BEDTIME STORIES

I must be the last woman in America to own an iPod. I just never before figured I needed one. Who the hell needs 7000 songs in credit card sized storage, anyway? Like how long would it even take to LISTEN to 7000 songs?? More time than I'd ever have, to be sure. Besides, all of my favorite songs are ALREADY burned onto CD's. But then... something interesting occurred.

I can't remember why, but one day I mosied over to iTunes.com and lo and behold, I discovered they not only had songs for download, but books as well! Now THAT would be something I could sink my teeth into. So... I browsed the list... scrolled down to Biographies (since they ARE my all time favorites) and what'da ya know. There, listed amongst the many choices, was THE DIANA CHRONICLES, which is totally up my alley. So much so, that I had even BOUGHT the book a while back. But... I have been so damn busy lately that I’ve never had any time to even read it. Besides, I love falling to sleep listening to educational documentaries. So now I'm thinking... maybe I can fall asleep like every other child in the world.... by having someone actually READ to me! Whoa. I so love this idea.

So bingo. I created a free account on iTunes and boom. The next thing I knew, I downloaded the entire book onto my computer and get this... just before I began writing this entry, I was listening to the author, herself, READ THE BOOK TO ME. (I figured I had better put her on pause while writing this, so as to better concentrate. Which is another plus... I can stop/go whenever I feel like it) Yes, there's a fee for each of these literary downloads, but who cares. Right off the bat, I've saved time and money by not having to drive to the bookstore, look for a parking space and dealing with some crazy ass salesperson. Am so telling you. This new discovery of mine has my name written all over it.

Which brings me back to the iPod. I think that now, I have to actually go out and BUY one. Listening to someone read to me while working at the computer is basically nothing short of fabulous. But what if I want to take a 4 hour drive and listen to it THEN?? Having some reading to me while fighting traffic or driving to another state would DEFinitely border on spectacular! Not to mention enjoying the bedtime stories. Enter: purchasing yet ANOTHER techie toy.

Geez... this techie stuff is already pushing my limits, trust me. In fact, I have a 5 year old cell phone and you can be sure I better never lose it. If I had to buy a NEW phone, man… would I ever be in major trouble. Learning how to use the bells and whistles on a new phone, could easily put me over the edge, in no time at all.

Which is why my having to buy an iPod is making me a bit queasy. I can’t even IMAGINE how I’m going to operate the damn thing, let alone download and transfer the book to the iPod. This is something I can really DO? I’ll know just what does what? Believe me… I can see it already; just one stupid mistake and whamo. The entire book could SOOO be accidentally deleted 1-2-3. But… you know what? I AM going to give this toy a whirl. I’m envisioning some one reading me to sleep for the rest of my life and wow, will I be a happy camper.

And, for all I know... I may even become the most literate, too.