Time Strategies

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Out of curiosity, I went back to read my Time Strategies blog from last semester. After reading it, I decided it would be best to review the articles I had read before. After all, I had written five months ago, "I will have to go back and reread this article several times to fully appreciate all  the points the author makes and the questions it poses to the reader". I have not reread that article since. 
The first article I had read was  Four Questions to Help You Overcome Procrastination. Rereading it was such a great reminder that I can't give into procrastination even if it is my last semester and I seem to be losing motivation by the moment. I was reminded that the first step may often be the hardest, but it is the most important. Often it's just a matter of closing Netflix and opening Canvas.
The other article,  Why time management is ruining our lives, is what I had hoped to read again, and it was so amazing to look at a second time.  I kept coming back to this quote which is cited in the article: "Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell." As I am trying to make all of these decisions about my future and life after graduation, I have to decide what are my goals in life. What's important to me? What is the point of goals if I am not passionate about them? I have to spend time wisely or it is wasted. And doing something for the sake of doing it because I was taught to do it is not worthy of my time.

Class Technology

I love blogger. I used it for my personal blog, my blog for two classes last semester, and I am using it again this semester. I think it is such a simple, easy to use platform.
The tools I don't like using are anything involving visual tasks. Choosing images for each assignment is something I dread. I would rather write two stories than find an image for one. I also didn't love trying to design my project website. It seemed more rigid than blogger so that when I did have an idea for how I wanted it to look, I couldn't figure it out. I am hoping to improve my skills of working with these tools this semester.

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Reflecting on Assignments

Storybook. Source

What I enjoyed most last semester about the set up for assignments was the flexibility. If I really couldn't think of a story I was excited about or couldn't get into the readings, I could make up for it with extra credit and write about something I was passionate about the next week.

That being said, my favorite assignment is definitely the storytelling. I love stories and imagining other worlds and characters that I loved the opportunity each week to explore how I would tell the stories I had read. I am definitely looking forward to these assignments!

Haaaave you met Jill? An introduction

     Hello everyone! My name is Jillian and I am almost out of here! That's right. In May of 2018 I am blowing this popsicle stand with degree in hand (rhyming).
     Not to say the last three and a half years haven't been great. I'm double majoring in Letters and French and I've had wonderful classes with fabulous professors (including Mythology and Folklore!). I've made friends, joined organizations, and watched a lot of Netflix. But now I am going to be a real grown up and I'm going to get to pursue exactly what I am interested in.
     I have always loved travel, and if you can't tell from the major in French, I love France. I studied abroad there during my sophomore year and it was the best experience of my life. I have applied to multiple programs that would allow me to live in France for  a year after graduation. But I have decided that even if I don't get accepted into any of these programs, I'm running away and I'll stay on some friends' couches.

Me at the Eiffel Tower. Source: Personal Photo

     I am not sure exactly what I want my future career to be, but I know it will include writing.Now, I don't care if I ever publish a book or have my name be well-known. I just love writing and that is what I want to do in any capacity. Even if it must be a hobby, writing is what I want to do in the future.

I have loved writing since before I knew how to write (seriously, I filled journal with scribbles while "writing" about far away lands). I had a knack for it through high school and I have never had to worry too much about papers for college. However, writing for the Mythology and Folklore class last semester reminded me of where my passion lies. When I was a kid I dreamed of being a writer like Gail Carson Levine (she has a great blog with writing tips if anyone is interested: Link).
     I hope that this semester I can spend my time enjoying my last bit of time in college while also looking to the future and figuring out what exactly it is I want!

Storybook Favorites

Since I read so many Mythology and Folklore storybooks last semester, I focused on reading from the Indian Epics archive. It's interesting the contrast in selection between the two classes since one class can choose from any tradition and it seems the selection pool is much smaller for the Indian Epics class. Most of the creativity seems to come simply from how you tell the story than from what stories you tell. However, these were my favorites from what I read. 

Top Lists. Web Source: Best Professors Lists

Rate my Rishi: Link

The first storybook I saw from the Indian Epics selection was the "Rate my Rishi" story. It was so different from the others and so clever! It also exceeded my expectations when the author was able to design the layout to reflect an actual website rather than just have descriptions. It was also a clever way to give different perspectives on one character in a simple and easy to follow way. 

Karma's Courthouse: Link

I loved this story because while the layout and story frame was simple, the writing itself was beautiful and really set the perfect tone for what the author wanted the reader to feel. I didn't love the layout of the site itself as the tabs were so small and tucked away and the print of the stories seemed a little small itself. Other than that, I really like this storybook. 

Hindu Lover Online: Link

This was another interesting set up for the story, similar to the ratemyrishi storybook. It's funny because as I was reading other storybooks, I was thinking a dating site storybook would be cute, largely inspired by the Black Mirror episode called Hang the DJ. I think the author could have done more visual work to reflect a dating site feel (like the ratemyrishi storybook did), but the writing itself was cute and a fun way to tell the stories. I'm glad I foudn this before I further pursued the idea of a dating app storybook. 

Reading Window: Another Favorite Place

Last semester, I wrote about one of my favorite places in the world: The Eiffel Tower. Here is a link if you'd like to check it out! Eiffel Tower Blog Post

Then I wrote about a far away place, but for this post I decided to focus a little closer to home. When thinking of my favorite places, I had a hard time thinking of a place I love that represents home. Oklahoma isn't a horrible place, but I love it for the people. There was truly only one place that represents home for me that is not made great by people. And that's my reading window from my childhood bedroom.

My family moved when I was in second grade and my parents took me and my brother to see the new house and chose our bedrooms. When I walked into my future room and saw the window, I knew I wanted it. I large window seat, I imagined filling it with pillows and reading. I imagined staring out the window when I was upset. I imagined being in high school and boy coming to throw rocks at my window like I had seen in movies (still a little bitter this never happened). So I called dibs and my aunts painted all the walls purple (my favorite color) for me. My grandma bought me a cushion and sewed black fabric with white swirls onto it. I filled it with pillows and blankets and stuffed animals.

Source: Wikimedia

As a kid, I stayed busy with sports, activities, homework, and jobs. But from second grade to twelfth, a perfect day was when I found a great book and got to spend all day reading in that reading nook. I could look out my second story window to a beautiful blue Oklahoma sky. I cried in that window seat, I laughed. Sometimes it would sit unused for months, which made it all the more special when I climbed in again.

This past summer, I was finally asked to relinquish my bedroom to my younger brother. The cushion my grandma had made for me was taken out and a flat screen TV was put in. The purple walls were painted over in gray. It would never be mine again. I am grateful for the ten years I had full of reading past midnight, watching the rain fall outside, and dreaming of far away places from the safety of my own home.

Me just before my purple walls were painted over.
Source: personal photo