Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Work-life balance: Commuting (for the eyes)


I have an unfortunate problem. I have always been a voracious reader, and would happily read everywhere I went. As I've gotten older, though, I've found it more and more difficult to read in moving vehicles without getting motion sickness. I remember being ecstatic when discovering on a school bus trip that I could read on busses with no trouble. Sadly, these days, I can only read nausea-free on airplanes.

I want to try and fix this. So far, I've been relying on my iPod (and makeup application, oops) to entertain me during my commute. I sit and chill out, listening to music and letting my mind wander. Though this is fine sometimes, my iPod doesn't have the greatest battery life anymore, and I feel like spending 2-3 hours a day just listening to music isn't very productive.

It's time to teach myself to read on the bus. I've read about various methods here and there, but I think I'm going to try reading for a few minutes at a time until I feel queasy, stop until I feel better, and then start again. If that doesn't work, I'm prepared to delve into weirder solutions like blocking my view of the outside, bringing a bag of salty foods to smell, and reading really engrossing books.

And if all else fails, maybe I'll give meditation a whirl. If it works for Thich Nhat Hanh... ()

4 comments:

  1. been sifting through your blog a bit.. it's cute!

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  2. Audiobooks! I have the same problem, and reading audiobooks is one of the things that has solved it. And the best part is that I also listen to audiobooks when I work out, so I'm multitasking during a workout (the nerd in me love that)! I personally prefer listening to non-fiction, sometimes I find a fiction audiobook to be either challenging to follow, or read more slowly than I would like (dialogue is tough). But I've read almost all of Malcolm Gladwell's books on audiobook, and prefer it vastly!

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  3. my sister has that same problem. that sucks for you! good luck with your solutions! they make little ginger candies that are supposed to help with nausea.

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  4. Thanks, Morgan! Glad you like it. :)

    I'm actually posting about that tomorrow, Becca! I just have to find some audiobooks to try. The tip about fiction vs. nonfiction is a good one - I hadn't considered that dialogue might be a problem. Thanks!

    It really does, two birds. :( I'll keep y'all posted on how things go. I might give ginger a shot, though I'd need to find something sugar-free...

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