Week 1: Famous Last Words

This week has certainly been a whirlwind....

                I have never taken such an involved class! I do have to admit that it is quite a struggle for me to adjust to all the writing and reading. I came to OU with all of my English credits fulfilled, and dove in to the math and science, never to read and never to write again….. Or so I thought.  While this class is quite different from any other class I have taken, I absolutely love it. I’m perpetually confused, always behind, and constantly over-whelmed with my forgetfulness, but I absolutely love it. The way in which we are exposed to new things (and new people) is astonishing. I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve “bragged” about my new little blog to anyone who will listen. This class has taken me out of my comfort zone in ways I never would have expected.

                So far this week, I have learned that writing is not always technical. For the past few years now, I have primarily found myself writing in a “report” fashion, relaying information in an “X,Y,Z” formation. “Make your information simple.” “It must be set up to be repeatable!” “Leave out unnecessary descriptions.” I may still do that from time to time within these blog posts, kind of like I am now (old habits die hard) but it is SO refreshing to be able to write, simply for the sake of writing.  This class has also already taught me how to manage my time in a much more efficient fashion. I may still wait until the last second to do assignments or turn things in, but I am becoming much more aware of the dedication and time it takes to do these assignments, as well as assignments in other classes.

                It was such an impulsive decision to take this class, but I am so glad it crossed my path. I am ready to learn, not only the material, but also about my peers. I’m ready to tackle the semester.

Here is a little inspirational quote I feel is all too accurate. 

(flickr)

Epics of India: Overview and Explanation

          So you may be wondering why I am taking this class. As stated in previous posts, I'm an Engineer, and I don't know about you, but the vast majority of us are a little overbearing. (Don't tell them I said that ;P). It is a very no-nonsense sort of degree path, filled with weird chemical compounds, and even weirder equations, and that is precisely why I'm here. 

          I was sitting in a row of chairs waiting to be “group” advised (which yes… is as strange a concept as it sounds), pondering what I was going to take in the upcoming semester. Calculus, physics, chemistry, chemistry disguised as a different name… That was all I seemed to ever be taking, and all too serious. I wanted, I needed something different. Just as these thoughts were running through my head, I heard a girl a few seats down talk about this refreshing online class that had something to do with India. She kept saying the word “epic”. Was this class that cool? Was I missing out? These words floated through my head for a couple weeks as I decided what class I should take for a non-western civilization credit. Cruising through the options, these words finally came together in coherence: Epics of India. It was like a light went off. This girl wasn’t talking about being super stoked about this “epic” class, (although she may have been) she was recommending the title of a very interesting class: Epics of India.

          This far in my life, I know two things about India: it is super populated, and curry is delicious. Otherwise, I have no background knowledge at all. Being Asian, I’ve been lumped into the “East”, and often times I’m asked if “It’s all basically the same” and “The cultures are very similar”. I usually spend a few seconds convincing myself not to shout “Such Ignorance!” and walk away, before explaining that each country is so completely different from its neighbors, and each culture formed independently. There is no place remotely similar to India. While in Asia, the culture and history is so vastly, vastly different from other countries just a couple hundred miles across the ocean.

          While I may have stumbled across this class be complete nosiness, and confused eavesdropping, I am very excited to see what I learn about the stories and culture that formed the country.

Look at this beautiful elephant dressed for a fair !

(Wikipedia)

Week 1 Storytelling: Greedy King Frank

“THE King of France went up the hill,
With twenty thousand men;
The King of France came down the hill,
And ne'er went up again.”

There once was a King named Frank that ruled France. Like most Kings, his greed often got the best of him. Born from a long line of royalty, I guess you could say this king was also pretty spoiled. The Kingdom was calm, all was well. No one seemed to question Frank, or his ruling. At least that is what he thought. Frank spent his days basking in his own glory, reminding everyone around him just how wonderful, and magnificent he was.

Frank was also sort of self-absorbed. There were mirrors in every room of his castle. It almost seemed as if he wanted to surround himself…. With himself…

“I am SO handsome!” Frank would say, as he glanced in every mirror hung upon the walls of his castle. His house maids soon began to wonder if there was ever going to be a single surface of the wall uncovered with these vast mirrors, that of course he always wanted cleaned to perfection.

Frank had a very simple life. He stayed in his castle, with the idea that all was well, and the country adored him, as he sat upon his throne staring at himself.

However, like most self absorbed people, Frank was completely unaware of the great disaster going on within his home village! Famine had struck, and times were hard. The people had been wondering if moving from this village was the solution to the issue.

More years passed, and the famine grew, causing great despair as King Frank sat upon his throne…. you guessed it, still staring in the mirror at himself.

“We must move, and suffer no more.” said a brave soul in the city center. This lone voice was all the people needed to take the plunge to move.

As the townsmen packed their things and prepared for the journey up the hill to a better location, word finally traveled to the self absorbed King Frank.

“The people cannot leave without me!” he exclaimed as he discovered this tragedy. Who was to bask in his beauty!

“I am coming with them. We will build a new castle upon the hill.” He said to himself in the mirror.

King Frank began to pack his things, ready to move up the hill with his townspeople. Yet it soon dawned upon him: how will I get all my mirrors to the top of the hill!

“THE King of France went up the hill,
With twenty thousand men;

Upon this realization, King Frank, being the selfish king he was, enlisted the “help” of his townspeople.

“Each member of the town must a mirror up the hill!” He declared, to the town.

The townspeople were reluctant to help such a selfish king, but they decided that this was not the battle to choose. Famine was upon them, and they needed to leave the town.

So, up the hill they went, each member carrying a mirror. Days went by as the King continued to stare in his hand held mirror as his carriage pulled him along his journey. Finally, they reached the top of the hill, and it was more than they had imagined! The land was a paradise! Water was clear, fruit was plentiful, and things were looking up!

A few years passed, as the town thrived. People were happy, and everything seemed to be going well… That is until the greedy king found a new obsession.

Frank, in his old age no longer saw himself to be as handsome as he once was, and because of that he was forced to find a new obsession: other people’s things. After all, he was King! He had the right to whatever he wanted! So on he went taking whatever he pleased from whoever he wanted.

The people were outraged. A self-obsessed king they could handle, a robber, not so much. They came together in unity to banish the king. Even his own family did not defend him.

The King of France came down the hill,
And ne'er went up again.”

Down to the famished valley they banished him, never to think of King Frank, or his mirrors again. 

( King Frank)

Authors Note: This story was based on a Nursery Rhyme. This Nursery Rhyme came from The Nursery Rhyme Book, edited by Andrew Lang and illustrated by L. Leslie Brooke (1897). This story is a bit of a morality story like all the others I am sure we have read throughout our childhood. There was a selfish, greedy king that thought he was doing nothing wrong. He's King!  Eventually however, he was exiled from his own town because he was just that selfish. 

Me, Myself and I: An Introduction

Hi! I'm Gloria.

Here is a little story of my life.

          January 11th, 1995, was a very eventful day in my family's life. It was the day I was born! Officially born in Oklahoma City, I have spent my entire life growing up in Lawton/Fort Sill, surrounded my military men, deployment, homecomings, and the strange mod-podge of a town: Lawton. I am half Korean, and in turn, feel as if I have grown up in a completely different world than most. I often find myself confused at the customs and ideas that I have been taught, that are normal to me, just to find that I am, in actuality, the different one. But that’s an entirely different story.

          In 2013, I began a new chapter, a trivial journey: college. I had always questioned what I was going to major in, and finally I decided that Environmental Science was the path for me. However, majoring in Environmental Science has proven to be no simple feat. The College of Engineering truly is an interesting battle to fight, especially considering the fact that we as students choose to do so. Yet, as permanently confused as I may find myself, I would not have it any other way. 

While some may say that being an Engineer is a crazy notion to begin with, I am also pre-law, with a minor in philosophy, hoping to blend the two completely contrasting ideas into one career. This semester, like many aspects of my life is a mix of a little bit of everything. Currently enrolled in 19 hours, each class is completely different from the last. This semester, I am enrolled in Organic Chemistry, Physics, an Environmental class, as well as two philosophical classes, and lastly of course, Epics of India!

          In addition to my academic career, I also currently work as a receptionist in an attorney’s office in Norman throughout the week.

I hope you enjoyed this little tid-bit on me, myself, and I!

 

And because I’m just a little self- absorbed….. And clearly a little insane….

(Picture of me..... Obviously, my finest moment)

These Are A Few Of My Favorite Places

"Think of Your Favorite Place".....

This phrase has been said on so many occasions, for so many reasons throughout my life, and I have always struggled with identifying that "place", because for me (....and my easily distracted mind) that list could go on for days as I contemplate everywhere I have been....

So after days of thinking, and narrowing, here are my top three favorite places. 

First Thing's First: Lawton, Oklahoma 

Anyone who has ever been unfortunate enough to wander through this sad town in South-West Oklahoma, may be hugely confused right now. However, growing up in Lawton has its perks, believe it or not, the best one being: 

The Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge 

(featuring my photography skills. Ha ha)

Okay, Okay, TECHNICALLY not IN Lawton, yet there's nothing quite like it.....

Unconventional Beauty. Wide Open Skies. Complete Serenity. 

Over the years, I have visited this little slice of happiness, certainly

over a hundred times, yet the beauty, is always just as shocking each time I look down over the planes of Oklahoma. 

Secondly: Santorini, Greece 

(Wikipedia)

I was incredibly fortunate enough to travel through Greece in 2011, and while each and every place we visited was incredibly beautiful, There is nothing quite like, the stark, white buildings covered with bright blue roofs cascading down the hill, to the ocean.

And Third, But Certainly Not The Last: Norman, Oklahoma 

How do I begin to describe how my life has changed in the short year and a half I have been here? Undoubtedly, I have done the most growing in Norman. While growing up, and learning how to be independent definitely sucks, doing so with a little Boomer Sooner, in your step softens the blow. 

(Wikimedia Commons)