Reading Notes: Homer's Odyssey Part A

Caption: Polyphemus being stabbed in the eye. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_von_dem_blühenden_Tal

Bibliography: Homer, The Odyssey, http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/05/odyssey-land-of-cyclopes.html . 

Reading Notes: When I read this story in high school, I particularly loved the part regarding Polyphemus. I always thought he was an interesting character. I think it would be interesting to write about Polyphemus. Maybe I'll write a diary post that is written in first-person in regards to Polyphemus and his daily life before Odysseus and his crew came ashore his island. I've also always loved Circe; I liked the idea of a witch and thought that she really could have been more powerful than Homer made her out to be. I really like her connection with the wild animals. I always thought it was powerful and really intriguing. I think that Polyphemus and Circe could both be interesting characters to expand on; they both live fairly lonely lives on their islands and I think that the approach of a diary entry for one of them would be an interesting approach to write about.

Feedback Thoughts

Caption: Feedback in crafts. https://pixabay.com/en/feedback-handicraft-creativity-520527/

https://hbr.org/2016/10/using-harsh-feedback-to-fuel-your-career
http://ideas.ted.com/why-rejection-hurts-so-much-and-what-to-do-about-it/
https://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2015/03/10/the-difference-between-praise-that-promotes-narcissism-vs-healthy-self-esteem/
https://www.brainpickings.org/2013/05/23/stephen-grosz-examined-life/

I think it's a very interesting point that the best way to take feedback is to try to not react emotionally towards receiving it. It's so easy to be hurt and offended when feedback is received and automatically assume the worst intentions in the people giving it to you. But that's not the point of feedback. I think that the "Using Harsh Feedback to Fuel Your Career" article was the most helpful towards me. I tend to automatically let my emotions dictate how I feel about receiving feedback and I think it's important to know that that's not the intention. I also thought it was interesting that giving praise over working hard is more emphasized and more important than giving praise over accomplishments. This is something I hadn't really considered too much honestly. I haven't been in too many situations where I've had to give/receive a lot of feedback, but I'm sure I will in future jobs, so I think it's important to learn how to do it now.

Week 2 Story: The Rise of Achilles

Achilles was born into extraordinary circumstances. It was prophesied long before his birth that his mother, Thetis, would bear a child much stronger than his father. Many gods feared to bear children with Thetis, in fear of creating too strong of a being. However, Achilles’ father was an extraordinarily strong man, king of many people.

When Achilles was just a baby, his mother tried to make him immortal by dipping him in the river Styx. However, she missed a small part on his ankle, his only weakness. That hardly stopped Achilles from rising to greatness at a young age, though.

Achilles quickly became the greatest fighter in all of Greece. He spent a lot of his younger years around the soldiers, and learned how to use a sword and all sorts of other weapons. When Achilles was just ten years old, he could win a sword fight with every member of the Greek army.

When Achilles was twelve, he officially joined the army anytime they went to battle. This was significantly younger than most soldiers had to be before joining the army. There was one battle in particular where Achilles really showed his strength and prowess. Greek had been fighting with Messenia for many years. Achilles had been begging his father to send him to join the fighting. Despite his best efforts to keep his son safe, Peleus knew that Achilles could really help their fight in Messenia and reluctantly sent him.

When Achilles first arrived, there was no clear winner. He rounded the troops and came up with a strategy. They would withdraw, regroup, and attack from their undefended side. The journey to the other side of Messenia would take longer than most men were willing to do, but Achilles was able to convince the soldiers that their best bet was to try and attack Messenia from where they weren’t expecting it.

The soldiers set off on their journey, making it longer than necessary to ensure that they would arrive undetected. Upon their arrival in the early morning, they were detected by a few guards. Achilles sprang forward, slaying both of them with the single pull of his sword. The Greek soldiers quietly spread throughout Messenia, leaving destruction and death in their wake.

Achilles, however, took mercy on those who were not involved in the battle. He didn’t harm any of the older men, women, or children. Quickly and quietly, the Greek soldiers made their way to the middle of the town where the king of the Messenia lay sleeping. Upon Achilles entering into his bedchamber, the King awoke with a start.

The King could hardly believe that a mere twelve year old boy lead the successful siege of his town after the fighting had gone on for so long with no clear shift of power. The King asked who Achilles was and Achilles replied with pride, “Achilles, son of Peleus, here to accept your surrender.”

The King had no choice; the soldiers had clearly won the battle and destroyed Messenia. The King gave his surrender to Achilles and Achilles brought back the Greek soldiers to Sparta, victorious. Ever since that win in Messenia, Achilles was the most respected soldier in all of Greece.

Author's Note: The Iliad is a story of the Greeks attacking the Trojans to retrieve their beloved Helen. The story is full of great fights, heroism, and love. When reading the Iliad, my favorite character was immediately Achilles. Not only was he a great fighter, but he loved and cared for his friends, and was merciful towards his enemies. I chose to write about Achilles' rise because I thought he was an interesting character that must've had a pretty interesting backstory.
Caption: A statue of Achilles in Hyde Park. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Achilles_Statue,_Hyde_Park_in_March_2011.jpg.
Bibliography: Homer's The Iliad. http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/05/iliad-rousing-of-achilles.html.

Reading Notes: Homer's Iliad Part B

Caption: Achilles in the Iliad. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wrath_of_Achilles2.jpg

I think that Hector is being rational when he says he doesn't fear men, but he does fear Zeus. I feel for Achilles; his pain and sadness seem very fitting and I can understand why he is so upset over the death of his friend and why he blames himself. Achilles is a very trusting man; he's brave and smart to put his trust in the gods. I think it'd be scary running to battle without any arms. 

Apollo does seem mischievous. All the other gods seem to have a purpose in mind when interfering in the lives of mortals. I would be mad if I were Achilles too. I like Achilles a lot; I think he could be an interesting main character for my story. 

It does seem a little too much to me that Achilles attached Hector to his chariot and dragged him behind. I think that Achilles made the right decision to give Hector's body back to his father. 

Bibliography: Homer's the Iliad. http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/05/iliad-rousing-of-achilles.html.

Reading Notes: Homer's Iliad Part A

Nine years is a long time to try to break through the city's walls to no avail; this could be an interesting point of writing. I could explore some of what happened in those nine long years. Also, the princes seem to be very loyal to be away for that long.

I agree with Achilles; Agamemnon seems to be very selfish and unconcerned for the wellbeing of those fighting for the king of Sparta. Achilles seems very wise after speaking with Athena. He appears to be handling Agamemnon's selfishness quite well.

It seems funny to me that the gods and goddesses all have favorite humans for their own reasons, and help them.

Bibliography: Homer's The Iliad.http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/05/iliad-hector-and-andromache.html.
Caption: A scene from The Iliad. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_story_of_the_Iliad_(1911)_(14596485307).jpg.

Growth Mindset

Caption: An artistic representation of Growth Mindset by Jessica Ottewell. (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134717758@N06/19751739181)

Though I had never specifically heard of Growth Mindset, I've heard of this way of thinking before to some extent. This is my first time ever hearing of Carol Dweck and her "Growth Mindset" specifically. I think this was an interesting read for me because I think that I have been that student that is easily rewarded by doing well on tests and getting A's in school. I've never been taught to appreciate working hard for the sake of working hard. I don't know that I'll necessarily be excited to learn more about growth mindset, but I do think it would be interesting to approach some of my classwork with this mindset instead. I'm not particularly worried about any one class this semester; rather, I'm worried about the combination of all of my classes and the stress that will most likely accompany them. 

Time Strategies

My personal favorite time management strategy is to keep an organized planner. That way, I can open it at any point in time and see everything that I have going on for that entire month. I treat it almost like a checklist, too; I cross off everything as soon as I don't need to worry about it anymore. I liked the "the Psychology of Checklists" article; I think it's a very practical method to create "SMART" checklist goals and to check things off the list. I've definitely noticed that I do receive some sort of gratification from checking things off a list, even if they seem small and mundane tasks. I can understand how checking little things off a list over time will amount to checking big things off a list. I personally like treating my planner like a to-do list; it helps me visualize when my to-do list will be extra long and I'll need to work on things at a different time.

Caption: Close up picture of a watch. (https://www.pexels.com/search/time/)

Reading Options

http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/05/myth-folklore-unit-homers-odyssey.html
I've always been drawn to greek history and found it extremely interesting. I love learning about the greek gods and goddesses and find the style of writing at the time to be interesting. I remember reading the Odyssey freshman year of high school and I vaguely remember learning about all of the crazy adventures and tales from the journey. Though at the time, I think that I did not appreciate the story nearly as much as I wish I would have. I am excited at the opportunity to go back and read the story again with new eyes and with a new approach.
http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/search/label/Unit%3A%20Alice%20in%20Wonderland
I always loved Alice in Wonderland growing up; I admired the adventure that she undertook and always envied the whimsical world that she got to explore. However, I do not think that I have ever actually read the original story and have definitely never considered it from a reading-to-writing perspective. I think that considering it in this light would give me an interesting outlook on the story.
http://mythfolklore.blogspot.com/2014/05/myth-folklore-unit-beowulf.html
Beowulf is a story I've heard of many times, yet I actually no nothing about. I think it would be interesting too, because I don't have much knowledge about celtic stories at all. Because I have no background on this story or on stories of this type, I think that I could approach it in a really interesting way and learn a lot from it.

Caption: Odysseus and his crew on their journey. (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arnold_Böcklin_-_Odysseus_and_Polyphemus.jpg)

Storybook Favorites

Caption: A close up wolf shot by Sandra Peterson. (https://pixabay.com/en/wolf-eye-fur-wild-animal-wildlife-1352242/)

https://sites.google.com/site/thevillainsside/
I found this collection particularly interesting because I like seeing things from the other side of the story. I once saw Wicked when I was younger and this drew me into seeing things from the "villain's" side because there is always more than meets the eye. Overall, I liked the darker colors used in the design because I thought it was consistent with the villainous theme. I also think the introduction did a good job of explaining the compilation very well. Overall, I think that this compilation was very interesting and done well.
https://sites.google.com/site/mountolympusgossip/aphrodite
I think that this is a very interesting compilation as well. I thought it was interesting how the side of "gossip" was approached because it seems to go along well with the greek gods/godesses as subject matter. I think that the overall design of the website went well with this theme; it gives off almost a preppy feel to the website, a design that seems to go along well with gossip-y approach to the website. I think the introduction was consistent with how the rest of the stories are written and I think it is sufficient in explaining the website.
https://sites.google.com/site/diaryoftheundeadmyth/home
I think that this is also a very interesting approach to the stories. I like the "diary" style writing; I think that it is easy to follow and be interested in, but is also informative enough because it is written in the first-person. I think that the dark theme to the website is also consistent with the story of writing and the theme of the website since it has an undead theme.

Introduction to the Jack of all Trades

Hi fellow bloggers! My name is Ellie Hummel. I’m a senior Mathematical Chemistry major at the University of Oklahoma and I start medical school at the University of Oklahoma’s College of Medicine in August of 2017. I started my undergraduate career at Oklahoma State University, but transferred to OU after discovering that Stillwater just wasn’t the place for me.

I’ve been blessed to have been able to live in a variety of places. I was born in Salt Lake City, Utah. I moved to Calgary, Alberta, before finally ending up in Tulsa, Oklahoma and calling Oklahoma home. I have two older brothers and one younger sister. When I was very young, I had my older sister pass away from heart failure; this is what inspired me to want to attend medical school.

Though I’m particularly passionate about medicine and helping people, my interests are also all over the board. I love reading; my dad used to read to me every day in my favorite reading chair and I’ve been hard-pressed to be seen without a book since. I love music; I play the piano and have since my parents first forced me to when I was 8 years old. I love cooking; the endless combinations and possibilities always excites me.

I’m a bit of an adrenaline junkie as well; I love a good adventure. Whether it’s hiking, sky diving, snowboarding, kayaking, mountain biking, scuba diving-you name it, I love it! I particularly love anything that I can do outdoors. I don’t know if it’s the fresh air or the sunshine, but something about being outdoors makes me happy. I recently picked up running and decided I love the challenge of constantly pushing my body to see how much it can take. I recently ran my first half-marathon and am in training for my first marathon. I also recently did my first triathlon, and am in training for the next one.

Caption: personal photo of myself from February of 2016.

Week 1 Story: The Marvelous Lion

Ronan was a strong, fierce warrior in his younger years. He loved his pride and guarded them with everything he had to offer. Though he would do anything for the ones he loved in his pride, the rest of the animal kingdom had reason to fear and respect Ronan.

Ronan was fast and never lost his kill. He never killed for sport and made his kills as quick as possible. Still, when Ronan marked you for his kill, there was no getting free. Ronan’s favorite meal was antelope; they were more of a challenge to catch than other animals. Ronan said that antelopes were “juicy and rewarding.”

Ronan’s death was a direct consequence of his love for antelopes. Ronan, being the strongest and fastest in the pride, was tasked with teaching the cubs how to hunt. His favorite cub was Klinga. Klinga was a silly, uncoordinated little cub who happened to be the runt of his litter. Klinga would never amount to much in the pride, but Ronan loved him all the same.

One day, Ronan was out teaching the cubs how to hunt antelope. Klinga was all-too-eager to be the first to make a kill. He ran out in the pack of antelopes, with no clear kill in mind, trying to find the baby of the group. The antelopes, much bigger than Klinga, began to attack him and push him away from their group. Ronan, tasked with the wellbeing of all the cubs, didn’t know what to do. He didn’t wish to leave the other cubs unguarded but couldn’t bear to see Klinga injured like that. Ronan jumped in front of Klinga right as the antelopes were charging with their long, pointed pronghorns.

Klinga had his eyes closed and opened them to see Ronan laying in front of him, bleeding from enormous wounds in his side. Ronan said to Klinga, “take the cubs back to the pride and make sure they make it home safely.” Klinga, overcome with sadness, ran back to the cubs before he could say anything else.

Ronan was respected by the animals in the animal kingdom, particularly by the antelopes. He only killed for meat and killed quickly, unlike many other lions. When they had seen what they had done, the antelopes left Ronan to die on his own. Ronan, just a young lion, couldn’t believe his life had come to this. He slowly, painfully dragged himself to his favorite cave, not far from where he was laying. There, he hoped to die peacefully on his own, remembering all of his favorite times in life. These hopes were dashed though, when he saw some familiar animals heading his way…

Author’s note: A lion lay sick and dying in his cave. Instead of the other animals leaving him to die on his own, they all come in and take advantage of the dying lion. They make him suffer more and hurt the lion. The moral of the story is that only cowards will act that way when they know that they cannot be harmed in return. I wanted to give the lion a back story that showed the fierce warrior he was in his lifetime, explaining why all the other animals only dared to approach him when he was dying and incapable of harming them. 

Bibliography: “The Sick Lion” from Aesop’s Fables by Aesop.

Caption: Cecil the lion at Hwange National Park. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cecil_the_lion_at_Hwange_National_Park_(4516560206).jpg