Class Procedures and Reminders:
Storybook Stack. (repeat announcement) I don't update the Storybook stack as often on the weekends, but you can check there to make sure I received your assignment; I'll update it at least once or twice over the weekend. If you want comments back on your assignment sooner rather than later, don't wait until Sunday evening. If you wait until Sunday evening or the Monday grace period, you will be farther down in the stack and will have to wait longer for my comments back to you — especially next week, since it will be a busy week with a lot of new stories coming in!
Alternate Storybook Schedule. (repeat announcement) There are all kinds of reasons why people might miss a week for the Storybook, and it is not a problem. You can even miss two or three weeks and still end up with a total of three stories in your Storybook, which is just fine! So, for those of you who are on the regular schedule right now but don't have time to finish your second story for Week 8, that's okay - you can turn in the second story for Week 9 (and the third story in Week 11 and a fourth story in Week 13). For more information about how the alternate schedules work, see this page: Storybook Schedule FAQ.
The following items are for fun and exploration:
Writing Resource: Grammar Nazi Parody. I am quite a fan of the film Inglorious Basterds, so of course I was delighted with this "Grammar Nazi" parody; the video is at YouTube.
Mythology Playing Cards: One of the best Kickstarters that I have participated in is this one for Gods of Mythology Playing Cards. The image below shows the Egyptian suit; the face cards in each of the four suits are dedicated to a different mythological tradition. Very fun!
Mythology Word in English: Today's mythology word in English is harmony from the Greek Harmonia. For details, see this blog post.
Featured Storybook: When Brothers Cross Paths. You probably know the Winchester brothers from the TV show Supernatural, and you surely know the Brothers Grimm, so in Tracey's Storybook from last semester you can see what happens when the four brothers join forces.
FREE Kindle eBook: The Ramayana of Valmiki by by R.T.H. Griffith. Here is a link to the book at Amazon, and this blog post provides additional information about the contents of the book. There are many English translations of Valmiki's Ramayana, and this translation is in rhyming English verse.
Words of Wisdom: Today's proverb poster is Be encouraged, O pilgrim, though your destination is far off (a proverb from India). Details at the Proverb Lab. This is a Kashmiri proverb.
Ramayana Image: Today's Ramayana image is Rama's departure from this world. This is the last of the Ramayana images; tomorrow, I will start sharing a Mahabharata image in each day's announcements!
Sunday Event on Campus: There will be a matinee presentation of Handel's Alcina at 3PM in the Reynolds Performing Arts Center (details). Find out more about this and other events at the Campus Calendar online.
March 9: Vespucci. Today, March 9, marks the birthday of Amerigo Vespucci in the year 1454. He is the Italian explorer, born and raised in Florence, whose first name - Amerigo - gives us the name "America." Unlike Columbus, Vespucci realized that Brazil and the West Indies were not part of Asia, but instead part of a new landmass, a continent that later came to be called America. The statue of Vespucci below stands outside the Uffizi in Florence:
Note: You can page back through older blog posts to see any announcements you might have missed.
