Famous Last Words - Week 10

I cannot believe we are more than half way through the semester. Time is just flying by. The second half of the semester is hard cause you're on the dow hill. You know you're heading towards summer and the closer you get, the harder it is to focus.
Can we just talk about the fact that next weekend is Halloween? I can't wrap my head around that. October felt like a lifetime away and now we're sailing through it. Pretty soon we're going to wake up and it's going to be spring break.

Midterm grades came out recently and they all looked pretty decent so that's good.
I just started another online class: Conflict Resolution; it's an 8-week class. It doesn't seem like it'll be too hard so that's good. I'm doing whatever I can to get all my hours done. Annoyingly enough, I only have electives left. Looking back, I should have spread them out a little more.

This class is going good. I like writing my storybook, it's been fun. I also enjoy reading others. I like that it is one of our weekly assignments to read other's storybooks. It has been helpful in giving me good ideas for my own storybook! There are some really really good storybooks being written in this class!

I'm going to go home this weekend. My boyfriend is playing in a golf tournament in Texas so i'm going to go to that. I love watching him do what he loves so i'm excited.
I'm trying to think of something to say about my dog (partly because I talk about him in all of my posts/ partly because i'm looking for another excuse to post a picture of him) but i'm running out of things! Go figure. He's good, as always. He had a tummy ache last week so we spent some time at the vet but all is good now. Dogs sure are expensive though.

That's all I can think of for this week.
Till next time.....

Personal Photo 2014

Twitter List Tech Tip

This week I learned how to make lists on Twitter. I have had a Twitter since high school and never kew about this. It's a very cool way to keep track of certain people of groups. There are certain people I follow on Twitter whose tweets I am more interested in seeing than others. Now I can keep them separately and see those tweets without having to scroll through my entire time line. This is very cool and I am definitely going to make a list that includes my closest friends, boyfriend, and family.

Also - I think I might add OU Parking to a list because they tell you where all the available spots are on campus. Now I don't have to search their profile every time I need to see.

Storytelling: The Fight - Week 10

The fight was about to begin. The rumble of voices filled the arena. Since this was not an official World Wrestling Council fight, the safety measures were low. The competition was being held to decipher who: between the Peterson brothers and the Johnson family - was going to be able to continue in the world of WWC. They had been enemies for a long time and they had finally come head to head. They had agreed that the winner would continue to climb the ladder while the loser would quite wrestling forever.

Aron Peterson and his four brothers: Yale, Brad, Nate, and Sam knew that if they did not win this fight it was the going to be the end of their career all together. They would do whatever it took to win.

Yale was against it all. He believed that an out of ring was not the way to solve the bigger problem. Yale advocated peace and understanding. He unsuccessfully tried to persuade the others that there was room for everyone in the ring.

The Petersons had one secret weapon on their side - Krishna. Krishna is a world-wide worshiped wrestler. He was almighty in the ring. He could not participate in the fight but he was there to give instruction.

The mother of the Peterson brothers walked into the area filled with worry. She didn't support this unofficial fight but she had to be their for her sons. She had never agreed with the violence that took place in the ring. Her sons were her whole life and she was constantly concerned for their safety. She decided to make one last effort at stopping the - what she believed was immorality. She went to an old family friend, Kyle, who happened who be part of the Johnson family. After much persuasion, Kyle agreed to only fight one of the five sons: Aron. That was the best he could do.

She went back to her seat to watch the madness unfold.

With an hour left until he fight, the Petersons practiced their technique vigorously. On the other side of the area, the Johnsons did the same. Deception was the Johnsons biggest weapon. They did not know the meaning of fairness. Nor were they interested in giving into favor to the Peterson brothers. The Petersons, holding a greater moral conscience, had a more fair approach. However, both were willing to go to whatever extent to win.

There were no rules, no regulations - anything goes.

With that, the fight began.

Wrestling ring: Google Images

Authors Note:
I wrote my story based on the battle that takes place between the Pandavas and Duryodhana with his entourage. I made the story take place in a modern time wrestling match. I replaced the characters names to go along with the time (except for Krishna -  because that would be a cool wrestling name.) I tried to portray the characters thoughts and feelings as they were portrayed in the actual reading.

• Narayan, R. K. (1978). The Mahabharata.

Reading Diary B: The Battle - Week 10

Yudhishthira makes one last plea for peace.

Krishna- a deity (greatly worshipped) in Hindu tradition.

Duryodhana plans to take Krishna captive.
He rejects Krishna's plea for peace.
He soon realizes it would be impossible to take Krishna prisoner.

Karna makes a promise to Kunti that he will only attack Arjuna in the battle, instead of all her sons.

The war begins.

Dhrishtadyumna is the supreme commander of Yudhishthira's troops.
Bhishma is the supreme commander of Duryodhnana's troops.

Krishna begins to attack Bhishma after he wounded him. But Arjuna stops him.
Arjuna shoots Bhishma from behind, killing him.

Drona is killed by Dhrishtadyumna.
Bhima kills Duryodhnana's brother, Duhshasana.
Arjuna kills Karna in a moment of weakness.
Sahadeva kills Duryodhnana's uncle, Shakuni.
Bhima kills Duryodhana.

The battle is now over.

The Pandavas go to Hastinapura. Everyone is stricken with grief from their loses.
They perform rituals for the dead.
Yudhishthira agrees to become king after much convincing.

Gandhari and Kunti die in a forest fire.
Krishna is mistakenly killed by a hunter.

The Pandavas all end up dying except for Yudhishthira who eventually departs for heaven in his bodily form.

Arjuna's grandson grows up to be king and continue the Pandava legacy.

Reading Diary A : In Disguise- Week 10

Duryodhana decides to make a royal camp near the Pandavas.
They send a gandharva. The gandharvas take Duryodhana captive but the Pandavas let him go.

Nakula drinks from a lake and dies because he ignores the lake's request.
Sahadeva, Arjuna, and Bhima meet the same fate.
Yudhishthira, however, meets the lake's request.
The other brothers come alive again.

After 12 years of exile, the bothers spend 13 years in disguise.
Yudhishthira is the king's companion
Bhima is a cook
Nakula is a stable boy
Sahadeva is a cowherd 
Arjuna becomes Brihannala and lives as a eunuch in the women's quarters
Draupadi is Sairandhri (the hairdresser of Virata's queen.)

Draupadi is raped by one of the king's generals.

Duryodhana and his entourage plan to attack the king and steal his cattle.
The king's son finds out and take Arjuna to drive the chariot.
He panics and Arjuna ends up fighting alone. 

With thanks, the king gives his daughter (Uttara) to Arjuna's son (Abhimanyu) for marriage.

Satyaki - Krishna's charioter
Satyaki proposes war against Duryodhana.

The Pandavas try for peace. 
Vidura tries to convince Dhritarashtra to make Yudhishthria his heir. 
However, he cannot resist Duryodhana's will.

Vyasa tries to tell Dhritarashtra that this war will be their end.