Week 6: Review

As usual, the final thing I do each week for this class is the backup/review everything. I have made sure to backup my blogger and google site - no worries there! I also made sure all of my declarations for the week had been completed! And finally, I read over the daily announcements for the week. My favorite post is actually from today, Sunday. It was on creativity (see below), and I just love that. I think sometimes it is good to be "by the book", but other times it is great to just let loose and let your imagination free!

A graphic on creativity (Writing Laboratory).

Week 6: Famous Last Words

Week 6 down, 10 more to go! Only 75 more days until GRADUATION!!!! It is really crazy how fast this semester is going - and I can't decide if I like that or not. This week was not too eventful, but next week will be a doozy!

Reading For The Week

I finished up the Mahabharata, and was really pleased with how it ended. I will be using the story of Krishna for my storybook, and Krishna plays a big role in the Mahabharata. I really enjoyed getting to see the lives of the Pandava brothers play out - I think they could have done many things differently, but it made for a great story!

Writing For The Week

This week I worked on a story about Dharma for my storybook. You can visit that story here - I think it turned out pretty good, if I do say so myself. I really enjoyed working off of the Vincent, Megan, and Brooke storyline. Vincent is an old man who is telling to young girls stories about the god Vishnu. The idea behind the storybook is to teach others about Vishnu, Ashtamangalas, and some basic Indian principles.

Other Classes

I found out that I did pretty well on my Production exam - which was such a relief. I have a couple of tests coming up, so I am going to use that same growth-mindset approach and trust in my knowledge on the subjects! In Improved Recovery we have switched gears from waterflooding to simulators, which is exciting! Capstone is also coming together really nicely - we almost have all of our maps completed and now we are working on our midterm report.

Outside Of School

Like I mentioned last week, I have set up my salt water aquarium (again...I actually got it last year, but it crashed on me during winter break). I have four little fish in there (all damsel fish - easier to flush a $5 fish than it is a $50 fish). You can see my little neon damsel fish below, his name is Spark McDark. The other four have yet to be named....we are going through the trial period so it is best to not get too attached to the fish (they may die...and if they have names it makes it more sad).

One of my fish, Spark McDark. 

Growth Mindset: Self-Directed Learning

When browsing the Growth Mindset links, I came across an article called "Three Questions to Thrive as a Self-Directed Learner" (read it here). I figured this would be a good read because I am always looking for different approaches to learning (also, what's better than three simple questions?).


Question 1: What do you know? What do you not know?

The key here is to be self-aware. Understanding what you do/don't know is vital to being able to move forward and learn new things!


Question 2: How do you achieve goals to learn something new?

The next step is to identify how you learn! Maybe you are wanting to learn how to bake a cake - do you choose to follow a YouTube tutorial, go to a cooking class, or maybe just wing it? It doesn't matter which way you choose - as long as it fits your learning style!


Question 3: How do you show what you know? What you can do?

This is probably the part that I struggle with the most - being able to represent/communicate myself and my abilities with the outside world. I think it is so important to not sell yourself short. And while yes, there is such a thing as bragging, no one will get to know how cool you are until you give them a little piece of what makes you, you! I like to take pictures of my quilling and post it on social media - it is a nice way of saying "look at this cool thing I did". It is also important to use your self-learned skills to your advantage on things like resumes - for example, I always like to put my GPS skills on there. I have been making maps with a GPS since I was in junior high. This is a unique, self-learned skill, which is quite useful in many situations.

I think this is a nice breakdown of different steps you should take to learn something new! (Source: Beth Kanter).

Learning Challenge: Time and Checklists

For this week, I wanted to do a learning challenge focused on time management. I am pretty good with planners/to-do lists/goal setting/etc. but I am always looking for a way to be more efficient with my time. This week I read an article on checklists (read it here). It explains why small goals can actually help motivate us to accomplish BIG things.


First, when making a checklist, set real, small goals. The author of the article calls them "SMART" goals.
- Specific
- Measureable
- Attainable
- Realistic
- Time-bound

You need to be able to achieve these goals in the short-term aspect of the bigger goal.

The reason behind why this works? Dopamine - a chemical in our brain connected to good, positive feelings. It motivates us to continue doing those tasks (if something makes you feel good, you will want to keep doing that thing).

Personally, my desktop is filled with sticky-notes of checklists. I love organizing my life by class, assignment, outside of class, etc. You can see these lovely, color-coded, sticky notes below:

My desktop - lots of checklists! 

Week 6 Reading Diary cont: Narayan's Mahabharata

This is the final part of my reading diary for the Mahabharata by Narayan.

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Hesitant Hero

Eeek, I always get uneasy when the phrase “bad omen” is used in these books. Like, you know exactly what is going to happen – destruction. Here, there is blood rain, earthquakes, and mad dogs. Gee. What a great way to start a battle.

I found Arjuna’s sadness at having to kill his family touching. But I really liked how Krishna explained the concept of “detached conduct”. It’s like with a jury having to decide a verdict – you cannot be biased. You have to be objective about the situation. The Kauravas have done wrong, and so the Pandavas must fix it. It is sure to be difficult, but it is the right thing to do.

The different battle formations were interesting to think about – I can picture a heron-shaped formation attacking the fish-shaped formation! I think this will be a good piece to add to my storybook tale on Krishna!

Delirium of Destruction

The fighting between Arjuna and Bhishma is so sad – neither wants to kill the other. Arjuna could easily take down his grandsire, but he is held back by his love for him. Bhishma is caught several times by Duryodhana – he is watching the Pandavas with love and admiration.

Okay – what the heck – Arjuna uses Sikandi as a human SHIELD. Sikandi is actually Amba reincarnated (Bhishma spurned her, so she came back as a male to take revenge), and since Bhishma knows this he will not shoot at her. So Arjuna just has Sikandi stand in front of him so he can take down his foe. How lame is that? I could imaging re-writing this with a poor little woman strapped on a shield, being used during war.

The Kauravas are a sneaky bunch – in an attempt to capture Yudhishthira, they distract Arjuna. And then, Arjuna’s son gets killed while trying to break a lotus formation. They really shouldn’t have done that – Arjuna is not a guy to mess around with!

I understand why Krishna suggested that they defeat Drona by telling him his son, Aswathama, has perished – but, that is pretty harsh. You know it is a harsh move when Arjuna refuses to do it (also, he understands the pain of having your son taken from you).

This battle is filled with deceit! Yudhishthira lies about Drona’s son’s death – Karna brings up honor, but then shoots Arjuna while they were talking. But final,y Duryodhana was defeated by Bhima.

A depiction of the battle between the Kauravas and Pandavas. (Source: Wikimedia)

Victory and Sorrow

Dhritarashtra tried killing Bhima with a hug – A HUG! Watch out ladies and gentleman, killer hugs on the loose! What was that old man thinking? Who even does that? I mean, I get that he is upset that his sons have died…but that doesn’t mean you try to hug someone to death!

I am constantly disappointed in Yudhishthira. He is all torn up about killing all the Kauravas and has decided to throw a pity party. For himself. Not all the women who lost their husbands. Not all the soldiers he commanded who lost their friends. No. He was sad for himself, because now he has to be a king. This dude is a straight up loser. He doesn’t understand responsibility, he doesn’t even try to do what a king should do. He gambles away his kingdom. He forces his brothers and wife to go through years of exile. He takes thousands of soldiers into battle, where may die. And then he cries when he was to be king again. He really needs to sort out his problems.

Week 6 Reading Diary: Narayan's Mahabharata

This is the third part of my reading diary for the Mahabharata by Narayan.

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Servitude

Oh wow, I cannot believe that the Kauravas would set out to harm Virata! They are truly cruel people. It was odd to me how sure these men were of themselves – “there can be no doubt about [the Pandavas perishing in a fire].” Did they think it too difficult for the Pandavas to survive in exile?

I can imagine Bhima (aka Indian Hulk) uprooting a tree to conquer his enemies – and then Yudhishthira has to remind him that he is in disguise (key Bruce Banner breather techniques). And then picturing Arjuna having to pretend to be clumsy and fumble around – lol, they must be counting down to seconds for the ability to be themselves again!

Arjuna was so supportive when he was the chariot driver for Prince Uttara. I think that is such a great quality to have – be firm, but kind when trying to support someone! And even though the Prince turned out to be kind of a chicken, Arjuna showed grea spunk! Maybe a bit too much – he revealed himself to the Kauravas, which could have ruined the whole exile/be hidden thing.

A screenshot from a video on the title song of the Mahabharata. (Source: YouTube)

Warning Shots

Wow, the king is such a mean person sometimes. First, in the chapter before he threw dice at Yudhishthira (who does that?), and then upon seeing the five strangers dressed differently he gets all angry. He needs to take a chill pill. I was sad to see such a kind man act like such an awful person around those he found inferior to himself. It really shows how you should respect everyone around you – you never know when the person is a “diamond in the ruff”.

I am really interested in the Krishna part of this story (storybook!!). I am so glad he is on the Pandavas’ side, and I look forward to reading about his battles. Having to decide between a million soldiers or Krishna – hard choice – but I am glad Arjuna chose Krishna. It is the better choice!

War or Peace?

“Everyone knows that lawfully the Pandavas must get everything back…” so everyone knows that the Kauravas are wrong, yet they are still going along with their plans? It just doesn’t make sense to me. Does anyone ever think to stand up and actually DO something about it, rather than blabber on with empty words?

I really like this quote by Krishna: “The entire universe and all nature functions and keeps life growing only by a proper balance of action and reaction. Otherwise, creation will collapse.” I think it shows the principle of Dharma exceedingly well.

Another great line was by Vidura: “Do not pursue a line of action which is clearly unjust; happiness lies only in doing the right action.” I think this represents that ‘gut-feeling’ that we get when we have to make decisions. Somehow, you just KNOW when something is right or wrong. And when you do something wrong, guilt really eats away at you.

Action

Ah, as the battle nears, tensions rise. In the beginning of this chapter, it is mentioned that if a single baby of the opposing camp is left behind, it will harbor resentment and would go on to seek revenge. It is interesting how true that is – children carry on the wars of their parents. It is such a difficult cycle to break, but also a crucial one.

Draupadi had such a good point that one who commits sins ought to be punished, and one who does not punish the sinner has also sinned. It would be like someone letting a murderer get away with their crime. We have a moral obligation to do what it right – which includes punishing those who do wrong (hence judges, cops, etc.). I am glad that she stands up for herself here, and makes sure to remind everyone that there is a good REASON to have this war – those Kauravas humiliated her, and tried to defile her.

The back-and-forth mind of Dhritarashtra is so confusing. One second he is for his son, the next he is for the Pandavas – will he ever make up his mind? Although, I think he is seeing more and more how crazy his son is: “What undreamt-of evil comes to your mind!”

I like the pow-wow that Krishna and Karna have. Karna really needed to hear how his friendship with Duryodhana was not healthy - he was feeding into his friend’s bad behavior. At times like this, the best solution is to take a step back.

Tech Tip 06: Embedded Pin

For the sixth tech tip, I will learn how to embed a Pinterest pin (as opposed to the whole board).

Here is my pin on Dashavatara: