reading books

2 or 3 years ago I read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. I didn't really get it. I remember I mostly read it at night before bed, ending with the usual intended result of falling asleep. That is probably why I didn't get much out of it. The gist of what I got was the importance of caring about what you do and that is where quality comes from. Anyone can follow a plan and build a birdhouse, but it's the people that care about it that build exceptional birdhouses. I think that's what it was about.

I pulled the book off my shelf this morning and went outside to read in the sun. This time I'm determined to delve into Pirsig's philosophy a bit  more deeply. To do so, I'll need to take into account his statement on how he wishes to explain his outlook, "I just want to get at it slowly, but carefully and thoroughly..." I've finished the first two chapters, and deliberately took a break to reflect and be sure I understand what he's talking about. But the first two chapters don't really contain a lot of depth. I want to establish the habit early in order to avoid reading for too long and getting lost in my usual pattern of forgetting what I'm reading about and daydreaming of something else. Which is why I've made Moby Dick my bedtime book, and Zen my summertime book.