Inside My Comfort Zone

A few weeks ago, I finally got around to reading A Discovery of Witches (which had been on my Amazon wishlist forever) and Shadow of Night (because, hi, sequel...TELL ME WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!!!), and while I really loved reading them (well, I loved Discovery, anyway, but I kind of felt like Shadow didn't advance the plot enough for me to love it quite as much), I also learned something sad about myself...

I just don't have the time or mental capacity right now to take on anything new or thought provoking, or even at all interesting, when it comes to books. Or movies and television shows, for that matter. Between work and the girls, and my stupidly annoying need to get some sleep each night, I can't devote energy to these things like I have in the past. I am the type of person who has to know what is going to happen next, and I've spent MANY nights reading into all hours of the night to find out. It doesn't even necessarily have to be a great book to drag me in.

I mean, I read the whole Twilight series in one weekend. I just couldn't help myself, I had to know how it ended.

But, as I was stretching Caitlin's middle-of-the-night feedings to longer than necessary lengths, just to get in one more chapter of the Harkness books, then waking up beyond exhausted the next morning, I came to the conclusion that that's not really an option for me anymore. And NOTHING has made me feel older than realizing that I'm too old to stay up all night reading. So even though the list of books that I want to read keeps growing by the day, I bought the Harry Potter series for my Kindle to reread when I find myself with a few minutes to spare.

And the same thing has happened when it comes to TV shows. Did you know every season of Friday Night Lights is available for free on Amazon Prime streaming? Because it is, and I've heard nothing but great things about the series. And yet, I'm rewatching old West Wing episodes. Because I CAN'T GET SUCKED IN TO A NEW SERIES!

And then there are movies. I have $30 sitting on my iTunes account. I could rent some new movies, just like that. They still make good movies, right? But...no. I think I'll rewatch Center Stage or the Pride and Prejudice miniseries (both of which I bought off of iTunes the very moment I had an iTunes account) for the bajillionth, instead. I mean, I don't have to commit nearly as much brain power to the task when I have the entire thing burned into my memory.

(BRAIN POWER! FOR A MOVIE! I don't have enough brain power for a movie. I just can't even...)

This is how it starts, isn't it? I haven't been young and hip for awhile, now, but I also wasn't old and crotchety and set in my ways, yet. I'm on that path now, though, aren't I? It's all over.

Now get off my lawn, and take your loud rock n' roll music with you.