Week 2 Story: Beauty & Death

In a distant town, far away off from the dark and mysterious forest, there lived a mother and her three gorgeous daughters. One bright morning, the mother got ready to set off on her weekly run to the market at the neighboring town across the forest. She asked her three daughters what they wanted her to bring home and they all replied with a variety of foods, clothing, and one even asked for a handsome man. But the third daughter didn’t ask for anything exotic, only that she be brought back the brightest and most vibrant red rose from her mother’s journey. Her mother promised to bring back what each daughter had asked for and set off.

It took her a whole days’ worth of horseback riding to get to the next town where she spent the night. The next morning she hopped out of bed at the crack of light and began in search of all that her daughters asked for. After all were in her possession, she set off in through the woods hoping to return home before it became dark. Hours went by and the mother slowly started to lose her sense of direction as the night became darker. Soon she stumbled upon a castle as tall as the stars, but cold as the winter. It was as if the weather had changed in the blink of an eye.

As she continued to explore what the castle had to offer outside, she ran into a garden that had her recalling that her third daughter asked for bright roses. Venturing through the garden she found the most vibrant rose of them all and began to find her way back home. This is when the tenant of the castle, a dark and terrifying basilisk, came to apprehend the mother. He demanded that she bring her youngest daughter to the castle to be his prisoner for stealing the roses from his garden. Frightened to her bones, she raced home on horseback.

(Basilisk attacks Horse, Source: WikiMedia)

When she got home, her daughters came out in excitement to see all that she had brought home with her. To their shock, she was in tears and stuttering her words. Eventually she came around to telling the third and youngest daughter that she had to go and be the basilisk’s prisoner as a punishment for her roses. The daughter did not hesitate and set off at a moment’s notice. When she arrived at the castle the basilisk appeared and told her that he had been under a curse from the witch of the forest. This witch enchanted him to look like this hideous beast and roam the earth for all eternity, but the basilisk figured out that there was a way to break the curse. In order to break the curse, the youngest daughter of a family must cut off the basilisk’s head with a sword and then he came be free from this nightmare. This is why when he saw the mother steal from his garden it was the perfect opportunity to break free from his curse.

Little did he know that the youngest daughter, did not come back to be his prisoner. Instead, she came back to exact revenge on the basilisk for frightening her mother to her knees. She agreed to cut the off the basilisk’s head, but at the exact moment she aimed for the body instead striking him a great deal of pain. Straight to the heart was her intent and as the basilisk laid there in agony, slowly dying, she looked down on him with nothing but a smile. She had accomplished what she came to do and was now on her way home, leaving the basilisk to die alone.

When she returned home, the mother and all the daughters were so happy and relieved that the youngest daughter made it out alive. They all asked what had happened to the basilisk, but was only told that she had escaped from his grasp, not knowing that he was dead. 

Author's Notes:

The original story "Beauty and the Basilisk" had a mother go out on a run to the next village in search for her three daughters request. The third daughter wanted three flowers, but didn't find them until she got lost in the woods and stumbled upon a castle. This is where she found the flowers and when she took them a basilisk appeared and ask for her daughter. When the daughter came to the castle, she was to nurse him for three hours a day and then eventually the basilisk demanded that she cut off his head. When she came around to cutting off his head, twice, a prince appeared and asked to marry her. The first half of the story was same because I liked how the story developed, but I did not like the ending. Most fairy tales and love story end up in favor off the "good" side, so I wanted to switch it up and have a "bad" ending that didn't result in what the audience expected. Instead of freeing the prince, she killed him instead. 

Bibliography: "Fairy Tale: Beauty and the Basilisk" from European Fairy Tales by Josef Baudis. Web Source 

Reading Notes: Tricksters and Fairy Tales

My favorite folktale from the list of readings this week was the "Tricksters". This story was very fun and engaging. The language, words, and grammar used was easier to comprehend than the other readings. I like the story, but I don't like the characters. I would keep the tiger because of it's dangerous presence, but would change the Brahman and jackal. To replace the Brahman would be a hunter instead because a hunter would understand the dangers of letting out a tiger and would make more sense in this story and for the jackal I would replace it with a rabbit or bunny like Bugs Bunny. The beginning of the story doesn't expand on how the tiger came to be in the cage, so I would expand more on that. Also, expanding and changing why and who the hunter talks to before returning to the tiger would be best. I would keep the obliviousness and deceiving nature of the jackal however since that was a crucial component of the story. 

   (Bugs Bunny, Source: Wiki Characters)

My second favorite folktale from the list of readings was the "Fairy Tales". This was an interesting spin on the story of the Beauty and The Beast which had a basilisk instead of a beast. In my opinion cheesy endings are too cliche for me. An ending where you aren't expecting the "bad" side to win would be more entertaining and less expected from the audience. The core story is perfect, but I would change the ending to where instead of they fall in love with each other and marry, the daughter dies at the hands of the basilisk. I also enjoyed how she had to cut his head off TWICE, to free him from the curse which was a very different take than the original. I would also expand more on how the basilisk came to be from a man. 

(Basilisk, Source: Wiki Fairy Tale)

Thoughts On Time Strategies

I've always managed my time well throughout high school, but once I entered college I gained so much more freedom and time on my hands. I instantly lost all my time management skills and had to start all over. One thing that I never lost touch with is my organization skills. I ALWAYS keep an agenda on hand with all my homework, important dates, etc written down and in addition to that I use Google calendar to organize my days as well so that I can visually see it. However, upon reading these two articles, 3 Steps To Recapture Time and 4 Questions To Overcome Procrastination, I learned a couple new things. First off is that the first 15 minutes of my day is the most crucial and should be utilized to plan out my day and say no to the obstacles that stand in the way of achieving my goals. Another thing I learned is that once I get started with something it gets easier and easier especially when you get a good portion of the assignment done. Finding out what your biggest priorities are and breaking them down into smaller steps is something that can be very beneficial to my courses this semester and for my future. 

(Time Management, Source: University of Florida)

Thoughts On Class Technology

This is the first time I have encountered an online course structured like this with all these different types of tools to use at your disposal. Right now it's very overwhelming, but as the semester goes on and most likely by the 2nd or 3rd week I'll surely get the hang of it. I already use Google docs and bookmark important pages, but everything else will take some getting used to. One thing I want to definitely get better at is my blogging skills since this is my very first time having one.

(Blogging Life, Source: Plaid Swan)

Thoughts On Assignments

This is my first online course at OU and it's the first course that I've ever encountered that is set up like this. It's very intriguing and fun so far. The reading's might get stale and boring, but that's because my mind tends to get bored easily. However, the rest of the assignments sound very engaging especially the comments and feedback portions. The amount of extra credit that is offered in this course is enormous. No class I've ever taken had offered so many chances at this, but it's very nice that if you get behind or busy then you can use this opportunity to catch up. This semester will be fun in this course, but will require a lot of time and commitment.

(Extra Credit Cat, Source: Flickr)

My Take On The Growth Mindset

The growth mindset was first introduced to me by my biochemistry professor, Paul Sims. He taught us about the growth mindset on the first day of class and that he would provide us with the tools to excel only that we were the ones to take them and apply them with our growth mindset. At first I didn't take this seriously and sooner or later I found out that this would come back to bite me in the butt. The growth mindset is something that will be useful to you throughout your whole life, not just in school. This can be applied to my hobby of basketball. I can choose to stay stagnant and not progress, but every time I step on the court I challenge myself with a new move or going up with my left hand instead of my right hand. Up until I was first introduced to this topic, I was a person who didn't welcome challenges because they scared me and I would try to, but now I invite them in because they make me a better person. I would love to learn more about the growth mindset throughout this course. 

(Growth Mindset Cat, Source: Cheezburger)

Introduction to a Pre-Medicine Student

Hello everyone! My name is Charles Nguyen and I'm 20 year old. I was born and raised in San Jose, California but I moved to OKC, Oklahoma after the age of 7. Before even entering college I knew what I wanted study and become in the future and that was a doctor. I've always been fascinated by my science courses in school and coming to college my eyes were set on medical school and eventually becoming a doctor. I have a friend that is older than me and whom I look up to. He's currently a medical student at OSU and I've known him since I was 8 years old. He is the one who continuously makes me want to achieve my goal of becoming a doctor every day.

(Medication Pills, Source: Net Doctor)

My hobbies consist of basketball, tennis, piano, dancing, cooking, working out, and the list goes on. I heavily focus on basketball however. I play in a league that consists of 20+ teams and we compete for a trophy every season. I started playing at an age considered "too late", but developed into an exceptional player in my opinion. I play at the Huffman Fitness Center almost ever night with my friends. There were a couple times where I have been injured due to the sport, but most were mainly ankle sprains. I've had pretty bad ankle sprains before to the point where I couldn't walk and needed crutches, but my worst accident on the court was when someone elbowed my bottom jaw and my bottom teeth were basically pushed outwards. It was a very traumatic event because I was rushed to the ER and bleeding profusely. However, to me "ball is life" and I will continue to play the sport no matter the risk.

(Basketball Swish, Source: Lady Monarch's Basketball Team)

My favorite movie of all time is The Godfather starting Al Pachino. I have many other movies that I would consider being runner-ups, but nothing can beat a classic like The Godfather. My musicality has a wide range. I love hip hop, r&b, rock, EDM, etc. The only music that I don't listen to is country. When I choreograph to a song I usually have a preference towards r&b, but sometimes I'll steer away and try something new even if it's out of my comfort zone. I have one pet and its a chihuahua puppy named Lucky. He's a VERY ferocious dog towards anyone other than me and my family. This summer I went on MANY vacation to Atlanta, Missouri, Orlando, and finally Destin. 

(Destin Beaches, Source: Destin Real Estate)

My Three Storybook Favorites

Ghost-Chasers:
This was the first blog that caught my eye because I am one to love ghost stories, especially ones that make me scared afterwords. Once I clicked on the blog and continued to the introduction, it only pulled me in more with it's creative storytelling method and narrative as if I was reading a screenplay. The layout of the blog was dark and mysterious which only bettered the atmosphere of the reading. In the end this blog was a scary and fun one to read.

(Interior View of The Fortress, Source: The Divine India)

Death's Story:

I've always wondered what I would be like to live the life of death itself. This is what brought me to this very blog and what kept me reading till the end. The introduction started out as Death losing his job and being replaced by another soon to be named Death. He recounts his most evil, scared, and hardest life's he's had to take. The introduction of this blog did a good job in not telling me too much, but at the same time keeping my attention. The layout of the blog was simple and straightforward. Each encounter with a life Death had to take entailed a photo pertaining to the subject. In the end, it was a nice read and an interesting take on Death.

(Ship At Sea, Source: Public Domain Pictures)

Love At First Retweet:

This final blog intrigued me at first glance because I am a sap for love stories and love itself. I believe in love at first sight, etc, etc. What was even more interesting was that this blog was about the social media world and how love can be achieved that way. I was reeled in the a love blog and hooked by the introduction of the innovation of Tinder and MySpace. The layout was cute and kept to its theme of love. It was simple and set up in a way that made it easy to read and made you feel like you were reading an online conversation. In the end, this blog was quite a funny and heartwarming one to read. 

(Hearts, Source: Flickr)

California Is My Favorite Place

California is my favorite place in America. Partly because this is my home state with San Jose being my hometown. Although I moved away at the young age of 7, I still remember the old mobile home we lived in and all the friends and family I enjoyed days with. 

(City Skyline of Los Angeles, California: Wikipedia) 

California will always have a special place in my heart and in the future I plan on moving back.

(Nighttime Skyline of California: Photo By tpsdave)

Test Post

Hi my name is Charles Nguyen