Reading Notes: Arabian Nights, Part B

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 1:
-Aladdin did not want to be a tailor like his father
-he fell in with the wrong crowd and did not find any job at all
-maybe make it where both his parents are dead so that when this magician comes who claims that he is Aladdin's uncle, he jumps at the chance to have a family again
-once the magician tricked Aladdin and left him in the cave to die, he realized that it was not his uncle and that he had been taken advantage of
-when the genie comes out of the ring, Aladdin is so relieved that he can escape the cave he can think of nothing else

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 2:
-Aladdin used the genie to provide him with riches and food like he had never known as the son of a poor tailor
-the sultan's daughter, the princess, was out walking one day with her guards and as soon as Aladdin saw her he fell desperately in love with her
-he wanted the chance to win her heart without the genie's help but the grand vizir went behind his back and married his son to the princess when he caught word of Aladdin's intentions
-Aladdin took out his revenge on the grand vizir's son by kicking him out on his wedding night and spending it with the princess

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 3:
-the grand vizir's son was afraid of the magic Aladdin seemed to possess so he left the princess
-Aladdin gave the princess some time and then he started to woo the princess again and approached the sultan to ask for her hand in marriage
-the sultan made all kinds of ridiculous demands and Aladdin was able to deliver on every single one of them thanks to the help of his genies
-the princess, the sultan, and the people loved him because of his wealth and his charm - however they did not know it was all deception
-the grand vizir was still bitter because of what Aladdin did to his son, and he was determined to ruin Aladdin

(The Palace)

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 4:
-Aladdin's wealth and fame spread throughout the world and the magician who abandoned him in the cave knew that the source had to be the lamp
-he travelled all across the world to find Aladdin and steal back the lamp
-the magician waited until Aladdin was out of the palace and went to steal the lamp, with the stealing of the lamp the palace disappeared as did the princess

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 5:
-Aladdin goes to Africa to rescue his wife and find his palace
-together Aladdin and the princess devise a plan - the princess will pretend to seduce the magician and poison his drink

Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp 6:
-the magician is dead and the palace restored back to China with the princess in it
-the evil magician's brother came to avenge his brother's death
-he found his friend Fatima, a well known holy woman, who agreed to let him imitate her but she did not know that to ensure her silence he was going to kill her
-the false Fatima was desired by the princess, to be her personal companion
-the faithful genie knew by the request for the roc's egg that the request had come from the evil brother and that Aladdin and the princess were in danger
-Aladdin invited the evil brother to dinner and as he welcomed him in Aladdin plunged a dagger into his heart

Bibliography:

Arabian Nights by Andrew Lang

Reading Notes: Arabian Nights, Part A

Scheherazade:
-go into more detail about how the sultan's first wife betrayed/deceived him
-he at first ordered all women in the land to be killed ...but shortly his grand vizir reminded him that their people would die off with no women to produce children
-so he settled on marrying a new woman and killing her the next day to quench his need to revenge
-the grand vizir thought the sultan might just end this horrific policy when he offered his own daughter because of how faithful he had been in all his time with the sultan but that was not the case
-Dinarzade saw helping her sister as a chance to liberate all the women who lived in fear of becoming the sultan's next wife
-Dinarzade also wanted to prove to her father that she was worth something because he had always favored Scheherazade over her

(Sheherazade by George Barbier)

The Merchant and the Genius:
-Scheherazade and Dinarzade continue in their plot to save Scheherazade's life
-each story she tells she adds a cliffhanger so that the sultan is curious as to the ending and won't kill her
-her father has more anxiety the longer this is drawn out and the longer his two daughters remain in the chamber of a murderer
-the sisters contrive stories each day and then at night time they are told to the sultan with the dramatic flair that Scheherazade gives that draws the sultan in
-they eventually convince him into recanting his order for a new bride because he falls in love with Scheherazade and also because she foretells of the peril that will fall upon him if he continues and he believes her

Bibliography:

Arabian Nights by Andrew Lang

Google Timer Tech Tip

I have never used the Google Timer but I think it is a great idea, especially when I am taking a break from online work and just browsing...it could serve as the kick I need to get back to work. I've learned that if I don't set a certain time for breaks, then my breaks tend to go way longer than they should. I usually have a goal to complete a certain number of assignments then I can reward myself with a break of like a short Netflix show or some rest time just not doing homework. It helps for me if I have everything written out that I have to get done that day, then I tend to just go in order of importance and get the things that are harder and due sooner done first. 

(Time Management!)

Week 3 Storytelling: The Trip of a Lifetime

There once was a woman named Sarah, who was regarded as the mother of the Jews and the most radiant beauty in all the land; she was married to the great Abraham who was known as the father of the Jews. Sarah received word that one of her closest friends was getting married, so they set off to take a trip to Egypt to join in on the festivities. Abraham was hesitant to travel so far but his love for Sarah was so great that he would do anything she asked, also there was the matter of Sarah’s beauty.

Now normally such beauty would be a blessing, but when in a foreign land with a foreign ruler it became more of a curse. Abraham was terrified that the Pharaoh would take one look at Sarah and steal his wife without a second of hesitation. The Pharaoh gets what the Pharaoh wants. He would be powerless to resist the orders of the sovereign, so Abraham knew he had to devise a plan to conceal Sarah until they reached their friend’s house. The first idea was to put Sarah in a giant burlap sack and throw her over one of their donkeys, but that idea did not go over too well with Sarah. She thought it sounded a little too bumpy for her liking. So they finally decided to put Sarah in a giant box and if anyone asked what it was then Abraham would try to pass it off as a wedding present for their friend. 

(Wooden Box)

When they arrived in Egypt the officials saw Abraham come through with his giant box, they were of course very intrigued and stopped to question him. He tried to act as though he was in a great hurry to make it to his friend’s wedding and that he did not have time to stop, but the officials could not be so easily thrown off. They would not let him pass without paying the duty for customs and they demanded to know what was inside. Abraham said he would pay the highest duty if they would just let him go, but of course that drove them even crazier with suspicion and they ordered Abraham to open the box. When the officials saw it was Sarah who was inside they all gasped, for she was as radiant as the sun. They knew they had to tell the Pharaoh at once because he would be sure to reward them for bringing him a prize as wonderful as Sarah.

Once they reached the palace the Pharaoh came out to greet them; he embraced Sarah and started barraging her with compliments on her unmatched beauty. Thinking quickly on her feet, Sarah introduced Abraham as her brother to which the Pharaoh was pleasantly surprised. This act saved her husband’s life and even though it enraged him, Abraham was wise enough to comply and hide his anger.

The Pharaoh told Sarah that he wanted to see her that night and sent his maids to help her prepare. Sarah was so afraid but she was also faithful and kept praying to God to keep her and her beloved safe. That night when the Pharaoh entered her chamber, something strange happened. Every time he reached out to touch Sarah, something would prevent him and he would get this unexplainable, excruciating pain. He was a little embarrassed at first because he was so confused as to what was happening, but Sarah knew exactly what was happening. It was her God coming to her deliverance. Despite the warning signs, the Pharaoh was not deterred until suddenly he was repeatedly thrown across the room. Sarah just stood there in awe as she watched her God work.


That episode proved to be enough for the Pharaoh; he wanted nothing to do with Sarah or Abraham. He loaded them up with provisions for their journey and made them promise that they would never return to his palace again. The Pharaoh was too embarrassed to tell anyone else what happened, so he decided to tell everyone that it was all just a big misunderstanding. The Pharaoh told Sarah that she was to say that she was actually Abraham’s wife, not his sister; Sarah just smiled because the Pharaoh thought he was being clever, but really he was just telling everyone the truth. Finally Abraham and Sarah were back on their way and arrived just in time to celebrate their friend’s wedding party.

Author's Note:

I kept this story somewhat close to the original, I did however add in the part about the friend's wedding to give them a reason for traveling to Egypt. I cut it down a little bit from the original, but kept the same general premise of God coming to Sarah's aide and rescuing her and Abraham from the Pharaoh. I just mainly the changed the major details of how the story unfolded. 

Bibliography:

The Higgledy-Piggledy Palace by Gertrude Landa

Reading Notes: Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends, Part B

The Sleep of One Hundred Years:
-foreshadow to how Onias would ultimately be the one he was saving the dates and water for
-after sorrow can come joy, even if it is time for others to enjoy it
-Jerusalem remained, but it was not the same one - everything had changed and the things he loved were gone
-give the grandson more of a role, pleads with Onias to stay

King for Three Days:
-obvious parallel between Godfrey and Hitler with their hatred/destruction of the Jews
-as Rashi's prophecies keep coming true, Godfrey's confidence wanes and his closest companions tell him to turn back or he will surely perish
-Godfrey chooses to kill anyone who opposes him and keep going
-ultimately Rashi is right and predicts Godfrey's exact doom

(Godfrey de Bouillon)

The Higgledy-Piggledy Palace:
-go through all the different ways to sneak Sarah in and finally they come up with putting her in a large box but that ends up drawing the most attention
-Sarah told the Pharaoh that Abraham was her brother to spare his life
-the spirit that attacks Pharaoh - at first he doesn't realize what is happening and is embarrassed in front of Sarah, but then he realizes that she is the reason he is being tormented

Bibliography:

Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends by Gertrude Landa

Reading Notes: Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends, Part A

The Giant of the Flood:

-give the unicorn more of a role/voice

-go into more of what happens inside the ark with all the animals

-more detail of the demise of Og and Moses's role in killing him

The Beggar King:

-prideful King who thought he knew everything

-his world was turned upside

-go into more detail about the jobs he took

-take the blind beggars into the palace when he resumes like as King and give them a place within the court

(Noah's Ark)

The Water-Babe:

-different variation on Moses's childhood

-they put moses through more than one test to see if he is an "ordinary" child

-pharaoh puts the other magician to death when he tries to cause division amongst his family

Bibliography:

Jewish Fairy Tales and Legends by Gertrude Landa

Feedback Thoughts

The first article I read about getting feedback was called Silence the Critical Voices in Your Head. I chose this article because it resonated with the perfectionist within me. I tend to be hard on myself and would rather focus on negative feedback so I can make necessary adjustments to improve whatever is wrong, but this article stressed the importance of taking time to look at the positive and embracing your positive aspects that you can bring to whatever situation you are in.

The second article I read about getting feedback had some similar themes of focusing on the positive qualities you possess and the valuable aspects you know you have. I thought it was so interesting in this article, Why rejection hurts so much - and what to do about it, when it said that the majority of the damage done by rejection is self-inflicted. It talks about how people seem to have a need to over-analyze the criticism given by others and thus causing even more damage.

(Think Positive)

The first article I read about giving feedback was Be a Mirror: Give Readers Feedback That Fosters a Growth Mindset. I liked this article because it gave specific ways I can give informative feedback that will encourage and actually help the other person grow as a writer.

The second article I read about giving feedback was 7 Key Characteristics of Better Learning Feedback. I chose this article because it gave clear and outlined points. I am a pretty black and white kind of person and I like it when things are just laid out in steps like this. It talked about the importance of specificity and giving information that the writer can actually put to use.