Week 6 Lab

So for this weeks lab I chose to do Crash Course Myth videos.

Video 1: What is a Myth
I liked how they went into how hard it is to define myth, and it's importance to say interpretation. It definitely makes me think it's similar to Religion, and is just as controversial. I find it interesting how, like in many cultures, the stories were passed down and it's hard to know the Origin/author.

Mytho=word
Myth=Special Story
1. significance
2. Staying power
 I liked the story explaining Seasons (Persephone and Hades).


Video 2: Theories of Mythology
Plato says myth=lying
philosophical myths = true

Euhemerism: past events turned into myths
Protoendo-European language: Arians people- base of myths

Anthropology:
Frasier = myths as primitive science

Freud: Individual unconsciousness
Jung: Societal unconsciousness
 Levi Strauss = Structuralist, binaries (male and female, hero villain, etc)
Eliade: binary (sacred and profane, archaic and modern)
Doty: a tool kit for students
Doniger: comparative, also look at context and difference

Video 3: The Hero's Journey through the Monomyth

Campbell: series of events = Monomyth, journey away from safety to adventure, then back home
Heroes tell us something about ourselves. Universal to all, share identical patterns.
Part 1: realm of unconscious, call to adventure, rescues, finally accepts and gets help. Threshhold guardian. The belly of the whale
Part 2: trials and victories of initiation. 6 elements: road of trials, meeting with goddess, woman as temptress, atonement with the father, apotheosis (enlightenment), ultimate boon
Part 3: return and reintegration to society: 6 elements: refusal of returns, magic flight, rescue from without, crossing the return threshold, master the 2 worlds, freedom to live

useful tool to compare stories

(Image of King Neptune from Flickr)

Tech Tip: Cheezburger

How fun is this! Now this automatically made me think of growing up not wanting to wear my glasses, and having to maneuver weirdly to see the board. 

(Image from Cheezburger)

Famous Last Words: Week 5

It's been a few crazy weeks. In addition to a family tragedy (my son's great-grandpa on his dad's side was in the hospital and passed away), we also started some extra curricular activities for my home schooled son, in addition to myself working full time. It feels like we've constantly had something happening every day of the week, and on weekends.

Even with so much going on, I did read The Divine Archer this week. I really liked the other point of view of the Ramayana, but I liked Narayan's better. At first when I started Narayan's the inside stories seemed a bit overwhelming, but in the end I appreciated the back stories. I feel like it definitely helped with a better understanding of the story line. What I did like about the Divine Archer was the imagery used. It went into great detail to describe the scenes. It would be interesting to find more versions and see how they compare.

In terms of writing this week, besides the blogs I didn't do much. I missed Thursday's story telling, but I did edit on my portfolio. I think it definitely has turned out for the better. However, in writing comments, I really liked Sarah's (I believe) use of the journal entries to tell her story of Ravana's wife.

I don't have any other classes right now (I'm going part time), but my next one starts mid October - Film Noir. I'm quite looking forward to it, but it also means I'm working on trying to get ahead in this class so it won't be so much at once (hopefully).

This next week, I hope to continue to stay on top of assignments/try to get ahead. Other than that, it should be a busy week at work, and continuing to play taxi to all the activities (choir, church, soccer, etc), and then we shall end the week with 2 Soccer games. Momin' ain't easy.

Here's my precious kid after playing his first soccer game in the rain yesterday. By the end he was soaking wet, but still had fun.

(Image taken by me)

Week 5 Review

Week 5 review: I chose the mindset video Mental Deficits are Hidden Strengths. I really appreciated this because (once again) of homeschooling a child who is ADHD and has autism, in addition to applying it to any deficits i've had personally. I really liked how she went through everything from being left-handed, to color blindness, to dyslexia. I love anything that turns a potential negative, and showing the positive side of it.

I loved this image from today's (Sunday, September 22nd) announcements.

(Image from cheezburger)

Reading Notes: Ramayana, The Divine Archer

Even just the opening is very different. I love the feel of the details of the celebration of the births. It also gave an age for all of them, the fact all 4 sons were born in the same week. Narayan's Ramayana didn't give those details. It's interesting to see even the differences in names. It's slight, but there, for example Bharat. Or some that are just spelled differently.

Rama and Sita's meeting in this was even more cute. Starting with the fact he said, before he even saw her, that he knew he would love her. Then they saw it each other, and it was true. This version definitely had a lot more imagery.

It almost seems to have omitted the mini-stories that gave a background to some trials they go through. It's a much more simplified version.

It makes me curious as to how they decide what to keep, and what to omit. I did like Narayan's version where it explained more in detail what lead to Sita's kidnapping. How Ravan was enamored with her, and din't want to face Rama. This version says he wanted to see who the better archer was, but then snuck around him to capture Sita.

What a weird random entrance for Jatayu. I think as I went through this I definitely preferred the other version. While it felt more difficult to read, to keep the other stories straight, I feel like it definitely helped give a greater understanding to the plot.

(Image from Flickr)

Gould, F. (2019). The divine archer, founded on the Indian epic of the Ramayana, with two stories from the Mahabharata, by F. J. Gould.. [online] HathiTrust. Available at: https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc2.ark:/13960/t0wp9vr87&view=2up&seq [Accessed 18 Sep. 2019].

Week 4 Review

The Image I LOVED was the "Success is not coming to you; you must come to it" cat. It reminded me of my own cats and them trying balancing on a ladder like that, thinking it would go okay.

The Video I chose was the crash course mythology about Rama. I definitely understand the struggling with pronunciation. I guess I also didn't realize he was blue. I loved that it was a story passed down through generations, and not written down for years. It's also interesting that it spans culture. The art work/animations they used to tell the story was a really cool way to illustrate the story. I just realized I don't remember much about Lakshmana's twin. All the other brothers seemed more active in the story. I really liked the way he told the story. He used a lot in infliction in his voice to keep the viewer entertained. I felt it was a very good representation to the story. He stuck to the same story/included the major details. As he told it, I could think of what part of the book he was discussing. For those not as familiar with it, I think would understand even though it's only a 14 or so minute video. "Just kidding baby, I knew you were legit" cracked me up. It definitely left it very intriguing that would entice me to read the story, if I hadn't already.

(Image from Flickr)

Comment Wall

This is my Portfolio link.

(Image from Flickr)

Week 4 Lab

For this topic, I chose one that stands out to me because it's something that has always been of interest to me. I chose "Teded Videos: Language".

How languages evolve:  I loved this. The history of languages have always intrigued me. It's cool how it travels and combines. Seeing the tree of languages (the families) was really interesting to see.  I would love to see more how they break down words to figure out families. 3000-8000 is a LOT of languages. I didn't realize it was that many.

How did English evolve: Hearty welcome = casual, fun, laid back. Cordial = more formal, uptight, reserved. I had learned some of this history before and it's always interested me. I'd love to take a full History of the English language class. I like the visual of the tree for English as well.

How many verb tenses are there: I liked the breakdown of aspects. It's crazy to see how that can be hard to understand, but at the same time it's not many compared to others (like French).

Are Evlish, Klingon, Dothraki and Na'vi Real Languages: I hadn't even heard of all of these, but it was interesting to learn. Mind blown. I never would've considered grammar meaning it's a real language. Same with evolving. I'm glad I don't have to speak klingon. That sounds terrible. I definitely don't know how to speak with the uvula.

Where Do New Words Come From: I didn't realize we were still pulling words from other languages. I liked the food examples, although it made me hungry. I like how they broke it down how they evolve, not just new words. I hadn't heard of the "Mistories of vernaculars". That could be fun to go back and check it all out.

How to Use a Semicolon:the video game sort of intro was fun. It can clarify a sentence, link independent clauses (that are related), or replace words like but in s sentence.

When to Use Aprostrophes: quotation mark chopped in half *insert cry laughing face". That was hilarious. I did know it was for possession or contraction, but have often seen it misused. It's versus Its was a good example.

Does Grammar Matter: I'm one of those people who correct others. I can't help it. It is interesting to hear the different orders with other languages. I suppose I tend to be a prescriptive person.  I definitely agree that speech and writing are different things though. You can't always set tone through writing.

(Image from Flickr)

Reading Notes: Narayan's Ramayana, Part D

Poor Sita. I can only imagine how scary it would be. Kidnapped and guarded, being tortured in a way because she was staying loyal to her husband. So much time had passed and she had started to wonder if he forgot her. That's a lot to handle. I don't blame a girl at all for contemplating suicide. I'm sure Hanuman showing up was definitely a relief. I love how he handled it to. Letting himself be caught, and destroying a lot of it was wonderful. I'm sure Rama could appreciate it. But of course Ravana would rebuild it immediately (insert eye roll). All could think during Ravana's complaints was "Karma sucks, huh".  Also, I kept thinking he's asking for trouble. The motto i've always heard was "play stupid games, win a stupid prize" and it seems fitting here.
His stupidity lead to the death of almost everyone that surrounded him, and finally himself.
Sita goes hardcore, jumping into the fire to prove herself to Rama. Bharatha is the same way, refusing to live when he thinks Rama isn't returning. I'm glad everything was restored and it was a traditional, happy ending.

(Indra from Flickr)

Narayan, R. K. The Ramayana. Vision Books, 2000.

Reading Notes: Narayan's Ramayana, Part C

During this section I really appreciated Sita's concern for her husband Rama. Instead of worrying about her own safety she urged Lakshmana to go after him and make sure he was okay. Of course this ended up being stupid of her, and she was put in danger. Even Jatayu couldn't save her, although he did manage to let Rama and Lakshmana know what happened and where she went.

Tara intrigues me. She was married to Sugreeva once, and now to Vali. Where does her heart truly lie? What are her real feelings about it all? Has she grown to love Vali more? Surely she knew the truth about what had happened while he was gone. Did she never try to set the record straight? Was she truly sad when Vali died? Is there any source of loyalty to Sugreeva at all?

I'm not loving the fact most characters have multiple names. It gets confusing to keep straight. I wish they could choose one way of referring to them and continue it.

I liked Sampathi's (jatayu's older brother) story. In telling it, it also impacted Hunuman's life by helping him learn about his capabilities. I had wished he was going to join the group to help find Sita. I didn't realize earlier in the story that Jatayu was in charge of a group. I wish they would've clarified that earlier.

This was a good section, but it hasn't been my favorite. I think there are definitely a lot more cliff hanger kind of things happening currently.

(Jatayu on Flickr)

                                      Narayan, R. K. The Ramayana. Vision Books, 2000.

Tech Tip: Pinterest Board

So I have officially started a Pinterest! So the first pin I saved (pinned?) I had to create a board. I have had used Pinterest in the past for home decor/recipes, but it's been a while. It would be neat to see what is new on it.  

Feedback Strategies

So the first article I chose was "What Kinds of Messages Help Kids Grow". Of course this jumped out since I am a mom of a wonderful 8 year old boy. I will take any suggestions/tips on how I can help him. I really appreciated how it jumped right into the language used is important. That's a message i've always believed in and have tried to stress to others. Wording is everything. It can definitely either help or hinder whatever it is you are trying to do. We're so quick to teach consequences for bad actions, most of the time as parents we don't focus on consequences in a good way. Focusing on what/how they did good is an idea I can definitely get behind. My son is
ADHD and has Autism so he struggles, this could help him understand more.

The second one I chose was "How to Provide Great Feedback When You're Not In Charge". This one jumped out because I have gone from a Management position to just another member on a team elsewhere. It's definitely a change and can be a learning curve of how to address things. I love that they broke it down into 3 categories - Appreciation, Advice, and Evaluation. I definitely agree with praising the person, but separating actions when it comes to improvements. I have to use this a lot with my child too. "No, you're not a bad kid. You've just made a bad choice" is a common conversation in our household. Although I definitely don't like Evaluations if I can help it.

Topic Research: Couples

I think my favorite topic from the brainstorm is about the couples. Reading the Ramayana this week I loved looking at Rama and Sita. Their story so far was SUPER cute.

1.) The story of Rama and Sita. Maybe make it a modern day adaptation. They see each other across a crowded street, or bookstore. I think it would be a lot of fun. Most of my research so far is from the Ramayana. I can't wait to continue it and find out more.

2.) The story of Lakshmana and Urmila. I would love to look at exactly how/when/the setting for the time they met. What their thoughts were, etc. it would be interesting to delve into their story more. Sita went with Rama, but Urmila stayed back while Lakshmana went with his brother. What were her true feelings? Was she really sort of okay with it? Did she struggle with the idea of sleeping for 14 years, or was she happy to do it so the time would pass quickly? Most of what I know is from wikipedia.

3.) A story that combines both couples. Maybe a new event, or trial they all have to work through. Nothing super brilliant worked out yet. I'd love to compare and contrast the two. Though both are love stories, it seems like there would be some different dynamics to play off of.

(Image from Flickr)

Week 3 Story

Note: This story is now revised and in my Portfolio!

For this week, I LOVED the story of Rama and Sita and have chosen to retell their story of meeting and their wedding.

Rama, and his brother Lakshmana, was on a journey with Viswamithra when they came into a small town. They were taking in all the sights and sounds when he sees this BEAUTIFUL woman on a balcony. Their eyes connected right away, and it was like an electric jolt was shot through his body. He didn't allow any outward emotions to show, and kept walking. However, later that night he allowed himself to focus on her. She was absolutely breathtaking. He couldn't stop thinking about her and the moment their eyes met. Why did he react like that? What did it mean? He doubted there was any hope. Surely, this amazing woman was spoken for. He tossed and turned all night.

Meanwhile, across town, Sita was having a similar night. She couldn't stop thinking about the stranger she had witnessed. Who was he? What was he doing there? Why had she reacted this way?
How could she find him? Why did he seem so familiar? She couldn't sleep and felt miserable at the thought of never seeing him again. She put herself in seclusion while she mourned what never was.

The next day Rama, Lakshmana, and Viswamithra went to the King's court. The King started lamenting on the fact he made a proclamation years ago, and now regretted it. He had said the man who wanted to marry Sita needed to shoot this HUGE bow and arrow. It's been proven pretty impossible.  He worried about Sita and what would happen. She seemed doomed when it came to ever getting married. Viswamithra made the comment he should pull it out and see if Rama could do it. The King thought it wouldn't work, but still ordered it to be brought forth immediately. Rama, of course, succeeded and so he was betrothed to Sita.

Sita missed all this since she was in seclusion. A servant came in happily discussing it. It took her several minutes to understand and she just hoped it was the handsome stranger she saw from her balcony earlier in the night. Luckily, her wish was granted, and so they were set to wed.

If that isn't a love at first sight story to die for, I don't know what is.

(Rama and Sita - Flickr)

Narayan, R. K. The Ramayana. Vision Books, 2000.

Reading Notes: Narayan's Ramayana, Part B

So now we are moving on to section B. I really admire Bharatha. His mother went through that much work (as terrible as it was) to get him on the throne, and he renounces it and tries to fight it. He didn't want any part of her scheming, he truly believed Rama needs to be the King. He even went so far as to refuse to go home until Rama has returned after the 14 years and will rule.
Also to cycle back around to Rama and Sita (how cute are they), I loved the fact as they're going through the woods he is still so enamored by her beauty. He also does everything he can to protect her. He makes sure she stayed safe throughout everything with Soorpanaka. He wasn't swayed away from her at all, and just cared about her well being. Rama ordered Lakshmana to guard her when he couldn't. Such a sweet couple.

Ravana is a tricky guy. He was too scared (for lack of a better term) for the fight, so he did what he could to find ways around it and not have to face Rama. He didn't care about putting his uncle in danger though. He just wanted what he wanted, which in this instance, was Sita.

(Ravana on Flickr)

Narayan, R. K. The Ramayana. Vision Books, 2000.

Reading Notes: Narayan's Ramayana, Section A

Sorry for this being later than intended. We had a family member hospitalized/passed away so I've been with family and helping my son process. However, now it's time to jump back in and try to catch up on it all.

So part A: I struggled a bit with so many stories within the story. I had to reread multiple times to keep characters straight (even with referencing the character page). My favorite story was definitely Rama and Sita's and their dedication to each other. It was an honest "Love at First Sight" situation, and the romantic in me LOVED it. 

I loved the fact they were fated to be together, and even though the were incarnated they still recognized each other right away. They didn't feel whole without the other person being there with them. The King (her father) lamented about the bow and arrow he had proclaimed, but in the end it worked out exactly as it should. They ended up together. She even gave up a life of luxury as long as she wouldn't have to live a minute without him.

I love the fact they complement each other. Even though she grew up royalty, she would give it up in an instant to be with him. Rama is so noble. He is truly trying to do his best for everyone. He isn't selfish in the least. He is a character everyone can look up to, and they do. Everyone loves him. 

(Rama and Sita from Flickr)

Narayan, R. K. The Ramayana. Vision Books, 2000.

Feedback thoughts

I love the idea for these positive feedback articles. I think it's definitely something lacking in our society. So much of the time we focus on the negativities in our lives and in others instead of the positives and how they can improve.

I definitely tend to be a perfectionist, get anxiety, and way overthink things. So the first article that caught my attention was Silence the Critical Voices in Your Head. I like the mentality of not nitpicking every little negative thing in your head, but indeed just focusing on the positives and how they can come into play and help you improve. So many times people shrug off positives and focus solely on the negatives. It can be hard to take compliments, but easy to accept what we perceive to be insults. It's definitely something i'm guilty of, so it's nice to have the reminder to step back, and know it's okay, and how to handle it.

The second article that caught my attention was Rewire Your Self-Critical Brain. It goes really well with the previous article but instead of externally, it focuses on internally. We are our own worst critics. Its so easy to get into a negative slump and it just starts a while downward spiral. Focusing on congratulating ourselves and focusing on the positives can change the course of our whole day. Positive thinking tends to infiltrate into every aspect of our lives. We tend to feel better about ourselves and our situations. However, negativity is definitely an easier choice so it is definitely something that has to be worked at.

The best feedback I had received was usually from my choir classes. We had to work as a group so it was a team effort. It could go either way (really bad or great) depending on the focus of all the individuals. Even just hearing the outcome was great feedback. However, I  have had a lot of negative feedback in my life too. I have had multiple teachers/professors give a low grade and give some feedback, but not enough to understand what they were wanting and what I did wrong from their ideas. Many times I had followed the directions given and just felt defeated. Work wise they tend to focus on a lot more positives with just a few "need to work on" areas which I appreciate as well. My boss in particular does a well job of wording it more as building up instead of tearing down.

(Image from Flickr)

Topic Brainstorms

So to begin with, I have no prior knowledge of Indian Epics. So anything I choose is all new information.

The first topic that looks interesting is starting at the beginning with Creation Stories. I love different ideas on creation. They all have similarities and differences. It's neat to see how the connect globally. Even different cultures/languages share ideas/thoughts. The link in wikipedia on creation intrigued me and I loved the information and how it broke it down into parts. It's not one set idea but rather several different ideas throughout the culture. It's interesting even in just that they have similarities and differences, and I think it would be fascinating to learn more, and come up with a neat way to tie them together.

Another topic that caught my attention was Indra, God of Thunder. Of course I think of Thor, so it would be cool to read about Indra and see the similarities/differences to what we think of. I like that it's another topic that spans across into Buddhism and Jainism as well as Hinduism.  Being an animal lover, I love the fact he has an Elephant. I could imagine writing a story about one of his great adventures. The Wikipedia page has lots of information. I could see it being easy to go back and reference.

The third that jumped out at me was Loving Couples of the Ramayana.I'm a sucker for a good love story, so that seems right up my ally. It would be cool to write about a loving couple and contrast it with another to show both sides. I liked going through and reading about Urmila and Lakshmana and their apparent drama. It could be fun to twist stories and find ways to play with it.

(Image from Flickr)

Lastly, Animal characters of the Ramayana definitely caught my eye. I LOVE animals, so it would be cool to go through and see the influences they have in the stories. Nala makes me think of the Lion King, although in this she is a monkey. I would like to compare the two. This Nala seems to have a lot more to her, although both technically go through a battle.