Assume the Position
Posted by David Duhr in 
I can’t seem to find a comfortable way to read lately. Sitting crossways in a chair or stretched out with a pillow on our cement floor used to be my go-tos, but lately they ain’t cuttin’ it. Lying down on the couch or in bed usually just puts me to sleep, and sitting upright at a table feels so formal and stiff. So, like you do these days, I took the question to Facebook in the following manner: “Do you prefer to read in a sitting position or a lying position? If the latter, on your front or back? Do you know any of those people who prefer to read standing up? WTF is that all about?“
Here’s what our loyal Facebookers had to say:
Janice: “On my side (not one of your options above) in bed with the book curled up in front of my face. I read this way about 95% of the time — unless it is on the computer screen.”
Shelly: “I read in every way possible, and standing up is usually if I am at my standing desk or waiting in a long line. I used to read while walking on to the subway, but now my iPhone is too distracting. Plus there isn’t a subway here.”
Nate: ” I prefer to read lying on my side, head propped with one hand, book held open with the other.”
Jeff: “I prefer to be READ TO, while in a warm bath, delicately scented with floral oils, surrounded by candles, listening to Enya. Hemingway, take me away. And now, after making a mockery of the question, my serious answer. Sitting up. I’ve never been able to understand how people read in bed. I’d like to, but I can’t do it. I also love reading on trains, planes or in cars. It makes some people throw up. It makes me productive and focused.”
Amanda: “I’m definitely on Team Sitting Up. Even if I read in bed, it has to be in a sitting position.”
Lauren: “Sitting up, words flow better.”
Daniel: “I actually used to read while walking from one place to another. This was especially useful when walking through dodgy neighborhoods. During a walk through one of the worst neighborhoods I ever had to pass through, I read “Memoir from out of the Tomb,” by Chateaubriand. The usual suspects in that neighborhood still have not recovered…”
Stefani: “Lying, on side. Or in bathtub, on back.”
Melissa: “Virginia Woolf used to write standing up…a century ahead of the stand up desks trend.”
Anything to add, gang? Like “Just shut up and read,” for example?
On a plane. On a train. In a bar. In a car. At the park, before dark. On a Nook, off the hook.