Time is sure flying by fast! We are technically done with Week 6, and many of us are already preparing for a second midterm.
For my readings, this week I chose Sinbad's Seven Voyages. Despite being an animated movie that was popular when I was a child, I knew nothing about this story. However, after reading just the first two stories, I was hooked and finished the whole week's reading within one day. For those of you who are fans of The Odyssey, I am sure you will enjoy this story.
Due to my love for Sinbad's story, this week's storytelling assignment just flowed naturally for me. I had Tom Hanks fill the role of Sinbad and had his "voyages" just be some of his most famous movies such as Saving Private Ryan and Sully. Needless to say, I am happy with this selection and I am sure that I will include this story in my portfolio.
For my other classes, it has been a whirlwind. I have already had two tests for my two upper-level math courses, so I am drained. On top of that, I have had to churn out a new coding project each week, which has everybody in my class on edge! Fortunately, I have the mentality of, "If everybody else is as well, it isn't so bad that I am drowning." This is one of those semesters that you tell yourself that you just have to muster enough strength to get through it.
Outside of school, I have just been trying to find time to relax and play some video games, but I do not know when things will ever slow down! With football in full swing and basketball starting up soon, I am hoping to be able to catch some of my favorite games on television, if time permits.
For next week, I hope to stay on top of my other classes. So far, there will be no tests next week, so I should have a lot of prep time for all of my classes. Wish me luck!
Showing posts with label Week 6. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Week 6. Show all posts
Friday, September 29, 2017
Week 6 Storytelling: A Trip with Hank
It all started when I was drafted. I was originally an English teacher, but when duty called, I was drafted to lead some of the bravest men I have ever met. With these men, we stormed Normandy in one of the most famous amphibious raids to have ever taken place. Even after this hellish session, I was sent on one of the worst fetching missions ever, traveling almost all of Europe to find a young man to bring him home to his family. I lost almost all of my men during this expedition, but I was able to survive and go home to live prosperously.
Not long after this war, I was drafted to another. This time Vietnam. Here I met my best friends Bubba and Lieutenant Dan. I remember specifically being ambushed one day, our unit being cut down in mere minutes. Summoning all of my strength and courage, I raced the injured away from the danger to an evacuation point. It was here where I lost Bubba, who died in my arms that day. Despite this, I was able to leave the military a decorated hero and make a fortune alongside Dan.
Despite my riches, I decided to buy myself a boat and be its captain. On my very first voyage, we were hijacked by a band of Somalian pirates. Using us as hostages, the pirates demanded money. Fortunately, I was able to persuade the head of the pirates to take me as the only hostage. Assured that I would die when leaving with the pirates, I was fortunately saved by the military. After this, I retired my captain's hat and continued to live off my fortune.
It wasn't long before I began to grow restless again. This time, I became a pilot. In the military, I was trained to fly helicopters and various bombers. I put this to good use by being one of the best pilots at my local airline. However, disaster struck on my 100th flight ever, when a goose flew directly into our plane's turbine. Where lesser men would have given up and began praying, I managed to guide the plane to nearby waters and land safely there, saving all those on board. Because of this, I was awarded with fame and riches that was even unheard of to me.
Despite having the most tumultuous time traveling, I decided to have one last trip, this time on a boat to relax. However, during our voyage, we were struck by storm. I awoke on a deserted island, scared and exhausted. It was there I lived for months, surviving on nothing but coconuts and the companionship of a volleyball that washed ashore. Needless to say, I had a dance with insanity during this time. Fortunately, after months of hardship, I was founded by a TV crew searching for lost treasures in abandoned islands. It was because of this TV show that my fame and fortune were reinvigorated.
Now, as an old, decrepit man, I tell you this story so that you may one day tell it as various blockbusters. My name is Tom Hanks, and this is my story.
Author's Note: I wanted to write a story in the style of Sinbad's Seven Voyages. In Sinbad's story, a seemingly ordinary man recalls all of his voyages that were all life and death situations. Whether it was facing a man-eating cyclops or a killer old man using him as a slave, Sinbad has been through such a gauntlet. Upon my first reading, the first thing that popped into my mind was the meme of Tom Hanks, that states something along the lines of "you never want to travel with guy", since many of his hit movies have him involved with various incidents that seem to play out in the end due to sheer luck.
Bibliography: The Voyages of Sinbad, The Arabian Nights: Andrew Lang. Link
Not long after this war, I was drafted to another. This time Vietnam. Here I met my best friends Bubba and Lieutenant Dan. I remember specifically being ambushed one day, our unit being cut down in mere minutes. Summoning all of my strength and courage, I raced the injured away from the danger to an evacuation point. It was here where I lost Bubba, who died in my arms that day. Despite this, I was able to leave the military a decorated hero and make a fortune alongside Dan.
Despite my riches, I decided to buy myself a boat and be its captain. On my very first voyage, we were hijacked by a band of Somalian pirates. Using us as hostages, the pirates demanded money. Fortunately, I was able to persuade the head of the pirates to take me as the only hostage. Assured that I would die when leaving with the pirates, I was fortunately saved by the military. After this, I retired my captain's hat and continued to live off my fortune.
It wasn't long before I began to grow restless again. This time, I became a pilot. In the military, I was trained to fly helicopters and various bombers. I put this to good use by being one of the best pilots at my local airline. However, disaster struck on my 100th flight ever, when a goose flew directly into our plane's turbine. Where lesser men would have given up and began praying, I managed to guide the plane to nearby waters and land safely there, saving all those on board. Because of this, I was awarded with fame and riches that was even unheard of to me.
Despite having the most tumultuous time traveling, I decided to have one last trip, this time on a boat to relax. However, during our voyage, we were struck by storm. I awoke on a deserted island, scared and exhausted. It was there I lived for months, surviving on nothing but coconuts and the companionship of a volleyball that washed ashore. Needless to say, I had a dance with insanity during this time. Fortunately, after months of hardship, I was founded by a TV crew searching for lost treasures in abandoned islands. It was because of this TV show that my fame and fortune were reinvigorated.
Now, as an old, decrepit man, I tell you this story so that you may one day tell it as various blockbusters. My name is Tom Hanks, and this is my story.
Author's Note: I wanted to write a story in the style of Sinbad's Seven Voyages. In Sinbad's story, a seemingly ordinary man recalls all of his voyages that were all life and death situations. Whether it was facing a man-eating cyclops or a killer old man using him as a slave, Sinbad has been through such a gauntlet. Upon my first reading, the first thing that popped into my mind was the meme of Tom Hanks, that states something along the lines of "you never want to travel with guy", since many of his hit movies have him involved with various incidents that seem to play out in the end due to sheer luck.
Bibliography: The Voyages of Sinbad, The Arabian Nights: Andrew Lang. Link
(Tom's whole life in one picture:
Thursday, September 28, 2017
Reading Notes: Sinbad, Part B
Now that I am finished with all of Sinbad's seven voyages, I feel that I have a better knowledge of its themes and ideas. Admittedly, Sinbad reminds me of that meme of Tom Hanks where he is the last person you want to travel with (Cast Away, Captain Phillips, and Sully to name a few). With this thought, I feel that I can write a story as Tom Hanks. With Sinbad's stories being a first person recount of his voyages, I feel that I can write my stories as Tom Hanks recounting all of his movie parts as if they were real!
Many of Sinbad's adventures were life threatening and included much luck and coincidence, something I feel that can be duplicated in my stories. I am thinking that it could be very similar to that of Forrest Gump, but it would just include him being ship-wrecked, crashing landing a plane, and being held hostage by pirates. For those of you who do not know the story of Sinbad, many of what I just said actually occurred in the story! With this said, I feel that I have a pretty good basis for my story!
Bibliography: The Voyages of Sinbad, The Arabian Nights: Andrew Lang. Link
Many of Sinbad's adventures were life threatening and included much luck and coincidence, something I feel that can be duplicated in my stories. I am thinking that it could be very similar to that of Forrest Gump, but it would just include him being ship-wrecked, crashing landing a plane, and being held hostage by pirates. For those of you who do not know the story of Sinbad, many of what I just said actually occurred in the story! With this said, I feel that I have a pretty good basis for my story!
Bibliography: The Voyages of Sinbad, The Arabian Nights: Andrew Lang. Link
(Never travel with this man:
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Google Timer Tech Tip
Wow! This was a really great Tech Tip. Ever since getting my laptop, I have been trying to manage my time working on different assignments by trying to find a way to alert me just how long I have been working on an assignment. Since I always have various browser tabs open, this is something I will definitely utilize.
If you are like me, it always feels like you are drowning in different assignments. My tip to help manage all this would be to tell yourself what you have to do and give yourself a personal time limit. Even if an assignment is due at midnight, try to finish it by 8:00 or 10:00. Not only will it help you control time, but it may even force you to prepare higher quality work!
If you are like me, it always feels like you are drowning in different assignments. My tip to help manage all this would be to tell yourself what you have to do and give yourself a personal time limit. Even if an assignment is due at midnight, try to finish it by 8:00 or 10:00. Not only will it help you control time, but it may even force you to prepare higher quality work!
Reading Notes: Sinbad, Part A
I have to admit, I really enjoyed this week's reading: Sinbad's Seven Voyages. It felt like a great fusion of Hercule's 12 Labors and Homer's Odyssey. The main things that really stood out to me and that I feel that I could implement into my own stories would the fact that the stories were told in a first-person perspective and almost all of the stories turned out the way they did due to luck. I believe a first-person perspective will almost always be a better device to develop your protagonist, so using it for one of my stories will allow readers to better relate and learn to love the character. As for the fact that luck played so heavily in the stories, I feel that I can use the theme where my character is INCREDIBLY lucky and create the most outlandish situations for which he/she has experience. For my story, I feel that I can recreate Sinbad's tales, but have him experience things that are funnier and not as traumatizing. I think I will wait until I have finished reading about the rest of his voyages before creating my stories.
Bibliography: The Voyages of Sinbad, The Arabian Nights: Andrew Lang. Link
Bibliography: The Voyages of Sinbad, The Arabian Nights: Andrew Lang. Link
(One of the man-eating giants Sinbad faced in his voyages:
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