Reading Notes: How The Princes Learned To Shoot

How The Princess Learned To Shoot:

* Bhishma - Archer & warrior. His name means 'fearsome'.
* Vexation - state of being annoyed or frustrated.
*  This story reminds me of the princess and the frog. I might be able to incorporate elements of that story to recreate my own. This story gives me a lot of room to play with and create something interesting.
* I wonder why the boys wanted the Brahman to prove his word?
* I can use the grass and turn it into another weapon form.
* My story can also be transformed and the Brahman can be a young boy living in the forest and he will be recruited as the mighty and fearsome teacher. I will be changing gender roles - making the princes into princesses.

I am excited about the story that I will be writing and have a lot of inspiration.

A Picture Of a Princes Learning To Shoot. Source: Publicdomainpictures

Bibliography; Myths About The Hindus And Buddhists by Sister Nivedita. Reading link to How The Princes Learned To Shoot.

Reading Notes: Devdutt Pattanaik -Part E

For this week's extra credit reading option, I decided to focus on Devdutt Pattanaik -Vishnu. I kind of feel out of touch with the story, because it has been a week since I have read the previous chapter, so I will have to refresh my memory again.

Animal sacrifices are practiced all over the world and is exemplified in the bible as well. I found it interesting that Hindus believe that their gods above have a magical cow. It is amazing how we often take things for granted and don't think about the importance of certain things. It gave me a different perspective when they describe the cow running away when mistreated. Yes, we really do mistreat earth and all the abundant natural resources given to us, but how else are we suppose to survive? I think I am looking too deep into this and the fact that it's explainable is kind of frustrating.  Demand and supply is and always will be an issue! I might try to incorporate a few of the story's ideas into my own story. I enjoyed reading this section.

Picture Of The Earth Cow. Source: Wikipedia

Reading Link to Devdutt Pattanaik -Part E (Vishnu)

Review: Caught Up

I read through this week's class assignments and reminders and I am caught up with everything thus far. I did remember to change my OU password, so there is no need for me to stress about it :) One post that caught my eye was the proofreading humor - it is so true! Sometimes I will read my Facebook status update a few times to make sure that I do not have any grammatical errors, but when it comes to professional writing, I often miss my spelling mistakes. LOL!

I think this week went by pretty fast and I was able to have most (if not all) of the extra credit opportunities completed by Thursday, which is today. That makes me really happy, because now I can focus on my project assignment and get all of the required work completed by tomorrow. I am upset that I missed the grace period for week five's story post, but I can make up for it with extra credit. I do not have anything urgent to complete for next week, except my regular class homework. I am starting to be more proactive in trying to finish class work early and I love that feeling of accomplishment. It allows me to spend more time with my family and focus on other things that is not work or school related. I am, however, still having a little bit of difficulty with giving meaningful feedback to blog groups and I am working on that.

"I Am A Writer" by Pixabay

Wikipedia Trail: From Majel Barrett To Abdominal Mass

1. Mjel Barrett:
Majel was an American actress and producer who graduated from the University of Miami. She is well known for her role in the Star Trek Series which is a science fiction genre. She died in 2008 due to leukemia. I have never seen Star Trek, but I have heard of it numerous times. I wonder if it is any good? Only one way to find out, I guess!

2. Leukemia:
Leukemia is a type of bone marrow cancer and is caused due to a lack of normal blood cells. There are four main types of leukemia and the names are so difficult to pronounce, that I would like to spend more time reading into it. Having an enlarged spleen is one of the most common tell-tale signs of a child having leukemia.

3. Enlarged Spleen:
The enlargement of a spleen is called "splenomegaly" and it is one of the four signs of hypersplenism. Symptoms include abdominal pain, chest pain, etc. My wikipedia trail is really taking a wide turn. It started out with something interesting and light-hearten and now is turning into something medically and gross.

4. Abdominal Mass:
It is a swelling in the human abdomen and may be caused by having an enlarged liver or kidney. It can be discovered by having a routine checkup and is mostly associated with digestive problems or severe pain. It can be diagnosed by different measures. Wikipedia listed 21 different / more causes of an abdominal mass - too many to list.

Photo Of Majel Barrett. Source: Wikipedia

Learning Challenge: Empathy

For this week's learning challenge, I decided to focus on empathy. I think that it is important for people to be not only sensitive, but also aware of others' conditions or views from their perspective. It can be applied not only in one's own life, but it is prevalent in class and in all our surroundings. I found a quiz about empathy and thought that my results are pretty cool. Here is the link to the quiz where you can find out your own level of empathy: Empathy Quiz Link By Greater Good.

Photo With The Word "Empathy" by Pixabay

Growth Mindset: Exploring

Cat On Roof. Source:Cheezburger

For this week's meme, I decided to choose this picture of a cat on a roof. It looks like it is trying to eat or catch something. My meme states "explore new things" because next week I want to get out of my comfort zone and possibly choose a different way or style of writing. I want to be open minded to learning and exploring things - whether it is school, work or personal life related. 

Tech Tip:Add The Weather To Your Sidebar

For this week's tech tip, I tried to add the weather app/ icon to my sidebar, but unfortunately I was unsuccessful. I followed the instructions and it just did not want to work. This was a very frustrating experience, but I hope to be more patient next time when I re-try it.

Picture Of The Weather. Source: Staticflickr

Reading Notes: Mahabharata PDE Part B

Bhima and Baka,reminds me of a very dramatic scene. I would love to write this in a rhyme form and choose a special weapon for Bhima to kill Baka. I like that the story has a happy ending and that Bhima was once again the hero in the story due to his powers and care / love for his family.

Bhima Slaying Off The Ansura. Source: Wikipedia 

Bibliography: Reading link to Bhima and Baka PDE Mahabharata version by various authors

Reading Notes: Mahabharata PDE Part A

The Contest

For this week's reading, I decided to stick to the PDE version, because it can easily be accessed online and I enjoy how it is written. I focused mainly on The Contest story and found it interesting and fun to read. The fact that the first story is in a rhyme form, makes it different. This story brings forth images of a battlefield. I have not really put much thought into how I can make this story my own, but I would like to keep it a rhyme, if possible.

Photo Of Bhima. Source: Wikipedia

Tech Tip: YouTube Blogger

For this week's tech tip, I decided to add a YouTube video / link about concentration music for studying. At first, I had difficulty doing it, but then figured it out. I hope that I did it correctly. I Chose study music for concentration because of midterms.

Music Notes. Source: Staticflickr.

Famous Last Words: Fast Week

This week went by so fast and it is probably because was traveling. I am able, once again, to complete all the extra credit opportunities which makes me feel good and know that it will help me in the long run. I am lucky enough not to have any midterms or other classes to focus on, so I have it quite easy :) This week’s stories was very fun to read and I think that my story about Jack and the beanstalk is one of my best. I did have trouble linking my story to my portfolio, so that is something I still need to fix. I also had issues with tech tip, so I need to spend more time and figure out how to do the weather app tech tip, as well as the YouTube tech tip – it was very frustrating that it did not work properly.
For next week, I have my usual class schedule to follow with extra credit opportunities – I want to do as many as possible. I will have a busy week with homework, personal work and appointments. I will have to make sure that I can complete as much work as possible with the little time that I have. It is my hopes to read the upcoming week’s stories with more focus and detail, in the hopes that I will be inspired to write a really good, long story.
This week has also been really interesting to me, because my baby is starting to smile more, etc and is almost 2months old.  

Random Photo Of a Baby Smiling. Source: Pixabay

Review: Different Week

I read the reviews for the past week, in order to make sure that I am caught up with everything and that I did not miss any assignments. The History of The English Language was very interesting to me and although the chart seems to be intricate / confusing, I would like to spend more time studying it.

This week was very different for me and I feel like I moved slower with completing tasks, which is upsetting. I hope to be more focused for the upcoming week - avoiding procrastination.

Picture of Words and Vowels. Source: Wikimedia

Reading Notes: Devdutt Pattanaik -Part D

Shiva and Devi

 I enjoy reading the extra stories and this week, Shiva's secret continues, while they also focus on Devi's secret. Shiva continues to be portrayed as a mean character in the story where he beheads his father-in-law. I mean, who does that!? I is also interesting to note that he changes roles and becomes the householder. I clicked on the wikipedia link for the Sri Yantra and discovered that it is all about a balancing act.

The most fascinating part that I have read thus far is when they talk about the multicoloured sea and sand caused by Kanyakumari's make-up. I would have never thought of making such a comparison. This will make a very interesting story! The section of Devi's secret focuses alot on females, mothers and their role in society. I also enjoyed reading this and is not failiar at all with Devi's history.

Man Carrying a Corpse. Source: Wikipedia

 Bibliography: Link To Reading Guide By Devdutt Pattanaik

Wkipedia Trail: From Little John To Swaraj

1. Little John
His name is originally John Little, but he changed it around. John is the outlaw in Robin Hood and he is buried in a churchyard in the village of Hathersage. The word "Little John" is used to denote kindness and compassion. John was actually an enormous guy.

2. Sobriquet
This refers to a nickname given to John Little and can be used instead of his name, without giving an explanation. It is like everyone knows who you are referring to when stating "sobriquet". the word is also related to sports, politics and music.

3. Mahatma Gandhi
This is the sobriquet name given to Mohandas Gandhi. He was the leader of the Indian Independence movement the the British-ruled India. Different parts of the world refer to him differently and is sometimes known as "father of the nation". Wikipedia gives so much information about him, that I want to go back and really pay attention and focus on more detail when reading this. Gandhi really wanted to achieve "swaraj"

4.  Swaraj
Hindi word that refers to self-rule. It can refer to other things as well, but mostly refers to the concept of Indian Independence. This is definitely something that I would like to study more and found it super interesting.

Picture of Gandhi. Source: Wikipedia

Reading Notes: PDE Mahahbharata Part B

The House Of Fire

Part B of this week's reading is becoming more involved / intricate and the character names are also getting more difficult to pronounce. I only read two stories for part B and found it very interesting. The House Of Fire story has so much detail, that I think it will be almost impossible to change it and make it sound better. If I really had to change it, I can possibly write that it was all just a bad dream. Overall, it was a sad story, but luckily had a happy ending.

Bhima and Hidimba

This story reminded me of the Disney movie Snow White, where the mean queen sent the huntsman to kill Snow White, but he could not do it. This is also a love at first sight story. I could write a poem for this and use some of the elements from the original version.

Bhima Talking To a Human-form Rakshasa. Source: Dadazi

Learning Challange: Books Of Life

Girl Reading Books. Source: Laura's Blogspot

This picture immediately caught my eye, because reading can really teach us so many things in life - whether it is something we know and read it from a different perspective or whether we learn something new; books never disappoint. If we start creating a love / passion for reading at a young age, then it is nit a hobby, but rather something you see as "I can't live without my books" and that is what I hope to get my child to do one day. I want him to read as many books as he can / wants to. There is so much unknown in this world and if only we start reading more..... 

There will be no end to the possibilities!

Growth Mindset: Comparison

Comparisons. Built Using Cheezburger

For this week, I decided to create a meme about comparisons. People often fall victim to comparing themselves to the person next to them. whether they are in class, in a store, etc. It is time to focus on oneself more often and stop wishing to have / to be like the one next to you. the Bible condemns coveting and we should use our abilities, minds and willpower to be our best.