The Must Reads of Summer

I'm not sure why in the middle of a gorgeous summer day with the temperature sitting at a beautiful
26 Celsius that I'm sitting in the house.  Maybe it's because yesterday I attended the "family" barbecue, which means I got my quota of outdoors.  It was a day of being outside and catching up with an interesting mix of people that included my brother's in-laws as well as his side of the family, which was how I ended up outside enjoying the sun at a party at his house.  It's only once a year that we get to do this but it's always a fun time.

Saskatchewan prairie

Now, with the summer half over it's time to get serious about summer reads.  And today I've come across a dilemma.  The problems comes in the form of Harper Lee and her new book.  I want to read it but I can't read it.

Why...  ?

Because of "To Kill a Mockingbird".

"To Kill a Mockingbird" was a grade school compulsory read.  Why we would have read it then, I don't know but the result is that it was so long ago that I can't remember much of anything about the book.  So, I've pulled out a copy I got at a garage sale, like a batch of other books I've picked up along the way just just because I thought one day I might read it again.  One day in this case turned into a year and then two, and my book collection of one day I might read expanded with silent precision in my bookcase downstairs.

My curiosity has me wanting to read the"Go Set a Watchman" but practicality tells me I need a brush up on history first.  So "To Kill a Mockingbird" has moved upstairs where I promise myself it will be read just as soon as I finish a non-fiction that promises to motivate me to hit the treadmill - we'll see.

What are you reading this summer?

Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com

A Bio? - Even the Dog is Stressed

Okay, so the dog wasn't too stressed except that his lunch was delayed.  Me on the other hand, there was just a little sweat.  It's not that this was the first bio I've ever written, or even the second.   But there I was poised with the publish button on my new website that had been out of commission for over a week, before I even hit the publish button, but that's another story.

All the drama was exhausting.

I hesitated.

Stopped.

Couldn't do it.

Why?

I made the mistake of reading the bio.  No good, I told self.  Why?  It's all true.  It's me, it really happened.  Maybe it needs more reality...

But really, does anyone care that I'll devour chocolate chip cookies and can't keep a full package in the house.  Is letting them know that I once killed an influx of spiders with a can of hairspray relevant?  Seriously, none of that was there but what was, well it just wasn't grabbing me.  Maybe there's only so many times you can read about your own life - or at least skim the surface of it.

So back to square one and the original bio.  You know I think I agonized too much.  I love reading biographies, what was so hard about writing a brief bit about myself?  Once I sharpened and shortened, it's not bad.  I think it's interesting and well, it's all true.  It's my life, short form, the relevant parts... the bits that hopefully really matter to me as a writer - and the rest, well I'm not filling in the blanks at least not this go around...

Cheers to Canada Day!

 and to the upcoming Fourth of July!

Ryshia
www.ryshiakennie.com