apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

i love reading my book, drinking my coffee, and eating my english muffins with butter and jam. it's just so satisfying.

but you're right, anything that's two-handed or requires looking down (damn complicated salads!) it's just not fun. however! magazines are good for the complicated eating! i will usually skim a magazine for its pictures ten times over before i start reading its articles.

Worst -- chips and salsa, or cereal and milk. But that is because I don't usually sit at the table to eat and read, but on the couch.

Oh man. I'm always eating while I read. I try to graze on carrot sticks and apples, but it usually ends up being cheese and apple slices...or cheese with crackers...or just cheese. No I don't have a problem!

I agree with MEP--cereal is a challenge. So is noodle soup and long noodles in general. There always seems to be some splashback, no matter how hard I try.

kdkaboom - I was also going to focus on reading material--there are things that are good for reading while eating (magazines that stay open by themselves), and things that are not (small paperbacks), no matter what you're eating.

Worst: any sort of citrus. This has led me to sprays of juice running down pages and soggy bindings up the wazoo.

Best: oatmeal and tea spread out on a big table so I don't incur any splotches or sog.

I agree with joan a and kdkaboom that the book is the key.

I eat and read very often, and find that the key is the book--nothing brand new, because the spine usually doesn't lay flat, and nothing too small or you spend too much time turning pages.

I find a well placed, and clean, piece of silverware to be a great tool for holding books open while I eat. It is possible that I get strange looks in restaurants when I do it, but I am to engrossed in my book and food to notice.

I have never had a problem reading and eating, but then again I read books while I wash dishes, so I am probably not the best person to judge.

If I'm eating a real meal, I usually read a magazine while eating. That's pretty simple, provided you have a little space.

Lately, my favorite snack while reading is a mug of tea with some Kookaburra licorice! About the worst thing I can think of to eat while reading is.... ice cream.

both a best and worst: chocolate

I agree with the others who said that the book is key - small paperbacks tend to be the most difficult to eat with. I read and eat pretty often though, and the only thing I have trouble with is soup - it is the liquid spoon thing that makes it tough.

Sushi. You only need one hand for the chopsticks.

As a kid one of my teachers loaned me a book and then reprimanded me a day or two after I returned it to her... "Please don't eat cheetos while reading."

ahh LauraII beat me to it. I was going to say definitely cheetos. I was eating some of the flaming hot cheese puffs while reading a book the other night. There was no lack of orange fingerprints when I got done...oops

My very favorite thing to eat while reading is a quesedilla. I make mine without butter, just cheese melted in a toasty tortilla.

Worst: Asian noodles in soup base like ramen or the like as the soup may splatter on the pages!

Best: Any breakfast cereal.

Some of these deserve a caveat though - I love, love, love to eat popcorn while I read but only if I have a book that is pliable enough for me to hold open one-handed. Holding a book this way (and even turning the pages one-handed!) is something I mastered as a kid and allows me to expand the range of delicious snacks I can enjoy during the reading process ; )

Mexican food overall is not a reader's best friend. Unless you're talking about Empanadas.

Neither is Vietnamese.

Italian w/out sauce is good. Fast food has been slowly redesigned to fit a driver/reader's compulsion of multitasking... did anyone EVER try the Mc'D's salad in a cup? I just thought it was nasty.

I too LOVE to eat popcorn while reading. Yes, you have to hold the book with one hand but it can be done. A magazine is easier. Most nights I can be found with a popcorn bowl in my lap, one hand in the bowl and the other turning pages. Popcorn with salt and butter, esp. air-popped popcorn, not microwave, might be the most delicious treat ever. I sometimes too add a little Splenda for that salty/sweet taste.

Definitely sunflower seeds! You put the bowl next to you with another bowl for the shells and you're all set! I've been doing this since I was a kid!

Chocolates are best. Simply open a large box (one or two pounds) and place it on a table next to one's reading chair. Assorted chocolates work well, but if one has a favorite, an entire box of similar chocolates works well, too.

I love eating a health bar - particularly Gnu Bars as they are low in cal and high fiber so it is easy to savor just 1!

Worst by far, Cheetos, IMHO.

melted cheese sandwiches. love em. the books don't

personally i love to labor over something in kitchen and settle down for a nice read.
long pasta is a pain to contain.
and cake- yummy cake deserves all attention.

internet reading demands all kinds of foods