Reading Update No. 1
by Tom Shafer
A while back I came to the realization that I don’t read nearly as much as I ought to. And by that I mean I read all the time but I tend to re-read the same dozen books over and over again. I mean, I like to think of myself as a fairly knowledgeable guy (at least, for a 21-year-old) but the more I think about it, the more I realize just how little new information I’m soaking up. I don’t necessarily mean in a “current events” sense – I’m pretty sure I follow the news more than the next guy – but in a much broader sense. I’m still in the process of figuring this whole Jesus thing out and I’m not getting very far by just “pondering things” myself… so I resolved to start actively seeking knowledge in this area. I’m still figuring this whole science thing out… so I resolved to start actively seeking knowledge outside of school in that arena as well. I also tend to play on the internet on my notebook for fun, which in excess is entirely unproductive. So I’m trying to lean to take advantage of my free time by practicing guitar or piano, or doing my homework sooner, or reading a book for fun.
So far, the results have been amazing… I may not exactly feel more knowledgeable, but there is a sense of accomplishment that comes with finishing a book. So far I’ve finished Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis (excellent choice for me, personally – I need to come at things in a logical manner, whether they be natural or supernatural) and A Brief History of Time by Steven Hawking (another excellent book, even if it frustrated me in its lack of detail… I guess that’s what my physics courses are for). (I tried to start reading Everything Must Change by Brian McLaren, but he was quite a bit too haughty for my tastes… I don’t think I’m as ignorant as he expected em to be… even if “he” is in book form). I’m about to begin reading through sections of the Old Testament… pretty sure that’s going to be fascinating (seriously), but I also want to keep going with the fun/scientific books so tonight I procured the following works of literature from my local Barnes & Noble booksellers:
I’m really excited. I think I’m going to save the QED book for after the semester ends (it might be a little crazy to handle alongside all of these crazy exams), but the Neil deGrasse Tyson book seems like it should just be a light fun/scientific read. Here’s hoping! Hopefully I’ll be giving a new update soon!
Peace, Tom
Comments
I agree with being able to waste hours on a Mac. I definitely need to make a change soon too. Good call, and ohh yea, you’re a nerd. But this is coming from the guy who drools when you start talking about techie stuff. Nerds. Nice.
cd
Im going to be late for small group but…
us the UNCW Library and don’t buy every book bro. I got a public library card 4 days ago and will be using it alot instead of dropping 15-20 bucks on new books each time.
(but buy the good ones!)
Oh, don’t worry… I use the library all the time. They don’t have every book, though…
oh gosh Tom. You’re an inspiration, you wrote what I’ve been thinking a lot the past couple of days. Maybe I will blog about it more, but yeah, that was awesome – I have another decision that I’ve come to in that area, involving going one book at a time.
[...] Last month I started a book called Death by Black Hole (written by Neil DeGrasse Tyson) that was basically a collection of medium-length essays on the universe, physics (astrophysics in particular), science versus religion, and probably a hundred other things. [...]