Sunday was gorgeous here in central Florida. Not too hot, not too humid, it was just about right. To celebrate yet another in a long line of spectacularly wonderful days, I took the opportunity to meet a friend for lunch at our favorite local restaurant.

The restaurant is in a building that offers free WiFi. Even in the hinterlands of this sandbar to the south, free WiFi is becoming common. Just like our neighbors to the north, we're becoming an online society that can barely get through a chilled beverage without having to check a stock, read an e-mail, or look up the latest news about Anthony Weiner's dick.

It occurs to me that he should get his package its own representation. If Oprah's show was still on I'm sure it could score a guest shot. Maybe Letterman would let Weiner's wiener read a Top Ten List one night.

That's all beside the point. Forgive my transgression. I strayed from my point.

After parking my trusty motorcycle in my usual space, I sauntered in my best Floridian casual style to the doorway where air-conditioning lives. In the process, I noticed three people, a man and two women, were clustered together near a bench in the shade of the entryway. The women were older and standing. The man was younger, and seated on the bench. He held something in his hand that was clearly the topic of conversation.

It was only when I drew close that I realized these three were engaged in a vigorous discussion about books, technology, and the Kindle. The object in the man's hand was the latest and greatest version of that mighty e-reading device. He explained to the women, who were well into their 70s, that they could carry an entire library of books on this one, compact device.

They were interested.

He got up and stepped into the sunshine to show his audience that it was indeed possible to read even in direct sunlight. And he made significant points when he demonstrated how easily a reader could shop, select a title, and either purchase it, or grab a sample, right from the bench outside the restaurant.

 He clearly wasn't a salesman, even though he was selling. He was just a consumer, a reader, who was truly impressed and enthused about his newest techno-toy. 

Nothing sells like true enthusiasm.  

The women were getting excited. They chattered like busy little birds. They asked questions. They poked at the Kindle and asked more questions. They were getting hooked.

As a writer who has two titles available for Kindle, and another in the pipeline, I found this chance encounter to be encouraging. I stumbled, entirely by accident, on three random people who were tremendously excited about, of all things,  reading!

Technology has given us a new way to light the fire of imagination in kids and adults, alike.

The women I chanced upon were born in the 1940s, more or less. The man with the Kindle was roughly half their age, I would guess. Yet when I got home and began relating the events of the day to my wife, our youngest daughter announced from the safety of her bedroom down the hall, “I still want a Kindle for my birthday, you know.”

She's twelve years old, and she's suddenly placed herself on an even playing field with the adults I ran into – at least technologically, and as a reader.

There is hope for writers after all. For Kindle, Nook, and whatever else comes down the pike – reading is reading.

I'm feeling pretty good about that. Oh, and the three reasons that e-books rock; those  would be the man with the Kindle, and the two women who were so taken with it. 

My daughter is just a bonus point that I get to enjoy on so many different levels.  

Keep reading, my OS friends. Keep reading!