Tuesday, October 4, 2016

Reading Notes Week 7: South African Tales, Section B

South African Tales, Section B

The Jackal and the Monkey

A common theme in all these stories so far is that the Jackal is a trickster often resulting in the other character's death or humiliation. I could write up a story where all the characters come together to get back at the Jackal.

The Story of Hare

This is a monstrous tale where a seemingness innocent animal is able to kill multiple predators and advisories. It really paints the hare in a negative light. I like the concept of taking something that is seeming innocent and twisting it into something very dark and morbid.

Elephant and Tortoise

Some of the themes in lessons in the stories are so obscure that I do not even know what they are... Perhaps for this story it is be forgiving?

Lion Who Thought Himself Wiser Than His Mother

The title explains what the theme is of the story. Betrayal of the Lion by his human "friend"


I am so confused by these stories...

Woman and a Lion


Monday, October 3, 2016

Reading Notes Week 7: South African Folktales, Section A

South African Folktales, Section A

The Lost Message

It is a story of the different kinds of ants that could not work together to defeat their common enemies and as a result fell victim to their predators. The "Insect King" tried to save them but to no avail. I could use the underling moral of the story that "there is strength in numbers" and "working together will result in the best outcome" in a future story.

The Monkey's Fiddle


The Tiger, The Ram, and The Jackal

This story is similar to one of Aesop's Fables and a story from the Indian Reading section both titled, The Lion, the Ass, and the Fox (title is probably wrong). All stories have similar concepts, it is interesting to see the cross over of folklore between three diverse cultures.

The World's Reward

A band of seven old animals team up to occupy a house and defend it from invaders. It was a cute story. Maybe I can take the idea of the animals defending the property and write a horror film following this theme. Two or so people are hiding in their house from robbers who want to steal their possessions and kill them?

Tink-Tinkje

This is a story of a small bird taking advantage of his size to claim the title of "King of Birds" because of his mischief he is loathed by the other birds and wanted dead. But he still uses his small size to evade his predators and come out victorious. I could use this story as the cause of the previous idea.

The Lion, The Jackal, and The Rope

This is a terrible story that reminds me of Scar and Mufasa... I do not need to give a summary because I am triggered.

The Lion and The Little Jackal

Moral of all these stories, do not trust the Jackal. No matter how much you think he has changed or how well his intentions are.

The Lioness and the Ostrich

Dangerous things come in many different forms.

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Week 6 Story: The Sword and the Comb

Long ago, a great warrior and his wife, a beautiful princess, were fighting together in a long an perilous struggle to obtain eternal youth. Through their valiant efforts and good deeds along the way to the Golden Apple, source of everlasting youth, the gods took pity on them and tried to help them in anyway they could along the way. Unfortunately, the quest was too great for them to accomplish and they perished along the way. Goddess of Deathless Love saw their sacrifices for each other in their final moments and used her power to preserve their souls in to special artifacts. For the great warrior, it was his sharp and trusty sword that could slash down any foe and for the princess it was an intricate comb that was so delicate that it could be used to unknot a silken thread.

These artifacts were locked away in a sacred temple far from the slippery hands of thieves and looters. As time went on, these artifacts were soon forgot and became part of the local folklore. It was said that whoever should find these artifacts and be proven worthy will be given the quest of these two heroes, the search for the Golden Apple - the giver of eternal youth.
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Centuries have passed and the mysteries of the world have become slim. One day a lonely traveler was hiking in the misty mountains when he stumbled upon a tomb sealed shut by ages of floral growth. After some struggling, he was able to gain access into the long forgotten temple of the two artifacts.

Walking down the long hall, ominously lit with a faint jade colored glow, the traveler reached the pedestals holding these artifacts. Taking the sword in one had and pulling out his smart phone, he began to film himself slashing and swinging the sword in all directions pretending to be a samurai. Impressed by his swordsmen-like skills, the spirit of the warrior sprang from the weapon in a powerful gust of wind, knocking the traveller off his feet and ripping his man-bun from the top of his head.

Unimpressed by the summoning of the spirit, the traveller nonchalantly got up off the ground and grabbed the comb from the other pedestal. Scolding the warrior and demanding to know what purpose such a theatrical entrance served, the traveller began to unknot his hair with the intricate comb. His well conditioned locks of hair were too much for the spirit of the comb to ignore and her spirit too burst from the artifact and along with millions of cherry blossom petals.

Again unimpressed, the traveller dug himself and his pack out from underneath the petals and demanded to know the meaning of the spirits' appearance. He scolded them for the cliché entrance stating that even the most indie of film directors could come up with better special effects.

The spirits were over joyed with his discontent as they mistook it for wisdom and quickly filled their champion in on the quest that were once tasked with completing, the same quest that the traveller was about to undertake.

"So... Let me get this straight, you guys are looking for a golden apple, that gives you eternal youth?" He asked hesitantly, "Will there is literally an app for that." Finding his golden iPhone 9X among the petals, the spirits saw the prominent apple symbol on the back and began dancing in glee. 

"Now this app is still in the beta stages, my friend is an app developer so don't go around showing this to anyone else or he'll hang me by my chacos." Opening the app titled Eternal Beauty, he snapped a quick picture of the old spirits and showed them the screen. Their old and tired figures were difficult to look at, but with a click of the button and a loading screen later, the spirits saw reflections of their former youthful selves.

A strong gust of wind began to swirl around the warrior and his princess creating a dazzling storm of cherry blossom petals, the two spirits thanked the youth for his wisdom and were released from their confines of the physical world.

"Jeez, the locals here are so strange." the traveller scolded again as he began to comb the petals out of his hair.

Random image of a guy who fits the character I created... Photo courtesy of Vanessa Labi

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Author's Note: The ideas for this story came from the Japanese Mythology reading. It draws on different themes and aspects from both sections. The sacred sword and the comb come from the story of Susa-no-wo fighting a the eight forked serpent of Koshi while having his wive (who he was using as bait) safe on his head in the form of a comb. The idea for the quest for eternal youth comes from the collection of stories about Yamato and his wife undertaking the same quest. The app is entirely made up.

Bibliography:

The Eight-Forked Serpent of KoshiRomance of Old Japan, Part I: Mythology and Legend. E. W. Champney and F. Champney

The Labors of YamatoRomance of Old Japan, Part I: Mythology and Legend. E. W. Champney and F. Champney



Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Week 6 Reading Notes: Japanese Mythology, Section B

Japanese Mythology, Section B

The Labors of Yamato:

- The Grotto of Love
Yamato, growing bored of his wife went on an adventure where he became enthralled with the Goddess of Deathless Love. Enraptured by her spell he begs for her love, her response “To win my love thou must dare death,” is almost poetic and she sends Yamato on a quest to prove his worth.

The descriptions and situations used in this story almost remind me of Beowulf. 


  • "Descending the jutting cliff to the ever-seething waters, he beheld a great grotto from whose hidden depths glowed a wondrous emerald light. While he pondered upon this, he heard again the eerie music and saw a flitting of faint shadows as of strange celestial damsels."
  • "Upon a couch of coral bowered mid glittering sea-blooms, reclined his lost siren, singing softly the whiles she gently fingered a gold and amber lute."
- The Golden Apple
Basically Japan's story about the Fountain of Youth

- The Demon Boar
 "Like rain upon a parching flower Thy presence is to me;
But grieving lone for many an hour
I withered without thee." - The poetry in this section is on point...


Yamato sad that he cannot find the Golden Apple takes it upon himself to slay the demon boar, with a band of huntsmen they enter the forest to find it.

  • "Valiantly the pack drove upon him, only to be tossed instantly in air and to fall, tusked through the entrails, in pools of gore. Whereat the bowmen let fly a cloud of arrows, but their shafts rebounded like hail from the boar’s invulnerable hide."
  • "Hoping to spear him as he passed, Yamato sprang behind the trunk of a tree. But the boar had halted and, with cruel cunning, bided his time." - I like the intelligence that the boar possesses.
- The Sacred Sword
Yamato returns to the Goddess and tells her of his failure. She sees the sword and tricks him, she steals it while he sleeps.

Another Goddess helps him to retrieve it by hunting and killing a demon stag.

- The Dragon
Yamato realizes that he was beguiled by the Goddess and not actually in love with her. He goes to confront the goddess but is instead attacked, he is saved by his wife who later defends a city with her magic. She seemed so helpless before, but now she seems so powerful...

In the end, throughout Yamato's infidelity, Tacibana sacrifices herself to save Yamato. She is the true hero of this myth.

Tacibana sacrificing herself to the Goddess of  Deathless Love


Monday, September 26, 2016

Week 6 Reading Notes: Japanese Mythology, Section A

Japanese Mythology, Section A

The Eight-Forked Serpent of Koshi:

"It hath eyes as red as a ripe mountain cherry, a noisome blood-inflamed body, armed with eight fearsome heads and eight forked tails. Moreover its back is all overgrown with firs, cedars, and pines, and it trails its tortuous coils over eight valleys and as many mountains.”

  • A good description I can use to recreate another monster.
  • I like the idea of using sake as a way to quell the serpent, before attacking it.
  • What purpose does the sword found in the serpent's tail have?
    • Maybe I can make a story where the god keeps the sword to himself in a shrine and after a long time has passed and he is no longer worshipped, the sword and his wife (in comb form) are found by a traveler who must fulfill some destiny? The wife acts as a guide and the sword as his weapon?
The Heaven-Descended:

I like the idea of a council of gods. Often times in mythology, the different deities are working on their own agenda with no regards to the other gods. This story clearly states that there is a leader among them who is able to summon agents to do her (?) biding.

The Fortunate Fish-Hook:

In relation to The Eight-Forked Serpent of Koshi idea... I could use Ho-wori's quest to find his brother's fish-hook as the objective of my story using the sword from the serpent and the old man can be replaced by the comb/wife? The ending is perfect for this as well.

A giant tortoise island.


Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Week 5 Story: The Quest

Nobody seemed to notice or care as the knight in shining silver armor with his sword out sprinted through the city as fast as he could. Past the city market, over the bridge, through the interior gate, and through the castle's doors he went not pausing to make idle chit-chat with the few that decided to strike up a conversation with him. Inside the castle, the knight hopped up a long flight of stairs past the guards who seemed unfazed by his drawn weapon and straight to the king who was in a conversation with his steward. In an instant the king stopped mid-sentence to his steward and turned to the knight issuing praise.

In a deep bellowing voice, "I must th...", he was cut off by the knight's quick gesture, "You have trul...", the king continued before being cut off again, "Take this spel...", "There is so...", "Talk to the Wizard, he will be able to help you find the chalice, do you accept?" ... The king waited patiently for a response from the knight. The knight gestured again, "Good! I knew I can cou...", but the knight was already too far away to hear the rest.

At the bottom of the stairs, the knight paused and opened his pack. Inside were eight different pieces of armor that he had been meaning to sell, another sword, fifty-two health potions, and the thick spell book that the king had just given him as a reward. He then looked at his journal that was filled with notifications about unfinished quests and decided that he should finish the one titled "The Chalice". The knight closed his eyes and after a brief moment of recalling an irrelevant fact about the realm he was in, he appeared in front of the Wizard's workshop. Weapon still drawn, the knight sprinted past the acolytes and into the antechamber where the Wizard was mid-spell.

Stopping the spell in an instant, the Wizard began to talk in a slow, gritty voice, "Ah, I sa...", "A chali...", "I don't kno...", "Ah, but there is a....", "Go and fetch my assis...", "You can find him in the ruins on the other side of the realm, do you accept?", the knight gestured and sprinted away from the Wizard as he began another sentence.

Closing his eyes again, the knight appeared in front of the ruins and began slashing any monster in sight before he found the dead Wizard's assistant's body. Unceremoniously, the knight looted the assistant's body only to find a memo that he had given the Scrying Glass that the Wizard needed to find the chalice to a merchant who operated out of the capitol city. Beginning to feel frustrated, the knight closed his eyes again and appeared back in the city in which he ran through not even five minutes ago.

Sprinting through the city again, he found the merchant and initiated a conversation with him by gesturing. The merchant responded in a snooty manner, "And wha...", "The Scrying Glass? I woul....", "Go and tell that customer thief that there can only be one traveling merchant in this city, only then will I give you the Scrying Glass."

The knight, opened his map and traced along the major routes until he found that the other traveling merchant was between the two most southern cities, he knew that the only way to get to him was to close his eyes and appear in the southern most city, but even then it would be ten minutes of solid sprinting through the forest before he could reach the merchant. Feeling defeated, the knight put away his map and readied his weapon before turing on his quest giver and killing him in one quick slash. Screams erupted from the crowd in the busy city center and guards in yellow uniforms began converging on the knight's position. The knight looted the Scrying Glass from the dead merchant's body and turned to defend himself from the onslaught of city guards. Like hungry lions pouncing on a sickly bison, the knight stood no chance and was soon struck down before big red letters appeared above him stating. "GAME OVER."

A character from the RPG Skyrim
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Author's Note: This story is based of The Sad Tale of the Mouse's Tail. It's a Persian story about a mouse who got its tail cut off and had to run continuous errands for different people so that she could have it sown back on. This story reminded me of the quests in video games that have no real purpose and end up making the character become an errand boy. I got frustrated for the mouse in the story and it is a similar feeling I get whenever I play a game and there is a quest similar to what the mouse was put through. I took advantage of common RPG mechanics where the player is left to his/her devices and can do socially unacceptable things without being reprimanded for it, to an extent of course... Murder is still murder.

Bibliography: The Sad Tale of the Mouse's Tail. Persian Tales. Trans. D.L.R. Lorimer and E.O. Lorimer

Week 5 Reading Notes: Persia Tales, Section A

Persia Tales, Section A

The Wolf and the Goat:

In this story a goat leaves to get her kiddos some food to eat, but a wolf steal three of there four children. The dialogue between the mother goat and the wolf is very Dr. Seuss like, I could try to write a story following this style. The moral of the story is that cheating will end up hurting you in the long run as the wolf was cheap and got all his teeth pulled.

Sushi and Mushu:

An interesting story of a beetle marrying a mouse and completely being at the mercy of her small size and quite literally falling into situations that cause her misfortune and eventually death. It is an interesting story where the characters add a line to the previous monologue. It also shows how a death can affect so many people.

The Boy Who Became a Bulbul:

"One day the father and son were starting out to collect thorn-bushes for firewood, for the father was a thorn-cutter. As they were going off the stepmother said: "You two ought to lay a wager to-day and agree that whichever of you collects the more firewood should cut off the other one's head." The father and son agreed to do this." WHAT. Then cannibal and resurrections and eventually vengeance. I can twist this story to instead of the boy becoming a Bulbul he became a ghost. So of like the Grudge?


The Grudge

The Praying Baker:

A story of a King who is testing the faith of a Baker by implementing a plan that is sure to lead to the Baker's death. The Baker's faith is real and he gets the ring back through a series of strange mishaps.

The Sad Tale of A Mouse's Tail:

This story is like one of those endless quests in a video game where every object relies on another objective making the quests long and tedious. It would have been ironic if one of the things the mouse had to fetch was a mouse's tail.

Sunday, September 18, 2016

Week 4 Learning Challenge: My Take on the Pomodoro Technique

When you are in busy with multiple assignments from different classes on top of having the looming threat of a future exam the coming week, you'd think that the thing you would be doing most is hunkering down inside your room or at your favorite study place trying to stay afloat and preparing for this test. Unfortunately, that is not the case for me, and I feel like it may be true for your guys as well. So here are some things that I do to remain focused while I study!


  • What I first do is make a list of what I have to do in no particular order. Then I go through the list with different colors ranking: what is due first, what is the most important in terms of impact on grade, and finally what I am most interested in doing first. This helps me to look at all my tasks objectively and to focus on the ones that require the most and immediate attention rather than the ones I want to do first.
  • I then find a place I can study. It can be my room, in my backyard, at the library, etc. wherever I am most comfortable.
  • This next is the most important for me in terms of time management. I have my mom's old record player and a small collection of music that serves as background music. I put on a record and study/work on the assignment until I reach the end of the top side of the record. I then take a short break before returning to my room to flip the record and start again.
  • Once I finish a vinyl, I transition to my next assignment and repeat. Until I either run out of records (rarely ever happens) or until I finish all my assignments.

Even if you do not have a record player this works with any music playing device. Just choose an album that has strong instrumental melodies with vocal support or no vocals at all and try this. It is important that the vocals are not very strong as they can subtract from the focus on the assignment making you less productive.

This is sort of my take on the Pomodoro Technique that Dr. Gibbs posted about this week for the Attention Challenge. During this assignment actually I was doing this. I was listening to "Farewell Transmission" by Songs: Ohia.



"Farewell Transmission" by Songs: Ohia

Saturday, September 17, 2016

Week 4: Feedback Focus

I personally did not like this assignment as I felt it was a waste of time, not because it is not useful, but two out of the three suggested strategies I already do whenever I read.

Whenever I read something, I mumble the words to myself under my breath as it helps me to understand the meaning better, while it is not exactly reading aloud, it serves the same purpose. It slows me down as I read so I understand the concepts and meanings better. Unfortunately, reading aloud is not always socially acceptable which is why I mumble the words under my breath. Also, I never begin something that I cannot finish in one sitting, so I actively remain focused and engaged on what I am reading.

As for which I find least effective, I do not like having to stop to take notes on what I am reading after set intervals. I find that it takes away from my focus on the story as well as my interest in it. I am not saying that taking notes while reading is not useful, just that sometimes there is really no valuable information in a paragraph or a section of the book or story. It just serves as background or filler. One of the reasons I prefer the physical copies of books over their electronic version is that I am able to highlight and write out my notes in the margins as I go. I do not have to copy and paste and use another application to record what I deem important.

Books

Week 4: Storybook Website is now up!

Hey kids, I just made my Storybook site for the class project!

Click right here to be taken to the site!

I'm hoping to include the legend of Robin Hood and stories of different mythical creatures. My idea is that Robin Hood has an apprentice who doubles in help him return wealth to the poor, but on the side doubles as a beast hunter eradicating monsters that are plaguing the locals.

Two Saxon Archers

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Week 4 Story: The Three Thieves

"... Forensic analysis of DNA samples and facial recognition systems reveal that the three husks of skin belonging to the face found last week near the Mariatorget in Stockholm, Sweden are what remains of three of the world's most notorious thieves. This trio was wanted for their most recent heist at the Haringe Castle where the stolen goods exceed a value of 180 million krona, more than 21 million USD. This morbid crime may be in relation to the three mummified corpses missing their faces found near Thorildspan Subway Station earlier this year..." 

Thorildspan Station, Stockholm, Sweden

She turns off the TV and the attractive news woman slowly fades to black. Twenty years on the force and hundreds of investigations, she had never been this dumbfounded by a case before. Earlier in the week she had received an anonymous call on her landline from a man with a very shrill voice, telling her to investigate a Dr. Zetterlund, a plastic surgeon that specializes in skin grafting. Could it be a coincidence, or what if her contact was right? The bodies of the thieves were never found... and the three faces of the mummified corpses are also missing. 

She shook her head and surveyed the mess of her apartment, case files covered the walls and old fast food containers covered the floor. The only light in the room was a small LED lamp that caused the wisps of smoke that filled the room look as if they were dancing. "I really need to clean up and kick this habit," she thought aloud. She had quit smoking for a while, but ever since being promoted to detective, she'd go through at least a pack a day whenever she was stressed about a case. She closed her eyes and thought reviewed the details pertaining to the case.

Startled awake by a high pitched ringing from her landline, she groggily stumbling through her apartment, stepping on a pizza in the process. She snatches the phone off the hook and places it to her ear. "Turn on the TV." It was the same shrill voice as her mystery caller.

"... This just in! Police confirm two dead and thousands of krona stolen from a local convenient store. Security cameras reveal a trio of thieves with faces wrapped in gauze holding the owners of the shop at gun point demanding money before shooting them and fleeing the crime scene..."

This was all the motivation she needed to pursue her contact's lead. Shaking with excitement, she leaves her apartment and jumps into her car racing to Dr. Zetterlund's office which coincidently is in Mariatorget square not far from where the husks were found. Entering Dr. Zetterlund's office she is greeted by a man with tight, flawless skin, a shrill voice and an understanding twinkle in his eyes. "I've cleared her schedule just for you, right this way..."

"... In a rather peculiar turn of events, the three thieves thought dead were actually hiding in plain sight thanks to the work of plastic surgeon Dr. Zetterlund. She is a mistress of the thieves and willing performed face transplants to help conceal their identities. She will be found guilty along with the thieves for manslaughter, grand theft, and larceny. We can rest easy tonight knowing our valuables are safe thanks to a detective who wishes to remain unnamed..."

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Author's Note: This story based of two stories, the first is a chapter from the Twenty-Two Goblins book translated by Ryder. In this chapter, a woman's husband and brother commit suicide by cutting off their heads inside a temple. Grieving the wife and sister prays to the deity to return them to life, she is given the chance to do so by putting their heads back onto their bodies, only she mistakenly puts the heads on the wrong body. The other book that this story is based of is called The Crow Girl by Erik Axl Sund, the idea for mummified corpses, names, and locations all come from this book. I also tried to mimic the writing style of this book.
Cover of The Crow Girl. I recommend checking
out the trailer associated with this novel.

Bibliography:
"The Girl, Her Husband and Her Brother" Twenty-Two Goblins. Trans. Arthur Ryder

"The Crow Girl" Erik Axl Sund


Sunday, September 11, 2016

Week 4 Reading Notes: Twenty-Two Goblins, Section B

Twenty-Two Goblins, Section B

These stories told by the goblin have no relating theme to them. It will be difficult to write a story that incorporates ideas from more than one story.

Rather an idea that I could go with is by making the king and the goblin detectives. The goblin collects all the evidence and tells the king who in turn goes out and apprehends the villain.

  • Some of the stories involve three men who collectively cause trouble whether it be to themselves or to other people. They can act as the antagonist, a sort of gang that the king and goblin are trying to take down.
  • Some stories also involve women and who deserves her hand in marriage. She could act as a hostage. The three men in the gang can fight over her and forget that the king and goblin are hot on their tails.
  • Another direction to take is that the woman is using her position over the three men and is the one who is actually calling the shots. The king and the goblin think she is innocent, when she is actually the one they are after.
    • She has a magic ability to change the heads and bodies of the men that are following her making it difficult for the king and the goblin to recognize them and capture them.

      Basil and Dawson from the Great Mouse Detective. I'm probably going to go watch this now...

Bibliography

Twenty-Two Goblins, translated by Arthur Ryder

Week 4 Reading Notes: Twenty-Two Goblins, Section A

Twenty-Two Goblins, Section A

The stories in this collection are about a king who decides to help a monk in retrieving a body from a tree. The body is possessed by a goblin who tells the king riddles on their journey back to the kingdom, if the king answers the riddles correctly the goblin escapes and the king must retrieve him again. If the king does not answer the riddle he dies. I keep guessing the correct answer wrong...

The Girl who transposed the Heads of her Husband and Brother.
Which combination of head and body is her husband?


What a whirlwind this story was. The title says it all. I think I can use this story and maybe change the setting to the far future where the brother and the husband exchange their conciseness and the wife has a dilemma on who is her actual husband. Sort of like Freaky Friday.

The Three Delicate Wives of King Virtue-banner.
Which is the most delicate?

Three wives that are very delicate, one was injured by a falling lotus petal, the other was burned by moonbeams, and the third was bruised by the sound of grinding stone. I got this one right, finally. I can change the story into making the wives indestructible instead of delicate and they end up competing for the king's love by seeing who is truly the least delicate.


Image of a goblin holding a die.


Bibliography:

Twenty-Two Goblins, translated by Arthur Ryder

Tuesday, September 6, 2016

Week 3 Learning Challenge: My Tips for Happiness

I am usually pretty happy about current situations and my being almost all of the time and all I do is follow some simple daily planning.


  1. Get up early. I know it sounds bad, and staying in your bed sounds so much better, but trust me on this. By getting up earlier than you have to you usually end up more awake and ready to tackle the day whenever it starts for you. I get up at 4:30 every weekday (I may have gotten a bit overboard) and my earliest class does not start till 10:30. I get so much done during the days, that at night, not only am I tired and ready for bed, but I feel so accomplished and proud in what I have done that I am ready for another day.
  2. Exercise. Any sort of exercise to get those endorphins pumping really helps create and help maintain an artificial high throughout the day. It does not have to be super intense, like competing in an Iron Man competition, but any brisk walk can help relieve some stress and other negative emotions you might have. I like to go for a run in the mornings to shake off my tiredness and before I retire to my room for the night, I always take my dog for a walk.
  3. FOOD. Eat your woes away... then repeat Tip 2.
  4. Alone time. I am an introvert, so this may not apply to everyone, but this is perhaps the most essential to me.
  5. Find a strong support group. This can be your friends, real or imaginary (mine are all imaginary), your family, your dog (he hates me because all I do is complain to him), or some random stranger that you met on the internet (please make safe choices)
I also find that noticing that certain things are out of my control and therefore there is no reason to worry about them really helps me to focus on the positive and the present instead of dwelling in the past.

Finisher of an Ironman Triathlon.

Thursday, September 1, 2016

Week 3 Story: The Quiet Boy

There was once a young boy so quiet not even a mouse could stand to be in his presence for they could not compete with his silence. The other kids in his class did not like him much, every time they try to play with him, he would just look at them with a sad look on his face and shake his head. The other kids thought he was just pretentious or self-centered, out of frustration they began to play pranks on the Quiet boy to try to get him to talk, some thought maybe he was just lame and began calling him Monkey since he would make weird gestures with his hands when he got excited or sad. They would pull his hair, tease him, and push him down the stairs, but none of this would cause the boy to speak.

On one particularly day, the kids in the school were going on a field trip to the local zoo. The other kids began to scheme their biggest prank yet. Pairing up in groups of four for the field trip, the three biggest and strongest boys decided to be in the Quiet boys's group. He was so happy, he thought that maybe they were trying to be his friends so the Quiet boy began jumping up and down and he interlocked his index fingers twice to each boy.

The other kids began to laugh at him and called him Monkey, they then dragged him over to the gorilla exhibit and tossed him over the edge onto the cold concrete below. The Quiet Boy, dazed from his fall, did not understand why his new friends were so mean to him. He began to cry with big heaving sobs, but still he did not make a sound. All the other kids began to gather to laugh at him and call him Monkey while throwing bananas and other fruit at him. All the commotion woke up the gorilla in the exhibit. Angry that his afternoon nap was disturbed, Harambe the gorilla, let out a deep bellow silencing the crowd.

Livid, he stomped around the enclosure hooting and beating against the walls. The other kids began to scream as he approached the Quiet boy, who was oblivious to the situation as his tears began to form a small pool around him.

Harambe loomed over the Quiet boy, still extremely irritated with the high pitched screaming in the background, Harambe half thought about slamming his fists into the Quiet boy's head, but decided otherwise when he heard no sound coming from the sobbing boy. Interested, Harambe sat down by the boy and began to pat his back to make him feel better. After a few minutes, the Quiet boy looked up at Harambe and put his hand to his face before removing it in an outward motion. A toothy smile formed on Harambe's face as he realized that the boy was signing. Harambe responded and then the boy responded and then Harambe again, this silent conversation went on for hours as the other kids left the Quiet boy behind since the for sure thought he was dead.

When given the chance to leave the exhibit to return home, the Quiet boy decides to embrace his nickname and chooses to live with Harambe in the gorilla enclosure. Harambe and Monkey became best friends.

Image of Binti-Jua rescuing a boy how fell into her exhibit in 1996.

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Author's Note: This story is based off of the general theme of several of stories in the Saints and Animals section of reading. A main character, who is usually special in some way befriends an animal, and together they live a happy life. The main myths of focus here are of Saint Kentigern and the Robin and The Wolf-Mother of Saint Ailbe. Harambe the gorilla is based of Harambe the gorilla.

Bibliography: Brown, A. 1900. The Book of Saints and Friendly Beasts

Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Week 3 Reading Notes: Saints and Animals, Section B

Saints and Animals, Section B

There is a story about a boy who is discarded in the forest and raised by wolves. It reminds me of Tarzan. He gets stolen away and becomes content with his new life in a palace. In later years he returns his wolf mother's gift by protecting her from a hunt and inviting her and the rest of his wolf family into his house for dinner everyday. I really liked this story.

The next couple stories in this section are ballads, which I have always found incredibly boring to read. I was looking for another style to write my next story in, these just clarified what styles not to try.

I really like the story of Saint Francis of Assisi, though I wish that there was more background information on how he got there.

  • Do research to see what his history is and how he became such a great saint as well as how he became so poor.
    • If there is nothing, which I hope there isn't, the I can make something up as my story for this week!
    • Maybe use the journey of Voltaire as the history of Francis? "Happiness come from tending your own garden"

The cover of Abbie Brown's book

Bibliography: all stories came from Abbie Brown's The Book of Saints and Friendly Beasts

Monday, August 29, 2016

Week 3 Reading Notes: Saints and Animals, Section A

Saints and Animals, Section A

The first story is about a boy who is so focused and dedicated to his success that he is not flustered at all when his jealous peers perform mischievous actions towards him. Their attempts to derail his success actually make him more respectable to their Father.

  • I like how the character remains modest and proud regardless of his success both before and after the attempts to tarnish his reputation. I could use this when creating a character.
  • Or perhaps I can change the story to where he is a complete screw up and the laughing stock of the other students and when they trick him, they actually help him become more respectable.
The following story in this section is about Saint Blaise and his ability tame any wild beast. I got a very, How to Tame Your Dragon Feel from this story, maybe I incorporate the theme from the movie into the story?
  • People are afraid of these beasts, but Saint Blaise shows them that they are actually friendly and easily tamable.
All of these stories have the same theme. A saint who is friends to the animals and their protector uses his ability to help either correct a wrongdoing or to punish someone not as kindhearted as he.

I especially like the stories of Kentigern and Berach as they are the most unique of the four. It would be cool to make Berach Kentigern in the future.

This has nothing to do with the readings, but I was listening to The Breeders during this assignment.


Bibliography: 
These stories are from Abbie Brown's Book of Saints and Friendly Beasts

Sunday, August 28, 2016

Week 2 Feedback Thoughts

Rejection: I am all too familiar with it.

A brief story about myself... I am currently applying for graduate schools. I do not have a definite number of the number of PIs that I have inquired about a possible graduate position, but I know it is more than 20. Every single one of them ended up rejecting my inquiry due to the fact that they were not able to support another student the follow academic year. It is hard to not loose hope and become critical of yourself when you get rejected so many times.

It was interesting to read the article on Winch's Tedtalk. I had no idea that rejection stimulates that same part of the brain that processes physical pain. He does have a valid point though, one that I keep telling myself every time that I get an email with the first sentence being "I am sorry, but...", and that is that rejection is not always personal.

I have live my life like this for a long while. Bruneau's article in Forbes does a great job in pointing out the positivities of having a deficiency in an area. I love the way she said that it shows that you have not reach your full potential yet, which is something that I keep telling myself whenever I am turned down from a job or an opportunity that I do not meet the desired requirements.

It is also important be open to feedback and to not get offended by it, especially if the other person's intention was to be helpful. Bruneau says this, though I think it is also important to look at the person who is receiving the feedback and their individual needs. This is something that Popova indicates Grosz is arguing for in her article in Brainpickings as well as Goldberg's article. I wholeheartedly agree with this. In all my interactions with my different mentors over the years, I have experienced the most personal growth within myself form the ones that did not praise me for my skills, but were present and helped me to work on my deficiencies. They are also the mentors that I have grown to respect and appreciate the most as I realize the time and effort that they put into me. A mentor-mentee relationship like this one often grows into something much more.

This is a personal image of my first research mentor, his oldest son, and myself. He was attentive to my strengths and weaknesses and helped me to focus on them. He has become a very good friend since he has moved on to bigger and better things.

Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Week 2 Story: Caught!

Weeks had passed during that embarrassing situation where our hero lost his meal to his shadow, fortunate for him, it was now the height of quail season and there was plenty of prey to go around. Being the mischievous puppy that he was, our hero decided to get a head start and began hoarding them. Noticing the decline in available game, the pale-faces sent for two beast hunters to clear the land of any predators so that they would be able to host a feast at the end of the season to appease their gods.

These two beast hunters decided it would be best to use their wits to trap the unknown predators, rather than brute force. They set up a series of traps throughout the forest and baited them with quail feathers and eggs. Our hero always had a knack for finding the scent of a quail. Even his brothers and sisters would concede that that was at least one good quality about him... 

-------

Though he had been fine by himself, he began to question his decision to leave his family behind. Our hero had been lonely by himself in the forest and decided it was time to return home. Trekking through the forest, he came upon his older sister. After begging to return home, our hero's sister came to a decision, to race her to catch a quail. But there was an ultimatum, if he won, he could come back, if he lost, he would be his family's new prey.

The race had started and our hero instantly knew he would lose as he could not keep up with his sister. Bounding through the forest he caught a strong wiff of a quail that was off in the opposite direction that his sister ran. 

"Odd, I don't smell anything in the direction that my sister is running." he thought to himself hesitantly, "Maybe she wants me to win so I can come home!" He decided to look for the closer prey. While searching the forest he had found a trail of feathers. His heart beat in excitement as he followed the path, nearing the end he noticed feathers strewn about under a bush probably indicating an injured bird.

"Perfect!" he thought, "an injured bird will be easier to move." 

As he approached the bush he noticed that there was no bird. Knowing that it could not have gone far, our hero got up closer to the bush to get a better scent to track. One step, two steps, and *SNAP*! Metal claws erupt from the ground and snare our hero, he was trapped...

Not seconds later, his sister emerges from the forest behind him. "I purposely ran in the opposite direction because I knew it was a trap, only stupid puppies would fall for something like that!" she laughed at him. "Be sure to stay right there, I'll go get our brother and sisters so they can all laugh at you too!" she sneered as she pranced away.

Our hero began to cry. Not only was he trapped, but he realized that he was also tricked by his sister.

A raccoon caught in a foot-hold trap. This type of foot-hold is the same that I was using during my internship, the two clamps have approximately an inch of space separating them when closed, they also have a metal plate folded around the edge to increase the surface area, reducing the amount of pain in the animal since the pressure is more widely dispersed. They rarely break the bones of the animals that are caught. 
________________________________________________________________________________

Author's Note: The story was based off of the myth of Atalanta from Ovid's Metamorphoses III. Following the adventure of our hero from the last story and applying the myth of the heroin, Atalanta, I was able to depict the interesting situation in which my dog, Scout, and I first met. I focused on the terms of Atalanta's race: "I will not be won, till I am beaten in running. Compete in the foot-race with me. Wife and bed will be given as prizes to the swift, death to the tardy: let those be the rules." I also used the idea that Atalanta, or our hero in this case, lost the race due to something catching his eye.

I am aware that my reading notes are of Ovid's Metamorphoses II, but I got so into the reading that I also began on the third unit. I had much more to add that included the ideas from the myth of Persephone and Hades in Metamorphoses II, but for the sake of the story remaining within the desired word count, it will be posted for week 3. Stay tuned...

Bibliography: Ovid's Metamorphoses III, Reading B translated by Tony Kline

Monday, August 22, 2016

Week 2 Reading Notes: Ovid's Metamorphoses II, Section B

Ovid's Metamorphoses II, Section B

The first couple stories of this section are about Tereus and Procne.

Procne's love for her sister and the anger she feels is so strong to kill even her own son... then feeds it to her husband, the one who raped her sister. The sisters transform to birds to escape the kings rage, but he too morphs and will endlessly pursue them. - Not sure if I can use this with the story I already have formulating in my mind.

Image of a Hoopoe, the bird that King Tereus transforms into. Hell of a cool bird.

The next couple stories are about Medea and Jason. Basically behind every strong man is a stronger woman.

"Night, most faithful keeper of our secret rites;
Stars, that, with the golden moon, succeed the fires of light;
Triple Hecate, you who know all our undertakings,
and come, to aid the witches’ art, and all our incantations:
You, Earth, who yield the sorceress herbs of magic force:
You, airs and breezes, pools and hills, and every watercourse;
Be here; all you Gods of Night, and Gods of Groves endorse.
Streams, at will, by banks amazed, turn backwards to their source.
I calm rough seas, and stir the calm by my magic spells:
bring clouds, disperse the clouds, raise storms and storms dispel;
and, with my incantations, I break the serpent’s teeth;
and root up nature’s oaks, and rocks, from their native heath;
and move the forests, and command the mountain tops to shake,
earth to groan, and from their tombs the sleeping dead to wake.
You also, Luna, I draw down, eclipsed, from heaven’s stain,
though bronzes of Temese clash, to take away your pains;
and at my chant, the chariot of the Sun-god, my grandsire,
grows pale: Aurora, at my poisons, dims her morning fire.
You quench the bulls’ hot flame for me: force their necks to bow,
beneath the heavy yoke, that never pulled the curving plough:
You turn the savage warfare, born of the serpent’s teeth,
against itself, and lull the watcher, innocent of sleep;
that guard deceived, bring golden spoil, to the towns of Greece.
Now I need the juice by which old age may be renewed,
that can regain the prime of years, return the flower of youth,
and You will grant it. Not in vain, stars glittered in reply:
not in vain, winged dragons bring my chariot, through the sky." 
- Spell that Medea chants to bring forth a chariot to search for herbs to lengthen Aeson's life.

It would be cool if I spun the story to where Medea purposely killed Aeson instead of rejuvenating him because her true loyalties still lie with Peilas.

What if I make Procne have the power of Medea and follow the myth of Tereus and his rape of her sister, then Medea-Procne uses the potion to restore her sister's tongue? Medea-Procne falls in love with Jason, a mercenary hired by their father to seek revenge on Tereus, he was just a bit too late... Ideas...


Sunday, August 21, 2016

Week 2 Reading Notes: Ovid's Metamorphoses II, Section A

Ovid's Metamorphoses II, Section A

The first couple chapters of this reading are about the myth of Demeter and Hades negotiating the fate of Persephone.

  • Maybe I can use the general theme of the story to make my own? 
    • i.e. someone taken against their will, but bound by a certain fate (Persephone breaking her fast and eating a pomegranate) and then after the negotiation becomes happy as with their double life?
The next couple stories are about a sowing competition between Athena and Arachne.
  • Tie the two stories together. 
    • Have the protagonist of the story be competing against a god or an expert. The protagonist uses his/her wits to beat the god (maybe the hero cheats???) and is punished by being taken against their will?
    • The hero becomes happy because he realizes that he can excel in the environment in which he was wrongfully taken?
The final stories in this collection are similar to what happened between Athena and Arachne... only much more gruesome. Niobe, being very bold demanded the same praise that was given to the gods and in return lost everything.
  • It would be interesting to make this the god's fate after demanding too much... the people rebel and take everything away from him or her.
  • Maybe use the hero from the previous idea and have them rally a force to dethrone the god?


US Armed Forces compete against other Armed Forces in a tug-a-war competition. Photo by Gregory A. Harden II

Week 1 Famous Last Words: One last year

The title of this makes me think of MCR...

So for those of you who do not know, this is my last year at OU as an undergraduate. After this semester, all I need to take to get my degree is a total of 7 hours. It is all very exciting and quite terrifying at the same time as my future after May 2017 is currently obscured with a grey haze. I took the GRE earlier this week and inquired to some professors at different universities around the US about a graduate position in their lab, but there has been no luck yet.

It has all been very stressful. I think I will continue to do the "Famous Last Words" posts as a way to remain encouraged and set goals throughout the semester as I am sure that certain things are not going to work out for me whether it be my applications, my experiments for my thesis, or just a really bad day. I am also easily distracted, so having goals written down somewhere might keep me on track.

For my first week, I want to hit the ground running and get some preliminary results on my thesis project. This experiment is make or break, folks. If it works, my idea is golden and I can proceed as planned, if it does not, then I have to come up with an entirely different thesis topic. No pressure bacteria, but don't let me down. I also want to maintain my head start in this class, I know it will be difficult, but I also know that it will be so beneficial to me in the end.

Be sure to check in next week as I will tell you my results on the experiment and let you know if I kept my lead in this course. You can also see my next goals for Week 2 of school.

Cover art of the My Chemical Romance's The Black Parade.
I am feeling very nostalgic about my middle school days...

Week 1 Growth Mindset

I have not heard of Dr. Carol Dweck before, but I have head of a growth and fixed mindset prior to these videos.

While I do agree with the general idea, I believe that it is too binary, Dr. Dweck addresses the fact that this is a societal issue not just in the home, but in the classroom, on the street, ect. but offers no suggestions on how to fix it, at least in these videos. She also mentioned in one of the videos that a result of a fixed mindset are certain statements such as "this is boring". While I will concede the fact that this is plausible, it is not necessarily true. From personal experience, in subject classes such as physics or math, which are not applicable to what I want to be doing in my future, my lack of interest in the class engendered a fixed mindset, whereas my microbiology and chemistry classes are much more interesting to me and I approached challenges with much more enthusiasm. The idea of a fixed vs. growth mindset relies on more than just how the student is praised, but also their unique preferences in subject topic.

Challenges also take more time to complete than easier situations, even if a child has a growth mindset, he or she will end up behind as the class continues to progress while they are still putting in the effort to find a solution. Even for the most growth mindset like person, it will be hard to remain enthusiastic and engaged in a problem as they see their peers leave them behind regardless if they are aware that they are on the same learning curve. I personally believe a growth mindset strategy should not be implemented in education until a standard be reached on how to achieve a growth mindset. Does that make sense?

The solution could be as simple as giving strict time allotments for certain assignments. Students can work on the problem for X minutes and regardless if they find a solution or not, when the allotted time is up, they are praised for their efforts towards answer. Then, of course, they are actually taught how to achieve the solution to the problem...

If this made sense to any of you and you can think of any other strategies for implementing a growth mindset while fostering an equal learning environment for everyone, please share.

Me in my early years of life. (That's a lie, this isn't really me.)
I mean, I have assumed this pose in frustration before,
from school work and tests but physically,
this kid isn't me. At least I hope it isn't.

Saturday, August 20, 2016

Week 1 Starting the Semester

I literally have no tips on how to start the semester off right. Every semester I try something new, but I always revert back to my classical self a few weeks in of just winging it as the time goes by.

I suppose getting a planner would be good, if you are a bit scatter-brained, but to me it is just something extra to carry around and I never actually fill it out, making it a waste of time and money.

I once tried to find a place on campus to always go to to study, but sometime pesky people end up taking my personally assigned spot causing me to spend more time trying to find another suitable location to study or do homework than I actually spend doing the assignments.

Sometimes I try to set goals for what I am going to try to achieve in the class, but regardless of the class I am always still calculating the minimum grade I need on the final to get a decent passing grade.

So, I guess my only tip to you about starting the semester off right is to not be like me...

I'm a tried and true failure when it comes to setting up a routine. But when life itself is as random as the path of a falling leaf, I find it best to act on my feet and compensate when and where I can to meet deadlines and expectations. Chew on that for a moment.

Falling leave represent the true secret to a successful life. Photo by
John Fowler
.