on a conquest

Everyone's got comfort items.

For instance, in the days right after Sep. 11, 2001, when it seemed like every stranger on the street might suddenly turn and attack me for the way I look -- and a few actually did, though only verbally, thankfully -- I was up to two and sometimes three cans of Coke a day.

I didn't really need the extra sugar. I just found something relaxing about that damned red can.

Right now, my item is literature.

I dropped by the bookstore tonight in search of Bertrand Russell's The Conquest of Happiness and Studs Terkel's Working.

Take from that what you will.

Actually, though I'm a fan of Russell, I hadn't heard of The Conquest of Happiness until I started reading the bibliography to Scott Berkun's The Art of Project Management the other day. The title may make it sound dry, but trust me: Berkun's book should be standard issue for anyone who works in an office.

Anyhow, the bookstore didn't have The Conquest, but I happened to walk past Bill Clinton's My Life, which is now in paperback, and I couldn't help picking it up.

A few steps later, I walked by the audio version. On the package it said "Read by the Author."

Of course, I had to get it. If there is any more comforting voice than his, I have yet to hear it.