Here's to you, Georgia

In Genesis 6-9, God looked down at the Earth he had created and saw that it was not good. Not good at all. This didn't please him at all. So God decided to wipe out the entire Earth with a great flood. Lucky Noah was the only one that knew about the coming flood. God had instructed him to build an ark. In the ark, Noah was to put his family, two pairs of each kind of animal, and enough food to maintain everyone. So all was good and well for Noah. It rained for forty days and forty nights. Everyone and everything on Earth was wiped out as a flood filled the Earth for a hundred and fifty days. Noah waited patiently for the Earth to dry as good had commanded and once he disembarked, he set up an altar for God- offering up some of the animals that had survived the flood on the Ark. Looking again upon Earth, this time God was pleased and so he promised to not do a repeat of the whole "wipe out all of existence" deal. (And I agree, it may have been a bit much in the first place.)

In the very first chapter of Genesis Eve takes the apple from the forbidden tree and thus the origins of original sin. I think it's important to note this because it is important to realize that Noah wasn't perfect, he had flaws and he sinned, but God still saved him and his family because he had faith and listened to what He had to say about how things were supposed to go. 

An animal that fascinates me is Georgia, Anna Freed's dog. I learned a couple things about her today. 1) Georgia loves car rides and 2) Georgia whines a lot during car rides. How that works, I'm not sure but she really did seem to enjoy sticking her head out the window. Watching Georgia fascinates me though, she is so full of energy and so eager to say hi to everyone (and I mean, EVERYONE) and she doesn't seem to stop. Like ever. I wish I had that kind of energy. She's also pretty fascinating because she has to be one of the cutest dogs to ever exist. 

(She's absolutely precious, isn't she?) 

cmon dad its 2013 i can have a shark boyfriend if i want one

(seriously my writing/humor is so bad right now, im totally off my game i apologize)

God found men to be wicked, and really, can you blame him? In a bout of self-loathing for his own wretched creations, the big guy decided to throw a temper tantrum and cry until his tears flooded the world and killed everything off.

Except Noah. Noah was chill.

Because Noah was God's homie, God gave the dude instructions on how to build in ark in order to survive the waterworks, and gave him the incredibly daunting task of collecting two of every animal, one with a penis and one with a vagina (and here I go bringing my gender politics into issues regarding beetles of all things) so that once God was done crying they could all do the hanky panky and repopulate the earth. Cool stuff. So Noah did just that, though the unicorns ended up missing the ark and dying. What a shame.

God cried for 40 days and 40 nights because he was listening to his favorite sad songs on repeat, and Noah was apparently 600 years old when this happened? What the heck, why would they put that detail in. Anyways. Noah and his family all piled into the ark along with the delightfully smelly animals and chilled out. (I get the feeling that Noah was the type of guy to have those obnoxious family stick figure stickers on the back of his ark.)

Eventually, God stopped crying, and after Noah sent out some bird emissaries to scope the scene (no, it's still wet as heckie, Noah) the ark was on top of a mountain. This sounds like it has potential for a really kickass rock album cover.

Then God made a covenant with Noah and Noah got smashed.

An animal that fascinates me is sHAAAAARKS
SHAAA AA  RKS . SHAA AR K S !!!  SHA AA RKS

SHAAAAAAAAAAAAARKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

do i even need to explain why sharks are awesome because i think we all know why sharks are awesome. theyre adorable and badass and cool and theyre so important and necessary to not just our oceans but LIFE ITSELF theyre SO CRUCIAL AND DARLING and wow i wanna kiss all the sharks . i just

i wanna smooch em. smooch da sharks

here is a picture of a mermaid smooching a shark this is ideal. this is what i want to be . this is what i need

Noahs Ark

A lot of people were bad, and God was like “Not dealing with this anymore”, so he decided that he’d flood the world. But, God favored Noah, so He told Noah (who was 600 years old. 600!) to make an ark that could house his whole family and two of every single creature in the world. After they were finished, God sent torrential rain for forty days and forty nights and the earth was flooded for a hundred and fifty days. God still remembered Noah and on the seventeenth day of the seventh month the ark got stuck in a mountain and then three months later the tops of the mountains appeared. Then forty days later Noah sent out a preliminary dove which came back empty handed and then seven days after that he tried again and but it never came back. After everything dried up, God commanded Noah to come out with his family and animals and promised to never flood the earth again and made a rainbow to show that promise.

I really like pandas. Now I get that I probably really like them as a childhood thing from when I thought that they were adorable and cuddly, which is still true. However, I have a better story about flying squirrels. In kindergarten we got subscriptions to Time for Kids and one issue was about flying squirrels. I got really excited, because I mean, who wouldn’t? They’re squirrels. Who can fly! But not really, since they glide, but that’s the point. So I came home and I told my brother that there were flying squirrels and he just laughed in my face. How rude is that? He didn’t believe a word that I said even after I explained that they have arm flab things connected to their legs that help them glide, not fly. I got so frustrated that he didn’t believe me that I just stormed off and he would just make fun of me for thinking squirrels could fly for years. He brings it up and its twelve years later. Rude. 

Trojan Horse. Jorney Across Europe.

The story takes place during the Trojan War, Greece and Troy at battle right outside Troy's city walls. Both sides have suffered great loss and if the battle continues, soon there will be no warriors to fight. Odysseus realizes this and creates a plan that can win Greece the war. His plan is to make a giant wooden horse and have fill it full of Greek warriors. Then, one soldier, acting as a traitor, delivers the horse to the front gate of Troy saying the Greeks have retreated and this was their gift to the Trojans, denial of the gift would upset the gods. This plan went as expected and they accepted the gift.  While they were passing out drunk from celebrations the Greeks burst out of the horse and killed the men, taking women and children as prisoners. The war was won thanks to an outragous idea.

My ideal journey would be a two month backpacking across Europe. Just me and my brother. Traveling by train on the Eurorail train system, staying at hostels wherever we can. We would land in Ireland, then travel to the UK. Neither country has a Eurorail system, so visiting there first would make the trip optimal. After UK, we travel to the main land, then go wherever we feel. Head up north to Sweden or Norway, work our way across then head down to the southern most tip. The goal is to travel to every country, gain a little bit of culture from each one. Ive visited a few countries when I was 9, so revisiting those places would bring back many memories, and refreshing them would be very satisfying. This trip will most likely happen after my sophomore year of college, and I am looking forward to it. Planning has already begun.

Odysseus and the Trojan Horse

The story of the Trojan Horse is one that is very well known. The Greeks, not willing to admit defeat easily, thought of one more trick to invade the Trojan territory. Their plan was to construct a large wooden horse that the Trojans would soon believe was a trophy of their success. The Greek forces piled into this huge wooden horse, armed and ready. The Greeks keep one man as a traitor to deliver the victory “prize” to Troy. The Trojans celebrate and think nothing of the horse until the Greeks reveal themselves ready for battle. 

I love to travel; I would really like to visit as many different countries as possible. Currently, one of the places I would like to visit is France. I have never been to France but it looks and sounds beautiful and I would really like to go and experience the thriving arts community.

Odysseus and the Trojan Horse

Odysseus and the Trojan Horse is your basic story showcasing a character's slick-ness. In the Trojan wars between the Greeks and the Trojans, Odysseus comes with the amazing idea of a wooden horse as a mechanism to invade Troy, as it is protected by walls. The horse would contain all but one person, who acts as a sort of "decoy" or traitor to the Greek military in order to convince the Trojans to bring in the horse, as it is a gift from the Greeks for the gods. The Greeks agree on the plan with Odysseus and everything goes well. The Trojans get so drunk from celebrating that after they bring in the horse, the Greeks jump out and successfully massacre the Trojans and enslave the women and children.

My dream journey would be to explore in either Italy, France, or Spain. While in any of these places, I could learn (or perfect) a romance language, interact with a new culture, and experience new things in life that I wouldn't be able to do normally in Lexington. I've never been outside of the country before and it would be a great experience to finally leave the US and go explore somewhere that's not familiar. While I definitely wouldn't need a Trojan horse in order to check this endeavor off my bucket list, it would take an arm and leg to get it done, but I believe that it would be worth it.

Odysseus and the Trojan Horse

The Trojans and Greeks had been fighting a war for ten years. The walls of Troy were impervious to assault so Odysseus devised a plan to get the Trojans to open their gates. The Greeks built a giant wooden horse and hid their best fighters inside the horse. The Greeks moved all their ships out of sight and in the morning, the Trojans looked out and only saw the giant horse. They saw the horse as a peace offering and brought the horse into their city. They celebrated “victory” by drinking. When they’d all gone to bed drunk, the Greeks came out of the horse and slaughtered almost all the Trojans, thereby ending the Trojan War.

I’d love to be able to visit Russia and Austria someday, Italy too if I can! I’d like to visit Russia (Moscow and St. Petersburg in particular) because it has such beautiful architecture, culture, and history. I find Russian culture fascinating because of its artistry and eloquence. Moscow and St. Petersburg have been homes to many of the most revered composers in history. Whether it has been the beauty of the country or the despair of Soviet repression, the inspiration for Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, Rimsky-Korsakov, Rubinstein, Glazunov, Prokofiev, Stravinsky (just to name a few) lies in the culture of the country. I’d like to visit Austria (Vienna in particular) also because of its distinguished contributions to the music world; I’d love to see a live performance by the Vienna Philharmonic one day. Lastly, I’d like to visit Cremona, Italy because, once again, it has been the music center of the world! It would be fascinating to walk the streets and see the workshops of the Stradivari family and the Guarneri family. Not to mention, I’d love to be able to visit the workshop of Marcello and Vittorio Villa where my violin was crafted.  

http://pacificsymphony.tumblr.com/post/23913295069/who-knew-dmitri-shostakovich-studied-composition

I think everyone should just take a moment (like about hour) to go listen to Shosty 5 because that symphony is just as magical as Harry Potter! :)

Horses - are they the death of us all?

After ten years of war, Odysseus has had enough of that pansy fighting and decides to end it with a wicked awesome trick.  He builds this gigantic horse for his troops to hide in with him, and they move all of their ships so that the Trojans won't see them--they'll think they've retreated.  So the Trojans come out and find this huge horse, thinking it's an offering to their goddess of choice, and they take it inside their city.  Once all the Trojans are drunk and passed out, Odysseus and his troops crawl out of the trap door in the belly of the horse and slaughter the Trojans.  With this master plan, Odysseus ends the war.

This is a pretty great plan if you're fighting up against really stupid people.
Which apparently Odysseus was, because this war started over a pretty woman.

My dream journey would take me a lifetime to complete.  I want to travel all over the world, getting to know practically every kind of society out there.  I want to visit all of Europe, and from there go all over the rest of the world.  I want to experience lesser developed countries and their more traditional cultures.

The Big Horse

The story takes place during the Trojan war between the Trojans and the Greeks. In order to gain momentum, Odysseus creates a master plan to make a giant horse, hide some Greeks in it, and use it as entry into the walled city of Troy. Makes sense. So, he does it, the Trojans get drunk while celebrating their new horse, and they all die because of it. 

First of all, this story is absolutely perfect for Hollywood. It has action, intelligence, and alcohol: the winning combination for American entertainment. I'm not exactly sure if I'm supposed to get any kind of sentimental feeling or learn anything except Odysseus is a brilliant character, but if I am, I clearly don't get it.

A journey I would love to take is a soccer tour around the entirety of Europe. I think seeing a game at every major stadium in Europe would be the absolute dream trip for me. Not only am I interested in the wide variety of Euro-culture, but I also love traveling at a fast pace. The only worry I would have about that is that I would get burned out on the sport, and become disenchanted with watching it. That would be a tragedy. 

In an effort to sum up my entire blog, here is evidence of a very real soccer league for horses

http://www.harmonyhorsemanship.com/images/Harmony-Equi-Soccer-Game-Action.jpg

The Trojan Horse, Canada's a Bro, Engrish

Being a Latin student for six years, I have become very familiar with the story of Odysseus and the Trojan Horse. Not only have I read it from the work's of Homer, but I read the event from the perspective of Aeneas in Vergil's epic "The Aeneid". A little background first. The Greeks and the Trojans had been fighting a war for ten years because some guy named Paris stole a woman named Helen from King Menelaus in Greece. This sparks a massive war that comes to a conclusion with the Trojan Horse. Following a battle outside Troy, Odysseus devises a plan for the Greeks: To construct a giant horse statue on wheels made out of wood, and offer it to the Trojan soldiers. Oh, but they were also going to hide inside and raid the city after nightfall. So the Trojans bought it and took the horse into the city as a parting gift from the "surrendering" Greeks. They got major drunk and partied all night and everyone, including the city guard were incapacitated. That's when Odysseus and his men lept down from the horse, and raized the city to the ground, thus ending the war in one swift act.

About my perfect trip, I really can't come up with a order, I can't really plan out what exactly I'd do. But I do know some of my favorite places that I would like to visit someday. Keep in mind, I've never left the country so anywhere would be a step in the right direction. One place to start would be Canada, our lovable neighbors to the North. I mean who can seriously hate on America's best brother? They've had our back in our conflicts in the Middle East, they landed our planes on 9/11, they are engaged with us in NAFTA and NATO. These guys are just awesome and I that combined with the friendly demeanor of their people and beautiful scenery, make Canada a great place to visit. Next, our motherland, the United Kingdom. I've always been interested in British/Irish culture so this would be a dream experience come true. The accents, the food, the tradittions, the BBC programming lineup, and cutthroat soccer (football competition). They also seem to be slightly more collective than America, which I think would be an improvement over the intense Darwinism in America. The people seem more United in the United Kingdom than in the United States. Finally, Japan would be high on this list too. Their culture is just so different from ours, but in so many unique and positive ways. People leave their phones outside of business and their shoes, theft is just so uncommon. Places exist like waitress bars where one goes in and has a companion to talk to for their meal. The consumerism is crazy, markets and shops are everywhere! One of the best things though is the Japanese obsession with American things, which I would find quite touching and funny. The same way Americans would get a Japanese tatoo of some random word, the Japanese throw in English everywhere, which can be unfortunate sometimes. Take "STARVATIONS", a combination of "star" and "innovations", as a normal shop name in Japan.

The Trojan Horse y la playa.

The "end" of the rivalry between the Trojans and the Greeks occurred when one man pretended to be a trader and brought the Trojans a big wooden horse. They Greeks thought that it was just a big gift from the Greeks but they were wrong. Inside the massive wooden horse was a large number of Greeks. When the Trojans were all drunk and asleep the Greeks came out of the horse and killed or enslaved all of the people.

For me, the dream journey would be to one of the large beach resort in a South/ Central American country. During this trip, I would be on the beautiful clear water beaches. I would also love to go more inland and see a rainforest, even if involves travelling for a few hours. You always see game shows where the prizes are a trip to the ... beaches of ... this includes a round trip experience and seven nights at ... where you can go do ... and enjoy the food of .... For me, a dream journey would be one of the trips given away at a game show like so.

Or even a beach in Bali like this one.
http://thisitchyfeet.wordpress.com/2012/11/01/bali-indonesia-climate-people-language/beach-beautiful-beach-in-bali_1600x1200_93360/

Odysseus and the Trojan Horse

This story is about the Trojan Wars between the Trojans and the Greeks. The Trojans were protected by a wall around their city. Odysseus made a plan to build a giant wooden horse to invade the walled city. Everyone but one person would fit into the horse. After the one person pretended to be a traitor to the Greeks and bring the 'gift' that was the wooden horse within the walls, the Trojans celebrated. All the Trojans were drunk because of all their celebrating so it was easy for the hidden Greeks to come out of the horse and kill and enslave Trojan people.

A dream journey of mine would be to go to Australia. My best friend could have told you my dream journey would be to go to Australia because I talk about it more than most people would. I am not sure where my curiosity of Australia came from. I would love to travel there and then go all over. See the big city and city life of Australia but also visit where the aborigines live. I'd love to go see and study all the animals of Australia even though many of them can be extremely harmful. I am pretty sure some day I will have my dream journey of visiting Australia.

Trojan Horse

In the story of the Trojan Horse, Odysseus devises a plan to win the conflict with the Trojans. While the Greeks were strong, the Trojans were stronger, and had great walls that made victory for the Greeks very difficult. Odysseus, the most cunning or the Greeks, devised a plan where the Greeks would feign surrender, and offer a gift to the Trojans. This gift, the Trojan horse, contained the entire Greek attack force. After the Greeks made it into Troy, they made quick work of defeating the entire Trojan army.
This story speaks to the lesson of brains over brawn. While the Trojans were more equipped and prepared because they were in their own city, the Greeks were still able to defeat them. Odysseus throughout Greek mythology is shown as extremely cunning, and uses this to affect many situations.



http://features.boats.com/boat-content/files/2013/06/sail-boat.jpg


My dream journey involves retiring on a sailboat and going anywhere the current takes me. Just as was done hundreds of years ago, I would cross the sea and simply explore all that I do not know. To me, the appeal of a sailboat is the limitless amount of possibilities. One could sail the world for a lifetime and never visit the same port twice.

Odysseus and the Trojan Horse

In this story, the Greeks are trying to get into the ancient city of Troy, but they are facing difficulties because Troy is surrounded by a large wall for defense that the Greeks can't get over or through. Odysseus comes up with a plan to act like they are surrounding, and leave a large wooden horse as their gift to Troy. The Greeks make the horse hollow and put a group of men inside so that they can get inside the city and then open the gates for the rest of the Greeks. The plan works because the Trojans think the Greeks have sailed away and take their present to show to the whole city their victory. Once inside the soldiers get out of the horse and the Greeks are able to attack.

I have gone on many trips so I don't know which one would be considered my "dream journey". A trip that I went on that had significance to me was my 16-day tour in Europe. Along with 200 other musicians from across the state, I spent the last week of June 2012 at UofL for a week to practice music for 5 days straight, all we did was eat, practice and sleep, but that is not the fun part. After that we got to depart for a 16-day, 7-country tour across Europe. We went to England, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria and Liechtenstein and we played in 5 of the countries. The band got to play in the middle of parks, in gazebos, and in town-squares for these huge crowds of people! The part that really amazed me was that even though a significant amount of the audiences didn't speak English, we (as a band) were able to entertain and connect with every group. To see the women start dancing during one of our polkas or to see the audience give us a standing ovation shouting compliments at us in other languages I didn't understand, was a truly remarkable feeling but it truly shows the effect music has on all human beings. 

Odysseus and the Trojan War-perfect trip

Odysseus was one of the main heros in the Trojan War. He was the Greek King of Ithica. His most notable accomplishment was the ten years he took to return home after the Trojan War and his Trojan Horse to capture the city of Troy. His intelligence and slyness heightened his success in the war and capturing Troy. His journey back home was shockingly just as long as the war itself, raising many questions. His wittiness made him a great leader and allowed him to get through and survive just about any situation. A Trojan prince abducted Helen, the daughter of Zeus. The Trojan War is between the Greeks and the Trojans. Odysseus constructs a brilliant plan in which the army hides in a wooden horse and invades the city of Troy to win the war!
I have travelled to a lot of vacation places, but I feel like i have not explored the world. Although I have been to some amazing beaches, I would like to travel Europe, Asia, and possibly Australia. I feel like this would change my perspective on everything and allow me to see into other cultures. Seeing the Eiffel Tower in person would just be breathtaking because we are so accustomed to seeing it in pictures. Some sort of "world cruise" seems like the perfect trip going just out of retirement. It would allow me to explore the world and see it first hand. I love vacations so much and always find myself going to the beach, but I think it would be a great opportunity to expand my horizons and step outside of my comfort zone, maybe being forced to speak Spanish for a few weeks. It would help me feel comfortable to speak the language and learn the culture through my eyes. So, not to be cliche, but I would love to travel to Europe and then eventually Asia and Australia.

Trojan Horse

The story of the Trojan Horse comes from the Odyssey. Odysseus comes up with a plan where one Greek is left with a large wooden horse, seemingly abandoned by the other Greeks, but is instead inhabited by them. The large wooden horse is supposed to be an offering for Athena. Sinon, the one left outside, convinces the Trojans that the Greek army left the gift as a means of apology for past desecration of Athena's temple. Despite warning's from a priest and Helen herself, the Trojans accept the gift. The horse is brought into Troy, and the night after the celebration of their supposed victory, the Greek army emerged from the wooden horse, killing a good number of the Trojan soldiers before they could even properly respond (since they were either sleeping, intoxicated, or both). As a result, Greece won the Trojan War.

I actually have already embarked on a "dream journey" of sorts. Label me what you will, weeaboo or geek, but I am a large fan of Japanese culture and society (going way beyond their various entertainment mediums), and during the summer of my Sophomore year, I was fortunate enough to take a two week vacation to Japan. My father and I visited several cities (Nagoya, Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, and Shio-jiri, and Suwa), and the differences in lifestyle between the U.S. and Japan were simply staggering. Being able to drive is essentially an arbitrary skill because of how well-structured Japan's public transportation is. Not only that, but everything in Japan is so well-organized, even the people, with everyone inherently knowing which side of a path to walk to create a continuous stream of people. It's actually quite difficult to describe the experience I had, but it was one that I will not soon forget. My mother believed that going to Japan would make me change my mind on having a desire to move there one day, but instead, the visit simply fueled that interest, so much so, that I even continued to self-study Japanese even after our excursion.

Trojan Horse and the 5 Month College Hoops Journey

Odysseus and the Trojan Horse takes place during the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. Odysseus devises a plan to help the Greek Army secretly invade Troy and win the war. They construct a wooden horse in which almost all of the army hides inside. Then, Odysseus sends one man out claiming to be a Greek "traitor" in order to convince the leaders of Troy that the wooden horse is a gift and that they should bring it in to celebrate. Of course, as we know, this is nothing but a lie as the Greek Army goes on to kill off the whole army after getting into the confines of the city walls.

Now, my dream journey is not as gruesome as the tale of the Trojan Horse. However, its level of "epicness" rivals that of Odysseus's plan. As a lot of people know, the college basketball season is a part of American society that is most prevalent during the 5 month period beginning with November and culminating in what we fanatics like to call "March Madness". My dream journey, as a diehard sports fan, would be to go on a 5 College Hoops tour all across the country. I would see at least one live game a day and be on the road or in the air for 150+ consecutive days. I'd go to New York, Florida, California, heck, even South Dakota! And trust me, those boys at South Dakota State can play (I'm looking at you Nate Wolters and your 22.3 PPG). I'd definitely rack up some Sky Miles and Points on my SpeedyRewards Card, and afterwards some desperate writer at Sports Illustrated would write a book about my journey because all he normally does is try to turn winning programs into scandalous and shameful institutions and gets rewarded with Pulitzers as far as the eye can see. (I'M DEFINITELY LOOKING AT YOU GEORGE DOHRMANN). Enough with my ranting. As you can see I get kind of passionate about this stuff. They don't call it March Madness for nothing.

A Clever Plan and a Dream

One of the best known stories of Roman Mythology depicts a hero (Odysseus) create a clever plan to invade the city of Troy. Faking retreat, his army hid behind a neighboring island while they took a ship apart and created a massive hollow horse. Inside this horse would be the "special team" so to say. The soldiers would hide in the belly and scuttle out when the night had fallen ravaging the city and opening the gates. Amazingly the tired and proud guards of Troy accepted the horse as a peace offering from Odysseus. This tremendous event signals the end of the plagued war wrought with death against Troy being defeated soundly and the start of Odysseus' complicated trip back home.

My dream journey happened this past summer. I was given the chance to travel to Ireland with 9 other Americans for 10 days. There we stayed with a host family, mine being a family of four, two daughters ages 16 and 17. We share stories of our cultures and spent many minutes listening to the other speak because of the new accent. I celebrated my host student's birthday party and met many of her friends who still refer to me as "the American". I could go on for days and days about my amazing trip!!! Now I plan for many more dream journeys introducing me to new cultures and new people all over the world.

Odysseus and the Trojan Horse

There was a war between the Greeks and Trojans. This war had gone on for ten years when Odysseus came up with the brilliant idea of constructing a large wooden horse, the symbol of Troy, to present to the Trojans as a forfeit. The horse would contain a hidden force of Greeks inside. The plan was that the Trojans would graciously accept this "trophy" of sorts the Greeks presented to them, and when inside Troy, the Greeks would jump out and attack. The Trojans turnt up that night and got mad drunk celebrating their victory, and because of this the Greeks had optimum time to sneak out of the horse and destroy the city, slaughter the soldiers, and enslave the women and children. Boom. Greeks won. War over.

I have a mad case of wanderlust and could see myself enjoying travelling anywhere. The places I especially want to visit are the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Greece, Russia, India, Australia, Japan, Alaska, and Hawaii. I also desperately want to travel down the west coast of the US at some point in my life. To be honest, though, I'd go anywhere and be happy. The farthest I've been from home is Canada, and I was four. Obviously, I don't remember anything from it.

All I Want For Christmas is a Giant Wooden Horse

So yeah, I think about everyone knows the story of Odysseus and the Trojan Horse. There was this huge, long war between Greece and Troy. It'd been going on like ten years, which I guess is decently long for a war. But everyone was getting sick of it, because everyone was dying and no one was winning. So a Greek general, Odysseus, came up with a daring tactic that was SURE to end the war once and for all. One more, those goshdarn Trojans woke up and looked out at the beach and WHOA, all the Greeks were gone! And there's now a giant wooden horse on the beach! So the Trojans assumed that the Greeks had given up and gone home, leaving a giant horse peace offering. Obviously. Except really, *gasp*, it was a trick! All the Greek ships and armies had simply been moved out of sight around the the cove, and the horse, being hollow, contained Odysseus and some of his men. Somehow not realizing something here was fishy, the ecstatic Trojans took the horse into Troy without checking it first, and then proceeded to forget about the horse and get COMPLETELY hammered. That night, when like the whole city was passed out from all the  hardcore partyin', Odysseus and his men jumped out of the horse and brutally slaughtered like, everyone. They deserved it.

Now, as for a dream journey... man, I wanna go like everywhere that isn't on this continent. I'm not picky. Toss me on a plane somewhere. But if I HAD to pick ONE place to go... I'd like to hit up the British Isles. And not do all the touristy stuff like Dublin and London and Stonehenge... I'm feelin' places like Cardiff, Liverpool, Inverness, The Isle of Man, and the Highlands. That whole place is great. I could visit some of my internet friends, do some backpacking in Scotland, or bike across the Irish countryside. Honestly, I could spend weeks vacationing there.

i cant think of a single horse pun im sorry i canter believe this

Odysseus was one smart cookie. (I say this because I baked cookies tonight, and they were crazy delicious. Though, I must also say that I preferred Odysseus in the Iliad. *pretentious sniff goes here* He was just way more of a jerk in the Odyssey. Anyways.) What with the Greeks and the Trojans having been fighting for way too long, everybody was sick of the war, Odysseus included. So, he conjured up the dubiously genius plan of not making a legitimate peace offering, but instead forging one... in the form of a giant wooden horse.

The Greeks were effed up on something, man. All sorts of crazy stuff was going on back then, (I won't even begin on the pederasty) so I guess the idea of building a huge wooden neighbeast didn't seem TOO whack. Oh, and the horse was hollow. The not-at-all-suspicious plan was to roll up on the Trojans and make like this weird over-sized toy ('pay no attention the fact that a huge amount of men can fit inside this thing, honestly, we want this war to stop') was a token of peace, as well as the fact that the Greeks had bailed like stupid little dumb idiot babies. The Trojans, also being stupid little dumb idiot babies, actually fell for this really badly-crafted prank and got their city taken over.

The obvious lesson: don't accept gifts that are large enough to hold a human being inside of them. You will probably die. (Unless it's a fast woman leaping out of a birthday cake. Then it might burn when you pee.)

The less obvious lesson: what the frick odysseus oh my god how did that work

If we're talking dream journeys, I guess I should start off by being incredibly idealistic and saying that in this dream journey, I'm fluent in the language of the place I'm going. So, yeah. The problem of me being incredibly nervous about speaking to someone in a language I'm not well-versed in is gone.

I guess it'd be cool to just do a tour of all the rad places in Europe I've wanted to visit for a while. Iceland, Norway, Finland, Lithuania, Russia, Ukraine... maybe Bulgaria? Also Japan and Korea, I guess. For all the European countries, I'd go to enjoy the scenery. For Japan and Korea, I'd go for the fashion and the food. Load up on sweet snacks and sweet styles. Oh, yes.

I'm sleepy and am not sure how to end this.

ho RSES ??? ?  ne igh

Odysseus and the Trojan War

Essentially, the Greeks and Trojans had been fighting for 10 years. Odysseus had better things to do and devised a plan to win. He crafted a large wooden horse that all but one of the Greeks could fit inside of. The lone Greek rolled the massive horse in front of the Trojan's walls and said that it was a parting gift from the Greeks, who had fled the scene. The Trojans, wheeled the horse inside their gates, through a huge party, and passed out cold. Out come the Greeks and slay all the Trojan men and capture all the women and children. And its a win for the Greeks.

Can I just travel the whole globe? I'd start out in Paris. I want coffee and whatever French pastry a rude waiter suggests. I suppose the Louvre is a must see but honestly I'd be more interested in whats going on in the streets; living art. The experiences to be had. Memories to be made, coffee in hand. I'm not well educated in traveling the world, but I feel like I'd like Paris best around Sept/Oct so I wouldn't burn up. But before Paris I'd like to see Rome, possibly in June or July. I know it would be hot but the Romans were hot people so I think I could take it. Shorts, a thin t-shirt, possibly a tank top, and I'd be set. Actually, I want to retract my entire entry thus far and say that my dream journey would be living the plot of Midnight in Paris in every culturally significant city on the globe. Done. 

Spring Break in Iran

Having attempted to take Troy for quite some time, Odysseus thought up a devious plan. Pretending to retreat, the Greek army left behind a large wooden horse. The Trojans accepted the wooden horse as a peace offering, whereupon the best Greek soldiers, hidden inside the hollow horse, waited until night then took over Troy.

I've always thought this to be a little bit of an odd story, but I suppose it's better understood with the knowledge that some within Troy were traitors for the Greek army. Still, why would the Greeks give you a giant wooden horse?

I have plenty of dream journeys. In the US, I'd like to visit several cities and national parks which I've yet to see (Boston, Miami, New Orleans, Yosemite, Glacier, Arches, etc.). I'd certainly like to travel much more within Africa, though I'd be hard pressed to narrow down to particular countries (currently I have a major interest in CAR, maybe there?), and in many areas, I'd like to live rather than travel. I've never been to Europe, aside from a few airports, and I'd certainly like to check it out. I'm interested in Australia/NZ, and SE Asia holds a good deal of appeal, too. I quite like travelling.

But insofar as dream connotes some unlikelihood, I'd like to visit Iran. Iran holds an impressive array of natural beauty, with mountains and deserts that I'd probably like a lot. But more uniquely, Iranian culture and history attract me. Iranian culture, a mix of Islamic, Persian, and minority cultures (Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, etc.), strikes me as very rich. It manifests in stunning architecture and other impressive art. Iranian history is ancient and integral to the society and so this aspect of travelling to Iran would, I think, be great.

I've selected Iran because it is so unlikely--other places I'd like to visit (Cambodia, CAR, Ghana, even Afghanistan) are much likelier than my visiting Iran. The political and financial barriers might prove insurmountable, but I won't be crushed if I don't visit Iran: there are plenty of other places I'd like to go just as much.

Odysseus

               After choosing Aphrodite as the most beautiful goddess, Paris is promised the hand of Helen and thus is the beginning of the Trojan War. Fast forwarding to the end, the Greeks and Trojans had been fighting for forever and the Greeks couldn’t breach Troy’s walls and more and more people were dying and that wasn’t cool. Then Odysseus, being the cool cat he was, came up with a plan to trick the Trojans since brute strength couldn’t get the job done.  His plan was to build a magnificently awesome horse and offer it to the Trojans as a sign of surrender, but the horse would actually house Greeks who would then attack Troy from the inside. The Greeks left the beautiful wooden horse outside Troy’s walls and pretended to sail away. The silly Trojans were like “Hey. This is nice,” and carted the horse into the city. However, later in the night when everyone one was asleep, the Greeks sacked the city and thus brought the downfall of the mighty Trojan empire.

               My dream journey would be island hopping in Southeast Asia for a month or two. The beauty of the trip is that it would be super cheap, minus airfare. Currency conversion works in our favor over there, so hotels and food and souvenirs wouldn’t completely break the bank. Plus, it’s a warm spot to vacation at, so I could get some much needed Vitamin D while chillin’ on a beach and sippin’ on some freshly squeezed juice. There's nothing like the sound of the ocean to carry all of your worries away! The culture there is also very rich, so it would be fun to learn about all the history and what not of the region. 

A sunset from the last time I was in Malaysia

Clever Odysseus and his Trojan Horse

The story of the Trojan Horse is definitely one of the most epic wins of all time.  Ever.  Odysseus, being the clever genius that he is, creates the plan to build a giant wooden horse in which all but one member of the Greek army would hide.  That one member delivers the horse to the Trojans as a supposed gift that meant the Greek surrender to the Trojans.  Troy rejoiced immediately, taking the horse into its walls without a second thought.  The citizens and soldiers partied like there was no tomorrow to celebrate their victory over the Greeks, and they all got extremely drunk.  After they passed out, the Greek army springs from the horse and attacks everyone inside the city.  It's a very tragic ending for Troy, but the Greeks definitely ensure their win with that clever move.

Where would I go on my dream journey?  I guess my answer to that would be... um... anywhere?  Basically, my life goal is to visit as many places as I possibly can in my lifetime.  I want to be one of those people who knows seven languages and has been everywhere.  The first place I want to go back to would have to be France.  That country is just so fantastic, I can't even describe to you the amazing time I had when I was last there.  I want to see my friends from there again, especially my exchange student, Lia.  I miss her tons, and I will hopefully get to see her again soon.  The first place that I want to visit that I haven't been to would have to be England, or more specifically, London.  If you know me, then you know that I absolutely adore cities.  London is the one of the biggest cities in the world, and I haven't even been there yet, which just seems crazy to me.  Great Britain in general has produced so many of the things that I love:  Harry Potter, Doctor Who, and I'll leave it at that since this list could go on for a really long time.  It feels like a sin for me not to have visited yet, and I really hope that I can go during college.

Here are some of my favorite memories from my last France trip:

Arriving--Getting off the plane to this was a blessing

Meeting Mary--This lovely chica became one of my best friends.

Being on the beaches of Deauville

The French music concert we went to (featuring two
of my favorite French artists--1789 les amants de la bastille and TAL)

The D-Day beaches/
cemetery

 The Paris Gay Pride parade (SERIOUSLY IF YOU CAN EVER GO TO THIS DO IT BECAUSE IT WAS AMAZING OKAY SORRY I LIKE CAPS LOCK)

 Being in Paris on my birthday!

 

 

Le Mont Saint Michel--one of the most beautiful places on earth

And, again, the beaches of Deauville.  Seriously beautiful, even if they're a bit cold!

The Trojan Horse

The story of the Trojan Horse could more accurately be named: why you should never trust anyone or anything ever. So basically what was going on here was that the war was seemingly coming to a close. The Greek had gone out to sea away from Troy and the Trojans were prepared to celebrate. On the seashore, the Trojans came across a large wooden horse. Some saw it as a godsend and suggested it be brought into the city; others didn't trust it so much and insisted it be destroyed. Laocoon and his sons were some of these said people. The Greek gods, displeased with this, sent two enormous serpent-like creatures to destroy Laocoon and his sons. The Trojans saw this as a sign that they should trust the wooden horse and decided on bringing it into their city. That night they celebrated, drank and partied, until they all passed out. What they didn't know was that Odysseus and his men were much smarter than they seemed and weren't about to surrender, and instead had created the wooden horse as a way for them to be able to go into the city of Troy. So when the men had fallen asleep, Simon (one of Odysseus' most trustworthy men) ,who had pleaded entrance to the city of Troy, came and let Odysseus and his men out of the wooden horse. Odysseus and his men then proceeded to slaughter the sleeping men and signaled for the men at sea to return. And so goes the story of the fall of Troy. Ta-da.

And that is why you should never trust anyone, especially large, mysterious wooden horses in the middle of the beach. I mean, who does that?

My dream journey. That is difficult. Because if it were up to me, I'd go everywhere. I'd travel the world and experience different languages, different cultures, and eat lots and lots of food. I would travel the entire galaxy with the Doctor in the TARDIS if I could. I feel like that would definitely be the journey for me- traveling through time and space in a little blue police box. There would never be a dull moment. But I know, of course, that this probably won't happen to me. So instead I dream of returning to France one day and this time staying for more than two weeks. I would start in Dives-sur-Mer, Normandie where I would meet up with Lise (my French exchange student that was here this past summer) and have her drag me to Caen (and Deauville) show me all the places from all the stories she told me. We could go anywhere from there. It doesn't matter. Paris, Nice, Rouen, Marseille. I would want to do it all.

This is Lise. She was the French exchange student (ma corres) who
came to stay with me this summer and my partner in crime on my return trip to France. 

Blog Number Five - Odysseus and the Trojan Horse

This story begins when Paris decides to abduct the wife of Menelaus, Helen, starting the Trojan War. For years neither side could win, because the walls of Troy were impenetrable and the Greeks refused to give up. Odysseus then thought of a plan. He had all the Greek ships sail away, created a large wooden horse with a trap door where 30 men would hide, and presented the horse to the enemy. The Trojans thought that the Greeks had finally given up and the horse was a gift that symbolized their surrender. They took the horse within their walls and had a party. They became intoxicated, giving Odysseus and his men the opportunity to attack. This simple plan led to the end of the Trojan War and the beginning of Odysseus' long and perilous journey. He encountered cyclops, giants, sirens, lotus flowers, an enchantress, the underworld, Aeolus, Calypso, and the monsters Scylla and Charybdis before finally being able to return to Ithaca where his wife was being bombarded by 108 suitors. He outwitted and slaughtered them and earned his throne back. Then he decided to leave his family, travel to a place where people didn't know what an oar was, and then marry a princess.

I've never really thought of a dream journey before. I've been outside of the country (Japan, France, and England) and I've seen a lot of the country too. I feel as though I have several different personalities, each with different perspectives on what my dream journey would be.
The beach bum part of me would be satisfied with surfing (in Hawaii, California, and Australia), sleeping in a hammock (or a hut) under the stars on the beach, and not having a care in the world.
The artsy part of me would go to the Seven Wonders of the World, all the major museums in the world, and Europe (cause that's where the art is at).
The athlete part of me would call for running a marathon in every state, swimming the English channel, going to every Olympic game, climbing the tallest mountains in the world, and most likely participating in the American Ninja Warriors show.
Then the geeky part of me would include spending my life searching for a TARDIS all over the world.
My journey will most likely include my dog Mozzie.

Cain and Abel

Adam and Eve had two sons, Cain, a tiller of the ground, and Abel, a keeper of sheep. Abel brought God the fattest of his sheep as an offering and he was respected and so was his offering. But when Cain brought him the fruit of the land as an offering, no respect was given to him nor his offering. This infuriated Cain. He killed Abel in the fields, and when God asked him where his brother was, he answered that he wasn't his brothers keeper. God knew what had happened, and banished him to the land of Nod.

My relationship with my brother is very similar to this, without the bloodshed and loss of life. When we were younger and my mom was talking to me, he would try to interrupt and get the attention focused on him. When this didn't work he got mad and threw a fit out of frustration of not obtaining enough attention to cure his withdrawal symptoms of yelling and screaming and beating up on his younger brother. I am the Abel and he is the Cain, mother being the God. Now, we get in arguments when one of us is in a bad mood or does something the other doesn't like. Occasionally the physical brutality of the fights in the field rise up, but they aren't as frequent anymore. 

Cain and Abel- Elizabeth Minor

God blessed Adam and Eve with two male offspring- Cain and Abel. Cain was a cultivator of the land, while Abel cared for livestock. When both boys offered their products to God, he was pleased with Abel and disappointed in Cain. He told Cain that if he did right, he would reap approval from the Lord. Resentful towards Abel, Cain took his brother into a field and offed him.

Though I cannot say I relate to experience of murder, I can empathize with Cain's frustration toward seemingly unequal treatment of siblings. As the youngest of three girls, I have had a very different childhood from my sisters. They are somewhat older than me, so the culture of middle school and high school was very different when they lived at home. At times, they resent me because my parents deal with me differently than they dealt with them. However, a constant in our house has always been- like in the story of Cain and Abel- good behavior equates to trust and approval from our parents. Poor behavior causes our parents to be disappointed and overly suspicious. 

Pandora's Box- Elizabeth Minor

According to Greek mythology, Pandora was the first woman on Earth made of water and earth. When she was created, Zeus gave her a jar (or box) and instructed her not to open it. Tempted by the mysterious jar, Pandora opened it and released all evil into the world. She was ashamed of what she'd done, but Zeus was expecting her to fail him, so he did not punish her.
An evil I would like to eradicate is close-mindedness. I think the world's greatest problems stem from people's lack of consideration for others' feelings, cultures, or natural tendencies. The majority of global conflict and terrorism is caused by rifts between religious groups or political cultures. While I support personal commitment to one's beliefs, forceful imposition of beliefs on others is disrespectful and- in my eyes- evil. If the leaders of the world set the standard of open mindedness, there would be considerably less conflict and hatred between groups of people.

Cain and Abel

“Am I my brother’s keeper?” said Cain from the Bible to God. Cain asks God this question after killing his brother Abel and then trying to hide this moment. Adam and Eve have two children Cain and Abel. Abel, the “keeper of sheep” brought his offering to God as did his brother Cain, the “tiller of the ground”. God respected Abel’s offering more than Cain’s which caused Cain to trick and kill his brother in a field because of his rage and jealousy towards Abel. The Lord, as punishment, puts a “mark” or curse on Cain that if anyone finds him, they should kill him.

I have one sibling, my older brother. My brother and I actually have a great relationship and do not fight too much. He is four years older than me and has always served as a great role-model for me. We have pretty much always been friends.