommate was a dude, but I didn't worry about that. I bought purple hanging folders, purple and aqua Poppin pens, matching stapler and tape dispenser, white desk organizers, and white metal pen cup and bookends. I even had a tiny chandelier (for a locker) under my hutch light. Everyone seemed amazed at the transformation, which surprised me.

I kept paperclips in a glitter snowflake votive holder. Silver paperclips were fine, but Target had purple and aqua--more fun for me and probably for my students. I brought crayons, especially glitter ones, to color through a withdrawn student's record to my grade book. It was much more cheerful than the depressing bblack-pen-crossing-out-my-retention method.

I got into sticky page flags when I started teaching literature. And I remembered a highlighter like a crayon that my mom used in her Bible. It never bled through, and it dried immediately. I recommended these gel highlighters to my students. Sharpie has them, but I like the slim build and the color choices of gel highlighters that are actual for Bible study. I've bought them for myself, for Josh, for Mom, and for Bruce.

I had some pretty page flags from Papaya Art (unfortunately, Papaya no longer sells the sticky flags), but I went wild over Girl of All Work's literary character flags. I have almost all the current sets, which include Jane Eyre, Anne of Green Gables, and The Little Mermaid. I gave a couple of sets to Mom, who is much more of a reader than I am.

I'm all about special-effects pens, mostly glitter and metallic. I like to know how good all the brands are. Technology has clearly advanced; Gelly Rolls used to be my only way to go. But Pentel and Uni-Ball are catching up. I keep my pens in a series of pouches and mugs, some of which I've divided by color. I drain pens rather quickly. I pick a color and pen for each day.

When I left my job due to my illness, I took home everything I had bought. The desk organizers now hold makeup in my bathroom. The hanging folders hold a great many documents about Oliver and me. I bought those pens in pink and turquoise. I also have an emerald-shaped sticky note dispenser.

Office supplies, even tiny ones, can reshape the feel of a day. 

For more on office and writing supplies, go here and here.

Sticky Flags.

My friend Bruce got me into sticky flags. I used to be terrible about folding the corners of my pages. I got some beautiful flags from Papaya!, and Bruce keeps me stocked, especially with literary character flags. Here are some of the ways I use my sticky flags:

• Precisely marking favorite passages and quotations from books. I go back later and write the words in a quotation notebook.
• Marking prompts in my journal, so I can go back and respond in the blank space.
• Marking responses I want to post on my blog.
• Marking journal passages that I may expand into blog posts.
• Marking important lists in my journal.

What reading and writing tools do you use?