It's getting to the point where I have to officially declare my major. (By 'getting to the point,' I mean that I'm going into the registrar's office tomorrow to declare my major and sign up for my J-term travel course). This is a slightly terrifying concept; although part of me has always known that an English major was in the cards, there's still the part of me that is nervous about whether I'm making the right choice and whether I'm going to be offered ALL THE WRITING JOBS EVER or whether I'm going to be starving in Seattle, where the cost of living is apparently way lower than anywhere on the East Coast. Though the journalism minor is going to help decrease the chances of the latter scenario, the English major and second minor in Classics will probably negate any sort of benefit I might obtain from that.
I'm also starting to wonder whether I want to just major in English, or whether I want to possibly double major. The likelihood of this turning out well is slim, but there is the possibility that English could be joined by Greek or Classics. The trouble is, if I'm going to study abroad at all, I want to be able to take a lot of major-relevant classes, and I don't know how many foreign universities will offer credits that I can transfer for Classics. Simply put, English is an easier major to travel with.
The thing that brought up that question was an invitation to join an honors society for a department that is not in my major. I know that this only means that I'm doing well in the specified area, but this is making me wonder about my life choices and what I really want to do with my college years. Do I really want to go into writing at all? Do I want to spend my days reading and writing, or do I want to spend my time translating really old tablets and looking at tiny fragments of some pot from two thousand years ago?
Does anyone out there ever have this problem?
Monday, April 28, 2014
Friday, April 25, 2014
On yarn-related things
This week, I encountered a challenge. For the first time in a very long time, I was completely befuddled by something yarn-related. We were learning bead crochet in math, and I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. It turned out to be a completely simple thing - one half-step that's completely obvious now I look at it.
A second thing yarn-related happened this week: at Classics Tea this afternoon, a retired history professor told me that one of his former assignments was to give students a piece of yarn and told them to invent knitting. Since I don't like doing more research than I have to, I'm just going to explain Ten Things I Know About Yarn and Related Items Off The Top of my Head.
1. Both knitting and crocheting are basically a series of loops. The main difference is that knitting has two anchors with a whole bunch of loops, whereas crocheting has one anchor and the work can be more free-standing.
2. Knitting and crocheting are not the exact same thing. That being said, it is perfectly possible to be able to do both, as well as any other yarn-thing you put your mind to (and life stuff, too).
3. Apparently, cotton was one of the earliest knitting yarns.
4. Nowadays, if you can spin it, you can make a yarn out of it. This includes angora rabbits, silk, and yak fur.
5. Yarn comes in different weights, ranging from lace or fingerling weight to bulky. Worsted is the most commonly seen weight, especially for beginners, since it's right in the middle, and it's easy to learn how to work with.
6. That being said, there's not really a One True Yarn Weight for All of Knitting. You can use lace weight for a vest, for example (that's a project I have at home). I wouldn't recommend using bulky for socks, but I guess you could.
7. The bigger the number on the needle or hook, the bigger the loop is going to be.
8. Bigger numbers are better suited for bigger yarns. You could theoretically use a bulky weight on size 0 needles, but you really don't want to. You might break the needle and you'll probably give yourself a headache.
9. Some of the oldest knitting was found in an Egyptian tomb from around 3 AD. This wasn't really knitting, though - it was a lot of knots. The word for knitting apparently came from a very old word in the 1400s that means 'knot.'
10. Apparently some of the oldest knit socks known to humankind, from 11th century Egypt, involved some complicated colorworking. This means that the proper two-needle knitting comes from earlier than that - complicated colorworking doesn't just happen overnight.
Soooo there's my list. See you on Monday!
A second thing yarn-related happened this week: at Classics Tea this afternoon, a retired history professor told me that one of his former assignments was to give students a piece of yarn and told them to invent knitting. Since I don't like doing more research than I have to, I'm just going to explain Ten Things I Know About Yarn and Related Items Off The Top of my Head.
1. Both knitting and crocheting are basically a series of loops. The main difference is that knitting has two anchors with a whole bunch of loops, whereas crocheting has one anchor and the work can be more free-standing.
2. Knitting and crocheting are not the exact same thing. That being said, it is perfectly possible to be able to do both, as well as any other yarn-thing you put your mind to (and life stuff, too).
3. Apparently, cotton was one of the earliest knitting yarns.
4. Nowadays, if you can spin it, you can make a yarn out of it. This includes angora rabbits, silk, and yak fur.
5. Yarn comes in different weights, ranging from lace or fingerling weight to bulky. Worsted is the most commonly seen weight, especially for beginners, since it's right in the middle, and it's easy to learn how to work with.
6. That being said, there's not really a One True Yarn Weight for All of Knitting. You can use lace weight for a vest, for example (that's a project I have at home). I wouldn't recommend using bulky for socks, but I guess you could.
7. The bigger the number on the needle or hook, the bigger the loop is going to be.
8. Bigger numbers are better suited for bigger yarns. You could theoretically use a bulky weight on size 0 needles, but you really don't want to. You might break the needle and you'll probably give yourself a headache.
9. Some of the oldest knitting was found in an Egyptian tomb from around 3 AD. This wasn't really knitting, though - it was a lot of knots. The word for knitting apparently came from a very old word in the 1400s that means 'knot.'
10. Apparently some of the oldest knit socks known to humankind, from 11th century Egypt, involved some complicated colorworking. This means that the proper two-needle knitting comes from earlier than that - complicated colorworking doesn't just happen overnight.
Soooo there's my list. See you on Monday!
Monday, April 21, 2014
On Fun Stuff and also Lent
Sooo I went home over the weekend for Easter/ birthdays/ seeing family/ seeing boyfriend/ seeing Captain America 2. It was fun to go back and see my boyfriend and family again, even if it was only for a weekend. Even though my birthday was almost two weeks ago, the celebration was on Saturday because that was when everyone was home anyway. It's weird - I actually feel like I'm properly a year older now. I kept referring to myself as my former age before that, but now I feel like I'm solidly in this age now. I don't know why that is.
The other fun/ interesting/ whatever thing that I noticed this weekend is that I was finally able to complete a Lenten challenge for myself. I gave up flash games, and took on journaling every night, as well as reading a chapter of the Bible every night and to read the Lenten devotional booklet given out at the church I attend at school. This introduced me to my favorite prayer. Normally I try to stay religion-neutral here, but I feel like this is a good message for a lot of people, regardless of faith status.
THE PRAYER OF SAINT FRANCIS
Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace
where there is hatred, let me sow love,
where there is is injury, pardon,
where there is error, truth,
where there is doubt, faith,
where there is despair, hope,
where there is darkness, light,
and where there is sadness, joy.
Oh Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love,
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
On that note, I'll write again on Friday.
The other fun/ interesting/ whatever thing that I noticed this weekend is that I was finally able to complete a Lenten challenge for myself. I gave up flash games, and took on journaling every night, as well as reading a chapter of the Bible every night and to read the Lenten devotional booklet given out at the church I attend at school. This introduced me to my favorite prayer. Normally I try to stay religion-neutral here, but I feel like this is a good message for a lot of people, regardless of faith status.
THE PRAYER OF SAINT FRANCIS
Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace
where there is hatred, let me sow love,
where there is is injury, pardon,
where there is error, truth,
where there is doubt, faith,
where there is despair, hope,
where there is darkness, light,
and where there is sadness, joy.
Oh Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love,
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
On that note, I'll write again on Friday.
Friday, April 18, 2014
Homeric Epithets
Soooo today we're going over the fascinating topic of epithets.
This was inspired by the fact that we're holding the last quest in a Dungeons and Dragons campaign that has lasted almost two years, and my character has developed a lot. When she started the quest, she was a 19-year-old bard. Now she's a 22-year-old bard/ sorcerer/ fire elemental with a raven familiar named Casca and... well...
When she first introduced herself, she basically said, "I'm Ana of Danger Fief." Her full name is technically Rowan Anaïs.
Now, if I want to refer to her full name and title, it would be Rowan Anaïs of Danger Fief, Queen of the Dead Kingdom, Single Half-Sybaran, Daughter of the Avatar of Chaos and Evil.
How does this relate to Homeric epithets?
Well, Homer does a little of that as well, depending on how many beats he has left in a line and whether he wants to start a new statement in the middle of it. Because of this, Achilles is called swift-footed even when sitting down; Circe and Calypso both have well-braided hair; Odysseus is ever-seeking or cunning; Athena is grey-eyed or wise; there are a bunch of others.
It's kind of interesting to think about what Homer would call Anaïs. Anaïs of the Fire-Hair? The One Born of Darkness? Singer of Tales? The One Doomed to Darkness? The Girl Who Is Really On Fire and Not Metaphorically On Fire Like Katniss Everdeen?
What would you call your favorite character?
This was inspired by the fact that we're holding the last quest in a Dungeons and Dragons campaign that has lasted almost two years, and my character has developed a lot. When she started the quest, she was a 19-year-old bard. Now she's a 22-year-old bard/ sorcerer/ fire elemental with a raven familiar named Casca and... well...
When she first introduced herself, she basically said, "I'm Ana of Danger Fief." Her full name is technically Rowan Anaïs.
Now, if I want to refer to her full name and title, it would be Rowan Anaïs of Danger Fief, Queen of the Dead Kingdom, Single Half-Sybaran, Daughter of the Avatar of Chaos and Evil.
How does this relate to Homeric epithets?
Well, Homer does a little of that as well, depending on how many beats he has left in a line and whether he wants to start a new statement in the middle of it. Because of this, Achilles is called swift-footed even when sitting down; Circe and Calypso both have well-braided hair; Odysseus is ever-seeking or cunning; Athena is grey-eyed or wise; there are a bunch of others.
It's kind of interesting to think about what Homer would call Anaïs. Anaïs of the Fire-Hair? The One Born of Darkness? Singer of Tales? The One Doomed to Darkness? The Girl Who Is Really On Fire and Not Metaphorically On Fire Like Katniss Everdeen?
What would you call your favorite character?
Monday, April 14, 2014
Post #200/ birthdays
Sooo I definitely forgot to do a post on Friday... oops... I'll probably do a Wednesday post at some point... Hopefully...
Anyway, last week I hit two milestones: my birthday was last week (and I hit a new decade!) and this is my 200th post. Both are fairly big, so I'm going to ignore both and tell you about Lipsync. That, after all, is what kept me from doing a post on Friday. Our routine was based on The Hunger Games - we did a bunch of songs based on all the districts (we skipped a few, like water, because the general theme was hip-hop and the first song that comes to mind when think of water is probably Disney related).
Other things that happened since my last post:
- job interview
- long essay
- service hours
huzzah!
(If you can't tell by the conciseness and apathy in this post, I've spent the last four hours writing an essay due tomorrow. Part of the time has been spent procrastinating, yes, but I still need at least a page and a half by 10 AM tomorrow. I'm going to go do that now).
Anyway, last week I hit two milestones: my birthday was last week (and I hit a new decade!) and this is my 200th post. Both are fairly big, so I'm going to ignore both and tell you about Lipsync. That, after all, is what kept me from doing a post on Friday. Our routine was based on The Hunger Games - we did a bunch of songs based on all the districts (we skipped a few, like water, because the general theme was hip-hop and the first song that comes to mind when think of water is probably Disney related).
Other things that happened since my last post:
- job interview
- long essay
- service hours
huzzah!
(If you can't tell by the conciseness and apathy in this post, I've spent the last four hours writing an essay due tomorrow. Part of the time has been spent procrastinating, yes, but I still need at least a page and a half by 10 AM tomorrow. I'm going to go do that now).
Monday, April 7, 2014
Singing and Cool Stuff
So this weekend I went on choir tour, as visible by my last post. (I was able to get my dress, thanks to the kindness and coordination of my friends and roommate. People wonder why I often take so long to pack from one place and travel to another - now I can say, 'LAST TIME I DIDN'T DO A SECOND SWEEP I DIDN'T BRING MY UNIFORM ON CHOIR TOUR.')
But this post is not about my uniform woes; this post includes stuff about Christopher Smart, who was locked in an insane asylum because of his religious mania and wrote poetry about his cat. I would go mad, too, if my primary job only paid one pound a year. (that's bad, even by 1700s standards). Though his spending habits no doubt had something to do with it, I feel like the whole one-pound-a-year thing might have been a contributing factor.
One of the poems he wrote was called Jubilate Ango, which was translated back to English from Latin and put to music by Benjamin Britten. What's really interesting about this piece is that it changes mood so often. There are a few happy solos about cats and mice and flowers, and then there's a slow, epic, dramatic bit about how he is under the same accusation as Christ. All of this happens within about three minutes.
Anyhow, because I lost sleep last night, I'm keeping this short. Will post on Friday.
But this post is not about my uniform woes; this post includes stuff about Christopher Smart, who was locked in an insane asylum because of his religious mania and wrote poetry about his cat. I would go mad, too, if my primary job only paid one pound a year. (that's bad, even by 1700s standards). Though his spending habits no doubt had something to do with it, I feel like the whole one-pound-a-year thing might have been a contributing factor.
One of the poems he wrote was called Jubilate Ango, which was translated back to English from Latin and put to music by Benjamin Britten. What's really interesting about this piece is that it changes mood so often. There are a few happy solos about cats and mice and flowers, and then there's a slow, epic, dramatic bit about how he is under the same accusation as Christ. All of this happens within about three minutes.
Anyhow, because I lost sleep last night, I'm keeping this short. Will post on Friday.
Friday, April 4, 2014
Choir tour
I'm on choir tour right now, so this is posted from my phone.
So far, tour has been really cool. We spent last night in a superhuge house (maybe a mansion? What's the defining line for that?). They could fit all sixteen of the women in the basement, and there was almost enough couch and bed space to fit all of us. It was amazing. They had Steinway pianos and spiral staircases to the basement and sheet music on the walls and a fridge that is built into a wall and looks like a cabinet.
So far, though, it has been interesting. I nearly couldn't come because of a test, and somehow I forgot my uniform but brought a plain black shirt and a blazer (I'm not sure how I managed that). I borrowed someone's black yoga pants and stood near the tenors and it all worked out. We have a few more performances, but someone's going back for work, so hopefully she'll be able to bring it back.
That's all I have right now - I'm on my phone without wifi, and I don't know how long I have until the next school visit.
Question for y'all: what's the coolest house you've been in?
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