IN CONCLUSION: Audio books

The Problem:

Twenty-Four hours in a day is insufficient. That's why being efficient with one's time is pertinent to success. As a writer, I read. Books, magazines, comics, and so forth have been a staple in my life since I was a child. But, there just doesn't seem to be enough time in a day to relax with a book in hand. For those days where the sun seems to set too early, I have a a not-so-secretive solution I just recently jumped into: listening to audio books.

When I'm taking my hour long jog in the morning, I'm listening to books. Washing dishes and preparing my breakfast? I have my headphones on, taking in Dickens' story telling. Eating dinner? Another opportunity to sponge up Sun Tzu's Art of War. Downtime successfully becomes time to learn and adventure.

The Fix:
1. Listen to your audio books whenever you have downtime.
2. Keep your mp3 player of choice in your pocket/purse/bag wherever you go.
3. Pre-load your player with enough books on the weekend (or your days off) for the entire week. This way, you'll always have something to listen to.
4. Enjoy.

Audio Book Sources:
FREE: Your public library. There are tons of books on CD for you to choose from which include current releases. Also, many libraries are beginning to lend digital audio books. Ask your library to find out.
FREE: Librovox.com. Provides audio books from the public domain. Don't let public domain scare you. There are a lot of great classics in the catalog. You'll find poetry, fiction, non-fiction, and even advice books. This is my secondary go-to source for audio books.
FREE: Openculture.com. This has been my most used place to download free audio books (public domain works only). I've downloaded The Christmas Carol, The Art of War, Metamorphosis, History of the United States, and more all from this one site. And they all play well.
PAID: Amazon.com/Audible.com. On Amazon, you can search and see if the particular book you're looking for has an audio format for sale which is great for non-public domain works. Audible.com (an Amazon.com company) allows Amazon users to download one audio book a month at a cheap price. I'm thinking about starting a membership to be able to listen to newer releases.

(This is not an extensive "end all, be all" list, just the sites a came across so far)

In Conclusion:
We may have limited time each day, but we can also make the most out of our twenty-four hours. If you're a reader, you should give audio books a try. If you already have, I hope you'll spread the word--books bring joy no matter what format they're in. So, start opening up your ears and eyes. What are you waiting for?