I've started reading Don Quixote. I've started this book several times, but never gotten past the part where he names Rocinante. I don't know why. I like literature. Length does not scare me, nor do old books. I almost sprinted through all 800 pages of Tom Jones. (A really funny read. Overbearing fathers, a beautiful heroine, escapes, chases, mistaken idenities and a hero who can't keep his trousers on; what's not to like?) I read David McCullough's enormous biography of John Adams cover to cover. But Don Quixote just sits on the shelf, mocking me. This time, I've gotten as far as the village priest torching the old man's library. It's a scene that is alternately funny and barbaric. Burning a library is a tragic thing, but the priest keeps salvaging the (evil) books. "This is terrible, depraved stuff, unfit for human consumption - wait I haven't read that one yet!" Gotta love it. On the somewhat less geeky side of my personality, I've started training for a half-marathon in May and realized something profound. Sneakers really have to fit. My entire life I have avoided wearing shoes. When I was a kid I had very practical reasons: they make climbing trees harder, you can't grip anything with your toes if you have shoes on, there is nothing like cool grass against the soles of your feet and the feel of mud squishing between your toes is wonderful. I kick my shoes off the second I walk through my front door. (This leads to a front hall full of shoes, but at least I always know where they are.) But because I've never really worn my shoes for long periods, I've never realized how important fit is. Particularly if you want your toes to have skin on them. So this weekend, I am going to buy a really good pair of sneakers.
