I did quite a bit of research before purchasing. There are a lot of opinions out there about which eReader to buy (they are a bit spendy) and, frankly, about whether eReaders are just another flash-in-the-pan gadget in the first place.

Most of the research I read ferreted out the typical back-and-forth-nobody-wins type arguments common when reading opinions about gadgets. But, I made up my mind when I read these sentences in the last review I read.

The Kindle looks like a sexy and futuristic piece of electronics, while the Sony Readers look like artful interpretations of books. And there’s the rub: the Kindle line captivates techies while Sony Readers seem to appeal more to those who just want to read books.

Lisa Gade, Editor in Chief – MobileTechReview.com

So, I aligned myself with the techies [which feels right], entered the appropriate 16 digits, and became part of the Kindle family.

Without further ado, here are my 5 Things about the Kindle 2 – in no particular order.

1. Immediate gratification

OK, remember that I’ve aligned myself with the techies. We techies are by-and-large ready to “work through the issues” that come with new technologies. But … no challenges here! I opened the box, plugged it in, and opened my first book in less than 5 minutes. [All done in a rather hectic space between meetings at work, I might add.]

Once the juice was flowing, the books I ordered from Amazon were downloaded before I knew it. The device came registered to me [and "called" me by name - which was a tad creepy, really] … this was truly a plug-and-play deal. I love the immediate gratification of it.

[Some might liken this whole ready-to-read phenomenon to, say, buying a new "real" book and being able to read the first chapter in the parking lot before driving away - not that I would do that!]

2. Phenomenal cosmic power, ity-bity living space

OK, that billing might be a tad on the dramatic side, but really, the Kindle puts a lot into a fairly small package.

The Kindle 2 is just a tad smaller than my eee PC [which is another LOVE IT product for me]. It fits easily into my purse, my computer bags, my camera bag, and the diaper bag. So, it’s uber portable which is a HUGE plus because I can carry it anywhere. I’ve got all of my current reading with me “just in case”. Nice.

Despite this portability, the specs say that my Kindle will hold 1500 books. I think that’ll cover me, thank you. Oh, and the best part? Wait for it. NO DUSTING!

Oh, and did I mention that I’ve had this baby for over two weeks now and haven’t had to recharge yet. I’ve used it for at least 2 hours each day. Um. Yeh. fantastic!

[I did turn off the EVDO "Amazn Whispernet" connection because I live where Sprint service is spotty. I'm absolutely certain that's the reason for the long battery life. I'm OK with that! It's still pretty cool!]

3.  Reading experience – eInk

eInk is just cool. Agreed? Good, now we can move on.

The reading experience on my Kindle so far has been great. I have had little/no eye strain and I’m reading just as quickly as I would with a “real” book. In fact, I might be reading faster. The 6-inch diagonal screen only holds so much text so I’m finding that I’m doing a better job of focusing only on the single page in front of me – no catching words on the opposite pages and getting distracted. [Not that I get distracted or anything. Interesting idea from an educational perspective, I might add.]

I like that I can adjust just about everything I need to make my reading experience more comfortable … and I like that I don’t have to force the book open to catch the text near the binding. [I'm a please-don't-break-the-binding gal.]

4. Automagical everything

If I fall asleep while reading or, more likely, if one of the kids needs me right away [let's say when something crashes to the floor and breaks into millions of tiny pieces, for example], I don’t have to worry about losing my place. I like that.

If I want to take notes, highlight text, or look up something in the dictionary? It’s all right there. Easy peasy.

If I want to know how much I’ve read and how much I’ve left to go? No problem. The percentage completed is always at the bottom of the page.

If I want to buy a new book. Click. Click. Download. Done.

[OK, it won't go get me a Coke with ice. I might have to submit a feature request. ]

5. Possibilities

I think that one of my favorite things about the Kindle 2 is that, in the space of two weeks, it’s become one of my “must carry” items and I’m “just” using it to read a book. This, of course, means that everything/anything else it does is an absolute bonus!

I suppose I should mention that it’s not a perfect device. It’s not. But, my new friend Kindle and I have run into only one snag so far – and it’s not actually a “bug” or “design flaw” of the Kindle itself.

I was flying for business this week and realized that the Kindle was part of that “please turn off all electronic devices” thing. Everyone around me was reading and I was left waiting until they gave the all clear. To date, that is the only “problem” I’ve had. [This might have something to do with the fact that I bought it with realistic expectations of what it could and could not do.]

So, there they are. My 5 Things about the Kindle 2. I’m looking forward to exploring the possibilities while curling up with a good book.

Happy reading, everyone!

Apparently snot is an impolite and inappropriate thing to write about. So here goes.

Snot is a continuous topic of conversation in our house. BK, frankly, is often a faucet of the germy stuff. Little Man says he thinks it’s gross, but I think he secretly loves it!

I must admit it is some amazing stuff – in that 4th grade check-out-this-wound sort of way. I mean it’s got various states … from crusty to glue-like to viscus to runny to drippy. In some ways it’s more amazing than water – and it’s toxic! Plus, it has an amazing attraction mechinsim. It gets everywhere and there’s no stopping it.  I think that it was the prototype for The Blob.

In our house we have this gadget to suck the snot out of BK’s nose (it’s waaayyy better than the suction bulbs you get at the hospital). Husband thinks it’s a glorified solder sucker so that’s what Little Man calls it. It’s an intriguing device. BK thinks it’s funny so … all good.

So, the green gooey stuff starts to run and you just point the nozzle at it – slurp, it sucks it up. Sometimes there’s a nice slurpy sound. Sometimes an acutal pop (that one is kinda freaky). If there’s enough mucus, it gets deposited in the container. That’s what gets Little Man going. Snot in a container. Who knew1?

The great part is cleaning out the whole contraption. If the green stuff is nice and thick, it just coagulates a bit and plops right down into the sink. If it’s more on the runny side, it sort of sloshes and slides snail-like out of the solder sucker and down the side of the sink.

The whole thing grosses Husband out. Little Man and I? – meh, not so much. I’d like to think that it’s the “science of discovery” but something tells me it’s something more viseral than that. Toddler-hood all the way, man!

Response to Assignment

OK … so snot. Well, before I started writing, I must say that I was wondering what someone reading this might think. The idea of blogging about something most of us would just rather wipe away was a bit daunting until I remembered the solder sucker. Then, it seemed as if I almost had a purpose for writing about snot (actually, using that word is worse than writing about it). I guess that’s something that I need to think about. Gratuitous mention of the typically unmentionable is fairly shocking. But, in context, I can deal with almost anything.

I think I’ll try this assignment again later and write about snot without context … we’ll see if I can embrace the goo without reason!