Famous Last Words: Week 5

This past week was super stressful but I have prevailed! I am pretty sure I did my WORST writing in my Social Theory class and it bums me out when I do not feel confident in my work..(probably why I skip the storytelling post sometimes) eeeekkkkk. Hopefully I will get the hang of those papers in there and it won't affect my grade too bad. In this class however I feel confident in my grades but I still get so stressed out over meeting the deadlines, pretty sure this is the class I have the most work due but since it is not too hard to do I need to calm down and stop overthinking, I am very appreciative of these extra credit assignments that are available because they can act as a cushion if needed. I really liked the storybook assignment though, it is coming together nicely and reading other people's introductions so far have made me excited to see how they all turn out. I thought mine would be kind of boring but I managed to get myself interested in doing it so it is going to be more fun than work, yay! Outside of school though I lost my debit card and someone found it and went on a shopping spree at wal-mart I guess spending over $100:( Luckily my bank said I could get my money back but it could be a while..not like I don't have bills to pay :/ on top of that my car battery decided to die completely and those aren't cheap... $$ rules everything doesn't it?
Okay rant over.
This weekend I got to see one of my best friends and I have not seen her in forever. I forgot how great it can be to just catch up with people you care about, stress relieving as well. I also get to spend some time with two of my other best friends this coming up weekend at a corvette club race practice event. My friend's parents and her race corvettes so that is totally cool!

Great quote from lifehack.org

 Also, thought this was pretty awesome in the world: http://www.buzzfeed.com/rossalynwarren/emma-watson-says-that-the-view-feminism-is-man-hating-has-to?bffb&utm_term=4ldqpgp#3ilfkn9

Reading Diary B: Week 5

The golden deer---
I thought that the description of the deer that Maricha turns into is beautiful but I can see why Lakshmana would insist it was a demon. They are in demon territory after all. It is weird how Rama is so quickly determined to capture the deer since Sita wants it, it is kind of her own fault she was left alone and abducted anyways since she wanted the deer and she insisted that the voice of Rama saying help me was actually his own

The abduction of Sita---
I thought the appearance of Ravana as an old hermit man should have not been so accepting by Sita, but she was so accommodating. Sita is not the smartest woman in this book. Jatayu's death was still sad to me this time reading it and I am glad that he mentions his friendship to Dasartha before his death. The jewelry that Sita manages to throw down to show her path makes more sense to me now since she has been given these items as gifts throughout the story and now that has significance in the journey to find her

Sita in Lanka---
I think that the story of Ravana and his curse is more pronounced this book and easier to understand. I also thought it was interesting that actual rape was mentioned and not just forcing love, the pictures are also more revealing. It is crazy that so many women allow Ravana to have them, they make Sita not look so dumb

Savari---
This story of Savari made me realize that every character in this story has a background or story to tell and all is told even if it is a small story, making every character have a significant role in the world of this story. I thought it was sad she died right after she told them of the monkeys though, but maybe it is because she finally served her purpose in life

Hanuman---
I really liked the story of the monkeys origin being included. Hanuman started his life in a harsh way where he was abandoned and then helped by many so I think he has earned his spot as leader alongside Sugriva, and having eternal life. This was the first animal/human story and I think it was really different than stories of human beginnings in how there is so many magical things happening

Vali---
Vali is depicted in a harsher way this time with a quicker death and I think I like that better because I am not left feeling sorry for him, it says his soul is dark so I am confident in Rama's decision to kill him so quickly rather than waiting ...also the backstory of Vali creates this unpleasant picture of him as well

The expeditions---

Reading Diary A: Week 5

• I found it interesting the different future lives of Kaikeyi were horrible in description and finally after a few, Bharata forgives her in order to save her soul from these fates, a sons love for his mother holds true for him
• Rama trusts Bharata at once when he sees him, and does not suspect him of any ill will or purpose
• Bharata's journey to find Rama is filled with different stories and characters but my favorite is the hermit Bharadwaja because he is so nice to each queen and makes them feel at home, there are many forest people who are so accommodating to outsiders they feel they can trust
• It is interesting that so many people follow Bharata into the forest, this time with smiles as they rested though which is much needed I think after so much sorrow from losing their king and Rama
• The journey described as Rama and Sita are in the forest is kind of honeymoon-esque even thought they have been married for a while it is nice that they are able to enjoy each others love in exile without the safety and luxury of a palace
• Seems like there are a lot of creatures in the forest that like to mess with Sitar, like the crow and the monkey
• Anasuya seems like a good friend to Sita at this time, sharing her wisdom -that sita will need in the future when she is exiled- and making Sita feel beautiful
• The stories in the Dandaka forest are very confusing and this part of the book is long it seems leading up to Sita's capture. This part will take some more focused reading with notes and character outlines to understand it better in terms of storyline. My favorite story though is the one about the demons who killed 9,000 people by making their victims eat a monster which was one of them and destroyed their victims body when they were coaxed out by the other brother on the outside..very creepy and awful
• The story with the tiny people is interesting, I wonder if there is a deeper meaning that I am missing, seems like every story has a purpose to this story but it was easier to understand and see in the first version of the Ramayana
• Garuda shows up both when watching Bharata pass by with his followers and now we get to know his story, he is a character worth researching. Especially since there is an airline in India named after him
• Finally the story with Surpanakha. I found this part to be less drawn out than the first version we read but I like how she does not change form, and is ugly to begin with. I thought it was interesting how her brother had a priest restore her parts cut by Lakshmana..shows a more caring side to Ravana, also less emphasis to Sita's beauty but he is intrigued nonetheless