Famous Last Words: Week 11

This week, I read the Looking-Glass unit, which had many stories about the Disney movie Alice and Wonderland. For example, one of my favorite stories was Tweedledum and Tweedledee. I have always referred to them together, but with Tweedledee coming first in the pattern, so that was an interesting formatting difference I picked up on. The story was a funky one because to be honest, the characters were quite odd. They talk so quickly and “poetically” that the reader has to really hone in on each sentence to fully comprehend.

My other classes are going well. I took a test this morning for my Languages Across Cultures class, which went pretty well. I mean, I haven’t gotten my grade back yet, but I am feeling pretty confident about my performance. We read a book this past month about languages dying out. We went through the different aspect about endangered languages that make them so incredibly unique. For example, some languages have 60 words to describe different types of reindeer. This is necessary because they are traditionally reindeer herders so while these names require more memory, they make life easier and more efficient when it comes to working the field.

(Grazing Reindeer - Photo by Dean Biggins)

I also took a major point away from this reading in my Languages Across Cultures class. I was misinformed about something, so the book set me straight. I thought one of the main differences between languages was that you couldn’t communicate all of the exact same thoughts because of language differences. I was wrong though because the book explained that you can express the exact same thoughts in every single language. You might have to use 20 words to express a thought that takes only one word in a different language, but in the end, you can express it as well as comprehend it.

Famous Last Words Week 9

I keep writing this every time I do a Famous Last Words post, but I think my best writing for the week came from my Bible Women Storybook. This week, I revised my second story, and when I read back through it, I was super proud of my writing! I had a few corrections to make, but overall, the story flowed well from top to bottom, and it fit seamlessly with my overall theme.

When I want to get into the writer’s groove, I usually try to write all of my thoughts down, not worrying about the grammar or correct formatting. This way, I can let my mind breathe and rest from the anxiety of looking at a blank page. Once I get on a roll, I keep writing until I see an ending point. After I complete all of my thoughts on a Word document, I read back through the story to correct the spelling mistakes, complete confusing sentences or omit empty thoughts. I want to start looking for images on Pinterest instead of just Google Images because I like it when I can find paintings of the objects or people.

I went to Cancun, Mexico this week for spring break, which was so much fun! I went with three of my girlfriends that I used to live with when I lived in Oklahoma. Since I am graduating in May and getting married in June, I wanted to have one last trip taking advantage of my spring break. When we were there, we had a lot of great conversation and most of it was about the books we were reading. I decided to re-read The Screwtape Letters because the first time I read it I only reached the half way point before I switched to a new book. It was full of so many intelligent and convicting thoughts. It opened my eyes to the ways I can be tricked into thinking I am being righteous when really I am being a hypocrite.

(Turtle in Cancun, Mexico - Photo by csp_lunamarina)

Famous Last Words of Week 8

I really enjoyed this week for two main reasons.

First, the review writing assignments were both insightful and relaxing. Instead of stressing to read all of my stories to complete each reading diary assignment, I could just reflect on my experience in the class thus far. I didn’t get to read much of my classmate’s posts, but I did gain some tips on my own writing and commenting opportunities.  The commenting post forced me to read comments I had not gotten the time to read, so I was able to get some helpful tips for my storybook.

In my other classes, I had my second Introduction to Marketing test and completed my mid-term paper for my Introduction to Human Relations class. So that was nice to get out of the way. We just have one more week until spring break!

My friends and I are going to Mexico in exactly a week! We planned the trip so long ago that I almost forgot I was going until recently. Thankfully the online classes give time for spring break, so all I had to figure out was taking off time from work. I am getting married in June, which is less than one hundred days away, so I am excited to hang out with my girlfriends for almost a full week!

(Mexico Beach - Photo by Danielle Petrie)

I spend most of my days listening to music in some form or fashion, whether that is in the car or while I am working or even working out. This week I feel like I haven’t gotten to listen to much music though. I want to change that next week by finding a new band through Spotify radio. This way I might even find some songs I can incorporate into my wedding!

I hope everyone reading this is having a splendid day!

Famous Last Words Week 7

With all of the snow and ice this week, I have been cooped up in my house because of work being canceled. It has given me a lot of free time to get my homework done though! I mean, with all of my classes being online, I am use to being at home most of the day working on my computer. My sister has had to do much of her homework from home too, so we have done work together and played some cards in our free time.

This week, I read stories from the South American Unit. I enjoyed the Nigerian Unit so much last week that I wanted to choose a similar one for this week.

Today in Texas, it is very snowy outside so my sister had her school canceled, which means we get to watch movies together all day! Her friends recommended us watch the movie, “The Good Lie,” because they came across it earlier this week when school was canceled then. It is about a few Sudan children escaping their tribe that was attacked by soldiers. They walked all the way to the Kakuma Refuge Camp in Kenya (almost 1,000 miles away), barefoot. They ended up staying there for thirteen years until they are sent to the United States. So far, I have really enjoyed the film so I do recommend it.

(The Good Lie - Designer Unknown)

My other classes haven’t been too stressful because I have had enough time to finish my homework. Next week, I have my second test in my Introduction to Marketing class, which I plan to start studying for this weekend. I had to read 100 pages in my book for my Languages Across Cultures class, which was called, “When Languages Die.” We are studying about the importance of keeping endangered languages alive because we loose information about the capabilities of human beings when different languages die.

Famous Last Words for Week 6

I just finished reading a creative story that taught me the lesson of reading the whole story through before providing the author with comments. One of the stories I read was from a girl in the class who wrote about a personified field named Okay. I was immediately so confused why she would name the field such an odd name, but the last paragraph of the story summed it all up and provided solace to my confusion. I was very impressed by the thought process the author went through to create such a colorful story for her portfolio.  

(Field - Photo by: Ragan and Massey)

My other classes have been a little stressful, but this week hasn’t been too bad. I had one test, which was not too hard. Also, I had a project that required me to discuss some questions with a partner in the class. It is an online class, which makes it difficult to get to know your classmates, but this allowed us to learn more about at least one other person in the class.

My favorite writing this week was my storytelling assignment about the moon. The story was originally from the Nigerian Folklore unit so it had a foreign flare to it by talking about bush people. The moon was an abnormal character because it talked and was made of meat. Normally, I think of the moon being made of cheese if it is to be made of any edible substance.

This week, I was convicted about perpetuating classism, so the good Lord helped me work on that. I was at my home group, and we decided to go to Denny’s for a late night dinner on Wednesday. There was a homeless man sitting in the lobby area when we arrived, so we invited him to eat with us. It was a pretty odd experience, but it helped me understand how to treat people fairly.

So, I urge you all to try something new and out of your comfort zone that blesses someone. It helps you re-organize your priorities.

Famous Last Words Week 5

This week has been a stress ball, full of work, homework assignments, wedding planning and pre-marital counseling preparation. My fiancé and I read through the first part of the first chapter of our pre-marital counseling book, “Catching Foxes,” last night. The content is on-point, but it is time-consuming and makes you dig deep into your past experiences, family dynamics and your views of God.

(Catching Foxes - Author: John Henderson)

This week I read the Tales of a Parrot story, which was a nice change compared to the last few weeks of reading. I didn’t really experiment with a new writing style this week, but hopefully when I start writing more of my final storybook project, I will get more motivated to explore different options.

As many of you know I work for a nonprofit called Serve Denton, and there was an interesting article that we came by. I have the link to the article typed below, but as a summary, there is a man who walked an insane distance to work everyday so a 19 year-old man in Denton, TX, decided to raise money to buy him a car. The ending is pretty phenomenal!

My fiancé showed me this song the other day. He sent it to me on Spotify so I know it is for sure located there, but I don’t know about iTunes. The song is called The Love You’ve Given, sung by Jack Garratt. I hope you enjoy this ethereal, airy song as much as I did. The ending is a bit odd, so just focus on the beginning section!

I have felt behind in my classes this week because I picked up a small job on the side where I package and mail merchandise for a comedy company.  It has been a blast to work there because the environment is pretty relaxed. Most people are cracking stupid jokes, so you are constantly laughing. I just have to do more homework at the end of the week now.



Link: http://www.today.com/news/donations-pour-detroit-man-who-commutes-21-miles-day-foot-2D80469480?cid=sm_fbn

Famous Last Words Week 4

This week has been pretty great concerning my work, classes and my personal life! To start off, I will tell you about work at Serve Denton. I’ve only been working 10 hours a week because of their funds. Due to additional work they need done though, they are now letting me work 12 hours a week. Not that that is much of a jump, but it still means I get to do more design work and get paid to do it.

(Serve Denton Logo - Designer Unknown)

With school, I had my first online test this week for my Introduction to Marketing class. I made a 100%, so I was very excited about that! I’ve noticed when some of my classes start picking up, the other ones slow down, which is great news for me. I guess my teachers are catering their schedules to mine!

In this Mythology and Folklore class specifically, I have really enjoyed writing the Storytelling blog posts because I get to truly test my brain’s creativity. My best work for this class is probably my Introduction for my final Storybook project. I wrote it from the perspective of God. With God being a common character in all of the original stories, I thought it would be an easy transition to make Him the narrator in all of my stories about the Bible women. This was a new style I used that I had not experimented with before in the class.

Many of the stories I read that come across as successful are the ones that give pertinent details. Sometimes details are added that build the characters or plot that do not match the story. More details are usually always better than none, but sometimes they can clutter a story and hide the purpose behind the writing.

With my personal life, my fiancé and I started our second week of pre-marital counseling, which has been a great addition to my Thursdays. It makes me confident for our marriage that we have been so honest about our lives upfront that there is very little I feel uncomfortable talking to him about.

Famous Last Words: Week 3

This week, I have been doing a lot of writing in class and outside of class for my job. There have been so many events in need of press releases at the nonprofit I work for, Serve Denton, so I have had much opportunity to practice my professional writing. This class allows my mind to rest more as I write and go with the flow. 

I just finished the week 3 project assignment where I was able to delve deeper into the different types of styles I could use for my final project. Letting my mind brainstorm got me excited to start on the final project because as I read through more stories from the Bible Women Unit of the UN-Textbook, I got a better idea of how I could combine a few of the stories, whether that be because of abstract reasons or because of direct similarities. For example, the main theme that runs through the twenty stories in the unit is grace, which is a wonderful and easy topic to write about. When you are passionate about a subject, writing seems to just flow off the fingers, at least when you type. Grace is something I deeply value. There are plenty of times I decide not to grant it, or I deeply dislike the idea because I feel I have been wronged, but by reading through so many stories that show the beauty of the act, I get a constant reminder to grant grace even when I do not desire to. 

I am taking a class called Languages Across Cultures, which has given me a new perspective on different cultures. This seems to overlap with this class because so many of the stories are deeply rooted in its country’s culture. For example, many of the units we will read through, their origins come from Europe or the Middle East.

(Rebecca at the Well, by Murillo)

Famous Last Words: Week 2

This week I really enjoyed reading through the Bible Women unit because I got to read about historical women all in one context. Growing up I heard about these stories, but there's a different perspective when you read them one after another. I noticed a pattern as I read through the first half of the unit. Many of the women who could not become pregnant, released their maidservants to sleep with their husbands in order to bare a child. After the act was finished and the women became pregnant, the wives' demeanors completely flipped. Not only would this be difficult for the wife to handle, but also the poor maidservants had no outlet to escape. The situation would truly be a challenge. 

When reading through some of my classmate’s introductions, I noticed some great writing. Danni (The Tiny Danster) had a beautiful storytelling post about “The Babes in the Wood.” The original nursery rhyme had a dark conclusion, but her version was twisted enough to make a more positive ending. Her knowledge base concerning mythology and folklore was impressive. There were many words I had to find in the online dictionary to help me understand the characters better. Danni did a great job!

After the first week of school, I am starting to establish my own routine with work, online classes and wedding planning. I just recently bought myself an extensive calendar, which has appeased my task-oriented personality. This week I am working on finding a florist for my bouquet and creating my own flower arrangement for my hair and the trees.

It seems like everyone and their dog went to see “American Sniper” this past weekend, and I have heard nothing but great reviews from my friends and family. I want to go see that movie this weekend so I can see what the hype is all about. After, I want to ask my best friend’s fiancé who was in the U.S. Army in Iraq about the similarities and differences.

 (Flower Crown. Photo by Brooke Jeary)

(Flower Ball. Photo by Brooke Jeary) 

Famous Last Words Week 1

This class has been a pleasant surprise so far. There is definitely a heavier workload than I was expecting, but hopefully I can start getting into a routine where each to-do for the week doesn’t seem as daunting. I thought my best work included my modern interpretation of the “The Wolf and the Kid.” Getting to do creative writing assignments excite me because I rarely get the chance to do them for school. In my own life, I used to journal daily, but have failed to stay committed to that endeavor.

My favorite assignment this week was getting to proofread the two stories because I am oddly fascinated by grammar rules. When I took a class my sophomore year of college, I learned about AP Style, which greatly improved my writing abilities. Creative writing can be intimating at times because there are so many extraordinary writers out there from the past and the present who have honed in on their trade over the years to produce excellent pieces of art. That is something I want to accomplish in the year of 2015. I want to become bolder about my writing and less intimidated by failure. Many joys in life cannot be experienced because of fear. It is a difficult hurdle to jump over though confidently. Fear creeps in at the most inopportune times. 

I haven’t started my other classes yet, but because I start my job next week along with the rest of the semester activities, I wanted to get as much of this class finished as I can while I have the free time. Too much free time can be dangerous and birth apathy.

I started to read the book “The Screwtape Letters” by C.S. Lewis about a year ago, but never fully finished it because of other distractions in the semester, so I decided I wanted to re-read the book this semester. It reminds me of this class just because it is about the head demon teaching a younger demon how to distract and destroy a man’s life through simple earthly tricks that seem so ordinary to mere humans. I greatly recommend it.

The book cover of the book "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis. 

Source: Social Dream Lab