and now for the count

I love tables. And graphs. And reports. When other department heads submitted 1- or 2-page annual reports, mine was 11. In high school, when we had to write a 10- to 12-page research paper, I was the kid who submitted a 17-pager, plus bibliography, plus maps. I like to compare and contrast things to other things. I like what we learn by comparing and contrasting things. I think what these numbers tell us is that I'm sort of a busy person and don't have as much time to read as I used to. That's not particularly useful information to anyone, nor any great surprise, but shush.

2014*:
books started: 60
books finished: 43 (71.7%)
finished books that were fiction: 35 (81.3%) (includes 2 picture books and juvenile titles)
finished books that were nonfiction: 7 (16.3%)
finished books that were graphic novels: 1 (2.3%)
finished books by female authors: 29 (67.4%)
finished books by male authors: 11 (18.9%)
finished books by male and female authors: 3 (7%)

*these numbers don't include the books, either started or finished, that I read for the Benjamin Franklin awards, nor the books that I read as an editor, because I didn't choose any of those books for myself. Including those would add over 85 books to the total.

books started, decrease from 2013: 46 (43.4%)
books finished, decrease from 2013: 26 (37.7)
books finished ration, increase from 2013: 6.6%

2013:
books started: 106
books finished: 69 (65.1%)
finished books that were fiction: 55 (79.7%)
finished books that were nonfiction: 12 (17.4%)
finished books that were graphic novels: 2 (2.9%)
finished books by female authors: 48 (71%)
finished books by male authors: 20 (29%)

The first year I ever counted how many books I'd read, it was something ridiculous, like 212. I really think that's what it was. I was going to school full time and I worked a retail job, but I lived at home, not on campus; I didn't participate in student government; I didn't socialize. I worked, I did my schoolwork (which was not even particularly challenging, doing required courses at community college), and I read. Now, I work full-time, I do the laundry and cooking and dish washing, I spend time with my family, and I have other hobbies. Still, 43 books is more than a lot of people, so I don't feel too bad.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do this year. Some friends set themselves reading goals (100 books, which seems a little much for me, I mean that would be finishing over twice the number I read this year). I was thinking of making a reading challenge list for our little book group (you know, like read one sci-fi, one book set in a high school, one book with a bad guy as the main character), the kind of thing that's supposed to help you spread your reading wings a bit. I feel like I read an acceptably wide variety already.

I think perhaps instead, my goals will be to
1) always have something to write on my "Currently Reading" mug, i.e., to always be actively reading something, and
2) to actually post them up here at least twice a month.  Posting isn't as much work as I for some reason think it is, and it always makes me feel more inspired.  

But let's not call these resolutions, because those never turn out well.