Week 15: Writing Post

What did you like best about the writing for this class? What would you like to see more of?

I liked the storytelling posts and I liked having the option between Storybook or Portfolio. There's really nothing I would suggest seeing more of.

Did you choose the Storybook or the Portfolio? Are you happy with your choice? What information should I emphasize to next semester's students when they make that choice?

I chose the Portfolio and I am happy with my choice. I guess emphasize in the beginning of the semester that students may be using the storytelling posts for Portfolios.

Do you have suggestions for the commenting process: suggestions about commenting on blog posts? suggestions about comments on Storybooks/Portfolios?

I guess to suggest more feedback and for people to point out grammatical and punctuation errors.

What kinds of comments did you find most useful as you working on your Storybook/Portfolio?

I like comments when people give me suggestions or possible changes I can make to improve my story.

Do you think this class helped you to improve your writing?

Yeah, I think this class helped me with my grammar and punctuation errors.

What kind of writing do you see yourself doing in your future career? Will writing be important in that career?

The kind of writing I see myself doing is very technical writing that are based on factual evidence since my major is chemical engineering.

As you look back on your writing this semester, what advice do you have for students who will be getting started next semester?

You have more imagination and creativity than you thought and write something that you would like to read!

Week 15: Reading Review Post

What did you like best about the readings for this class? Are there any general suggestions you would make about how the readings are set up?

 I liked how each of the readings had a middle point where we could stop. It was very useful during busy weeks of the semester. I also liked the notes that were added to a few of the stories. I found them very helpful in units that were difficult to understand. I also liked how in the Table of Contents, there was a "pairing" of certain units with similar themes! I actually utilized that a lot!

Did you find some new reading diary strategies that you used in the second half of the semester?

During the second half of the semester, I tried to take the time to read the whole unit in a day instead of reading splitting the halves in two days. This helped me organize my thoughts and compare/contrast the stories or story throughout a unit better.

What did you think of the overall balance between reading - writing - commenting in the class assignments? Do you think I should offer a reading assignment extra credit option?

There was a good balance between reading, writing, and commenting in the class. An extra credit option would be nice. I'm not sure how that would be conducted. 

As you look back from the end of the semester, what advice do you have for students who will be getting started next semester?

 This class takes some time, but if you plan things out and work ahead, it will make your semester much easier!

I had an enjoyable experience with the Un-Textbook. It is very different from what I am used to, but it allowed me to personalize and adjust my reading to fit my interests. I think the most useful priorities would be to add more notes to units and to create "anthology" units. The notes I found more useful were the ones that were linked to Wikipedia sites where we could find more information. There were a few in the Psyche and Cupid unit. As for "anthology" units, these would be pretty helpful especially for Storybooks! I know I had trouble coming up with a Storybook idea so I would have liked this when I was thinking of topics for my Storybook. Also, it allows students to compare and contrast themes of different cultures and time periods.

Portfolio Guide

Week 6: Kai-Lan

Week 2: Venus and Psyche

Week 9: The Sweet and Sour of Love and Strawberries

Week 3: The Beggar Businessman

Week 4: The Man Who Thought He was a Fisherman

Week 14 (Reading Diary): Grimm (Hunt)

Grimm (Hunt)

Hansel and Grethel - I already read the original of this story before, but I still enjoyed it! It is a good first story for this unit! I am guessing that the overall theme of this unit is about children meeting obstacles and they have to figure out how to find their way home.

Thumbling - This is basically, the male version of Thumbelina. I found it interesting and I like how clever Thumbling is. This also has the theme of a child meeting obstacles as he finds his way home.

Allerleirauh - I feel like this story fits better with the Grimm (Crane) unit.

Snow White and Rose Red - I was expecting this story to be related or a sequel to the original Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, but it's not. I think I like this story a bit better anyway. I found it endearing, entertaining, and enjoyable.

Overall, I think this unit is a bit strange. I liked it at the beginning, but then the second half of the reading got very confusing.

Week 6 (Storytelling): Kai-Lan

 

(Laotian Wedding Tradition; source: Our Journeys Within)

January 7, 1707

“To my one and only Kaipo,

It has been many months since our last meeting. I constantly think about you and the past times when we were together. Remember when we used to gaze at the stars or when we found that lost puppy? I recently saw that puppy with its family and she looked very happy! I wish I could feel just as happy. I miss your handsome face looking at me. I miss your strong hands holding mine. I miss your calm voice steadying my heart. Ever since my father forbade me to see you, you are all I can think about.

I hate my father. He and his servants are constantly watching me. My father is frequently boasting to others how he drove you away. He invites many suitors into my home. He is expecting me to marry one of them. However, I refuse all of them. You are all that I want. No one can compare to you. Our love is stronger than any distance that keeps us apart. I will never betray our love or you.

We have been apart for too long. These past months have felt like centuries to me. Time moves so slowly when you are not around. I cannot wait anymore. My father is hosting a feast for all in the province tomorrow night. Please come. I must see you. I must be with you.

Love,

Your Dearest Aelan”

The next night, the feast was held. It was possibly grander than any of the king’s feasts. People from all over the province came to enjoy the festivities. They were everywhere and the room was filled with constant laughter and merriment. Everyone was enjoying the party except for one, Aelan. She constantly kept an eye out for her dear lover. However, she could not find him. Dismayed, she stepped outside into the garden to get away from the crowd. Suddenly, she heard shrubs shake and turned around to see her lover, Kaipo, standing there in front of her. She ran to him and they embraced. Tears filled her eyes and it felt as if they had never been separated at all. Kaipo looked lovingly into Aelan’s eyes. Right then, he pleaded her to elope with him. She did not think twice before complying. They both jumped on his horse and while they did that, a servant saw them trying to escape. He immediately told Aelan’s father and a search party was formed.

Kaipo and Aelan went far past the city limits and into the dangerous and rocky mountains. The two lovers came to a huge canyon and had nowhere to go. The search party was catching up to them. They were trapped. Kaipo and Aelan looked at each other and nodded. They both decided that they would rather die together than be separated again. So, they jumped. They were so close to making it to the other side, but their weight was just too much. The couple and their steed fell into the river at the bottom of the canyon. The search party saw this. The river was two hundred feet below the top of the rocky canyon, so there was no way the couple could have survived. They decided that there was no reason to continue and they returned home. However, by the will of God, the couple and horse fell into the river and survived the fall. They scrambled out of the river with a few bruises, but very much alive. The couple was so tired that they laid on the riverbank and looked up into the stars. They lived happily ever after.

Author's Note - The original storyline comes from Lovers' Leap in the Laos Unit. For my past storytellings, I usually do a modernization of the plot, but this time I did something different and tried a love letter style. In the original plot, the lovers do not make it over the cliff, but I wanted to have a happier ending than that. Then, in my original storytelling, I wrote that the couple made it over to the other side of the canyon, but I realized that it was a bit predictable so I changed it for my portfolio to the way it is now. I actually like my new ending a lot and I think it is more interesting. Other than that, I kept the story basically the same. For the title, I combined the lovers' names together. In Laotian, "Kaipo" is a male name meaning "sweetheart" and "Aelan" is a female name meaning "flower." I know that it is pretty cheesy. In fact, my whole story is pretty cheesy. I imagined the lovers to be around sixteen or seventeen years old so I figured that I could get away with it. This reminded me a bit of Romeo and Juliet as I was reading it so I added the detail about the stars. Star-crossed lovers usually have tragic endings because the stars controls people’s fates, but like I said, I wanted a happier ending. Therefore, in the end, I just had the couples stare at the stars as a triumph over what their fate should have been. 

If you are having trouble deciding what unit to read next week, I highly recommend the Laos Unit! It has some really good stories and many have surprising endings. The diction and wording are also easy to read! If you have any suggestions for what I should read next week, please leave a comment below!


Book: Laos Fairy Tales

Author: Katherine Neville Fleeson

Year Published: 1899

Web Source: Project Gutenberg

Week 13 (Essay): Grimm (Crane) Unit

This week I read the Grimm (Crane) unit. I actually really enjoyed this unit. It was quite interesting especially because of some of the unexpected endings. My favorite stories are King Thrushbeard and the Three Spinsters. I liked King Thrushbeard because I thought it was sweet how the King loved the princess so much, but he could see how arrogant and obnoxious she was. So, he disguised himself and went through all this work just to show her modesty. It was a bit heartwarming. As for the Three Spinsters, this story was very short, but I thought it was pretty funny! I originally thought it was going to be like Rumpelstiltskin, but it was not. In my opinion, it was better! My least favorite story was Snow White. This story was long and it felt like it dragged on a bit. All the stories were very straightforward so no background information or additional notes were needed. The overview gave a good description of the unit. It felt like the overall theme of this unit was about princesses except for the Fisherman and his Wife and the Robber Bridegroom. My overall goal for this class was to expose me to works of writing. This week, I did not choose something as obscure as I usually do. I choose something that I was a bit familiar with, but I had never really read. I found it as a fitting choice. I did not really learn anything from this unit nor did I have any expectations. However, something that surprised me was how gruesome the Robber Bridegroom story was! I remember have a few shivers and goose bumps while reading that story. Overall, I liked this unit! I recommend it to anyone that wants something easy to read. It has a good number of twists and turns that make it an interesting read!

Reading Diary (Week 13): Grimm Tales

Grimm (Crane)

Fisherman and His Wife - I found this story the most humorous out of the three. The wife is never content with what she has once she realizes that she can wish for whatever she wants. When she finally wishes for the power to control the sun and moon, she ends up back where she started in a small little hovel. This is probably why genies only give out three wishes.

Aschenputtel - I remember reading this earlier in the semester. I think it is in someone's storybook. Anyway, this is my first time actually reading the original and it was more gruesome than I expected. There is a lot of extreme actions taken. Nonetheless, it was an interesting story.

Robber Bridegroom - This was a very surprising story! I did not expect this to happen at all. It made me feel a bit uncomfortable reading it honestly. I don't know how people come up with this stuff.

Six Swans - This was a nice story. I had never heard of it before, but it is actually very popular. It was a nice story.

King Thrushbeard - This is probably my favorite story out of all the ones from this unit. I did not expect the ending at all and I thought it was really sweet! It kind of reminded me of the Beggar King from the Jewish Fairy Tales unit.

Three Spinsters - This story was super funny! I definitely recommend it to people! I think it would be a really good story to do a storytelling over too!

Snow White - I actually did not like this story very much. It was kind of long. I didn't feel like there was a really stand out moment in this story. It was so-so.

Google Timer Tech Tip

I do not really have any time management tricks when I am doing work. I just try to take a few breaks when I am studying or doing work every few hours or so. However, I do not have a timer for that. This is my first time using the Google Timer until now and I find it very handy! I think I will start incorporating this!

Week 2 (Storytelling): Venus and Psyche

In the meadows of Nysa, one of the goddess’s favorite sacred havens, Venus walks through throngs of flowers to celebrate the new spring. Sunshine illuminates the vast meadows and reflects from the waters that it is almost blinding. However, it is not a sight you want to close your eyes from. Countless blossoms bloom in the new sunshine, creatures emerge from their winter slumber, and chatter fills the air with liveliness. Venus watches as her servants enjoy the relaxing day. Some are picking flowers, while some sit, sharing secrets, and others are playing a…….scream? Everyone looks at the source of the noise. One young servant dressed in blue clothes looks pale and is as frozen as if Medusa had stunned her.

Venus hurries to her. “What is it, my child?”

She turns to look in the same direction and sees it. Not an it, a her. A young maiden in her later teens emerges from behind the tree.

“What is this nonsense? What name do you go by, young maiden? Why do you trespass here?”

“I am known as Psyche, the youngest princess of a king, not far from here. I did not mean to cause harm. I just wanted to gander with my own eyes the beauty of this place,” says the pretty young maiden.

“These lands are blessed, as decreed by the father of all gods himself. No mortal is allowed to walk on the soft soil or lay his or her eyes on the lush greenery. Begone,” sneered one servant.

“Yes, no servants are permitted to come here, especially not a vile-looking creature as yourself, human,” laughed another. All the servants followed.

However, this young maiden was not a vile-looking creature. She was actually a very beautiful girl, an uncommon beauty. She had light brown hair done up in an unruly braid that hung down on her shoulders. Her pale and delicate skin greatly contrasted with her strong facial features, deep-set eyes, a tall nose, high cheekbones, and a pointed chin. Her most attractive feature was her eyes. They shined light brown in the sunlight, but in the shade they looked green around the edges. They were the most unique set of eyes the goddess had ever laid her eyes on.  She had to have them.

“Tell me, Psyche, why do your eyes change as they do? They are a wonder that I have not seen before and I am the fairest of all creatures in Heaven and Earth. Tell me, Psyche.”

 “I am sorry, great Venus, I do not know why. I am the only of my family and our kingdom that can do such.”

“I see. You do know where you are standing is sacred ground? The air you are breathing is revered? The sight you are seeing is blessed? Your kind is not welcomed here.”

“Yes, I do know. Please spare my life! I did not wish to do harm! I just wanted to see your splendor with my own eyes. You are the queen of all that is exquisite,” begged Psyche.

“Do not be afraid, young and naïve Psyche. I will not take your life away. However, I cannot allow you to leave unpunished from trespassing. Since you yearned so much to see this safe haven, I shall make sure this that last thing you see.”

With that, the goddess’s servants held poor and struggling Psyche down, while one pulled out her eyes. Psyche cried with all her lungs with the worse pain.

“My eyes! How can I see now? Please Venus, give me back my sight!”
“They are mine now. Hush, young one. Stay calm. I will not give back your eyes, but I will make you my servant. I will grant you immortality and your status will no longer be a mere mortal."

(Psyche Before The Throne Of Venus; 

photo by Henrietta Rae; source:ArtScroll)

Author's Note  - In the original plot of Cupid and Psyche, Venus is jealous of Psyche because humans used to praise her more than they praised Venus. If you do not already know, when Venus is envious of someone, she goes on a rampage. There is a lot more to the story, but at some point, Venus is torturing poor Psyche. When I first wrote this story, I tried to come up with a storyline that went with the original storyline of Venus and Psyche. However, I came at a dead end and ran out of things to write so I looked at storytelling from my peers and realized that some people took a completely different take from the original plot. So I redid my whole storyline to what it is now. Obviously, this is completely different from the original storyline so this is not a retelling of the story. Rather, I use the characters, their personalities, and some of the basic ideas from the original story and made a completely new storyline. I ended up liking this version of my storytelling a lot more than what I had before even though it is a bit gruesome. I tried to imitate the typical flamboyant and descriptive language Roman stories are written in. I'm not sure if I did it justice, but I gave it a shot.

Book: The Golden Ass
Author:ApuleiusYear
Published: 2013
Web Source: Poetry in Translation

Google Search-by-Image Tech Tip

(Incarnation of Vishnu as a Fish)

Here is the picture I chose for the Tech Tip, it is the Incarnation of Vishnu as a Fish. To read more about it, you can go to the Wikipedia page about Matsya.

Week 12 (Essay): King Arthur Review

(King Arthur on BBC Wales)

This week I read the King Arthur unit. This unit is about the life and quests of King Arthur and his companions including Merlin the magician and his Queen Guinevere. Before reading this, I had a general idea of what the unit was about, but I had never actually read it. Nonetheless, I did enjoy reading this unit. My favorite stories are The Drawing of the Sword and The Passing of Merlin. The Drawing of the Sword is a very appropriate first story because it is the beginning of the unit and the beginning of Arthur’s life as king. As for The Passing of Merlin, even though this is a very sad story, I found it interesting how the great and powerful Merlin met his demise because of a maiden. It is strange how people can be blinded by beauty so easily. My least favorite stories were the Questing Beast and the Coming of the Holy Graal. I understand that this is where Merlin and Arthur meet, but I felt like this section could have been mentioned in a note. As for The Coming of the Holy Graal, I also do not think this story was necessary to add. I could not figure out how it added to the overall effect of the story. This could also had just been a note rather than a story. It was just so-so.

I found that each story had an appropriate amount of notes. I enjoyed how there were additional Wikipedia links where students could read more on certain stories. I certainly took advantage of that and it was very convenient!

I also found that the overview gave a good description of the unit. I did not have any certain expectations coming into this story because I originally was going to read Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. I do not think anything really surprised me while I was reading the unit either.

Week 12 (Storytelling): Arthur as King

A long time ago when there was no king to maintain order in Britain, the country was broken and a mess. Laws were constantly broken. Countless Knights ran amuck in order to seize the crown for himself. Finally, the great and powerful magician, Merlin, stepped forward and discussed with the Archbishop and the lords and gentleman of Britain of who should rule the throne. All the men agreed to meet in Britain on Christmas Day.

When these great men met together in Britain, they saw a great stone bearing a sword. Engraved on the stone were the words, "Whoso pulleth out this sword is by right of birth King of England". Intrigued, all the knights, lords, and gentlemen attempted to pull out the sword with the hopes of receiving the kingdom. However, all failed without even shaking the sword from its base. The Archbishop declared for two Knights, noble and true, to stand guard on this mysterious sword.

Weeks went by and no one was successful at drawing the sword. On New Year’s Day, a tournament was held for all Knights across the land. Two contestants were the brave Sir Ector and his valiant son, Sir Kay. Along with them was the young Arthur whom was about the same age as Sir Kay. However, unbeknownst to himself is not of their blood and kin. Regardless, Sir Ector treated Arthur like one of his own.

As the three of them traveled to the tournament, Sir Kay realized that he had unbuckled his sword last night and had forgotten it at home. Sir Kay asked Arthur to bring it to him because he could not enter the tournament without it. So, Arthur rode back home to fetch his brother’s sword. Unfortunately, he could not enter the home because everyone had left to watch the tournament. Arthur did not want to disappoint his brother, whom he looked up to dearly, so he remembered the sword stuck in the rock. Arthur quickly rode to that sword, but he did not see any of the knights around it. Ignoring that, he grabbed the handle and gently pulled. The sword came out easily.

Just as this happened, the Archbishop was leaving the Great Church to head to the tournament. He saw Arthur pull the sword out of the stone. However, before he could approach the boy, Arthur was already hurrying to the tournament to meet his brother. The Archbishop was amazed and scurried to the tournament as fast as he could. Once the Archbishop entered the arena, he saw Arthur in the middle of the field as he was handing his brother the sword. The Archbishop hurried to the scene. All spectators stopped and watched him. The Archbishop walked to Arthur and told the audience, "Here is your new King!"

Author's Note - This story is originally from Drawing of the Sword from the King Arthur unit. I really liked this unit and I found it very interesting. I chose to retell this story because I believe that it is one many have heard of, but have not actually read. For my rendition, I did not change much from the actual story except for the ending. In the end, the Archbishop does not actually see Arthur pull out the sword at first and all the details that followed that. However, I felt that my ending gave the original a bit more drama. It also adds a bit of a cliff hanger.

King Arthur: Tales of the Round Table by Andrew Lang and illustrated by H. J. Ford (1902).

Week 12 (Reading Diary): King Arthur

King Arthur
I was originally going to read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, but I changed my mind last minute to read this unit since it related better with the unit I read last week.

Drawing of the Sword - What a perfect beginning story for this unit! I liked it a lot. I had already knew a general idea of the story, but this was my first time actually reading and I was not disappointed. It was a great story to start out with.

Sword Excalibur - I have always heard of this term and of the Lady of the Lake, but I never brought myself to research it a bit. Now I finally know! This unit is a lot more interesting then I was expecting.

Passing of Merlin - Yikes! What a harsh break up! Poor guy got tricked by the one he loved even though he knew it was going to happen to him anyway.

Sir Lancelot's Vision  - This story was kind of confusing to follow, but I think I still understood it for the most part. I enjoyed it. After reading the note for this, I decided to read through some of the wikipedia pages. I found it very interesting!

End of Arthur - This story was actually difficult to follow. I wish the notes expanded a bit more about Sir Mordred and his plot to kill Arthur. It is fitting for the last story to be the demise of Arthur since this is the King Arthur unit. Not only that, it showed the end of Lancelot and Guenevere.

Google Language

I changed my google interface to my family's native language, Vietnamese!

Essay (Week 11): The Faerie Queen Unit Review

(girl in armor)

I really did enjoy the Faerie Queen unit about Britomart’s quest to find her love. I liked the play on gender and the Britomart’s character. She had both feminine and masculine attributes to her. My favorite story was in the first half of the reading where Britomart saves a Knight from being attacked by six other knights in honor of their queen. The queen, more commonly known as the Lady of Delight, is a narcissistic character and actually falls for Britomart’s looks and strength. Then she discovers that Britomart is actually a female. I found it all very funny and entertaining. As for least favorite stories, I cannot really think of one. I felt that the stories of this unit were pretty good all around. As for background information, I felt that the plots and writing was very straightforward. I liked how you offered the prose version over the poetry version. This made reading it much easier to understand and I could read through it faster without worrying whether or not I misunderstood the reading. However, I do wish there were some vocabulary links or notes with certain terms like squire. Although, it is very easy to look up a word on Google, I always think it is a nice touch when you link a word in the reading or offer more links if we are interested in a certain topic. The overview was a good description of the reading and got me interested in the reading. I knew that I wanted to read this unit from the beginning of the semester and it met my personal expectations. I thought it was a great story! I am somewhat familiar with Shakespearian plays, but I am not as familiar with Arthurian writing so I liked how this unit was a mixture of the two. It gave me great insight on the writing and culture from those days. I think it's a great unit and people should give it a try!

Storytelling (Week 11): The Best Birthday Ever!

Friday, October 24, 2014

Dear Diary,
Today was my birthday! I turned eight years old! Mommy and Daddy took me to eat lunch at my favorite Red Robin so we could celebrate it. Then we got ice cream from Marble Slab. We only go there for birthdays because Mommy says it will hurt my tummy if I eat there too much. After we ate a whole bunch of ice cream, we went to the big kids playground at Regionals Park.

There are two playgrounds at Regionals Park. There is a small one where all the babies and other little kids play on. I used to play on that because Mommy said I wasn’t old enough for the big kids one yet. Now that I am eight, I am big enough! Mommy and Daddy went to the benches where all the other Mommy’s and Daddy’s sat and talked.

I stood in front of the big kids playground and stared at it. It was a lot bigger than it looked from the little kids playground. I was a little bit scared. I knew I was scared, but I didn’t want to go back now! I started to go up the stairs, but I couldn’t stop staring at my feet. When I reached to the top, I took a deep breath and looked everywhere around me. Of to the side where the Mommy’s and Daddy’s couldn't see from the benches, I saw a small boy in the middle of a crowd of kids. The small boy was holding something colorful in his arms. I couldn’t tell what it was from this far. There were six bigger boys standing in a circle and pushing the small boy around.

These bullies! I couldn't stand it! I went down the big kids slide for the first time, but didn’t think anything about it because I was so angry with the bullies! I ran as fast as I could to the crowd.

"Stop it, you big bullies!" I yelled at them while trying to break into the crowd.

"What are you going to do about it? You are just a little girl," said one of the bullies.

“I am not a little girl! I am Britomart and I just turned eight! I’m a big girl now!”

The bullies and the crowd start laughing.

“I mean it! Leave him alone! Why are you shoving him?”


The small boy spoke up, “These six guys are trying to get me to give up my new kite. They want to take it from me, but I got this as a present from my grandpa on my birthday. I don’t want to give it up!”

Another bully responded, “Give it up, squirt! You don’t deserve that!”

Then they started to push him again. I couldn’t reason with these meanies! This time, I kicked one of them in the shins as hard as I could. Then I stepped on two bullies’ feet with all my weight! For the fourth one, I kicked him in the you-know-what and he fell down crying! The last two saw what happened to their friends so they fell on the floor saying, “Please don’t hurt us! We are really sorry!
We just did what they told us to do. We didn’t want to do it. We promise!”

I told them to never bully anyone else again and they ran off.

The small boy said,  “Thanks, Britomart! You are so cool! I’m Knight! Do you want to play with my kite with me?”

“Sure!”

Then my new friend, Knight, and I went off to play with the new kite. Today was the best birthday ever!

Britomart

Author's Note - So my story is based on the story How Britomart Fought with Six Knights from the Faerie Queen unit. In the original story, Britomart is a female disguised as a knight searching all over Faerie Queene on a quest to find her believed-future-husband, Sir Artegall. On her journey, she comes across a knight who are fighting off six other knights. The six knights are loyal subjects to their queen, the Lady of Delight. She is narcissistic and very controlling because she forces any knight with or without a love to be one of her subjects. Britomart is not okay with this and defeats the knights. Basically, in my version, I tried to adapt this story in a modern and kid friendly setting. I wrote the language to be a bit more kiddish and wrote it in first person. I also changed up a lot of the storyline so that it would fit better in a kid setting.

Book: Stories from the Faerie Queene

Author: Mary Macleod

Year Published: 1916

Web Source: Sacred Texts Archive

Reading Diary (Week 11): Faerie Queen

Faerie Queen


Sir Guyon - I LOVE THIS OPENING STORY! I am already in love with the plot. The readings are a bit longer than previous stories I have read, but I think each section has a lot of good details and aren't boring at all so they don't seem like long stories.

The Magic Mirror - I liked this section from the start. I love Britomart's response to the Knight because she wanted to be more than the "typical maiden". I really admire her for that. I like the background stories behind each character as well.

Britomart's Quest - I really like Britomart. She is brave, ambitious, a bit pretentious, and independent. However near the end of this story, Britomart is a bit more feminine. She is pretty much dreaming about a dude. A great contrast to her persona in the beginning of the story. I am stuck in choosing which story I want to write about this week.

 How Britomart Ended Her Quest - After reading this story, it kind of reminded me a bit of Disney's Mulan. Even though it was the end of the story, it ended with the start of another story.  It seems like all the knight stories in this unit were about either fame and glory or a beautiful lady. I still enjoyed it. I suppose each story is fairytale-esque.

Week 10 (Reading Diary): Tejas Legends

Tejas Legends

I really like this unit! I like this more than the Cherokee unit because it is easier to understand and the content is a bit more....realistic? I am not sure if that is the right word. Nonetheless, this is a good unit to read!

When the Storm God Rides - I really liked this reading because it had great content. I liked the descriptions used in here a lot and it is very interesting. I think I can definitely make a really good storytelling out of this! The storm god kind of reminded me of a Pokemon from the first generation. Hahah.

The Plant that Grows in Trees - The thunder bird comes back in to this story. This story was about how the mistletoe started to grow on trees. Inanimate objects have their own dialogue in here, which I have found common in a few Native American stories.

Why the Woodpecker Pecks - I remember reading this story from someone else's storytelling. I cannot remember who, but the retelling was very good. The original story is a bit more gruesome, but it is still an interesting story.

The Cloud that Was Lost - I really liked this story! This may be my favorite from the unit. I love the personifications within this story. It really adds to the story and made me feel more sympathetic for the little cloud while reading the story. It is such a cute story!

Week 9 (Storytelling): The Sweet and Sour of Love and Strawberries

When the Earth was just an infant, there was only one couple.


“Why do you always act like this?!” yelled the man.

“Why do you always ACT LIKE THIS?!” responded the woman.

“You are always so overly sensitive and self-centered. You never consider my feelings over yours.”

“You are always so stubborn and indolent. I cannot do this anymore. Good-bye.”


Then, the woman stormed out of the couple's home. She looked at the sky. It was just after dawn. The new Sun was hardly above the horizon. Angered, the woman headed towards the East, where the land of the Sun was.


“I cannot believe him. He is so arrogant,” she thought to herself.


Three hours passed.

Still heated by the argument from this morning, the woman continued on her journey to the East. Not once did she look back.

However, the man was solemnly sitting in his home. He had been grieving over their fight. The man felt so alone without his wife.


“Why am I an idiot? I should not have let her leave. What if she never comes back? What if she is in danger, but no one is there to save her? I cannot be without her. I must find her and bring her home.”

The man got up and raced towards the entrance of his home. He loved her. He did not want to be without her because of a silly argument. He was determined to bring her back to him.

Then, he heard a mysterious, deep voice say, “Do you love her? Do you want her back?”

The man looked around. He did not see anyone. Nonetheless, he replied, “Yes! Yes, I love her dearly. I do not want to be without her.”

The voice said, “Very well. I will help you.”


At that point, the sun shined brighter than ever. The man realized that he was speaking to Une'`länûñ'hï, the Sun. He was very grateful for the kind act and continued towards the East where his wife had gone.

Meanwhile, the woman continued to walk. She was still upset. Une'`länûñ'hï saw this. He devised a plan for the couple to be reunited so he shined his light on a large patch of delicious huckleberries in front of the woman. However, the woman did not pay attention to them. Then, Une'`länûñ'hï shined his light on the ripest blackberries in front of the woman, but she still did not pay attention to them either. Une'`länûñ'hï continued to shine his bright rays on more berries in front of the woman in order to tempt her. Yet, the unswerving woman still ignored all of them and continued to stride with anger for her husband in each step. Finally, Une'`länûñ'hï shined his light on a patch of delectable strawberries. The woman stopped. This was the first time she had ever seen such a delicious-looking fruit.


“I have never seen an exotic fruit like this!”


Her stomach growled. She realized how hungry she was. The berries were plump and juicy. The sight was mouth-watering. They were screaming for her to eat one.


“I suppose I could take a small break now. I must try this wonderful fruit.”


She swooped down and grabbed a few strawberries. She ate them and indulged in their juicy goodness. While the woman went to grab more, she accidentally looked towards the West. This act caused her to remember the man. Suddenly, a wave of grief fell over her. She missed him dearly and decided she could not live without him. So, she gathered more strawberries and started back towards West. Somewhere along the path, the man and woman found each other.


“I am so sorry for being stubborn and arrogant,” said the man.

“I’m sorry for considering only my feelings. I love you very much,” said the woman.


Then she showed him the new fruit she had found. The man’s eyes opened wide because he had never seen such a fruit. He tried one hungrily.


“These are delicious! Let us go home so that we may enjoy these together.”


The couple lived happily ever after.

Author’s Note - The original storyline is The Origins of Strawberries from the Cherokee Myths unit. I remember reading this story beginning of the semester for the proofreading assignment. I really liked the story and it is partially why I decided to read this unit for this week. So, I decided to write my own version of the story. In the original, the story is strictly third person narrative. I added dialogue to give the characters more personality and life. I also wanted to add a different dynamic to the original plot. The dialogue is a bit modern so it may not fit with the storyline, but I felt that it is the easiest for readers to understand. Other than that, I kept the story pretty much the same. I felt that it is already an interesting story so I did not want to change it too much. I also chose this story because I love strawberries! I thought it was sweet that the "origin" of strawberries came from a love story since they kind of look like hearts! Hence, that is why the picture I chose is of heart-shaped strawberries. Not to mention, strawberries are sweet, yet tart. Relationships happen to be like that as well.

Book: Myths of the Cherokee

Author: James Mooney

Year Published: 1900

Web Source: Project Gutenberg

Week 9 (Essay): My First Memories of Reading

(Little Boy Reading Book)

My first memories of reading are from my elementary school days. I do not remember any times my parents read a story to me in my early years, but I remember reading a lot of books. My classmates and I were always trying to rack up as many AR points as we could so that we could trade them for candy or yo-yos or a $25 check! I think I almost had 300 points in my last year. I thank the Harry Potter series for that! I remember how proud I was of that because I was never really the best reader. I liked to take my time and enjoy each of the pictures while I was reading. Even now, I still do. I used to work at a library as a library aide for the last three years until I finally quit. When I shelved books in the Children’s section, I would always read through some of them and look through all the pictures. I love how the illustrators put so much work and detail into their pictures and how they gave a precise image of what was happening in each part. Just the imagination they put into their work really amazes me. 

Back in the day, I preferred fiction books. I still do now as well. I do not have a particular favorite genre. However, I found a new appreciation for nonfiction books. Who knew the real world could as interesting as an imaginary one? When I used to shelve in the nonfiction section, I would find myself browsing through all kinds of different books. I would look through cooking recipes, religion texts, and even sports books. I found a lot of new and interesting things to read. 

Unfortunately, I do not get to read as much as I did when I was younger because I can never find the time. I tried to read some books last semester, but I would only get through the first few chapters and then stop. Now, I am mostly reading textbooks, which is not always as interesting. Hopefully, when I am done with schooling, I can find more time to read at my leisure!

Week 9 (Reading Diary): Cherokee Myths

Cherokee Myths

How the World Was Made - Well this was interesting....I have never heard of a creation story like this! The world was basically made my little insects, which makes sense because Native Americans were very in touch with nature. Then men and women came. The first man impregnated a woman by smacking her with a fish.....

The First Fire - I really liked this story. I initially thought that it was going to be similar to the Greek-Roman Myth story. However, it was very different. It explains how the Earth received fire for the first time and it describes why some animals have black on their bodies. It is very creative!

The Moon and Thunders - The first part of the story was really cute. I can definitely see myself writing a storytelling over it! The other parts were interesting as well, but my favorite is the first section.

Tobacco and Strawberries - I remember reading the second part about strawberries during the first week of school. I really liked it because it was so different and it is definitely one of the reasons why I chose this unit. I liked the tobacco story as well.

The Owl Gets Married - Sometimes, I can't tell if a Cherokee story is supposed to be funny or not. I found this story a bit humorous, but the ending is a bit morbid. Maybe that is just the humor of Native Americans?

Huhu Gets Married - This is similar to the previous story. I tried to imagine what a huhu is, but I couldn't find an image.

Snake Boy and Snake Man - Some of these stories are difficult to follow because they are so strange and because there are a few terms that I don't know about. This stories definitely caught my eye though.

Youtube Tech Tip: A Personal Tour of the University of Oklahoma

Week 8 (Reading Diary): Review Week

Half way through the first quarter, I did not realize that we did not have to comment on all of the stories. We just had to comment on our favorites. For Diary notes, I usually write down why I liked the story and what was unique about it. Sometimes I compare the story to more familiar fairy tales or other readings I have done. I try to stay consistent with my Reading Diary format and style each time. I like consistency and it helps me stay more organized. I try to write at least 100-150 words for each diary note for each story. I may start doing my diary posts as notes instead of short segments. I think that may help me see the similarities and differences between each story. I also will try taking notes while I am reading the story instead of reading all of it and then writing something at the end.