Class Improvements

Overall, I enjoyed this course and found it clear and informative when following the directions in accordance to all of the assignments. I had fun getting the opportunity to express my creativity while improving my writing and revising skills. I am not sure if this is something that can be improved but I definitely had some overwhelming moments during some assignments because of the number of tabs opened. I know this seems like a pesky complaint, but it may take away the confusion for some students who get mixed up with all the open tabs and where everything is on each tab. 

The class improvement of incorporating writing tutorial videos that Laura suggested really caught my eye since I am such a visual learner. I think that would very beneficial and helpful for almost all students, especially visual learners who may be struggling with some concepts or revisions that need to be corrected. Other than that, I am really glad that I received the opportunity to be in a stress-free class that kept my interest throughout the semester!

Reading Notes: Puss and Boots, Part B

For week 14, the source of my reading notes is based on the two-part story The Master Cat, or Puss and Boots. I’ve always liked the confidence and skill the character Puss portrayed. He was always a few steps ahead of the game and had a charm about him that had a possessive pull so that his prey would be somewhat hypnotized. Based on my previous knowledge of the cat Puss in the movies Shrek I was shocked to see that this cat ended up eating the ogre in the story rather than working with him in the movie. In the story, Puss’ intention all along was to woo the king and his princess so that he could gain more wealth and power. This gave me the idea to create a storyline so that Puss’ actual intention is to steal the princess’ crown so that he could sell it and run away with all of the riches.

His malicious plan is to gain the princess’ interest and claim her heart so that she will take him home back to the castle. Once there, he pretends to be a regular domestic house-cat so that he goes unnoticed when trying to sneak around the castle and find the best moment to rob the royal family and disappear with the wind. Little does he know that the royal family also has a guard dog that roams around the castle making sure there is no activity of any mischievous behavior.

The presence of this guard dog evokes a bit of a challenge for Puss being that he did not already know that there would be a dog, let alone a guard dog, in the castle. In result, the dog does began to catch on to Puss’ rebellious plan and in doing so attempts to stop him and kicking him out of the castle. With Puss’ set of skills and the guard dog’s strong experience it is a brawl between the two animals to see who will leave empty handed.

Puss and Boots 

Link to picture

Bibliography: This story is part of the Lang's European Fairy Tales I unit. Story source: The Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang, illustrated by H. J. Ford (1889). 

SaveSave

Reading Notes: Brothers Grimm, Part B

For week 13, my second half of my reading notes are based on the Brothers Grimm story Snow White. Being that I would like to keep my story a bit on the darker side of the spectrum I chose to include another antagonist from Snow White. For those of you who have seen the movie Snow White, I assume that you remember the evil queen that seeks out all of the beauty and power across the land. This being so, I decided to incorporate the destructive wicked queen into my story as one of the main characters working along side the antagonist Barkins Bittern from Tim Burton’s movie Corpse Bride. In relation to the setting, I still plan on keeping the Law and Order feel to it except that now there might be more drama and dialogue between each of the perpetrators rather than the investigation itself.

Both the queen from Snow White and Barkins Bittern will combine their villainous desires and construct a plan so that they both get what they want in the end. For instance, since Barkins Bittern wants to rob as many brides as possible and murder them before reporting him to the police and the queen wants Snow White dead so that she regains the title of ‘fairest of us all’ they decide to come together in order for the crime to be harder for the police to follow.

They devise a plan where Barkins will first woo over Snow White then propose to her in a secluded meadow. However, little does she know the queen carefully dipped the engagement ring in a deadly, but odorless and transparent chemical. This chemical, in hopes of the queen, will provoke her death so that Snow White is no longer fairest of them all.

On the other spectrum of the story, before Snow White is lured into the secluded meadow and is still dating Barkins the seven dwarfs can’t help but repeatedly warn her that Barkins seems like a bad guy for her who has the wrong intentions. Snow White being too distracted with these romantic feelings refuses to acknowledge their concern and consider that they may be right. Will the seven dwarfs catch on to the queen and Barkins’ malevolent plan before it is too late? Or, will both villains get away with murder and continue on their malicious behaviors?

The Evil Queen staring into the magic looking-glass from the film "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"

Link to picture

Bibliography: This story is part of the Brothers Grimm (Crane) unit. Story source: Household Stories by the Brothers Grimm, translated by Lucy Crane and illustrated by Walter Crane (1886).

Reading Notes: Brothers Grimm, Part A

For week 13, my first half of my reading notes comes from the Robber Bridegroom story in the Brother's Grimm (Crane) unit. This story was a bit darker and twisted than I anticipated. It kept my interest from start to finish, however, the title gave me a somewhat similar but peculiar route of the story. I have been in the Tim Burton mood lately because of me watching a few of his movies recently. So I figured I would write my story based on his sort of theme and signature aesthetic.

For those of you who know the Tim Burton movie "Corpse Bride" I pictured the villain in the movie that married a woman (Emily) in order to steal jewels from her family, which lead him to murder her and hide her death. Furthermore, I plan to write his sort of in depth perspective of his profession as if he is more of a wanted criminal that is being investigated for relating murders.

I think this is a good idea and might be fun to write about since I would structure it to be more like a "Law & Order" episode. I would go through a couple crimes and discuss the scene and have dialogue between each agent while trying to figure out who the killer is. There would be a pattern revealed over time which will give away evidence of who committed these murders. There may be a twist or clues you may not catch at first but in the end your mind will be blown.

The main antagonist Barkins Bittern of Tim Burton's movie, "Corpse Bride." 

Link to picture

Bibliography: This story is part of the Brothers Grimm (Crane) unit. Story source: Household Stories by the Brothers Grimm, translated by Lucy Crane and illustrated by Walter Crane (1886).

Tech Tip: Blogger Template

I really enjoyed doing this tech tip! If you have a little time set aside or even a study break I highly recommend doing this. It was fun and relaxing for me to find templates, fonts, colors, and backgrounds that express myself and things that I found appealing to the eye. Mind you, it was easy for me to get distracted so make sure you don't get too far off track when designing your blog. Designing your blog may also encourage you to make more posts and add more to it so that it flourishes the way hope it is portrayed to be. However, be careful with how much color and detail you may want to incorporate; your blog can look busy really fast, which may become hard to focus on or read through. 

Here is a random cute personal picture of my cat Oliver :-)

Tech Tip: Pintrest Board

I have only used Pinterest for a little while now. It hasn't been too long but long enough for me to have fifteen boards now! The board that I created for this tech tip is titled Portfolio - Medical. Since I am a student going into the medical field I find it interesting and very intriguing to find new things about the human body. I will most likely pin items about the brain, physiology, medical techniques, and more nerdy things. I am excited about it hope you find an interest in the board, let alone my profile!

An image from my Medical board that  I pinned 

Link to picture

Link to my Pinterest profile

Reading Notes: Looking-Glass: Tweedledum And Tweedledee, Part B

For my reading notes I decided to go with a story I was more familiar with which is Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There. I always enjoyed the movie “Alice and Wonderland” because of it’s illusionary imagery and creativity throughout the stories. What provoked the idea of what I was going to write about was acknowledged in Chapter IV. Tweedledum And Tweedledee. Some of you may remember from my introduction that I am a twin so these two silly and obnoxiously playful characters grasped my interest from the start.

These twins are the best at distracting and drawing one away (including themselves) from the task at hand. That being so, I thought it might be fun to take on the story from their perspective where the origin of their talent will be revealed. Where did the hobbies such as reciting poetry, singing songs, dancing, and multiplication come from? Well, my outline consists of the early years of the twins and where their skills were introduced to the world. Furthermore, there will be a point in the story where the Tweedles perform in their elementary school talent show. This is where they start their career and pursue acting and stand-up comedy together. The twin’s background and competitive drive will dig up feelings just under the surface such as their sibling rivalry that may cause them to split up their duo, which is unheard-of across the world. Singing, dancing, and everything else did not go as smoothly when they split up. Luckily, after they attempt to do work individually they realize that performing isn’t the same without each other.

Tweedledum & Tweedledee gif 

Link to picture (gif)

Bibliography: This story is part of the Looking-Glass unit. Story source: Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There by Lewis Carroll (1871).