Week 7 Famous Last Words

SNOW DAY!!!

Photos taken outside of my apartment today, 2/28/15

I made it home just in time on Friday, just before the roads really got bad. I spent a few hours in Oklahoma City for my weekly supervision with my practicum instructor, some volunteering with Valir (I got to meet a new patient!), and a meeting with my faculty liaison, practicum instructor, and fellow practicum student, Michelle. It was a busy morning, but really fun and Rita took me home a back way so we could escape traffic. She's the best! 

Anyway, I the snow came on so fast and fell really hard. I loved it! The flakes were giant! Plus, I got home and snuggled up for a seriously wonderful nap with my BooBoo Kitty girl before hanging with my roomie for a while. We smoked some hookah, watched Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1, and I made some fresh guacamole for us to munch. It was really nice to just relax for a while. Then, my boyfriend Rafy came over and we all played Call of Duty for a long time. I wont lie, i'm so pleased that it snowed and got all icy because being snowed in has been so relaxing. I think I needed some chill time because I've just been going and going for weeks (it seems). I've been so busy and even planned to be busy this weekend, but WAS NOT going to drive down to Texas this weekend in the snow and ice. 

Aren't We Beautiful?

Snuggling up with BooBoo today

My roommate and I have been going back and forth on whether or not we hope Monday's classes (and our grief groups) will get cancelled. On the one hand, sleeping in is seriously amazing. On the other, we've had 2 Mondays off in a row and I only have class on Monday so we are getting pretty dang behind. Plus, one of those classes is Research Methods II AKA statistics, which is hard enough when it's taught regularly. I also feel like I don't want to get too used to being lazy and relaxed because soon i'm really going to have to buck up and get some stuff DONE! I have to do my capstone paper and my research proposal, plus two research papers for my practicum site, and a qualitative methods journal critique. I have been trying to do them all in sections instead of procrastinating and leaving it until the last minute (like I've been known to do). I'm pretty proud of myself for starting them early, but still wonder if I have done enough in a quick enough time frame. 

Indian Epic Untextbook

For this week's untextbook feedback, i chose to read The Bride of Yama which was taken from Sacred Tales of India by D. N. Neogi, with illustrations by P. Ghose (1916). The reading was opened from the archive on Open Library. I chose to read this story because it was starred and bolded, which I assumed meant it was one of the stories you really wanted us to look at. My initial thoughts upon opening this link are that I do not like how it's presented. The text on each page is too light and seems to almost blend in with the color of the paper on the screen. It is difficult to read and made my eyes strain which made me have to take multiple breaks while reading just one story. This was made a little better when I zoomed in, but I still really wish the text was darker so I could see it better. I liked that I could switch between pages with the arrow keys on my keyboard. I didn't like that because I zoomed in, I had to scroll up and down to see the whole page and could not use the arrow keys for this. It was a minor annoyance, but seemed silly that the arrow keys didn't work for moving up and down on the page. As for the story itself, I liked it. The beginning was a little strange and seemed kind of all over the place, but overall I thought it was a neat story that I enjoyed reading. I liked that this story involved Parvati, she's one of the most interesting females in Indian mythology (in my humble opinion).

Yama on Buffalo

found on The British Museum's online archives

Week 7 Essay: Magic and the Supernatural

This week's essay topic: 

Magic and the Supernatural. Magic and supernatural elements are important for many mythological and folktale traditions. What examples of magic and supernatural elements did you see in this week's stories? What kinds of characters used magic? What did they use magic for? Were there supernatural characters or events in this week's stories? What role did these supernatural characters or events play in the plot of the stories? Would you say that magic and supernatural motifs were dominant elements in this week's readings?  

Shia LaBeouf Magic Gif

Found on Gifs of Things 

This week's readings came from the Tales from the Congo unit, which were taken from Notes on the Folklore of the Fjort by Richard Edward Dennett (1898). Themes of magic and the supernatural had a heavy presence in this week's readings, and was even featured in the story I chose for this week's storytelling assignment. They featured "fetishes" which are spirits as well as physical objects infused with their powers. Stories featuring these include The Fetish Sunga, The Fight Between Two Fetishes, and The Fetish of Chilunga.  In The Fetish Sunga, a female fetish gets involved with the narrator's uncle and makes him a huge meal which he has trouble interpreting and says the smell alone satisfies him. However, when she presses him to eat and drink, he only drinks the wine which hurts her feelings so she deprives him of his ability to speak. In The Fetish of Chilunga, a male fetish named Boio who speaks both human and bird. One day, when a woman is out and about, she tells Boio to quiet down, angering him. He binds her hands in invisible rope, this leads to a strange practice of binding the hands of women who are sold as brides to ugly men until they consent to he marriage. They also involved women with powers of vision through dreams, guidance, and necromancy. The stories also feature gods and goddesses with supernatural powers. It seemed that all sorts of objects could be imbued with magic or supernatural powers, also many different types of characters could use magic. Characters like regular wives, gods/goddesses, and animals could all have powers. Many used their powers for good, it did not really seem that there were many stories involving a lot of black magic or evil-doing associated with those powers. Sure, some tomfoolery went down and some bad was done, but overall I felt like the stories this unit used magic and the supernatural to add to the fun of the story. It was great.

Week 7 Reading Diary B

This week I decided to read the Stories from the Congo unit from the un-textbook which includes stories taken from Notes on the Folklore of the Fjort by Richard Edward Dennett (1898). The following for my favorites from this week's overall readings so my reading diary B for this week will be focusing on these.

How The Wives Restored Their Husband To Life

• So, there's this guy named Nenpetro and he has 3 wives: Ndoza'ntu (the Dreamer), Songa'nzila (the Guide), and Fulla Fulla (the Raiser of the Dead)
• Nenpetro kills an antelope and gives it to his wives who gobble it up. Soon, however, they are complaining of hunger again. Nenpetro then goes out and kills a monkey for them, they eat it, but are still hungry. He can't believe their hunger so he goes out to hunt an ox for his wives for surely an ox will satisfy their hunger. He finds a group of 3 oxen eating and picks one out of the bunch. He shoots the ox and is reloading when one of the other oxen charges Nenpetro and kills him.
• Back in town, the wives grew hungry and began calling out for their husband but he never came back. Ndoza'ntu had a dream that Nenpetro had died after killing an ox. Soon enough they set out and found his body. Fulla Fulla gathered herbs and plants to raise Nenpetro from the dead then the 3 wives began quarreling. They wanted to know whose hut he would go to first after rising from the cold grip of death. They decided to settle the quarrel by each cooking a pot of food and letting him choose which pot of food to eat first. Whoever's food he chose, would be the wife whose hut he visited first. 2 of them used chicken, but Fulla Fulla used pig. Nenpetro chose Fulla Fulla's food and explained to the them that Ndoza'ntu dreamt of his death and Songa'nzila showed them the way to his body, but without Fulla Fulla's gift he would not be able to eat anyone's food so her gift was the greatest. Many agreed with him, but the wives said he should have taken food from each pot and combined it all into one bowl instead of choosing. 

How Gazelle Got Married

My Hat is a Very Good Hat

from Animal Capshunz, found on Vayagato

• Now Nenpetro has 2 wives and they both give birth to girls. Because they were wealthy they decided to give their daughters to the two men who could figure out their names (Lunga and Lenga). 
• This dude Nsassi and his dog come up and he asks for their hands in marriage. He is rejected because he does not know their names. The dog feels hella bad for him so he stayed behind when Nsassi left and heard Nenpetro call his daughters by their names. He runs back to his master and says he will tell him if he pays him. Nsassi kills a pig and gives it to the dog who tells him the daughters' names. 
• They celebrated fully then set out to claim the prizes. However, they got too drunk and forgot the names so the dog had to go back but then it's all good and Nsassi gets his brides.

Week 7 Storytelling

The Three Witch Wives 

Witch Paper Dolls

by BirdandFlower on Live Journal

Once upon a time there was a wealthy hunter named William who lived happily with this three wives, Doza (the Enchantress of Dreams), Song (the Spirit Guide), and Fulla (the Necromancer). His wives were three of the most powerful witches in all the land. They were known far and wide for their abilities and William loved them very much. To him, they were the most beautiful women of all, but they did have one flaw...

They ate like a pack of lions! These women could EAT! Each day William was tasked with procuring food for his hungry harem. It was a timely task that took much of his day and all of his energy, but he did not mind because he loved them and the food he caught was cooked into amazing meals he was welcome to enjoy. 

One particular day came to pass that William was particularly drained and worn out from his hunting that he thought he simply could hunt no more. He flopped into a chair and guzzled water, sweat pouring down his face from the day’s hunt of a particularly large deer and a cow. He had shot and carried the creatures from miles away so his wives could sate their hunger, yet still they pleaded for more and complained of their aching bellies. Taking pity and hoping to please them, William mustered up the strength for one last hunt. Surely, an ox would satisfy his brides! 

Musk Ox

By Jonathan Woodward, found on his studio website

William spent hours tracking a small group of oxen up and down the hills of the countryside before finally they stopped to graze. William stalked the group, studying them and picking out which ox to take home. He made his choice, aimed his rifle, and pulled the trigger… BANG! The gun went off and his target fell to the ground, a perfect shot. William was so elated and the rush of endorphins and exhaustion made him fatally slow as he realized he was about to be charged by the alpha male of the ox trio. He reached for his gun and floundered as his trembling hands tried to load the bullets, but it was too late and the ox ran him down, goring him, and throwing William 5 feet into the air. William’s body laid broken on the dirty ground.

Back at their shared home, the witch wives begin to worry. 

“Where is William? He’s been gone for hours!”

“I’m starving! He never takes so long!”

“What should we do?”

The wives tried not to panic; maybe he was just resting for the night, after all, he’d been out all day hunting for them. They slept, though not well, and as the sun came up, Doza rose from her bed crying and screaming, “William is dead! I saw him! I saw him in my dream! He’s been killed by an ox!” After gasps and shock, the three quickly got everything together and headed out to find their husband. This is where Song’s gift came in, as soon as the trio stepped foot on the open road, her third eye opened and she could see the way to their husband. Song led them directly to their husband and they fell on their knees around him in sorrow. 

However, Fulla knew they cried in vain. She began gathering plants and herbs and she laid them all around William. She then gave him a bouquet of herbs and began chanting over his body. In no time, William was back to his old self and the trio embraced happily before retiring, ox in hand for a grand banquet in his honor. 

Author's Note:

This week I began reading the Tales from the Congo unit which takes its stories from Notes on the Folklore of the Fjort by Richard Edward Dennett (1898), but only read the first two stories before the due date. However, I really enjoyed the story of How the Wives Restored the Husband to Life. It was a lot of fun to read and unlike many of the stories I've read lately, actually ended on a positive note. I did change some of the original story, but not much. The only thing I really changed is the end, in the actual story the wives end up quarreling over whose hut their husband should visit first when he awakens. They decide that in order to settle this fairly, they would each cook a pot of food and present it to him. Then, he would choose which to eat first and therefore choose who to visit first. He chooses Fulla Fulla's food because without the Dreamer, they might not have known what happened to him and without the Guide, they might not have found him, but without Fulla Fulla's gift, he wouldn't be able to eat any of the food they'd made. The wives could see his point but wished he would have taken a bit of each and put it into one bowl before eating it. Anyway, I made mine more kid-friendly and like a storybook. I hope it seemed easy and fun to read! 

Week 6 Famous Last Words

Alright guys, this one's going to be a trek. Are you in for the long haul? Yes? Excellent!

1. First things first, lets talk about Valentine's Day. This was the first year since I can remember where my boyfriend and I actually did something together on V-Day, and not only that but it was something we both enjoyed and could do together outside. Rafy took me to the OKC Zoo and I LOVED IT! Of course, I didn't see all of it because it's huge (seriously, I thought 3 hours would be plenty of time to see it because at the Dallas Zoo that would suffice, but no) and it closes at 5. However, it was absolutely beautiful! The enclosures were gorgeous and the animals looked healthy and well cared for. Plus, the weather was spectacular! It was 75ish and sunny with a slight breeze, the perfect zoo weather (even if Oklahoma's bipolar nature-it was in the 30s the next day-has given me some of the worst allergies ever). While we were there we made sure to check out the elephant enclosure and can I just say, WOW! It is so cool! I enjoyed every bit of that zoo and can't wait to go back and spend a whole day getting some exercise in while viewing and learning about some of Earth's coolest creatures. Can you tell i'm a zoo nerd? Zoos and aquariums are just my thing. I dig them.

This is my "Excited to go to the Zoo" face!

Rafy and me while we checked out the elephant exhibit

This giant alligator snapping turtle blew my mind. It was so huge! Also, it looked like a dinosaur that could and would bite my hand off with no problem.

Anyway, after the zoo we went to Buffalo Wild Wings for some super unhealthy, but delicious none-the-less wings and some gushing about how awesome the zoo was before going to his apartment to hang out with his roommate and smoke some hookah. It was so wonderful and I am so lucky to be in such a healthy relationship with someone who I truly see as my equal and my partner in crime.

2. There have been a lot of changes with my practicum lately and admittedly, I was not pleased with them. I was upset and felt like I was getting screwed out of some great learning opportunities (I am a really driven person and I really do have a NEED to learn and improve). I also felt like the people at my practicum site didn't want me there. Sure, they wanted an intern, but I felt like they wished it wasn't me. My dedication to Calm Waters was questioned, my ability to be professional was questioned, and a conflict was caused between my field instructor/mentor and my practicum site (which she does not work at-it's kind of complicated). I was really down about it and struggling to get up and go to work at Calm Waters because I didn't want to be where I wasn't wanted. However, today I met with my supervisors at Calm Waters and we talked about how they no longer questioned my dedication, my hours and making sure I was on track to complete them (all 306 of them), how my support groups were going, my performance in group, and learning opportunities coming up later this semester. It was really great and I got to ask lots of questions and get lots of feedback. They said I was doing excellent in my divorce group (where I work with children ages 8-11) and that I had a great ability to listen in to what is being said underneath the person's literal statement as well as the ability to veer off script and lead discussion into deeper processing when the kids are really sharing and opening up. I love my divorce group. Those kids are so smart, so articulate, and so willing to share. They really do some great processing and are very accepting of each other. I am so impressed with them and so honored that they feel like they can share their stories and feelings with me.

Children Are...

found on the Children's Museum of Central Nebraska website 

/mushy gushy talk

3. I'm starting to freak out a little about my capstone paper. I know I can do it, and I know one of my strengths is writing, but i'm pretty scared. This paper is so heavily weighted and if I mess up, I don't graduate. Talk about pressure!

I just have to remember that diamonds are made under intense pressure. I can do this!

found on Brendon Ritz's blog about tech-focused marketing

4. Tonight the Dallas Mavs face off against the OKC Thunder! This may not matter to some of you, but I have been a Mavs fan for, gosh, going on 8 years now and have been with them through many ups and downs (including some truly disappointing seasons). The Thunder are my second favorite team, but they are my best friend Michael's and my boyfriend Rafy's favorite team. So we talk a lot of crap and joke around all the time, and when it comes time for these teams to play each other, stuff gets real! We get so into the game, but remain good sports (mostly). Tonight Rafy, Michael, Rafy's roomie Tyler, and myself are all going to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the game. It should be a good one. Say hi if you're there and recognize me! I'd love to meet some of y'all in person! GO MAVS!

Dallas Mavericks Logo 

© 2015 NBA Media Ventures, LLC

Found on National Sports Beat

GET IT DONE, DIRK!

Dallas Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki, 

posted by Simon Mounsey and found on The Guardian

*I love me some Dirk Nowitzky

4. Last one, I promise! I'm excited about the Take Root Conference this Friday and Saturday. It's a two-day conference to discuss red state perspectives on female equality and reproductive rights, specifically, how those perspectives are negatively affecting women and our state(s). There are going to be a ton of great speakers talking about some really interesting topics. I think it's going to be a lot of fun and i'm going to learn a lot. If you'd like to register to attend, you can do so HERE. If you'd like to learn more about the conference or what's going to be discussed, check out the Take Root Website! Also, here's the conference schedule which lists the speakers and their topics.

Take Root Website Banner

Found on take-root.org

UnTextbook Online Reading Options

1. Device. What kind of computer or table did you use to do this experiment? (i.e. desktop, laptop, iPad) 

 Desktop

2. Browser. What browser did you use? If you downloaded and read the PDF version, what PDF reader did you use, or did you just read the PDF in your browser?

 I used Google Chrome, and when I downloaded the PDF, it pulled up in Google Drive.

3. Best Option. Did one of the options — Hathi, Internet Archive, Google, PDF — appeal to you more than the others? What makes this one better?

 I think the internet archive and PDF options are your best bets. The format is easy to read and the navigation is simple. Plus, Hathi has to load each page which is obnoxious when you're trying to just continuously read. The other 3 options allow for the entire document to load at the start so you can scroll along as you read without interruption. 

4. Worst Option. Was any one of the three options  — Hathi, Internet Archive, Google, PDF — really undesirable for some reason? If so, what made it undesirable?

 Honestly, I just really cannot get down with the Hathi option. There seems like a lot going on with the page. Like, when you look at the screen on the PDF, all you see is a few navigational necessities and the text you're trying to read. With Hathi, there just seems like a lot of widgets, buttons, and navigational tools that are unneccessary for the short readings we do in this class. They take away from the experience. Plus, when you initially load the story, it loads SUPER magnified and hurts my eyes so I have to minimize it which means it has to reload. 

5. Reading Online. Do you do often read books or other long text documents on your computer? Please give details about what kinds of long texts you read on your computer and what program(s) you use to read them. Do you usually do your reading online or offline?

I have never been a big fan of reading books or long text documents on the computer. Reading that much text on a screen hurts my eyes. Plus, there isn't the action and satisfaction of turning the pages or dog-earring/putting a bookmark in the page when you left off. Also, I am really fidgety so reading on a screen and only being engaged physically when I have to scroll means i'm more susceptible to fidgeting or getting distracted. This brings up another point: when i'm reading a book, that is usually all I am doing or can do because it's a physical action; if i'm reading a book on a computer I can just open up a new tab and go to Tumblr, Facebook, Pinterest, etc. and mess around. Generally I read books in print and if i'm doing research I will often try to print off my sources/articles and read them that way instead of just reading them on the screen (depending on how long they are).

6. Taking Notes Online. Do you have a good method for taking notes when you are reading online in a browser window? For example, I open a plain text file resize my browser window and text file so that they both appear on the screen, and I take notes while I read. What notetaking method do you use for material you are reading in your browser window?

When i'm reading and taking notes online, I just open up a seperate tab and flip between the two. I read for a bit then switch tabs and write my notes. This is one big advantage of reading online: the ability to have multiple tabs open at once. I will sometimes take notes on Blogger or Evernote. Otherwise, I have to open up word if I plan to take notes on the computer instead of on paper.

7. PDF Notetaking. Do you have a good method for taking notes when you are reading a PDF? For example, I prefer to read PDFs using GoodReader on my iPad, and I use the highlighter to mark notes, and then I type them up later on my desktop computer. What notetaking method do you use for PDFs?

I just open up a Word document while i'm reading and flip between the two, or I take notes on paper. 

8. Hard Copies. How often do you print reading materials out as hard copies? What are your reasons for choosing to print out a hard copy? Do you do your printing at home or on campus?

 I often print materials out as hard copies so I can make notes on them, highlight, add page flags, etc. Having a hard copy also means I can take it with me and work on my reading/assignment anywhere regardless of access to WiFi/internet. Also, reading materials as hard copies puts less strain on my eyes and keeps my hands engaged. I print mostly at work/practicum because they have an industrial printer that can print my articles out quickly and efficiently. Otherwise, I will print on campus if the document is long because, again, they have badass printers made for printing large jobs. If the document is short (under 15 pages usually) I will likely print it at home if for some reason I can't print it at work.

9. Other Comments. Do you have any other comments to share...? Please let me know! I'm really curious to learn more about people's reading practices and preferences online!

 I found that I preferred the texts that had cream pages if the background is white. It seemed to make the experience less stressful on my eyes, and therefore I was able to look at it longer. The only problem I have with the PDF is the back background with stark white paper. It can be a little harsh. 

Week 6 Essay

This week I chose to read the Japanese mythology unit and thought overall it was a really cool unit. I loved the story of Izanagi and Izanami (part 1 & part 2)! This creation myth was not only neat , but truly beautiful. The imagery in this story was phenomenal and I could really imagine the settings. Plus, the love story between Izanagi and Izanami is one of loyalty, devotion, and unfortunately, grief. I felt compelled to keep reading this story and as such definitely enjoyed it. I also liked the story of The Heaven Descended (part 1 & part 2). It wasn't a super happy or sickly sweet love story. Instead, it started off as a love story and ended up telling a tale of jealousy, mistrust, and anger. I thought Ninigi was a total ass for acting as he did and was surprised to see a trial by fire being used in Japanese mythology. I've never read much Japanese mythology, but I guess I saw that as a mostly Greek/Roman practice. Either way, the idea of asking a divine being to keep you safe to prove your honesty/truthfulness as you walk through a wall of flames, is very intriguing. The only thing about this reading unit that I just couldn't seem to get down with was the mix of verse and prose. Sometimes I would get confused or frustrated while reading and have to stop for a minute or move on from the section I was reading. It was also pretty difficult to find pictures of Izanami, which surprised me. With other mythology units I was able to find an abundance of images of the gods and goddesses discussed, but not so with Izanagi and Izanami. It seems there are only 2-3 images (and they're old) of this heavenly couple. There wasn't even very much fan art. It was just really strange to me.

Japanese Family Tree of Gods

found on this Japanese myth site

Week 6 Storytelling: Jealousy

Jealousy 

Once upon a time there was a princess named Kono whose beauty was known far and wide. Many compared her beauty to that of the delicate petals of the cherry blossom. She had many suitors, but none excited her and she spent her days wandering about the garden and dreaming that one day she would find true love. 

One day, while Kono was out wading in the river, she came upon the most handsome man she'd ever seen. He was tall, with broad shoulders and a strong jaw. Power and masculinity seemed to emanate from his body. She was immediately entranced and she stared at him as he walked along the riverbank. 

Unbeknownst to Kono, the man had seen her too. He immediately rushed up to her. 

"I am so sorry to disturb you, but you have to be the most beautiful creature I've ever seen. What is your name?" He asked eagerly.

"Kono," she replied, blushing but excited, "And who might you be?"

"My name is Nigo."

The two talked for what seemed like forever and a whirlwind romance began. The two spent all of their time together, laughing, sneaking kisses, and watching the river flow gently by. It wasn't long before they knew they wanted to be together forever. Nigo, being the traditional man he is, decided to pay Kono's father a visit to ask for her hand in marriage. 

After much discussion, arguing, and some serious sister drama Kono's father finally agreed to the marriage of Kono and Nigo. Nigo rushed home. He burst through the door, picked up his future wife, and spun her around while kissing her. Once the his excitement had been pushed down enough for him to talk, Nigo told Kono of her father's approval. She squealed joyously and jumped back into Nigo's arms. Marriage plans began and it wasn't long before the two lovers were married in a beautiful ceremony full of love and devotion. 

The two made a home for themselves and spent many years in marital bliss before deciding to expand their little family of two. The two tried and tried, initially finding it difficult to conceive before they were blessed with two beautiful boys. Kono glowed with motherly warmth and was a wonderful mother to the boys. As for Nigo? He couldn't be prouder. I loved his sons with all of his heart and spent

Everything was perfect, but it didn't stay that way for long. One day, a man named Sun-Win saw Kono, Nigo, and their boys as they were navigating the stalls at the local market. Nigo and the boys ventured away from Kono to look at the swords while she continued shopping for the week's groceries. Sun-Win watched her peruse the fruit for what seemed like forever. He was entranced by her beauty and immediately took an interest in this mysterious woman. Sun-Win approached Kono, pretending to be interested in the same piece of fruit and touching her hand when they both went for it. She apologized and he laughed before asking if she would like to accompany him for a stroll through the nearby garden. After all, the fruit would still be there when she got back, he suggested. She politely declined but thanked him and went back to her shopping. Sun-Win understood and left Kono to her business. Nothing wrong happened, but Nigo didn't know that. He'd seen a man approach his wife, talk to her, and make her smile before leaving looking as if nothing bad had happened.

Jealousy consumed Nigo and he became hateful towards his wife. He was suspicious of her every move and of her motives. Constantly, he accused her of cheating on him and constantly she denied it because she would never do that to him. It didn't matter what she or the boys said, he could not believe them. So, after weeks of his wife and kids walking on eggshells around him, Nigo's jealousy finally came to a head and erupted in him disowning his children for obviously the were not his, but the man from the market's sons. 

Kono was devestated, how could he do this to her? To his sons? They had been nothing but loyal and devoted to Nigo! She cried angrily and pounded her fists on the ground wondering what she was going to do. 

Then suddenly, and idea popped into her head and she prayed to her grandmother-in-law, Ameratsu, the goddess of the sun and universe. She pleaded with the goddess to help her and her sons. She demanded a trial by fire to prove her innocence. Kono then proceeded to light a large fire and gather her family around her. 

"Please, all-powerful goddess, if my sons are truly those of Nigo, let the fire not harm them." 

Kono then instructed her husband to stand on the other side of the fire. He took his place and soon became very nervous. He didn't believe that Kono had been faithful, but that didn't mean he wanted these two boys to be burned to death! He fidgeted, wringing his hands as Kono instructed the boys to walk to their daddy on the other side of the fire. Both boys ran into the fire and Nigo flinched, closing his eyes before opening them just in time to see his two sons run unharmed through the fire. They leapt into his arms and he showered them with kisses, holding them tight against his chest. 

Nigo put the boys down and ran to his wife. He dropped to his knees and begged for her forgiveness. He realized he had wronged her and had no reason to distrust her. Shame filled his mind and tears flowed from his eyes as he pleaded with her to give him another chance. Nigo promised to never doubt her again and Kono let him feel the guilt he so rightfully deserved for a little while before reaching down to grab his hand. He stood up and she forgave him. The two were once again reunited as a loving couple and their family was once again whole. 

The End

Author's Note:
This week I was really inspired by the story of Princess Tree-Blossom found in the second part of The Heaven Descended from the Japanese Mythology unit from the un-textbook. The story of Ninigi going to the father of Princess Tree-Blossom and choosing to only be with her (when her father gives him both her and her sister) was wonderful. But then, an Earth spirit- the spirit of the Summer Wind, becomes infatuated with the princess and this sparks jealousy in Ninigi. Even though she gives him no reason to be suspicious or doubt her loyalty, he begins to think she cheated on him and that his sons are not actually his. As such, he disowns them, crushing his wife. She calls for a trial by fire and proves that the children are, in fact, his sons and that she has been truthful and faithful the entire time. Nigini admits fault and drops to his knees to beg the princess for forgiveness. I wanted this to feel like a folktale that could be told to children, but tried to write it for an older age group.

Image Information:

1. Cherry Blossom by Chinno, found on DeviantArt
2. Tatsuko Princess by Yumiko Nolan, found on his website portfolio
3. Japanese bride and groom, found on Nepali Austrailia
4. Hexagon shaped, Japanese wedding cake decorated with cherry blossoms and a Japanese bride and groom wedding cake topper by Karen Lindsay, found on Flickr
5. Guy Drawing by Phraisohn, found on DeviantArt
6. Jealousy Consumes, found on Blondie Babs's blog: Blonde Girl Chronicles
7. Crying by Tawna-Dawn-art on DeviantArt
8. Ameratsu by Stephanie Kao, found on her Store Envy
9. Bonfire Flames by He Who Laughs Last, found on Wikimedia Commons
10. Please! I'm Begging You! found on Tando

Bibliography:
Romance of Old Japan, Part I: Mythology and Legend by E. W. Champney and F. Champney (1917).

Week 11 Tech Tip: Resize Image with PicMonkey

This week I used PicMonkey to not only resize this image of our dog, Lily and my roommate's grandmother's dog, Katie, but to edit it and put a fun Polaroid frame on it. 

Original Image

PicMonkey Edit

Week 6 Reading Diary B

This week I chose to read the Japanese Mythology reading unit from the un-textbook.

The Labors of Yamato: The Grotto of Love
* read this story HERE

Japanese geisha mermaid with umbrella under the great wave and cherry blossoms branches

By Martin Nieto, found on his PhotoBlog

• Yamato's bored of his princess and begins yearning for his lost mermaid. He was lured by her siren song into a cave where he runs into a dragon! He makes it past, and moves on to a big chamber where he finds a beautiful mermaid playing a lute upon a bed of coral.
• Here we meet Benten, a sea kami (goddess) who is also one of the Seven Lucky Gods of Japan. She introduces herself as Benten, the Goddess of Deathless Love, and she offers the pleasures of her kingdom to Yamato. She provides him a grand feast, with sweet ambrosia sake and heaps of shellfish and fruit. He becomes entranced and says, "Grant me thy love, sweet siren — else I shall surely die.”
• She sings to him and caresses him sweetly before shoving him back and saying that if he wants her love, he must risk his life by sailing to Horaizon and acquiring the Golden Apple of Immortal Youth. If he succeeds, she will grant him her undying love. 

The next story is just Benten telling Yamato about Horaizon and the story of the Golden Apple

The Labors of Yamato - The Demon Boar
*Check out this big, bad boar Here

• It turns out that before Yamato can get the apple, he must first defeat a demon boar in a forest near Fujiyama. So, he grabs a group of guys and heads out to nab a demon boar. They find it and rain arrows down onto it, but their arrows cannot penetrate its hide. Yamato becomes impatient and charges the boar with his spear even though he'd been warned earlier not to do that crap. His steed is impaled on the boar's tusks and Yamato is thrown from his back and landing hard on the ground. The boar then charges him and traps him with his back to a huge cliff. Yamato is unafraid and draws the sacred sword. He hops over the boar and cuts off its tale, causing it to freak and run off the cliff. 

In the next story, Yamato travels to Suruga where he is treated like a welcomed guest.. until he wakes up and the whole building he's in is ON FIRE! Not only this, but the fire had spooked the hundreds of deer and horses which began running about goring and trampling everyone in their blind terror. Some crazy specter girl comes in and burns up before saying some cryptic stuff- it's princess Tacibana,who sacrifices herself to save them. Then, Yamato cuts a pathway in the grass with his sword and they escape. 

Yamato's princess/wife has proven to be incredibly devoted and loyal, but he still can't resist Benten.

Yamato slays the dragon in the grotto. 

Week 6 Reading Diary A

This week to read the Japanese mythology unit from the untextbook.

Izanagi and Izanami
*Read about their stories here: part 1 and part 2

Izanagi and Izanami

by Lady-Voldything on DeviantArt

• Izanagi = all-powerful god of air, god of the heavens, the creator
• Izanami = goddess of love and the clouds, who have birth to the world and it's deities
• Taka-ma-no-hara = the highest plain in heaven 
• Before the world was created, there was an empty void. From this void floated various flowers that grew into the sun and the moon. Then, more flowers fell and their petals became Izanagi and Izanami. From these two came all of Earth and it's creatures. 
• Then, one day, the two were standing on the bridge of heaven and decided to create their own kingdom. Izanagi plunged his spear into the swirling ocean and out sprung the island of Onogora. He stirred his sword in the water and out came the "earth-makers." Izanami and Izanagi lived on Onogora and through this the 8 islands of  Japan were born. 
• The gods of nature are then born. 
• Izanami and Izanagi have two children: Amaterasu, who goes on to become the sun goddess/ruler of heaven, and Susa-no-wo, who became the moon god and ruler of the seas/tides. 
• The moon grew to be hateful and jealous because Izanami loved her Earth children most of all. She asked Kami to minister to them, the river god to water their rice fields, the mountain god to bestow gold upon them, the god of trees to give then timber, and the goddess of abundance to  grow them an abundance of fruit. 
• The gods got super jealous and held a meeting to bring it to attention. Izanami dies and Izanagi goes to the underworld to rescue her. He finds her soul, writhing in pain and sorrow, but he cannot save her and in his grief, he leaves to carry out his days on Earth (the island of Ahaji) in constant sadness.

The Heaven-Descended
*Read it for yourself here: part 1 and part 2

• Amaterasu = sun goddess
• The council, consisting of 800 gods, is meeting- Amaterasu addresses the council and advocates for a god being sent to the Rice Plains to restore order and peace to the area rife with uprisings. So, Amewaka descends to govern however he is enchanted by Princess Shita-teru-hime when he gets to the Isle of the Dragonfly. He marries her and lives with her happily for 8 years without changing anything. Amaterasu gets impatient and worried so she sends her pheasant, Na-naki to go see what's up. Na-naki perches on a branch nearby and is spotted by Ama-no-sagu (the Heaven-Spying Woman) who promptly goes and tells Amewaka that an evil bird is perched outside- surely it can be NO GOOD.
• Amewaka, trying to be proactive, grabs his bow and shoots an arrow straight through Na-naki's heart. The arrow continued up to the heavens where it landed at Amaterasu's feet. She throws the arrow to Earth and says that if he shot it at a bad earth spirit, that the arrow should kill that spirit, but if he shot it at someone with evil in his heart, may the arrow strike him dead. 
• The arrow strikes Amewaka in the heart. The princess finds him dead and Amewaka's mom arranges for a funeral and a huge temple to be erected, where everyone mourned for 8 days.
• The sun goddess calls for her grandchild Ninigi (Prince Rice Plenty) to go take Amewaka's place. She gave him 3 divine gifts: "he Necklace of Jewels, which her father Izanagi had bestowed upon her at her birth; the Sacred Sword, which Susa-no-wo discovered within the tail of the eight-forked serpent; and the Miraculous Mirror whose lustre had lured her from the magic cave." She tells him to guard them well, especially the mirror. 
• As he is about to descend he gets word of a Giant God with rays of light shining from his eyes and mouth. Ninigi calls upon Uzume, the goddess of mirth, to handle the giant. 
• The giant =  Saruta-niko (Deity-of-the-Field-Paths) who says he wants to pay homage to the grandchild of Amaterasu- to attend him as a guide. Ninigi eagerly descends. The giant helps Ninigi so much that he gives the giant Uzume as his wife to say thank you. The two are wed and head off to live out their days together in the mountains. 

Konohanasakuya-hime

by Csyeung, found on DeviantArt

• Ninigi gets lonely and meets Ko-no-hana (Princess Tree-Blossom). He inquires about her hand in marriage to her dad and is awarded not only her, but her sister, Iha-naga-hime (Princess Long-as-the-Rocks), too! However, Ninigi had no interest in Iha-naga-hime and rejected her. She got mad and yelled that if he had chosen her, his children would have been immortal, but since he didn't, they will wither and die. This is why the lifespan of man is as short as it is. 
• Ninigi didn't care and him and his bride lived happily for many years. For whatever reason, Summer Wind took a liking to Princess Tree-Blossom, and even though she remained faithful and he wasn't actively pursuing her, Ninigi gets hella jealous (it drives him mad) and.. disowns his sons? The faithful wife demands a TRIAL BY FIRE! She summons the sun goddess, saying (essentially) "if my children are innocent, and truly Ninigi's paternal children, please do not let the fire harm them." With that, the boys ran into the fire. They emerged on the other side of the fire and jumped into Ninigi's arms. Ninigi drops to his knees and begs for forgiveness from his wife, saying, 

Like Mina’s stream that foaming falls

From white Tsukuba’s height,

My whelming love shall flow to thee

Strong as a torrent, pure and free,

Calm as a pool of night

**Side note: OMG I LOVE this love story. I think I will LIKELY use it for my storytelling this week

Week 5 Famous Last Words

Good News Everyone!

Professor Hubert Farnsworth from the TV show "Futurama"

found on Hollywood Hates Me

This week was really great because I nailed down my spot in the Journey to Africa-Tanzania study abroad program! My roommate and I are OFFICIALLY going to Tanzania! We are going to live with host families for the first part of the trip and work in local social service agencies while we take two elective courses: Social Welfare Issues in Tanzania (3 hours) and Social Justice Work in Tanzania (3 hours) which is HUGE because I only need 2 courses for my Master's of Social Work-Advanced Standing program that i'm really hoping to get into. We will then get to travel around Tanzania! We will go on a spice tour, a safari, a boat ride into Dar es Salaam, and a visit to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area before coming back to our original location in Arusha for a thank you celebration with the host families and social service agencies! We will also get to learn some Swahili! In case you can't tell, i'm totally stoked! This is such a huge opportunity and it's definitely going to change my life forever. 

If you feel inclined to help me raise the money for my trip, share with someone else who might, or just want to learn more about it, here's my GoFundMe page widget:

I also plan to keep a travel blog where I will update with stories I have been told, things I've learned, experiences I've had, and pictures I've taken. You can check it out here: 

Bria's Journey to Tanzania

The blog is only in its initial stages, but will definitely be updated more and more as I tell more about myself, my pre-departure activities, and eventually my trip!

MOVING ON:

This week was crazy and had many ups and downs, but I feel like i'm in a good place. I have embraced the social work truth that in order to be a good social worker you have to be flexible. So, even though there have been some changes made in my academic life, i'm going to move on and handle them with as much grace and humor as possible. I'm going to look forward to all of the amazing things that are coming up (graduation in May, Tanzania, moving out of this crappy apartment this summer, grad school, and all of the awesome things i'm going to get to do thanks to my mentor Rita) and stay positive. As my dad used to say, "It's all gravy, baby!"

Aren't we just precious! I love my dad!

From my Instagram

Also, check me out on Instagram if you want: @testiclefestival 

(I know my name on there is crazy, just go with it, I promise my Instagram is not raunchy)

Comment Wall

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Queen Elizabeth II when you leave comments:

Queen Elizabeth Nail Polish

from Huffpost Style, found on The Huffington Post

Queen Elizabeth II when you don't:

Queen Elizabeth II Green Races

Posted by Rob Little on Lets Tour England!

DON'T UPSET THE QUEEN!

Long Live the Queen

by Bec Kate, found on Stefan Hair Fashions

Week 5 Essay

Arabian Night Design

found on Wallpapers Wide

This week I chose to read the Arabian Nights reading unit from the un-textbook. I really enjoyed this week's reading! The first half of the unit was so exciting and fun to read! I loved the story of Scheherazade! It was dark and strange, full of vengeance and scheming. I really liked it. That's what I based my storytelling assignment on for this week. I also enjoyed the second half of the unit where I got to read the tale of Aladdin and the magic lamp! I love the Disney movie, Aladdin, and was excited to see what was different between the two. I liked that there were actually TWO genies in the original story of Aladdin! After reading it, I couldn't help but wish another movie would be made, a live-action one that would depict the original tale. How fun would that be?

Anyway, I was particularly interested because most of the original fairy tales that Disney bases their movies off of are far more graphic, dark, strange, and twisted than what we see on the big screen or on our TVs at home. I like the original stories because they were told to teach a lesson and that is why they often included scary themes. They wanted to scare children into acting properly and heeding their warnings. Plus, times were different back then, more brutal. It makes me glad I live in the time that I do, but definitely makes for some interesting reading.

Overall, I thought this reading unit was well put-together and organized. I enjoyed the readings and none of them felt like they were boring or tedious to read. Also, unlike with the Ancient Egypt unit, I didn't feel like there was really any missing information. I didn't need a whole lot of back-story because these stories didn't deal with ancient gods and goddesses from a far-off religion. Instead, it told stories of adventure, magic, and strange love (that whole.. let's kidnap the princess and prince every night and scare the crap out of them until they divorce thing.. yeah, that was really shady).

Bibliography:

1. The Arabian Nights' Entertainments by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1898).
2. Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie (1907).