About 6 years ago, perhaps 7, I was leaving my first marriage. An ex boyfriend contacted me (actually dropped by my mothers to see how I was) and we started up a conversation via email. Somehow or another we started talking about the book “The Little Prince” because reading the book was one of the things that helped me figure out I needed to leave. He said something to the effect that it sounded interesting, the passage I was talking about, and he’d like to read it. So I emailed it to him.
I asked, a couple of days later, how he’d liked it. “Oh,” he replied, “I don’t read unless I can help it.”
(except I guess typing/writing/puncuation/capitalization wasn’t his strong suit because it was typed i dont read unless i have to)
And at that point, all the remembered affection my 22 year old self had retained from our fling when I was 18 went OUT THE WINDOW. I told him that I’d be moving and wasn’t going to have internet for a while and I’d get in touch later… And then I never did. Oh, we are “friends” on facebook and myspace and that’s about it, now.
I don’t consider myself a super genius or anything, or even a genius, really at all. I’m reasonably intelligent and while I don’t have a college degree I’ve never stopped learning! (I will get that damned degree, however!) Up until that point, I’d never considered how important it was to me to be around intelligent people. First husband was an manipulative asshole but smart as hell. And I’d just figured up until that point that the ex bf was in a hurry when he was typing, hence the lack of anything other than letters.
But DEAR LORD, I just can’t imagine myself with someone who doesn’t read! And Brian and I together have so many books! And we are running out of room for more books and it worries us. We LOVE to read. We CRAVE learning!
Anyway, I don’t even remember why I started this post. I guess the moral of the story is: Stupid Hormones when you are 18 are not enough to sustain a relationship for any amount of time. Or maybe “Ariel may date a person who doesn’t like to read but it won’t be for long if she figures out you don’t like to read and she suspects you might be stupid.”
I don’t know.
#1 by Mindy on January 16, 2009 - 8:05 pm
Gran could never understand a person that didn’t read for pleasure. She sure passed on her love of reading to Mom, my sisters and I. I don’t think there is a room in our house that doesn’t have a pile of books.
#2 by Mir on January 16, 2009 - 11:28 pm
I have about the same reaction to anyone who says they don’t like to read. I’m sure that when people say it to me in person, the look of horror that crosses my face is obvious.