Week 1, Day 5

Week 1, Being Finite

Day 5, Too much information

Summary: We often feel like we’re drowning in information and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of articles and books that we either want to or should read. Burkeman recommends that we treat our to-be-read pile like a rushing river that we can drink from when we want without feeling that we could ever empty it.

         I often feel compelled to read everything. My library hold list is full of books, my TBR includes over two hundred titles, and I’m ashamed even to think about how many saved articles, newsletters and bookmarks lurk in various folders. It’s ridiculous. As it happens, I’m living by this chapter after the 2024 U.S. election and to preserve my sanity, I have stayed away from the news for a while. I don’t know if and when I’ll be ready to return, but for now, I’m quite happy letting the world move without me for a while.