Which isn’t to say there will be posts to follow this. 
I’m joining Sarah and others today for the Winter Mini Readathon, which lasts for twelve hours. I’ll be reading Shakespeare and perhaps some of Alison Weir’s The Life of Elizabeth I, which is hook-worthy to the tenth power.
The Twitter hashtag is #ssrminiread.
I don’t plan to participate in the mini-challenges, but I’ll probably update on Twitter a bit, and check in every three hours here. I’ll probably also be pretty quiet on comments, etc. Because I’m pretty distractable, folks.
Oh! Look! A flashing light!
(Thanks for hosting this, Sarah!)
Running stats as of 10pm:
# Pages read: 133
# Books finished: 1
Time spent reading: 5 hours, 30 minutesMini-challenges: completed 4/tried 5
three hour check-ins:
Hour 12 – 10pm:
Stats This Hour:
# Pages read: 32
# Books finished: 0
Time spent reading: 1 hour
Time spent commenting/tweeting: 30 minutes
Time spent on break: 90 minutesReading: Shakespeare: A Guide to the Complete Works by Michael J. Cummings
Okay, reading some more of Shakespeare got me out of my sad mood. The Taming of the Shrew sounds hilarious — and good on Shakespeare for writing it! The Winter’s Tale also sounds very good. It makes me want to read Sophocles, which isn’t on my list for 2012. Right now I’m reading about Much Ado About Nothing, and then I think I’m going to eat some dinner and relax for a little while, then I’ll probably keep reading. My twelve hours is officially over, but I might keep on…
Nope, I stopped reading. 
Running stats:
# Pages read: 133
# Books finished: 1
Time spent reading: 5 hours, 30 minutes
Hour 9 – 7pm:
Stats This Hour:
# Pages read: 59
# Books finished: 1
Time spent reading: 2 hours
Time spent commenting/tweeting: 30 minutes
Time spent on break: 30 minutesReading: Shakespeare: A Guide to the Complete Works by Michael J. Cummings
This was a sadder reading segment because I neared the end of the bio on Shakespeare (and then finished it), and reading about someone’s death always makes me sad. 
Next I’m going to delve into a couple more of the play descriptions in my guide to Shakespeare’s works. (I’m trying to do two a day; it takes a while to read them because I’m trying to focus on all the information.) Then I might have time to read some of A Midsummer Night’s Dream before the next 3-hour chunk starts.
Running stats:
# Pages read: 99
# Books finished: 1
Time spent reading: 4 hours, 30 minutes
Hour 6 – 4pm:
Stats This Hour:
# Pages read: 31
# Books finished: 0
Time spent reading: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Time spent commenting/tweeting: 1 hour
Time spent on break: 30 minutesReading: Shakespeare: The World As Stage by Bill Bryson
My page count hasn’t gone much higher in the past three hours, but I really am reading! I think this biography has taken me so long because I become very absorbed in it — and in taking the branches of knowledge it offers to follow research. I’m underlining, Googling, etc as I go. Referencing my copies of the original plays, and at one point, I stopped with the biography altogether to look through the pages and pictures within my copy of The Riverside Shakespeare, which I had forgotten I own! I like matching up the dates of this person and that person’s death with what was happening in Shakespeare’s life and work, so that means more Googling as I go. So while it appears I haven’t made much progres, I actually have and am very much engaged in the book. 
Dictionary look-ups:
- prolix
- neoligisms
- orthography
Running stats:
# Pages read: 40
# Books finished: 0
Time spent reading: 2 hours, 30 minutes
Hour 3– 1pm:
Stats This Hour:
# Pages read: 9HA!
# Books finished: 0
Time spent reading: 1 hour
Time spent commenting/tweeting: 1 hour
Time spent on break: 1 hourReading: Shakespeare: The World As Stage by Bill Bryson
I TOLD you I’m easily distracted!!! Okay, I think I might have to say that my readathon officially begins now, at 1 pm. I really did intend in all good faith to start at 10a, but someone I know was feeling low and wanted to talk, and I devoted a good deal of my reading time to that. Then I got on Twitter to check the hash tag, and fell deeply in love with the Internet. That passion lasted a while while I hopped from there to Google Reader to my place to other blogs, then I finally started reading, and since I’m reading about Shakespeare, every word inspired a trip to either the dictionary or my copy of the sonnets and several plays, so I could compare what Bryson was saying with the actual work itself. The dictionary was consulted, for example, when he said “obsequious” — not in a “I hate having to look up a word!!” way, but rather in a “That’s a cool word! I wonder what it means!” way. I consulted the sonnets to see to whom Shakespeare dedicated them, because I was pretty sure it was WH, and the biography was talking about an earl named Henry Wriothesely, and I wondered if Shakespeare had just flipped the initials.
Etc and so forth. I am without help.
Back to it, then!!
Running stats:
# Pages read: 9
# Books finished: 0
Time spent reading: 60 minutes
Mini-Challenges:
- Mini-challenge #1 – Opening questions:
1. Tell everyone three random things about yourself:
- I’m 5’0″.
- I despise bread. The very smell of it disgusts me.
- I once jumped out of a tree to ride through the forest on a 300 foot zipline. TOO fun!
2. Is this your first readathon?
No, I participated in the 24-hour readathon last October — and lasted the whole 24 hours! (I love a readathon.)
3. Do you have any specific goals for today? (# of books or pages to read?)
No goals. I just want to try to stay focused. I plan to FINALLY finish my Shakespeare bio, maybe read a couple plays, and get back to my bio of Elizabeth I, which I’m VERY much enjoying. I don’t have a page # goal. I just want to have fun.
4. Do you have any specific snacks, drinks, or books planned?
Oh, I listed the books above. No snacks specifically, except I’ll probably eat some gummi Lifesavers, which are my favorite right now. At the moment I’m eating chicken soup.
5. What hours do you plan on reading during?
10a to 10p, EST
- Mini-challenge # 2:
The Wordle challenge. I tried to do this at 150p EST, but Wordle wouldn’t work for me. I kept trying, and it would go to a screen with a link to get help if Wordle was “Not Working.” Yuk! I hate Firewall, click this, try that computer help screens. I would a thousand times rather read than go through all the suggested fixes, so I stopped. Too bad! I don’t think the mini-challenge was supposed to be about fussing with computer tech words. The idea sounded really fun.
- Mini-challenge (bonus):
I commented on the bonus challenge here: “I don’t own any bookish jewelry either. I actually never wear jewelry. It moves and dangles and annoys me to no end. Every once in a while I wear a pair of very, very tiny stud diamonds, but that’s about it. Strange, really. In my family most people love jewelry.”
- Mini-challenge #3:
I have no idea how to get pictures from my cell phone to the computer, and I’d rather read than spend time figuring it out. So, I guess this one won’t work for me. I am technically challenged but a master at reading!!
- Mini-challenge # 4:
Okay, I’m officially out of the mood for mini-challenges. The challenge is to cast all of the characters in the book we’re reading as actors, but I’m reading a biography of Shakespeare. So I suppose I’d cast Shakespeare as Shakespeare.
Seriously, I could go hunt up photos for Ben Johnson and the like, but I would a billion times rather be reading about Ben Johnson and the like than specualting who might play them, so I think I’ll just give up on the mini-challenges.
Good luck with the readathon! Some ambitious reads, you chose. I think Shakespeare would make me too sleepy, but I’m glad you enjoy it!
Thanks, Kristilyn! Good luck to you, too!
Good luck! I may “unofficially” participate. I accomplished a lot of reading yesterday, so I might end up slacking today. We’ll see. Perhaps I can finish another book. I’ve been wanting to finish a paranormal mystery series that’s sat neglected on my shelf for over a year, and I’m on the final volume now.
I hope you do join in! That’s awesome that you accomplished a lot yesterday — I didn’t!
Thanks for the good luck, and enjoy your paranormal mystery series, if you decide to join in! 
I’m kind of at the point where I’d like to read something different, but I need to stop ignoring those books sitting on my shelf, you know? I’m sure I could probably read 250 pages this afternoon.
Yep, definitely. I like to change up the reading, yet I love emptying out the TBR. You should read 250 of whatever calls you.
You despise bread? Eek … that would probably be good for me, since I love it! The smell, the taste, the slathering of butter on it … mmm.
Gross!
Too bad the Wordle didn’t work! I had a few technical difficulties, too, but mainly because I’ve never had to take a screenshot with a Mac before! Now I had fun AND learned something.
I’m so impatient with technical difficulties.
Glad it worked out for you!
Sad about Wordle. It took a bit for me to get the Java Plugin installed and learn how to take a screen shot on my Mac…new to Mac so I almost went back to my laptop to get it done. Having fun following along!
Shari the Delighted Reader
That’s one thing I do know (surprisingly) is how to take a screen shot. But I wouldn’t have a clue on Mac.
Good job persevering, and thanks for the visit, Shari! 
Good luck on your mini readathon! I’m not participating today… more like a blogathon for me. I might get some reading done today, though. I’m woefully behind on Moby Dick
I’m very, very behind on Moby-Dick. I want to finish up this month, but Shakespeare is hogging my attention.
Thanks for the visit and good luck with the blogathon and reading. Lu!
Oh, I wished I hated bread! I could probably eat nothing but bread and be happy.
I would be much healthier if I thought it was gross!
I love Alison Weir’s books. She does such a good job of telling a story, not just listing facts. History textbook writers could learn something from her!
My sister is a huge fan of Alison Weir. I think she’s read all of her books. So far I’ve only just begun The Life of Elizabeth I and The Six Wives of Henry VIII, but I LOVE them.
Weir’s book is so great. I read it last year and loved it. I love the way she writes.
I keep feeling pulled to it, but I want to make a dent in Shakespeare.
Hi Jillian, thanks for joining! I’m sorry that the mini-challenges weren’t really working out for you :-/ … I’ll try to think of some less-technological ones for the next mini-readathon, probably in July. But thanks again for participating, I hope you had fun!!
No worries, Sarah! Thanks so much for hosting! I’m sure the tech thing is particular to me. And I definitely had fun.
It sounds like you had a productive day! Sadly, I didn’t do any reading yesterday. I spent the afternoon dealing with our crappy new neighbors and watching TV.
I know — I read about that. So sorry, Allie. I know that’s frustrating. x
Well, even if you didn’t read a ton, it was still more than I read yesterday! (About 15 pages or so.) Good thing I wasn’t participating in the readathon. I still need to finish the Bryson–which I’d said I was going to do last week–and I’d really like to read another play before the end of the month. Then there’s another (non-Shakespeare) book I’m trying to read this week….maybe I should have read along yesterday!
You need to read one of the comedies! My favorite so far is Much Ado about Nothing, which I plan to reread this spring, but Twelfth Night is excellent also.
I cannot WAIT for Twelfth Night!! I’ll definitely be reading that one this week. I also own Much Ado and might get to it later in the week. ;D
Have a great one, Amanda!