Learning Challenge: Staying Focused

I read through the article 40 Entrepreneurs Share Their Tips for Staying Focused. One thing that I already do is create time blocks. Breaking things up into fragments that seem more manageable is a great way to get things done without becoming overwhelmed. One thing I will try to do in the future is go outside more to take real breaks from working. Another thing that helps with my focus is staying active and exercising.

Focus 

Growth Mindset: Getting Over Fear

I read the article about Getting Over Fear in New Situations. I think it was important to read that we should focus on getting better rather than being good in a new situation. Fear is all about the mindset that you bring into a new situation. I have noticed that when I approach a new situation with a learning mindset that I am more excited and enthusiastic about the situation. One thing I need to work on in the future is relaxing and having fun in new situations. I tend to be a bit anxious when I am out of my comfort zone. I think the tips in this article will help greatly with that.

Step out of the comfort zone

Tech Tip: Browser Bookmarks

I already save browser bookmarks in google chrome as you have listed in your instructions for this assignment. I really enjoy this feature because it allows easy access to look for web pages that I need. I enjoy the strategy that I currently use, and I am very happy with it. That being said, I did enjoy reading through the other strategies that were listed, and I might try to employ some of them as the semester progresses.

Week 8 Progress

I am happy with my progress so far. I have been able to stay about 1.5-2 weeks ahead and complete extra credit to give myself a cushion. I know that my other classes will get difficult towards the end of the semester, so my goal is to complete this class early if possible. I feel that I am on track to do that. On my writing, I am proud of my progress in writing creatively, as this is not something I am used to doing in my classes.

Motivation for the end of the semester 

Week 8 comments and feedback

I feel that I am receiving good feedback from other students. The comments that are most helpful are the ones that are specific with things that I can include or fix. I also think that I am leaving good feedback for people's projects. I find the TAG strategy to be very useful. I do feel that the blogs are providing a great opportunity for getting to know other students. In the future, I need to focus on getting more specific in feedback in order to benefit more from this assignment.

I think this image is helpful because it is important to remember that feedback is to be used for helping you improve in the future. 

Week 8 Reading and Writing

I think the reading and writing assignments are working great for me. The readings are enjoyable, and they provide ample opportunity for me to extract story topics and write creatively. My favorite reading was the Ramayana. I also greatly enjoyed the first week of folk stories. I think my reading notes are working great because I choose one segment of the story and brainstorm how to create a story of my own from that. I am happy with how my project is progressing. I think my biggest accomplishment so far is simply writing fictional stories using my imagination. I am so used to nonfiction scientific writing that it is a struggle to write creatively. I have progressed in that a lot.

I loved finding this image of Shantu stopping Ganga from drowning Bhishma. I feel that it added understanding to the story as I was reading and provided a good depiction of the events taking place.

Learning Challenge: Time Management

I read the article titled Students Are More Creative At Lunch Time.  This article instantly popped out to me because I have noticed that I am much more productive around midday. I noticed that this article discusses an afternoon lull, and I also experience that. I always try to schedule my strenuous activities, such as workouts and difficult studying or homework, for midday as I get so much more done. I think that knowing the time sin which you are most productive is very valuable for planning your time commitments and perfecting your time management skills.

Noon hour 

Growth Mindset: Cats

I chose these two cats because they are adorable. The first one is tiny and fearless. It serves as a nice reminder to always challenge yourself. The second image is also hilarious. I should strive to work as hard as the cat up in a tree trying to find a bird in a birdhouse. These images provided some more lighthearted motivation. 

Embrace Challenges

Dream big 

Tech Tip: Canvas Profile

I used this week's tech tip to update my canvas profile. I was unaware that you could add a picture, so I did that. I am a huge hat lover, so I chose one of the few pictures in which I was not wearing a hat. I do not take many photos. I also included my major and graduation year in my profile.

Week 7 Story: The Pie Thieves

      Link to portfolio story

  It was the summer of 2002. School was out, and three brothers had little else to do but explore their neighborhood. They would play baseball in the yard like they were Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa chasing the home run record. They would ride bikes, look for frogs, play hide and seek, and invent new games every day. They made it a point to thoroughly explore their neighborhood before school started in August.

            One day, the two younger brothers decided to explore further down the road. The older brother, tired from yesterday’s adventures, decided to stay back at the house and rest before meeting up with his siblings later. When the two younger brothers reached the end of the road, they could smell the delicious aroma of baked crust and warm cherries coming from the direction of old Mrs. Jones’ house. The scent filled the light summer air and was too much for the boys to resist. They followed the path in which their noses led them.

            When the boys reached the back yard of Mrs. Jones, they peaked over and spotted their treasure. A delicious cherry pie was perched on the open window frame of Mrs. Jones house. For the boys, this opportunity was too much to pass up. They quietly snuck through a hole in the fence and approached the window. One of the boys knelt on his hands and knees, and the other stood on his back. He carefully took the pie from the window. The boys each grabbed a slice, put the remnants of the pie back in the window, and sprinted to the alley where they would enjoy the sweetness of the cherries and the crunchy crust.

            When the two young boys had not returned after a while, the oldest boy decided to go search for them. When he reached the end of the road, he, too, smelled the sweet aroma of the cherry pie. He knew that he must have a slice. He walked up to Mrs. Jones door and rang the doorbell.

“Hi, Mrs. Jones. Your pie sure does smell delicious. Would it be possible for me to have a slice? I have a dollar that I could pay you with,” said the boy.

“Absolutely,” said Mrs. Jones. “Let’s go get you a slice.”

When they reached the window, Mrs. Jones was horrified. Half of the pie was gone.

“Do you know who could have done this?” Mrs. Jones asked.

         The boy knew that it had to be his two younger brothers. He returned home quickly with Mrs. Jones to find his brothers sitting in the yard with cherry glaze all over their faces. Mrs. Jones told the boys’ father what happened. As a result of their actions, the two young boys were not allowed to play outside for the rest of the summer. This was crushing to them. However, because the oldest sibling acted responsibly, he was rewarded with the opportunity to help Mrs. Jones bake her next pie and eat as much of it as he desired.

Author's Note: 

       I took my story from a segment of reading in Part C of Narayan's Mahabharata. There is a part when they are traveling through a forest and chasing after a deer. Suddenly, they come across a lake. They are tired and thirsty. The water is desperately needed. A voice tells Nakula that they must answer some questions before drinking from the lake. He ignores the voice, drinks the water, and dies as a result. This happens three more times. Later, Yudhishthira finds that his brothers are all dead. He answers the questions of the voice. It turns out that answering the questions was actually a test, and the brothers come back to life. They receive the gift of not being recognized.

      I wrote a story with similar plot elements. I changed it to two young boys deciding to eat a pie that did not belong tot hem. An older boys acted responsibly by asking for a slice rather than stealing.  The boys that stole the pie receive a harsh punishment, and the boy who acted responsibly receives a gift. While I chose not to explicitly state this, it is possible that this was a test of the boys' character such as the test of answering the questions before drinking the water in the Mahabharata. 

Bibliography: Narayan's Mahabharata Part C 

Pie 

Reading Notes: Narayan's Mahabharata Part D

In this part of the reading, I found one small excerpt that I think would be great for a story writing assignment. At one point during the fighting, Karna’s wheel of the chariot becomes stuck in the mud. On top of that, Karna forgets the mantra that he needs to use the weapon during the fight. Later, it is revealed that this forgetting of the mantra at a crucial time is the result of a curse placed on Karna. He was cursed for deceiving Parashurama.

            As always with my stories, I like to change the characters and write a similar story with similar plot elements. For this story, I could start with a character doing something to deceive someone. This would later come back to haunt them at a crucial moment. The moral of the story would be not to deceive others, as was the moral in my story of the bird dog and the eagle.

            Perhaps this story could be written about a feud between two brothers. The older brother is always trying to play pranks and trick the younger brother. He has caused many embarrassing moments for him, but the younger brother vows to get his revenge on his older sibling. The younger brother knows that his older sibling is the best player on his school’s baseball team. To get him back in a crucial moment, the younger brother slips into the dugout and replaces his bat covered with pine tar. The replacement bat is, instead, covered with a slick grease. At the biggest point of the game, with runners on base and the tying run at third, the brother tries to swing his bat and loses his grip. He strikes out and embarrasses himself at the most crucial moment of the game. This could be a play on the similar plot elements presented in this section of the reading.

Bibliography: Narayan's Mahabharata Part D

Fight between Karna and Arjuna 

Reading Notes: Narayan's Mahabharata Part C

In this section of the reading, there was a specific part that stood out to me and created interest in a possible story. There is a part when they are traveling through a forest and chasing after a deer. Suddenly, they come across a lake. They are tired and thirsty. The water is desperately needed. A voice tells Nakula that they must answer some questions before drinking from the lake. He ignores the voice, drinks the water, and dies a s a result. This happens three more times. Later, Yudhishthira finds that his brothers are all dead. He answers the questions of the voice. It turns out that answering the questions was actually a test, and the brothers come back to life. They receive the gift of not being recognized.

            As usual with my stories, I like to take themes from the readings of the Indian epics and apply them to everyday life in a manner in which everyone can relate. This excerpt provides a great opportunity to do just that. I could craft a story in which a group of brothers are outside playing and exploring when they stumble into some sort of trouble. Perhaps they stumble upon an open window in the neighborhood with an older woman’s baked pie sitting there, primed for the taking. Two of the brothers could take some of the pie and eat it. They would then be captured by the old lady and face some sort of punishment. The other brother could politely knock on the door, explain that he could smell a pie, and ask if he could have a slice. The old lady could grant him a piece. This whole situation could be a test arranged by the father to see if he sons are behaving properly. The father could be friends with the old lady and have her set this test up. This would be very similar to the plot in the story, but with a different array of characters.

Bibliography: Narayan's Mahabharata Part C 

Three brothers