A follow-up note from the Ivory Tower

[areleejensen]

I realize that last entry was somewhat scathing. I get really quite worked up sometimes over fiction. I am violently opinionated on this topic, considering literature defines my livelihood. I get frustrated when thousands of years of hard work gets ignored in favor of mediocrity. Perhaps I shouldn't be so upset by the existence of mediocre novels, any more than I should rant and rage over the existence of potato chips or white bread. Really, maybe it's fine to read nonsense for every once in a while. But that can't be our staple. As a people who use words, we have to know them.

But from someone who's sworn off potato chips, white bread, processed cheese, hydrogenated oils and mediocre novels - I know from experience you can refine your taste and genuinely enrich your life with what's truly the best in food and fiction. I feel the same about music, movies, TV - all the accoutrement of life can rise to a higher standard. I'm not saying I know the best of the best, and this is inherently subjective, but I try to make a point to find it out. Sometimes my passion for excellence seems like some form of elitism - but to me its simply improving the rich quality of my life. My time is more valuable, more meaningful because of it.

Quality is often worth the extra effort it inevitably takes.