The Day that Reading Died

“Snap back to reality, ope, there goes gravity.” - Eminem

So, maybe it was inevitable, but, inexplicably, I didn’t see it coming.

And could it be that after some forty-six years of providing progressive dental care (only available for about the last thirty), I missed the email explaining that reading had faded away just like the horse and buggy, hula hoops, the pegboard system, and maybe even the rule of law. And perhaps, by being complacent and comfortable in the company of my books, I’d played some small part in the disappearance of attention spans, cursory writing, and critical thinking.

Most of the time, I don’t avoid accountability, and I carry guilt around just like a bag of golf clubs, but dude, I’m just a dentist who likes to read and write! I guess I’m just a hopeless book nerd. I visit a local bookstore almost every week, and Vroman’s is way over 100 years old (established in 1894), and it seems to still be going strong. And on average, I read 3.4 books every two weeks (I’m not a fast reader; I like savoring the printed word).

These days, I’m sad to say, when walking to Peet’s Coffee and carrying a hard-bound or paperback published work, oncoming two-legged traffic either presents a featureless 1000-yard stare or a suspicious side-eye like you’d get if you were wearing an (unwarranted) N95 while walking solo down California Blvd and/or not quite concealing the 9-mm Glock you were packin’ (I love crime novels.)

And shucks, I can’t help it, I’ve always loved escaping into a story while turning the pages and even survived the requisite midlife crisis by way of turning reading into writing weekly columns for local rags for more than twenty years. I know there were early signs that I missed or denied, like two presidents (you know who they are) who were allergic to books, even as the LA Times got skinnier than dieting Mahatma Ghandi. People began listening to books and trancing away at their iPhones.

My own team phone tranced while I’d drive them all out for lunch…in complete silence. And, as of this moment, I’ve averaged 6 hours, 17 iPhone minutes per day this week (Do I qualify as a servant leader yet?)

And AI does amazing work creating unemployed people and doing a ton of busy functions efficiently, but has also transformed grifting into a digital art form. Snap to reality, ope, there goes creativity. These days, you can go to Instagram, see Arnold Schwarzenegger, click on “Learn more” and in only 30-40 minutes see and hear how Arnold conquered ED, and made Maria happy with no Austrian accent. I only followed for about 5 minutes; I was disappointed in AI’s inability to transform Arnold’s accent into contemporary SoCal surfer dude.

My social media coach suggested my IG video posts have a 10 second ceiling, realistically reserved for family members, former patients, and USC Trojan diehards. And I guess during our days of banning books and creating revisionist history, the average American has an attention span of about one short sentence, so I won’t take it personally, if you don’t use all 4-minutes LinkedIn says reading this article will take.

Then, on a day that might live on in infamy, the president of the American Academy of Clear Aligners shared “People don’t read anymore.” WTH! Me: “We’re not people, we’re dentists! Most of us went to college for like eight freakin years!” Our prize-winning journal, for which I was a contributor, was pronounced DOA on a dark Monday morning. With almost six thousand members, only three percent of postgraduate degree holders had clicked to open the journal. We’ve transitioned to a podcast.

The name of the show: The Mediocre Dentist. WTH! The theme: Why are we all so miserable and unhappy? I’ll tell you why; because y’all don’t freakin read and if you’re not eyeballing a tooth or the next-door molar jockey’s numbers, you have the attention span of a goldfish pup, or whatever they’re called. And for your information, I do have a bachelor’s degree in Zoology, but long ago I stopped reading about animals- see what happens!

My totally unsolicited advice: Read Dan Sullivan’s The Gap and the Gain and measure your own growth by looking back and celebrating all growth past, present, and future without looking sideways. Use the juice from your past accomplishments and take some chances to grow into the gap between where you are and where you want to be. Read Jon Acuff’s Soundtracks.

My soundtrack or continuing message playing straight outta the back of my head, in the face of opportunities, used to be “too good to be true.” The soundtrack wasn’t true, helpful, or kind; today it’s “Every time, somehow, you always figure things out.”

If you’re miserable and unhappy, stop complaining, be in action, look for some solutions, ask for help, practice listening, go for a walk, read a damn book! And erase “mediocre” from your vocabulary.