Ass Like a Lobster

From a Sunday at the beach I am currently sitting on two bright red lobster cheeks... and we aren't serving any garlic biscuits here! As uncomfortable as it may be to sit on it and type, I'm living through the pain for you. You're welcome.

Los Angeles is an interesting melting pot of people. As with most places, when you work or play you tend to meet new people. And in meeting them tend to add these people into your own personal pot. My new addition and I went to the beach yesterday and got lost in "get to know you" conversation. Hence my toasty buns (and I did have sunscreen on, for those judging). For hours we talked not only about our personal lives (successes and struggles) but also about inspiration. And from that my ongoing lists of people to research, movies, and most importantly, books has grown.

Reading hasn't always been my friend. My brain gets a little ADD rambling into a checklist of what else I could be doing, someone I might be fantasizing about, or friends that I need to connect with - that is unless the writing is impeccable and the subject matter is exciting. Going through college with procrastination brain is, let's just say, not easy. But in the recent months I've taken a different stance on things. When I start to feel distracted I realize that there is a reason my brain has lost focus. I used to beat myself up about being a slack-ass procrastinator. However, now, with the ability to connect with what is going on inside of myself, I can (and do) take a minute to figure out the distraction. Where is it coming from. Why is it coming. What is it trying to distract me from. Am I just plain bored with this subject. If I can't figure it out then I put the book down, hit pause on the movie, or close the computer for a bit and turn to my next subject at hand. If I am just plain bored and it's not a required resource It gets passed to someone who might benefit from it. I officially consider myself a solid seeker of knowledge with the tools to manage my attention deficits.

So, why is this an important conversation, you might be asking. I've read enough studies that say reading does for the brain what exercise does for the body. It keeps you sharp and helps stave off the icks that might come as the mind gets older (like, you know, Alzheimer's). If you don't have a list like this I recommend starting one today. Personally I separate them out: Books, Movies, Research, Music, etc. But you do you, bu. Start your list and go get a book. Prove Huffington Post's statistics from 2013 (28% of Americans didn't read a book) to be completely out of date and therefore irrelevant. Become an optimized seeker of knowledge. And don't put it off until tomorrow. At the very least you have a few minutes today that you can focus on reading or writing - you know, toilet minutes...