Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Well, maybe he's not ready yet.

I didn't marry my husband for his vast theological library. I really didn't. But I do love reading. I get really absorbed in whatever I'm reading. That statement is true almost without exception. I've been known to get fascinated with the back of a cereal box if it's got a catchy introduction. I plow through books, determined to get to the end, wrap it up in my mind, and move on to the next one.

Enter Baby. Enough said.

So, now I've got a new favorite thing. My MP3 player. I gave up trying to get a good picture of it, but you all know what one looks like. I load stuff on there, hook it up to these cheap speakers we bought at Ross, put the whole get-up on top of the fridge, and I've got a home audio system that fills the entire kitchen with the sound of educational literature . . . if the dishwasher isn't making too much noise.

I've listened to sermon series my pastor preached before I began attending. (His sermons are available here, by the way.) I've listened to some seminary courses available for free download at various evangelical schools. And I've gotten several things from librivox.org. What a great idea. Someday, when I'm not planning my day's activities around naps, I'm going to volunteer for this organization. These people volunteer to record public-domain books and upload them to this site. So people like me can pick what we'd like to "read" and hear it broadcast on our refrigerators.

It's a great set-up. I used to think it would somehow have an educational effect on my 17-month-old, but those delusions were shot down yesterday. I was multitasking in the kitchen--figuring out how to cut up a chicken while getting caught up on the Battle of Sedgemoor from The History of England from the Accession of James II. Wouldn't it be great, thought I, if British history becomes a passion for this little guy as a result of hearing this entire multi-volume work read by dedicated Libravox volunteers? Then reality struck, as I looked up to see whether he was taking notes, and discovered, to my dismay, the following sight.



Ah well. Maybe we'll try something more on his age level next. I wonder if Libravox does Dr. Seuss.