A Very Literary Christmas

On December eighth, I finished my classes and finals for the semester at my school, Central Virginia Community College, in Bedford, Virginia. Immediately, I started cheering internally because I was finally free to do whatever I pleased, until going back to school at my new school, Miller-Motte Technical College, in Lynchburg Virginia, on January twentieth.

My mind wandered to things I could do-- watch movies I had yet to watch, hang out with friends I hadn't seen in a while or had seen sparsely, take trips places because I had the time, and read books I had bought but had never touched. The last freedom resonated within me.

It was then that I decided I would challenge myself. I set the challenge before myself to read twenty books in forty-two days. At first, the number seemed a little high and lofty, and I even considered making it ten. However, I put my foot down and decided it would, indeed, be twenty.

I posted this goal in a status update on Facebook. Within minutes, my friend, John, responded with the idea to make it into a competition, to see who could read twenty (or more) books by January 19th. Then, he and I both posted this challenge in Facebook notes, tagging others to join us in this challenge. Out of the thirty or more people we tagged, I think we may have ten serious contenders. One, my friend Lisa, has even posted the list of books she wants to read during this time.

Since no competition should be without rules, we drew up a few:

1. These books have to be of credible length and/or content. No kids books, for example. For argument's sake, the book has to be 100+ pages, unless it is intense or difficult content. (For example, I read a book on Buddha's teachings that was five pages shy of one hundred.)

2. These books can be books you are re-reading. However, do not count books you have already started UNLESS you are twenty-five or less pages into it.

3. Be honest. Don't lie about how many books you have read. It's not respectable.

And that's all there is to it. Our contest will run until 11:59 P.M. on January 19th. Once we are all done, twenty books in or not, we are to post our final list on the Facebook notes in which we were tagged.

If you are looking for something productive to do and to expand your mind over holiday break, I encourage you to set yourself a book goal, as well. If you don't make it, don't worry about. Just be happy that you tried.

Wish me luck! I am on my third book!

Happy holidays and happy reading!