Shostakovich and the Glory (or Odium) of the Internet

My son is doing a school project on Dmitri Shostakovich for his music class. He didn't know how to find the composer's greatest hits. I showed him how to search "Shostakovich Greatest Hits" and then take the playlist from the resulting Amazon.com CD listing.

Then I tried to explain about how when I was a kid, we went to the library. We used BOOKS. Some of them were called ENCYCLOPEDIAS. Our local library recently got rid of the entire Encyclopedia Britannica. A friend called me and asked if I wanted it. I did, but I had no room for it and had to pass.

Ouch.

Despite the slovenly ease of the Internet, I see books for sale all the time. I even see books for free. Recently, I attended a book festival and visited the tent of a small publisher that has published books by some of my friends. Both of their books were on the table. I bought one, having already ordered the other from the author. Then I was told that with a purchase, I get a book from the Free Table.

Ouch. May my books never be on the Free Table.

However, the free book I got looks really good. It's called Productive Procrastination by Kerul Kassel. The subtitle is "Make it work for you, not against you!"

Could it actually be wise to procrastinate sometimes? This book contains the secrets to understanding when it can be productive to procrastinate, and provides strategies for switching on the inspiration and motivation to start and finish the important tasks and goals you've been putting off.

Of course I've been procrastinating about reading it but I'll get around to it eventually.