Story: America's Inferno

I'm finally in bed after a long day of work and school, but I can't sleep because my head is spinning with all this political propaganda that I've been hearing all day. Tomorrow is November 8th, 2016. Tomorrow is the day that America will select the next President of the United States. You would think I would have my mind made up by now, but everything is just so confusing, you know? What if I make the wrong decision? What if America makes the wrong decision? Maybe I'll just sleep on it, and make my mind up in the morning.......

"ABANDON ALL HOPE, ALL YE THAT ENTER HERE"

"Well that's a strange sign. And that's a strange door. Where am I?", I think to myself. Everything looks dark and cold. Suddenly, a spitting image of myself appears to me out of no where. "I'm your conscience", she said to me (I said to me?) "and I will be your guide as we descend into voter's hell."

"Here are your two candidates", she said to me. "As we descend into the five circles of hell, try to make up your mind about who you want to run this great country."

"This here, is your first candidate. Yes, I know she looks like a donkey.

And over here, is your second candidate. No, he's not behind the elephant. He is the elephant.

That's how things work around here. The candidates turn into their respective political symbols. That way, uninformed voters can just straight-party vote. They just look for the animals. This makes it easier on them- and now anyone can vote, regardless if they are informed about the issues or not.

Anyway, good luck. Here we go."

DENIAL: This cannot be happening. 

How are these our two candidates!? Out of all the people in America... how these two?? These two cannot control our country. These two cannot determine our fate! How did we get here? This is actually some joke... right? Right??

ANGER: This pisses me off.

Who let this happen? I will knock them right off their rocker if I ever get to meet them. Every word they say is complete propaganda- how does no one see through that? These people are a disgrace to America and Democracy!

BARGAINING: Okay, seriously, what will it take?

I'll do anything- anything at all- if anyone else will run! No takers? I've taken a Political Science class once, and I took Government in high school, I could probably be better qualified for this job. PLEASE work with me here!!

DEPRESSION: The world is over.

There is no happiness. We will never recover from this. There is no light at the end of this tunnel. We will all die alone.

ACCEPTANCE: Alright, I guess this will have to do. 

Both of you are lustful, and gluttonous, greedy, lazy, wrathful, envious, and especially prideful. You are both terrible candidates. But I know what I must do.

My conscience turned to me. "So what do you want to do? We have to catch the next train back to reality, otherwise we'll be stuck here in voter's limbo forever."

"Nah, I'm good," I said. "I'd rather stay in this hell, rather than face the one up there."

Source

Author's Note: 

I have always been fascinated by Dante's Inferno, and I was really excited to write this week and connect the election madness with Dante's descent into hell. I really wanted to include certain aspects of the original story, including the guide into hell, and the seven deadly sins. I wanted to change the circles of hell into stages of grief though, as we are all suffering a little bit (right?). I referenced this site for the five stages of grief. I referred to this site for the seven deadly sins. 

Bibliography:

From Dante's Inferno, translated by Tony Klein.

Reading B: Inferno

I love the Minotaur as a character, not sure who or what could represent it in my story. Could decend into hell (aka: voting decision) throughout story. Who will guide me - should be someone trustworthy- maybe my conscience? Rather than circles of hell, five stages of grief: link here. Conclude with the destruction of the world and everything in it OR burn the bridge back up and live in hell instead. Who will be Satan? Maybe Americans as a whole/ politics? Could experiment with a few different people here.

Satan in the last circle of hell.

Source

Bibliography:
From Dante's Inferno from Dante's Divine Comedy, translated by Tony Kline.

Reading A: Inferno

I chose this unit because I've always been fascinated with Dante's Inferno- I know I can find a great story from this! I might want to do an election style story, to keep in context with my reality.
Right off the bat, I think it's interesting that this is in first person. I feel like I'll be able to connect with the characters better this way. I could create a character that used to be human, but is no longer, and is now turned into an animal (election candidates turning into animals). Virgil guided him through hell- someone guiding me through election hell. "Forsake all Hope, All You That Enter Here" is a great way to start this hellish piece. I could include getting stuck in Limbo, where you have to forever justify your election decision, and never escape the election. Meet people along the way that mislead me and interfere with my decision. I could name the sinners, and call out everything the candidates did. How each candidate represents the seven deadly sins. 

Nine Circles of Hell

Source

Bibliography:
Dante's Inferno from Dante's Divine Comedy, translated by Tony Kline

Story Planning: A Riddle for the Fall

Source Notes:
"fell down a well"
- I wanted to expand this action and create a story where the main character is reflecting on things as he is falling down a well, as Alice said it was a very long fall
- I wanted to include things about where he came from and the actions leading up to him falling down the well
- I wanted to include the riddle "Why is a raven like a writing desk?" to further allude to Alice in Wonderland, him hypothesizing about it the whole way down

Character Sketches:
The man falling down the well
- curious man, easily distracted by his own thoughts
- reflecting on the riddle while falling rather than panicking about actually falling

Source

Research:
- riddle about raven and writing desk has been 'answered' many times
- some of my favorite theories include:
"Because they are both used to carri-on de-composition"
"Because there is a 'b' in both"
"Because it can produce a few notes, though they are very flat; and is never put with the wrong end in front!"
(Source here)
- there's a pub that is called the 'raven' in London, where it has been said that Carroll used to write there, perhaps this is the answer or related to the answer
- maybe there is no answer at all, and he intended for us all to hypothesize our own answers

Writing goals:
- I want to expand on my stories more and make the length of them greater, but sometimes I experience writer's block and I may benefit by saving my story and re-visiting it later to revise and expand

Final Paragraph:
Perhaps I'll never really know why a raven is like a writing desk. Or, at least, I'll never know the original intended answer. I wonder how long this fall is- I'm surely near New Zealand by now... or is it Sydney? Maybe I'll find out. Maybe I'll never kn---

Bibliography:
From Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland

Reading B: Alice in Wonderland

Source

A Mad Tea- Party
-Dormouse
-arguing about civility
-Why is a raven like a writing desk?
+include this in my story/ man falling
-speaking english but not making sense
-'beat time'
-imaginative Alice

The Queen's Croquet Ground
-gardeners painting rose tree
-cards
-elaborate entrance
-"off with their heads"
-playing croquet with a flamingoes and other animals
-tried to behead the cat

Who Stole the Tarts?
-jury/jurors of creatures
-witness to whoever stole tarts
-Mad Hatter
-Im a poor man
-cook next witness
-called Alice

Alice's Evidence
-she grew during court
-against Knave
-pun
-sentencing
-Alice's sister woke her up

From Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland

Reading A: Alice in Wonderland

Down the Rabbit Hole
-Alice loves pictures and conversations in books
-White rabbit ran by
-fell down the well
+could write a story and tell it as a man is falling down a well
-asked herself silly questions
+write about how he got there, what he would do if he lived
-tried the small golden key
+could write amelia bedelia style and take things literally
-drink me
-eat me
-talking nonsense

Advice from A Caterpillar
-"Who are YOU"
-strange poem about young and old
+write about a shrinking man
-pigeon thought she was serpent

Pig and Pepper
-livery or fish
+could get a strange package, wonder about it, benign
-pepper in the air
-strange poem
-baby pig
-met cheshire cat
-'we're all mad here'
-grin without a cat

Source

From Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland

Story: The Invisible Giant

So, before you understand my story, you need to understand some things about me.
Firstly, I am a giant.
No, really, I'm massive. When I'm standing tall, I'm at least 7 feet taller than the Empire State Building. 
Which I've never actually seen, by the way.
Secondly, I am invisible.
No, really, no one can see me. I've tried to get the attention of people my whole life, to let them know that I'm here to make their lives just a little more tolerable, but to no avail. No one has ever been able to see me.
That isn't to say that they haven't ever sensed me, though.

My whole life, I have wondered where I came from. Did I have a family, like these people that I have been desperately trying to get the attention of for so many years? Did I have a purpose?
I could let all this 'unknowing' make me sour and depressed, but I can't do that. I just can't. 
Not when there are things to be done. 

Have you ever wondered how you usually come this close to hitting squirrels, but always manage to stop in time?
That was me.
Have you ever wondered how sometime you have the perfect amount of change to buy that vending machine Coke for lunch?
That was also me.
Have you ever wondered how you can drop that iPhone onto concrete over and over again, and it only breaks one time out of ten?
That's not that $50 phone case that you ordered on Amazon. That's me.

Now the times that you do hit that poor squirrel, or the times that you don't have that extra 30 cents for that Coke, or when you crack your iPhone after you drop it on carpet, those times I'm helping someone else. I'm j trying to make things a little more fair around here.

I intervene in lives everyday, but I'm never noticed at all. I can tell you that without me, there is a lot more chaos in the world. Getting 'heads' on a coin flip actually doesn't have a probability of 1/2, by the way.

Sometimes, I like to swim the Pacific Ocean and intervene between the sharks and the minnows. Sometimes, for fun, I like to shave icebergs into snow cones. I like to go to Vegas on vacation, and make sure that some people roll their die just right. I like to make people and animals happy, really. Or, at least, make their lives less inconvenienced.

I'm not 'karma' or 'luck' or 'divine intervention' or anything like that. I'm just a regular dude. Kinda. Except for the 'giant' and 'invisible' thing. Whatever.

Anyway, I'm not telling you this for any praise from you. I just want you to know that, while I can't keep every minor inconvenience out of your life, I'm looking out for all of you. 

Source

Author's Note:
In the original story, Alice is an 'invisible' giant to the Red King, and she freaks him out when she lifts him up and puts him on a table.

Bibliography:
From Lewis Carroll's Alice in  Wonderland.

Reading B: Through the Looking Glass

My Own Invention
-Lion and Unicorn
-arguing over prisoner (red/white knight)
-battled
-knight's box to hold clothes and sandwiches
-box upside down
-bee hive
+story from a bee hive
-keep horse from being bit by a shark
-hair fastened on
-kept falling off
-get horse on wheels
-tells of invention ideas
-pudding courses
-golden crown on her head

Queen Alice
-encounters queen
-red and white
-speaking nonsense to her
-asking her addition/subtraction etc
-riddles with no answers
-sang a lullaby
-Alice stuck between them
-met a frog
-leg of Mutton
-poetry about fishes

Shaking and Waking
-caught/bought/cook/dish/sup/cover
un dish cover the fish or dishcover the riddle
-return thanks
-crazy scene/ crashing plates
-woke up and was talking to kitten

Source

From Lewis Carroll's Alice in  Wonderland.

Reading A: Through the Looking Glass

Looking Glass House
-Alice telling stories to cats
+could tell stories to Cedie
-looking glass house
-sent into world
-looked at fire
-Red King and Queen
-invisible to the king
+write a story about an invisible giant that intervenes
-JABBERWOCKY backwards

Tweedledum and Tweedledee
-asked them for advice how to get out of forrest
-goofy characters
-shook both their hands at same time to not offend them
--
-Alice sympathetic to oysters
-tried to not wake up the red king
-question whether she was real or not
-white thing under tree= rattle
-fought over it

The Walrus and the Carpenter
-story interjected in Tdum and Tdee chapter
-long poem
-oysters
-ate all the oysters

Humpty Dumpty
-egg got larger and larger
-nursey rhyme
-he's in a book
-asked her age
-unbirthday
-broke down nonsensical poem
-left Humpty

Source

From Lewis Carroll's Alice in  Wonderland.

Story Planning:

Source

Source notes:
Shin-ge-bis Fools the North Wind
-fisherman, north wind, south wind
-Indian summer
-diver ignored warnings
+involve poems
-cooked fish, plentiful
-began to thaw North Wind
-wrestled, warmed up North Wind
-cheerfulness and courage overcome

I thought it would be cool to incorporate poems into my next story, as this story had done. I really like Native American culture, and I wanted to do something with their culture and their stories. In this story, Iagoo was an all-knowing storyteller, and I wanted to draw from this.

Research:
I found this on Iagoo- it's basically an adaptation of the original story. In this story, his name is Agoo. Here's a good description I found of him:

"AGOO, the story-teller of the Indians, is a little, old man with a face as black as the shell of the butternut and a body like a twisted stick. His eyes are twice as large as other men's, so that when a bird flies past him he sees twice as many feathers on it, and all the little colors underneath are bright to him. His ears are twice as large as other men's, so that what seems to them but a tiny sound is to him like the roll of thunder. His legs are supple and his arms are strong, so that he can run faster and further, and can lift and carry twice as much as others."

This story is from the Ojibwe. They have one of the largest Native American populations, and they live in Canada and the United States. They have a very rich culture, especially in their music, art, and literature.

Styles: 
I could do strictly poems for this story
+ creative, challenge me
- hard to fit certain aspects into this story, might be hard to reach word limit

Write this from Iagoo's perspective, how he learned these things
+ Could be very adventurous
- Ive done this before

Character Sketches:
Iagoo- wants to tell of his travels and his journies, great story teller
Children- want to soak up everything he teaches, entertainment

Final Paragraph:
And that my children, is how it all went.
Now I must go to bed, for I am surely spent.
I hope that I have answered all of your questions,
I am ready for tomorrow, for our next story session.
Yes, I have traveled far, and seen a lot,
I will tell my stories, so it won't be for naught.

Writing Goals:
I want to expand on my ideas even more. I would also like to further develop my characters, and make them more relatable to the readers.

Reading B: American Indian Fairy Tales

The Boy who Snared the Sun
-during winter, Iagoo's teepee still warm
-Dormouse
-people were vegitarians
-stole fire
-Mastodon largest animal
-mischief from little brother
-killed birds, made coat
-sun ruined coat, devised plan to get back at sun
-noosed the sun
-Dormouse set the sun free, died in process

The Mastodon

source

How the Summer Came
-North Wind
-Fisher brought summer down from sky
-son shown same hunting promise
-sun is roof and floor
-grandfather is squirrel
-father (manito) attempt to bring down summer
-took turns jumping into sky
-he is now constellation

The Fairy Bride
-Indian daughter that lived on Lake Superior
-pranks
-Sang a song
-Happy Land
-wants to follow heart
-had to marry man she didnt love
-fairy Evergreen vanished

Bibliography:
From "American Indian Fairy Tales" by Henry Schoolcraft.

Reading A: American Indian Fairy Tales

Iagoo, the Story Teller
+could include an all-knowing character, tells stories
-children big fan of him and his stories

The North Wind

Source

Shin-ge-bis Fools the North Wind
-fisherman, north wind, south wind
-Indian summer
-diver ignored warnings
+involve poems
-cooked fish, plentiful
-began to thaw North Wind
-wrestled, warmed up North Wind
-cheerfulness and courage overcome

The Little Boy and Girl in the Clouds
-iagoo is very patient with children
-story passed down
-animals and men friendly terms
-animals run free
-Jack Rabbit
-river
-climbed up mossy rock, fell asleep
-rock rose while they slept
-looked for children
-coyote finds them
-cant figure out how to get to them
-measuring worm
-patience and perseverance, rescued them
+write about a measly character that overcomes

The Child of the Evening Star
-brought presents to father
-final daughter
-hard to please
-heart, not face
-evil spell cast on Osseo
-descended from evening star
-broken spell
-but girl now cursed
-still in love w her
-beauty restored
-everyone turned to birds
-magician
-flew away


Bibliography:
From "American Indian Fairy Tales" by Henry Schoolcraft.

Story: 1000 Ways to (Not) Die

Way to Not Die Number 118: 
Say that you're on a relaxing flight to San Francisco one early Friday morning, drifting off to sleep and dreaming about the amount of cocktails that you will be consuming on the beach when you arrive, when suddenly, you're rudely awakened by the $12 Vodka Tonic spilling on your lap. You immediately look around trying to place blame, when you realize that the plane is actually going down, and you're experiencing aggressive turbulence. What do you do? Do you accept your fate and attempt to drink all the mini-bottles in the gradual decline? Or do you figure out how not to die?

Here's what you do: reach up into the overhead bin and pull out all the tacky tourist shirts you can, and tie them together to make a parachute. Then, pull out all the masks from above your neighbors and attach them to your parachute to hold onto. Then, kick out your window and drift nicely to safety. This way, you can still make it to your vacation, and you don't have to worry about getting a cab to pick you up from the airport!


Way to Not Die Number 428:
Pretend that it's a late Sunday night, and you're up studying for your Calculus midterm in your dorm with your roommate fast asleep, snoring away, when suddenly, the fire alarms start blaring. You fling open your dorm room door and see that the fire is coming from both sides of the hallway, so you can't escape that way. You're on the 23rd floor, too, so jumping is not a viable option here. So, what do you do? Do you accept your fate and come clean to your roommate about eating their food all semester? Or do you figure out how not to die?

Here's what you do: Start pulling out all your roommate's water bottles from your mini fridge and start pouring them on the fire by your door until you can clear a path to the community bathroom. Then, start shoving all your month-old dirty laundry down the pipes until you flood the bathroom. Grab the empty Sonic cups in your room and scoop up the water and throw it on the rest of the fire. Then, you still have time to study and ace your midterm!


Way to Not Die Number 538:
So you've been looking forward to this trip to Six Flags for months now, and you've finally gotten there and spent $120 on the ticket and parking and a plain hot dog. You're finally getting to ride the 'Superman' after a three hour wait in line in the 110 degree weather. In all this excitement, in the middle of the ride, you didn't even notice that you weren't buckled in, and you've already taken off, shooting a mile into the air. The way up is a fine ride, but it won't be so graceful for you on the way down. Do you accept your fate and close your eyes and pretend that it's all part of the ride? Or do you figure out how not to die?

Here's what you do: Steal the inflatable beach ball from your sister next to you that she 'won' for $20 at one of the arcade games, and strap it around your waist with your shoelace. Then, when the timing and projection is right, kick off the seat and aim for the koi pond next to the ride. If you land correctly, then you can probably sue and own half the amusement park and return anytime that you want to!

Here's the 'Superman', with the pond in the bottom right.

(source)

I hope that you've learned many valuable ways to Not Die in this episode of "1000 Ways to Not Die"! Check back next week when we learn how to survive after being stranded on the Moon when the other astronauts and NASA forgets about you.



Author's Note:
This story was inspired from 'Jealous Uncle' from the Kodiak. In this story, the 'Unnatural Uncle' attempts to kill his nephew several ways, but to no avail. It was also inspired by the TV show '1000 Ways to Die' (which is ridiculous, by the way).

Bibliography:
From Jealous Uncle from the Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson

Reading B: Heroes

Lodge Boy and Thrown Away
CROW
-pregnant couple
-boy twins, threw one to spring and tipi curtain
-Red Woman killed wife
-went to wake mother
-disobeyed father
-killed many bad things
+reverse psychology story

Crow People (1840)

The Son in Law Tests

TIMAGAMI OJIBWA

-animal trickster

-burn mocassins

-tricked the trickster

-origin of the pike

Jealous Father

CREE

-Aioswe with two wives

-became jealous of son

-Walrus helped boy

-killed Walrus 

-mom and son became birds and flew away

Dirty Boy

OKANAGON

-two beautiful daughters

-Son and Star wanted the daughters

-given task for the two girls

-claimed daughters for grandsons

-another contest to resettle

-trapper

-trail of star dust

From: Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson

Reading A: Hero Tales

The Jealous Uncle
KODIAK
-uncle kills nephews, hide next baby
-told him that the baby was a girl
-found out he was a boy
-boy escaped
-still determined to kill him
-eagle saved boy
+could write about several ways to kill someone and somehow they always remain safe/ 1000 ways to (not) die
-determined to kill boy, boy determined to live
-traveled to a village
-dropped uncle into the sea
-moved family to village

Bluejay and His Companions

QUINAULT
-Bluejay, Beaver
-gave poor parts of seal to Grouse
-made wooden seal
-stuck out at sea, some died
-Bluejay vs Squirrel climbing
-diving match
-heat match
-sleep match
+could write a story about camp with different matches
-gave grouse the biggest seal

Dug From Ground
HUPA
-used to dig roots but not those with two stalks
-baby tumbled around
-Bluejay
-very handsome
-mortal man cant eat what he ate
-lived happily ever after

Attack on the Giant Elk and Great Eagle
JICARILLA APACHE
-animals preyed on people
-gopher, lizard, eagle, elk
-fought eachother
-each gets own feathers

Yupik mother and child

From: Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson

Tech Tip: Poster

Hi, all!

This week, I made a demotivational poster for fun! I chose this because I am fascinated with the universe- and it's ability to make me feel so small.
On the bright side, I always do get a healthy dose of perspective when I consider our insignificance!

Made with automotivator

Reflections- week 8

Reading: I could definitely improve on the quality of the posts that I am writing regarding my reading. Although I usually can concoct a few stories in my mind from the reading, it could be even better if I spent more time on the reading and connected more things to my writing. I am really looking forward to the Native American reading in the next few weeks!

Plains Indians

Image from Wikipedia

Writing: I really enjoyed re-reading many of my stories from this semester. I am really excited to expand my story book and divulge into many more stories about my dog! I feel like I am really getting inspired in this class- inspired to think creatively and improve myself as a writer and a reader.

Growth Mindset- week 8

Hi, all!

Some of my strengths in this class (and in my life) is that I feel like I am creative. I get excited when I get an opportunity to express myself and show people a side of myself that I am quite fond of!

I believe one of my biggest weaknesses is my impatience. I thrive off of instant gratification and get frustrated when I have to wait for results.

I think I can improve on this weakness (and many more) in this class. I can become more patient with myself and my progress as I spend an entire semester creating a portfolio and website to show off my creativity. I'm so excited to see the final product!

Here is a chart that helps me ask myself if I am doing enough to grow and do my best in every aspect of my life:

Chart from class

Tech Tip: First Tweet

Hi, all!

This week I tweeted from my personal account for this class. I think it's a really powerful tool not just for social communication, but can definitely be powerful in learning! The more you network and increase your exposure, the more you grow and learn.

Here's my tweet- follow me for more!

@emilyydaignault

Storytelling: The Football Player who (didn't) Beat the Dance Team

There once was a dance team that was better than any other dance team. They always blew their competition out of the water. Because of this, none of the other dance teams liked them. They were constantly trying to devise ways to beat the winning team.

The other teams tried everything they could to defeat the team.

They tried to take away the power source in their practice building so they couldn't practice with music or with lights. Luckily for them, there was a maintenance crew in the area to immediately get it back up and running. The dance team won the following competition.

They tried to trip and injure their dancers, but they were so graceful, they always landed on their feet.
The dance team won the next three competitions.

They tried to destroy their costumes, but many of their mothers were experienced tailors, and they fixed the costumes on the spot. They won that weekend's competition.

They even tried to sabotage their bus that transported them to the competitions. However, while it was in the shop, the local high school's bus driver offered to drive them.

The winning dance team

(Personal Photo, 2012)

Finally, the captain of one of the other teams devised a plan to take down the winning dance team's captain. She dressed up one of her team members in football gear and explained to her how she was to go about taking down the other team.

The following day, the dance team was practicing on the track by the football players, when the handsome stranger walked by. The stranger was tall, dark, handsome, and totally into her. The captain of the dance team was immediately enamored with 'him'.

Throughout practice, 'he' kept flirting with the captain, and distracting the whole team. At the end of practice, the captain left with the stranger. She didn't show up to the next practice. Or the next. Or the next.

Meanwhile, the other team celebrated. They were finally going to win a competition with that captain out of the way! They cancelled practice and danced and sang and celebrated the death of their rival team.

The team, however, was very worried, as it was highly unusual for their captain to skip practice. One of the members investigated, and found that the captain of the team had actually been kidnapped by the stranger. The team member freed the captain, and they immediately went back to work to ensure that they would win the competition that weekend.

So, to the rival's team surprise, the captain and the team showed up to the next competition and took first place. Even though the captain was totally bummed to find out that she wasn't being hit on by a handsome stranger.

All of the rival team members were convicted of kidnapping and sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Author's Note: I adapted this story from "The Pretty Stranger who Killed the King" from Folk Stories from Nigeria. In the original story, a witch turns herself beautiful and kills the king. However, in all the celebration of the dead king, a neighboring town's army came and killed all of them.

From Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria by Elphinstone Dayrell

Reading Notes B: Nigerian Folk Stories

From: Folk Stories From Southern Nigeria by Elphinstone Dayrell
Source here

The Story of the Lightning and the Thunder

-Thunder and lightning used to live among people

-sheep and ram

-banished to the sky

Bush Cow Mask

Source

The Bush Cow and the Elephant

-couldn't settle disputes

-elephant boasting about strength

-fought each other

-monkey ate mantis

The Cock who Caused a Fight Between Two Towns

-same mother, different fathers

-fought each other

-no one should keep chicken as pet

The Affair of the Hippo and the Tortoise

-no one knew his name except wives

-hurt wife, found out name

-thats why only see hippo in water

Why Dead People are Buried

-dog given message, went to old ladys house and forgot

-sheep told wrong message

-dead people remain in ground

The Fat Woman that Melted Away

-made of oil

-dowry

-jealous wife

Why the Moon Waxes and Wanes

-hungry poor woman

-started eating moon

How the Tortoise Overcame the Elephant and the Hippo

-elephant to pull tortoise out of water

-wrong, 20k rods

-hippo into water

-turtle on water and land

Reading Notes A: Nigerian Folk Stories

From: Folk Stories From Southern Nigeria by Elphinstone Dayrell
Source here

Calabar

Source here

The Pretty Stranger who Killed the King
-Mbotu king of Calabar
-many enemies
-witch turned herself into beautiful woman
-killed king
-all ended up dying bc their leader was dead
** competition

Why The Bat Flies by Night
-bat and rat
-rat jumped into hot water and died
-rat hid

Disobedient Daughter
-didnt want to marry man
-skull borrowed parts from friends
-friends took back parts
-crossed into spirit world

King Who Married the Cock's Daughter
-250 wives
-only liked her
-died of heartbreak

Woman, Ape, the Child
-Hunter used animal skins for products to sell
-jealous of baby
-wanted to kill the ape
-killed baby, wife

Fish and leopards wife
-fish fell in love with leop wife
-had an affair
-banned to the water

Worms live under the ground
-king always talked poorly about worms
-fight vs ants
-ants won

Elephant and Tortoise
-elephant had proportionate eyes
-tortoise popped out elephants eye
-got eyes from worm

Wikipedia Trail: From Waffles to Wind Power

Hi, all!

This week I started out with 'Waffles' from a tweet about free waffles at OU in the twitter feed.
Did you know the word waffle first appeared in the English language in 1725? Can you imagine going that long without waffles?!

Waffle

Next, I went to 'Toise'. A toise is a unit of measurement of length, area, and volume from pre-revolutionary France. It is equal to about 2 meters, but the actual measurement fluctuated throughout time.

Then, I was led to the page on 'Quebec', which is the second most populous province in Canada. This is the only Canadian province to speak mainly French.

Finally, I checked out 'Wind Power'. This is a hot topic in Oklahoma, as the "wind comes sweeping down the plains".

Emily

Story: The Buffalo and the Bird

There once was a lake in the middle of the land that sourced water to many different animals. There was a crocodile, a lion, a turtle, a buffalo, and a bird.

The lake was always plentiful, even in the heat of the sun. The only problem with the lake was the flies.

The flies were everywhere, and bothered all the animals. Except, of course, the bird, because the flies knew that the bird would eat them.

One hot day, the bird was up in the tree, starving. He looked down upon the lake at the animals and saw them all suffering and getting sick from the flies. So, he thought he could help the other animals with their problem.

The bird flew first to the crocodile, and asked him if he wanted his assistance with his fly problem. The crocodile snapped at the bird, and told him to go away.

Then, the bird flew to the lion, and asked if he could help him get rid of the flies. The lion roared at the bird, and told him to leave him alone.

The bird tried to talk to the turtle in the water, but the turtle tried to grab the bird and pull him under the water, so he flew away.

Finally, the bird flew over to the buffalo and asked him desperately if he could help him with his fly problem. The buffalo was wise, and knew that the bird could help him with his fly problem, and that he could help feed the bird. The buffalo happily accepted the bird's offer.

The buffalo and the bird.

Source

The bird cursed the other animals. When the bird had children, he told them what the other animals had done to him, and told them that if they want to eat, they must only fly to the buffalo. The children thought they were smarter, though, and tried to eat the flies around the other animals.

The first child flew to the crocodile, but was swallowed whole in the attempt.

The next child flew to the lion, but was mangled, instead.

The next child flew to the turtle, but was drowned in the lake.

The next child was afraid to fly to any animal at all, and died from starvation.

The last child, however, listened to his mother, and flew directly to the buffalo and ate flies from the buffalo's back, and lived a long, happy, plentiful life.

The child taught his children about how to only eat from the buffalo, and told them about their aunts' and uncles' fates when they did not listen to their grandmother.

So from then on, every generation ate flies from the buffalo, and no other animal.

Today you can still witness the relationship between the buffalo and the bird.

Bibliography: Fillipino Popular Tales by Dean Fansler.

Author's Note:
I was inspired to write this story after reading the Fillipino Popular Tales about how animals became the way that they are today. You can find more information about this symbiotic relationship here

Reading B: Fillipino Tales

Fillipino Popular Tales by Dean Fansler.
Source Here

The Iguana and the Turtle
-old man wanted turtle to marry his daughter
-iguana wanted to marry
-iguana died

Why Mosquitoes Hum
-king of crabs
-dont wake up
-woke up, w excuse
**could do why (animal) does (something)

The Greedy Crow
-crow wanted meal
-be happy with what you have in front of u

The Hummingbird and the Carabao
-dumbfounded water buffalo
-smart hummingbird
**(could do bird and cow/ symbiotic relationship)

ant

The Ant
-gave rocks life
-poison to snake
-less poisonous

Why the Sun Shines more Brightly than the Moon
-fairy, God, two sisters
-given two diamonds- one moon and one sun

Hawk and Coling
-hawk looked down on earth
-salt and cotton
-salt dissolved

Why the Cow's Skin is Loose
-cow wanted to run away from farmer
-wanted to bathe first
-switched skin

The Lost Necklace
-hen stole necklace
-chicks look for necklace

Story of our Fingers
-fingers narrate
-fingers seperated from thumb bc thief

Reading A: Fillipino Popular Tales

Fillipino Popular Tales by Dean S Fansler

Source Here

Carabao

The Three Friends

-monkey dog and carabao

-strength in numbers

-kills friends

-monkey is smart

Three Brothers of Fortune

-three sons

-did not want to study

-transported

-couldnt agree to who got the woman

Clever Husband and Wife

-wants wife, no money

-needed money, kept asking people

-doctor liked the joke of the couple, rewarded them

Devil and Guachinango

-rather have the devil for a husband

-covered devil in jar

-wanted to be set free

-married princess

Chonguita

-divide bread among monkeys

-marries daughter

-design coat

-Chonguita transformed into woman

Cochinango

-purchase buyo

-cane

-God himself

-guitar

-eventually marries princess

*could do story on things collected along the way

The Enchanted Prince

-witches

-monkey-prince

-new queen

The Wicked Woman's Reward

-wanted male baby

-killed woman in river

The Poor Man and his Three Sons

-man gave sons presents

-two brothers rich

-right place in which to trade

The Monkey and the Turtle

-divided a banana

-planted the banana

-punished him

Wikipedia Trail: from Roald Dahl to Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards

Hi, all!

This trail, I started with Roald Dahl.
Many of his made- up words have just made their way into the Oxford Dictionary- including Scrumdiddlyumptious!

Roald Dahl.

Source

Then I checked out the List of Best-Selling Fiction Authors.
It's really no surprise that Shakespeare, Agatha Christie, Dr. Seuss, and Jk Rowling top the list.

I also checked out Goosebumps, which used to be one of my favorite series.
The series has sold over 350 million copies!

Finally, I looked at Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards. This network used to be my favorite!
Here, there is a whole list of celebrities that have been 'slimed'!

Emily

Tech Tip: Adding a new Google Page

Hi, all!

This week for my project, I learned how to make a new page on my google site.
Here's the link!

Emily

Storytelling: The Months that Went out to Lunch

The four seasons.

Source here

One night, all the months went out to lunch. Their mother Earth waited at home for her children to return with food for her.

While March, April, May and September, October, and November were kind and generous, their siblings June, July, August, and December, January, and February were greedy and selfish. When the appetizer course came around, the generous months saved their mother portions of their plate, with cheese and meat and fruit and crackers, while the remaining months stuffed themselves full, and did not leave any left for their mother.

When the entree course came around, the kind months again saved the best pieces for their mother, with turkey and potatoes and vegetables and bread, while the remaining months cleaned their plates, and left nothing to be brought home to their mother.

Finally, when the dessert was served, the selfless months saved their mother cookies and pie and chocolate and ice cream, while the greedy months did not leave a crumb behind for their mother.

When the months returned home to their mother, she promptly requested her meal from her children.

June, July, and August lied to their mother, and told her that they lost it on the journey home.

December, January, and February lied to their mother as well, and told her that a thief stole it as they were leaving the restaurant.

March, April, May, and September, October, November gave over to their mother the food that they brought home for her: cheese, meat, fruit, crackers, turkey, potatoes, vegetables, bread, cookies, pie, chocolate, and ice cream. It was a feast.

Then, Mother Earth shifted on her axis.

She said to June, July, and August:

"You have lied and betrayed me, so you will be cursed to be scorching hot and miserable. People will not play outside and be happy during your time on Earth, but will rather hide and curse your name. They will be glad when you are gone".

And so, this is how summer was created.

She said to December, February, and January:

"You have lied and betrayed me, so you will be cursed to be freezing cold and miserable. People will not play outside and be happy during your time on Earth, but will rather hide and curse your name. They will be happy when you are gone".

And so, this is how winter was created.

To the rest of her children, March, April, May and September, October, and November, she said:

"You have made me very happy, my children. For this, you will be blessed. You will have cool weather and will bring prosperous crop yields to the people. People will play outside during your time on earth. You will be welcomed every year. People will be sad when you are gone."

And so, this is how spring and fall were created.

Author's Note:
Adapted from How Sun, Moon, and Wind Went Out To Dinner from "Indian Fairy Tales" by Joseph Jacobs. In this story, the mother 'star' cursed the Sun and the Wind to be miserable and hated because they were selfish, while she blessed the moon to be loved and welcomed.

Bibliography:
From "Indian Fairy Tales" by Joseph Jacobs. Source here.

Reading Notes: Indian Fairy Tales Continuted

The Talkative Tortoise*
Future Buddha, became king's advisor
tortoise, wild ducks
must stay silent, take to beautiful land
let go of stick, split in two on ground
Became man of few words

The Gold Giving Serpent
farmer paid respects to snake
milk for gold denar
ant hill full of gold- kill the snake and take gold
still praised snake- greed

Pride Goeth Before a Fall
Cloth merchants
robbers- sang riddles
Fooled Robbers

Source Here

Prince and the Fakir
King without children, rest where 4 roads met
Fakir gives him 2 sons- one for him
gives him two girls
gives elder son
escaped
freed animals
married prince to princess

Why The Fish Laughed
Women wants to buy a she-fish
fish laughed
tried to figure out why fish laughed
strange traveler
explained strange traveler
laughing fish = plotting against kings life

Demon with Matted Hair
Demon arrows into hair
Couldnt be defeated
heart of a lion
weapon of knowledge

How Sun, Moon, and Wind Went Out To Dinner*
With uncle and aunt thunder and lightning
moon didnt forget mother
sun cursed to burn people
wind cursed to parch people
moon blessed

Bibliography:
From "Indian Fairy Tales" by Joseph Jacobs
Source here.

Reading Notes: Indian Fairy Tales

The Lion and the Crane
Crane offers to save the life of the lion when he was choking
Wants reward- lion says his reward is that he didn't eat him
Crane did not befriend lion

Source here

The Broken Pot*
Svabhavakripana "a born miser", plans to buy goats and cows and food with rice
big ambitions from pot of rice- gets overly excited and breaks pot of rice

The Magic Fiddle
7 brothers and a sister, sister did all chores
interfere with her work
started drowning
turned into bamboo, turned into a fiddle

The Cruel Crane Outwitted
Crane tried outwitting the fish- promising them good future
Showed one fish the promise land
Killed and ate fish
tried to get crab-held crane around neck/ cut off head

Tiger, Brahman, Jackal
Tiger in cage, brahmin wont let out bc he will eat him
Tried to reach out to tree, buffalo, road, jackal
confused jackal/ outsmarted tiger

Harisarman
Brahman that lived in Harisarman, poor and foolish
feast for a wedding
Wife says he possesses magical knowledge
stole a horse
Found the horse/ got reward
The man prospered

The Charmed Ring
Stopped men from killing dog w 100 rupees
Stopped men from killing cat w 100 rupees
& snake
discipled by father, but animals worshipped him
master left to find snake's dad
cat and dog stayed home
given ring and pot and spoon
married princess
different prince fell in love with princess
took away house and princess
cat and dog found princess and house

Continued
must find the charmed ring
rats recovered ring
fish swallowed ring on the way home
ring on kite
recovered ring
wife and house returned

Bibliography:
From "Indian Fairy Tales" by Joseph Jacobs
Source here.

Learning Challenge: attention with the pomodoro technique

Hi, all!

This week I decided to check out the Pomodoro time management technique.
This technique got its name from the tomato shaped timer- but it works with any timer!
The idea is that you work for 25 minutes, break for 5, and then repeat. Every 4 'pomodoros', you take a longer break. This way, you won't burn out after studying for an hour straight.
This seems like a good study tactic for me!

The Pomodoro technique

Source

Emily

Feedback Focus

I would rank these three strategies in terms of usefulness like so:

1) Copy and Delete- This could helpful when I am reading large science reviews or research papers, although I would probably keep the original paragraph to reference for details or more information.

2) Reading Out Loud- I tend pick up little details better when I read out loud slowly then when I read quickly and quietly to myself. This strategy can also help me pick up on mistakes in my writing.

3) Use a Timer- This technique is helpful, but it doesn't always fit for the task or reading at hand. If the timer goes off before I feel like I have gotten the job done, then I try to rush to get it finished.

I did find that all three of these strategies helped my to focus better on the writing, rather than just reading without any strategy. I like to take notes when I'm reading, which fits in with the 'Copy and Delete' strategy. When I review my notes, I tend to pick up on even more than when I read through the first time, and I get a better picture of the reading overall.

I would also recommend 'visualizing' the reading as a focusing strategy. I love to picture the setting and the characters almost like a movie in my mind- and it usually keeps me focused on the reading!

Emily

Tech Tip: Google Site Website

Hi, all!

This week I created a google site for my project!
You can check it out here.

Emily

Storytelling: Tails of a Dog

There once was a dog that wanted more than anything to be able to run across the street and catch the squirrel. Her owner, though, did not want the dog to do this, and thus, devised a plan to distract her everyday from visiting the squirrel.

So, the first day the dog went to the owner and said, "I must go and catch that squirrel!". The owner replied, "And you will! But first, I will teach you how to sit."
"What is the nature of this trick?" the dog asked.
"Well, when I say 'sit', and hold a hand above your head, you will sit on your back legs and await a treat!" the owner replied.
They did this over and over, and by the time that the dog had mastered the trick, it was night time, and it was too dark to go get the squirrel.

The dog learning how to sit.

(Personal photo, 2016)

The next day the dog went to the owner and said, "I must go and catch that squirrel!" The owner replied, "And you will! But first, I will teach you how to shake."
"What is the nature of this trick?" the dog asked.
"Well, when I said, 'shake', and extend my hand out, you will put your paw in my hand as if we were shaking hands, and then you will receive a treat!"
They did this over and over, and by the time that the dog had mastered how to shake, it was night time, and it was too dark to get the squirrel.

The next day the dog went to the owner and said, "I must go and catch that squirrel!" The owner replied, "And you will! But first, I will teach you how to speak."
"What is the nature of this trick?" the dog asked.
"Well, when I say, 'speak' and hold my hands by my mouth, you will bark once, and then you will receive a treat!"
They did this over and over, and by the time that the dog had mastered how to speak, it was night time, and it was too dark to get the squirrel.

The next day the dog went to the owner and said, "I must go and catch that squirrel!" The owner replied, "And you will! But first, I will teach you how to fetch."
"What is the nature of this trick?" the dog asked.
"Well, when I say, 'fetch' and throw the tennis ball, you will go and retrieve the ball and give it to me, and wait for me to throw it again."
They did this over and over, and by the time that the dog had mastered how to fetch, it was night time, and it was too dark to get the squirrel.

The next day the dog went to the owner and said, "I must go and catch that squirrel!" The owner replied, "And you will! But first, I will teach you how to roll over."
"What is the nature of this trick?" the dog asked.
"Well, when I say, 'roll over' and twist my wrist, you will roll over on the carpet, and then you will receive a treat!"
By the time that the dog had mastered how to roll over, it was night time, and it was too dark to get the squirrel.

Finally, the dog had learned all the tricks that the owner could think of, and she could not hold the dog back any longer. So the dog insisted that the owner take her outside for a walk to catch the squirrel.

Unfortunately for the dog, it was now wintertime, and the squirrel was in hibernation until the spring. Fortunately for the owner, the dog was very well trained.

Author's Note:
I was inspired to write this story after reading 'Tales of a Parrot" by Nakhshabi. In this storybook, a parrot distracts the King's wife every night so she won't go out and meet her lover and betray the king. In the story, however, when the King finds out about the wife's lover, he kills her.

Bibliography:
From "Tales of a Parrot" by Nakhshabi. Source here.

Reading Notes: Tales From A Parrot (B)

Of a King and His Sons 

-son assumed crown after father passed away
-kill brother
-snake seized frog, called out and lost food
-fed own skin
-transformed into a man
-frog transformed into man

The Merchant Whose Daughter Was Lost
-Zerah daughter of merchant
-wise or skillful suitor
-foreknowledge of events
-floating wooden horse
-excellent archer
-summit of mountain
-all 3 went to get her

Of a Brahmin Fallin in Love
-handsome and discreet brahmin
-meets magician

Princess (18th century painting)

Source

The Son of the King of Babylon
-young woman in temple
-wants to be married to her
-cut off own head for her
-both cut off heads
-wife put wrong heads on bodies

Merchant's Daughter
-father wouldnt accept proposals for daughter
-king's vizers

The Nobleman with a Snake
-man with snake
-enemy
-still cant see lover

The Soldier and the Goldsmith
-soldier came across money
-The Cazy
-hanged goldsmith

A King falls in love and the end of Khojisteh
-parrot tells king everything
-king kills Khojisteh

Bibliography:
Bibliography:
From Tutinameh, or Tales of a Parrot by Nakhshabi
source here

Tech Tip: Adding A Weather Gadget

This week I added a weather gadget to my blog! You can check out how I did this here.

Emily

Reading Notes: Tales From A Parrot (A)

"The Parrot and Khojisteh"
source

Miemun and Khojisteh
-prince Ahmed Sultaun/ riches and effects/ army, no children
-son Miemun born, married to wife Khojisteh
-inseperable
-purchased bird-parrot
-bough another bird-sharuk
-could write about Cedie as parrot

Khojisteh and the Parrot
-starts pursuing another man
-talks to girl bird (sharuk)
-kills the bird bc she doesnt like what she had to say

The Parrot of Ferukh Beg
-bird told husband about wife cheating on him
-w plots against bird
-parrot pardoning sins for w

Goldsmith, Carpenter, Taylor and Hermit
-bird covering for wife
-goldsmith making watches/ people keeping guard
-all fell in love with 'figure'
-all fighting over woman
-Tree of Decision
-belonged to no one
-still couldnt see lover

The Kind of Kinoje and his Daughter
-'princess and pauper'
- plans devised against him
-servant sacrificed himself

Flowler, Parrot, and her Young Ones
-saved young ones bc acted dead
-proposed that the remaining parrot is a physician
-wanted to heal the king
-keeps her away from lover

Merchant and his Wife
-merchant asking for company
-they asked for own wife
-came to peace w husband

The Old Lion and the Cat
-old lion, mice mess with him
-called for cat to get rid of mouse
-kitten got rid of all the mice/ left with no job

Commander of the Frogs and the Snake
-being oppressed by their chief
-requests service of snake
-when snake wanted more, the frogs ran away

Four Rich Persons who Became Poot
-prophecy balls
-copper
-precious stones

Besheer and a Woman Names Chunder
-requests service from Arab
-shame
-pass night by sleeping w arab


Bibliography:
From Tutinameh, or Tales of a Parrot by Nakhshabi
source here

Learning Challenge: Multiple Intellegences

Hi, all!

I checked out Multiple Intelligences this week from the Growth Mindset topic. Link here.

This theory states that we all have multiple areas of intellect- and we're not all good at the same things. For example, I believe I am a naturalist, interpersonal, bodily-kinesthetic, logic-mathematical person! Feel free to comment below what you believe that your strong points are!

8 different types of intelligence

source here