‘m walking out of the building a few days ago, crossing the breezeway to the parking garage. Most of the yuppies are zombie-walking with their phones up in front of their eyes, living their blunt little lives with their foreshortened minds. Me, I’m taking in the sun and air, and I’ve got a handful of goodies the likes of which they couldn’t imagine.

I’ll break from the description to note that there are writers out there who read nothing but the area of their speciality. You can tell it in historical novels where the source information lists pages of books. That’s not to say I don’t have an entire shelf full of history books from the bronze and iron ages (man, I do dig some of that stuff!). But no, I read a lot of everything as evident in my handful of media.

Let’s take a peak into what I’ve got.

First off, there is 40 days with Jesus, a nice booklet given to me by my friend/nemesis Luann. It’s a little daily guided mediation, a linking of testament and meaning and helpful hints. It’s supposed to be read across Lent, but I forgot and am only now finishing it up. However, it had a very nice thought that I carried away with me, one about looking at your troubles as a distant mountain range, and how, as you get closer, you might find other paths or easier ascents or, hey, a tunnel! If I have one fault (I think I’ve many, many more), it’s that I worry a lot about things that haven’t happened yet. This helps!

Then there is a movie, My Neighbor Totoro, a superb child’s movie I just got back from some of the Indian moms I loaned it to. This is one of the best kid movies ever (hey, Roger Ebert agreed) about two sisters who move out to the country to be near their hospitalized mother. It’s got tension but no scary bad guys. And there’s drama but only in a magical way. So what better thing to find in the sacred forest next door that a big fluffy forest spirit? And public transportation has never been this cool!

Also, a book I’d loaned nine years ago to a woman who took the buyout at work. She’d proceeded to lose this book, then found it in the final week she worked with us. Concrete Island is a novel about a motorist who crashes in the forested median strip of a superhighway and cannot get out. No fluffy forest spirits here. Yeah, I have to review this thing after I read it again. Coming soon!

Also coming soon: It’s all the Rage: Crime and Culture. I have no idea what this is about but a rather strange fellow (who dated the girl noted above) told me how much he liked it and how I had to read it. Well, they are a done item but the book remains, so it’s been given to me. How fortunate. Look for a review in a few months on this one.

So there you have it. Whereas others stumble through life with a tiny screen fulla apps, I’ve got an armful of amazing media, some old favorites and some new. I think I’ll stick with my stuff, thanks.

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