A short list of what I could/should be reading right now:
- The Faerie Queene, Edmund Spenser–for Brit Lit I
- The Francis Preston Blair Family in Politics, Vol. I, William E. Smith–I’m using this for history senior seminar research
- Creating Minnesota, Annette Atkins–for Minnesota History
- Watchdogs of Loyalty, Carl H. Chrislock–also for Minnesota History
- Various comp studies essays for my Understanding Writing research project/Understanding Writing reading assignments
An even shorter list of what I actually want to read right now:
- ANYTHING, ABSOLUTELY ANYTHING THAT I DON’T HAVE TO THINK CRITICALLY ABOUT, ANALYZE IN DETAIL, OR QUESTION IN ANY WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM (preferably a nice, light novel of the popular fiction genre)
- So, basically, none of the above
I am currently on fall break right now. I have a nice long weekend ahead of me since I don’t have school on Monday or Tuesday. I’m currently at my grandparents house since I haven’t visited them in over a year and I thought it would be a nice, relaxing way to spend my time off.
Right before leaving school to drive here, I thought about bringing a book to read for fun. I ultimately decided not to because I figured I have so much to read for school that I thought that would keep me satisfied enough in the reading department for a while. I thought, “oh, if I feel like reading before bed, I’ll just pull The Faerie Queene out (failing to consider that a text such as this sixteenth century Early Modern English epic poem, though quite fascinating, is much too dense to read before bed, especially if one is already feeling a little bit tired as I am tonight); perhaps, if not The Faerie Queene, The Frances Preston Blair Family in Politics might do the trick (really Britta, really? I love the Blair’s, I really do, but this lovely book by Charles E. Smith is not exactly bedtime reading material unless one wants to risk falling asleep while reading, only to find themselves dreaming about the political indecisiveness of the Blair family in detail). So, moments before gathering up my bags and heading to my car, I decided against bringing a book for fun with me on my journey to grandmas.
Of course, the moment I arrived here, all I wanted to do was delve into a non-school book and just relax (yesterday I got a few books at the annual Briggs Library Book Sale and there is one novel in particular that I would love to begin if only I had brought it with me). And of course, because I was overly optimistic about my productivity in the realm of school work, the only reading materials that I have brought with me are related to my school work.
I should have known better, honestly. I’ve always been an avid reader. I’m always reading something. I love learning but geesh, everyone has to take a break from that sometimes. All I want to do right now is read for fun, dammit (here is the moment where I can hear my parents chiming in with, “Well, Britta, if you had a Kindle you wouldn’t be having this issue…no, no, no Mom and Dad, it’s just not the same; I need a REAL, TANGIBLE BOOK that I can touch in my hands. For me, having a real book is part of the whole experience that is reading!).
Well, I guess I am here to spend time with my grandparents…and to sleep. Sleep is good. If I had a book for fun to read here, I’d probably spend too much time staying up late reading, which would lead me to sleep in too late, and then I wouldn’t have as much time to spend with my grandparents, the people I came here to spend time with in the first place. There’s a positive side to almost everything, I guess. But darn, I would love more than anything to dive into a book right now without having to worry about analyzing it/being tested on it/taking something big away from it. Granted, I usually don’t mind any of that…I am a history and English major after all. I just need a break from that kind of reading at the moment! After all, it is fall break…
It's a Britta Bottle! 