That's Right, I Read Dostoevsky

"It's a great thing when you realize you still have the ability to surprise yourself. Makes you wonder what else you can do..." -Lester Burnham, American Beauty.

I finished The Brothers Karamazov. 

I. Me. Steve. I did it. I read every word of the 1,045 pages of Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov. Or, more accurately, Andrew MacAndrew's English translation thereof. 

You can put it on the board, yes.

Ok, so, I am making more of a big deal of it than even I consider it to really be, but... disregarding Harry Potter books, I just have a record of not finishing books that I start, especially books of significant length.

I am eager to learn more about the book I just read and to say thoughtful things about it, but now I am focused on writing about the accomplishment of actually having read it.

1,045 pages sounds daunting. I bought the book at the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport on May 30, I am pretty sure I began reading it on the flight to Denver I took that day. I am not certain that I got even 10 pages in. 

I completed it shortly after midnight on August 15th. 77 days. That averages to 13.5 pages per day. 13.5 pages per day. Suddenly doesn't sound so daunting, eh? I had set a goal of a mere 10 pages per day, amounting to a desired completion date of September 15. Exceeding my goal by an average of 3.5 pages per day amounted to completing my reading project a month early. 

Of course there were some days when I read zero pages, and some, especially in the last week or so, where I am pretty sure I took down a full 100 pages in 24-hour spans. Pretty sure I did that at least once as the book got riveting towards the end.

Half-baked Calamities Jane

Sometimes... No... Oftentimes, I initiate things and I finish them not. Or do I? No, the battlefield is strewn with... Ugh, jeez, did I really just write that?

Routine is so difficult to establish. I have been getting to bed around 10pm many nights recently,maybe 10:30, interspersed with late nights like tonight where I feel completely thrown off the rails.

I ate meat this past day. I am a vegetarian. I forgot to ask the Taco Bellies to substitute my beef for beans thus my fresco soft shell tacos came back with beef. No ex-girlfriends were present to judge me so I went and ate me a beefy taco. I then went to a Twins game and decided that'd be a fine time to go ahead and, since I'd already broken my vegetarian hitting streak, indulge in a delicious Kramwrkczuk's bratwurst and mighty fine and delicious it was. 

My party and I adjourned to Annie's in Dinkytown where I proceeded to order the California burger, with a veggie patty. Let vegetarianism re-commence. Now I know on which day I last ate meat and I eagerly await discovering how long I can go without doing so again.