New Title for a Book: "Do Not Disturb: I'm Reading, Ya Bastards!"

Sometimes, when I'm sitting alone, on a park bench, or in a coffee shop, or the break room at work, or on a plane, train, automobile, or anywhere that it is possible to sit, I'm accosted by a very strange person.

This person feels that a book is just a harmless pastime. They're not wrong. I'm not studying for a class or anything. I'm not deeply engrossed in philosophically pondering the repercussions of cybernetic parts implanted onto a human body. But I'm trying to be.

I have the urge to go to the places that these people call homes and walk in on them watching TV or doing word searches, or whatever it is they do with their time, and I'll start talking to them about how those are things that I don't do. I'll say, "Yeah, I was never really into the TV-watching thing. I mean, I don't have the attention span for it. I was more into books." I'll continue on in this fashion until they see how I feel.

Equally obnoxious are the people that sit down across from you and wait with expectant eyes, like I'm about to break into song or something for their benefit. I'm afraid they're expecting my act of reading to be a little more exciting than it's actually going to be. But I feel no shame, no regret. Reading is a personal act, and I'm doing it for me. If they want me to read out loud to them, all they have to do is ask. But they're probably not going to understand what's going on, and I'm definitely not starting over.

In RE: the title of this blog post, I feel that a banner should be placed along the top edge of any book, both front and back cover, that says "Do Not Disturb." Maybe then people will start getting the idea.