Spritz

I have a stupid phone, but for those of you who don't, Spritz is an app you might enjoy. It increases your reading speed by displaying words in quick succession. It claims that you could even devour a book like Harry Potter in only 77 minutes. Sounds interesting. I might give it a whirl just for the heck of it, but personally I wouldn't want to read an entire novel this way.

Why? Because . . .

I like the physical act of turning a page, feeling the crispiness of paper between forefinger and thumb, hearing the shush of pulling the page from right to left. Is that too kinesthetic? Maybe. But I like to rub the satin edge on my blankie as well. Hey, don't judge me.

Call me an artsy-fartsy, doobie tokin' flower child, but I like to see the shapes words make on a page and look at the negative space around the paragraph formations. That is some serious eye candy.

Reading is a feast. I like to savor each word, roll 'em around in my head for awhile, inhale their aroma. When I sit down with a book, I read every, single word. No, really. I do. Which is why it takes me so long to read a book. I know how much effort went into creating those word pictures, so I feel like I owe it to the author to appreciate that work.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying I'd never use Spritz. I think it would come in handy for those down-times when I'm standing in the wrong LONG line at the grocery store or waiting forever in a doctor's office. At the very least, it's fun to check out the SPRITZ WEBSITE and see what reading speed feels comfortable to you.

Oh yeah, and for those of you with stupid phones like me, they are developing a computer/website version as well.