THE COZY READERS CLUB

“Outside of a dog, a book is a man’s best friend. Inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read.”

–Groucho Marx

The boys read together at the city library in Los Altos when they were in 7th grade.

Jenny loved reading at least as much as any of her other passions. Over her last several years, she kept a log of the books she read. Unfortunately, without knowing the password to her computer, that document is lost to history. However, I do know she averaged reading slightly more than one book per week. For me to pick up books for her at the nearby Woodland Library was a labor of love. I'd ride there on my bike and pick up the treasures that she had on hold. And, it was no accident that Jenny's enthusiasm for reading spread to her twin sons.

Of all the facts stated about our family on this website, perhaps one of the most striking is that one of Jenny’s boys never used AI for his work in college. Such a resource was available to be sure. But, a natural bloodhound looking for the truth, he instead routinely spent six to ten hours per day in the university library walking up and down the stacks, moving from floor to floor. So much of college work is based, after all, on what’s already printed in books, so why not get the information straight from the source? Otherwise, he reasons, the risk of using false information is too great.

I do have to agree with him. I’m still a novice when it comes to understanding the technology developed by the company my dad started. Once in a while I’ll use an AI bot to answer questions I have about the build of our systems. All too often, I will get an answer that’s not only wrong, but the exact opposite of the truth.

Influenced by Jenny's love for books and volunteering, her younger twin gave his time to the Woodland Library for the summer before entering high school.

And the other boy? He inherited Jenny’s voracious appetite for books also, but he reads especially for pleasure. During his visits home, I’ll often see him in another world in an easy chair, completely absorbed by Jenny’s books. And, when he returns to school, I’ll find books scattered all over the house. Don Quixote, Dan Brown, the Bible. I love it. Multiple times, when we visit someone’s home, he will find a book and get lost between its pages. And invariably, the poor host, seeing how hopeless it would be to try to keep said book, would send Dylan home with it.

The twins with friends in 2009 after school. The one on the very left wasn't a part of the twins' friend group but nevertheless the love of reading brought everyone together.

He’s also one of the two founding members of the “Cozy Readers Club”, a name Jenny coined during a trip to Australia about a lifetime ago. It was then that the two of them found themselves snuggling together on an AirBnB couch in Sydney, lost in a world of books. From that point onwards, as an invitation to read together, Jenny would ask, “Shall we convene a meeting of the Cozy Readers Club?” It’s one of my favorite questions that Jenny ever asked, as it succinctly combines her love for books with her love for her children.