Topics Brainstorm

Topic #1: Bun-Vengers (bunny Avengers) + Tejas Legends

• Comments:  The comment you made, Laura, about super hero rabbits is what got me to thinking about this.  What I would like to do is take a few of the Tejas tales and replace some of the characters with bunny Avengers.
• Possible Stories: Tejas Legends (I have loose plotlines for The Plant That Grows in Trees, Why the Woodpecker Pecks, Old Woolly Bird’s Sacrifice, The Swift Blue One, Why Hummingbirds Drink Only Dew, and How Sickness Entered the World)
• Sample Story:  For Why Hummingbirds Drink Only Dew – that could be changed to something like Captain Bun-merica and Iron Rabbit racing across an apple orchard and the loser is never able to eat apples again.  (My rabbits like apples more than they like carrots which is why I would prefer to use an apple orchard as opposed to a carrot field.)
• Bibliography: When the Storm God Rides: Tejas and Other Indian Legends retold by Florence Stratton and illustrated by Berniece Burrough (1936).

I just found this after I had the idea and I'm so happy the internet exists. [x]

Topic #2: Aesop animals on Jerry Springer, Dr. Phil, and Twitter

• Comments: Not to totally date myself, but I really enjoy the idea of someone like the Fox sitting on a chair trying to get Jerry and the audience to feel bad for him (“I’m just a hungry fox”). Before the Dog comes out and beats him up for trying to eat his friend, Rooster.
• Possible stories:
• Jerry Springer: The Dog, the Cock, and the Fox; The Farmer and the Stork; The Travelers and the Purse; The Wolf and the Lion; and The Wolf and the Lean Dog.
• Dr. Phil: The Wolf and the Kid; The Boy and the Filberts; The Plane Tree; and The Mice and the Weasels 
• Twitter: The Lion and the Ass and The Wolf and His Shadow 
• Sample Story: (The Wolf and the Lean Dog) The Wolf comes on the show, thinking that this is when the Lean Dog will make good on his word – instead, the Lean Dog brings out his big dog friend. Whose name is Steve Wilkos.
• Bibliography: The Aesop for Children, with illustrations by Milo Winter (1919).

Lean Dog and Big Dog [x]

Topic #3: Spirits/mystical creatures as hockey players

• Comments: Hockey season is still a month out, but players are starting to return to the cities they play in for training camp and to get ready for the pre-season.
• Possible Stories: I’ve been reading the stories from the Pacific Northwest and British North America units and I think that it would be awesome to treat characters such as Beaver (from How Beaver Stole Fire) as immortal spirits. Do they their own magic? After people were created, did they learn how to shape shift? (Yes, I’m going to say yes. And then they played with humans and learned their games – lacrosse, ball games, and eventually hockey.)
• Sample Story:
• Pacific Northwest: How Silver-Fox Created the World (player I pictured: Willie Mitchell); How Coyote Got His Cunning (Beau Bennett); How Beaver Stole Fire (Chris Pronger because of this)
• British North America: Origin of Rivers in Queen Charlotte (Carey Price, pictured below); Creation of Light (Evander Kane); Grizzly Bear and Coyote (Shea Weber and Brent Seabrook respectively).
• Bibliography: Myths and Legends of the Pacific Northwest, especially of Washington and Oregon, by Katharine Berry Judson (1910).; Myths and Legends of British North America by Katharine Berry Judson (1917).

Carey Price is the clear choice for Raven.

Topic #4: Historical Figures As Mythical Creatures

• Comments: Imagine Abraham Lincoln as a vampire (this is my shout out to Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith), George Washington as literally a bald eagle (shout out to my Assassin’s Creed fixation and partially inspired by the video below; warning: the video contains mild violence), and Obama as a unicorn. 
• Possible Stories: I just really enjoy the idea of Vampire Abraham Lincoln being involved in the civil rights movement of the 60s.
• Sample Story: The Lion and The Unicorn
• Bibliography: The Nursery Rhyme Book, edited by Andrew Lang and illustrated by L. Leslie Brooke (1897).

Extra Reading Diary: Tejas Legends

I really loved all of the Tejas Legends.  Especially Old Quanah's Gift since it's a story about Indian Blanket – Oklahoma's state flower! And now the name Indian Blanket makes sense.  Speaking of names – the name “Quanah” is shared with the prominent Comanche chief: Quanah Parker; he was the first mixed race chief of the Comanche and the last free chief.  The film Dances with Wolves is loosely based off of Parker’s mother, Cynthia Ann Parker.

Cynthia was captured by a Comanche raiding party when she was very young, and held for ransom, however her extended family couldn’t find her so she stayed with the tribe.  The woman whose job it was to look after Cynthia used to beat her until finally, Cynthia had had enough and finally stood up for herself. 

After that, the Comanche – who value strength – named her “Stands with a Fist” and fully accepted her into the tribe.  She married the chief’s son and they had three children together.   The chief’s son loved her so much that he didn’t take another wife which was the custom – Quanah himself would have up to eight wives (most of his descendants seem to live in Lawton) (which is also the location of the Comanche Museum).

Quana Parker by my mom (Rhonda Milia), done with oils on canvas.

The other story that I really loved was The Cottonwood Remembers.  Cottonwood trees are my favorite tree because I love how their fluffy seeds just cover everything (you just have to remember to stay away from them during lightning storms).  Plus one of my favorite songs talks about “Cottonwood fallin’ like snow in July” by the great bard, Luke Bryan.

Storytelling for Week 2: The Jackdaw who would be an Eagle

Author’s note: This is my storytelling project for The Eagle and the Jackdaw from Aesop's Winter Fables and I’m putting an Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag twist to it (well, it kinda turned out to be a Black Flag  retelling with the fable twist to it).  My reading diary post may help you understand more what is going on if you’re not familiar with the Assassin’s Creed mythos.  Another thing to note is that I’m treating Edward as a jackdaw and Duncan Walpole, the Assassin, as the eagle.

The Jackdaw who would be an Eagle

Edward was a jackdaw with eagle’s eyes – for he lusted after gold and infamy, yet had the ability to see the intentions of those around him (those colored red were enemies, blue were allies, and gold – well, gold was the target, they were the one who had what he wanted).  But, even with the skill, a jackdaw is still a jackdaw.

Cape Bonavista, 1715

The eagle waits. [x]

Cannon blasts ring around him, men were screaming and most were dying, and the pre-dawn thunderstorm does nothing to drown out the sounds of battle.

There’s a fire burning at Edward’s back and his captain shouting out orders, but Edward can’t look away when, as if in slow motion, an eagle dressed as a man descends from the sky and sinks his talons into Edward’s captain.  His cold, dark eyes, shadowed by night and a hood, look up at him – then he’s stepping towards Edward.

They stare at each other, the eagle, with the white hood glowing a brilliant red in the night fog, and the jackdaw.  And just as Edward goes to fly forward, the fire reaches the magazine, the gunpowder stores – and the ship beneath his feet explodes and sends him into the water.

The jackdaw faces down the eagle. [x]

Moonlight dances in the water above him, reflecting and mixing with the orange glow of fires.  He comes back to himself, just as his back hits the sea floor, and panic and adrenaline sends him swimming desperately towards the surface.

Edward makes it to shore, swimming through the wreckage of his still burning ship, as the sun begins to rise.

Then the eagle, too, is crawling ashore.  A glance at him and Edward can’t help but smile – the eagle’s wings had been damaged in the explosion and the red about him was slowly beginning to fade.  The eagle had an hour, maybe two.

“Havana,” the eagle says, “I must get to Havana.”

“I don’t think you have that long,” Edward says, standing and walking over to the injured eagle. 

But he gets too close and the eagle lashes out, kicking Edward’s legs out from under him and pulling a pistol.  Edward sneers when, after pulling the trigger, there’s nothing a click.

Edward doesn’t hesitate as he draws the swords that had managed to stay with him through the explosion.  The eagle fights hard at first, but he’s losing blood quickly and his movements become slower and slower.

The killing blow is quick.

"Mr. Walpole... let's collect your Reward." [screenshot from x]

In the eagle’s clothing Edward finds a letter and a cubed vial.  The words “If you truly possess the information we desire, we have the means to reward you handsomely” and “Though I will not know your face by sight, I believe I can recognize the costume made infamous by your secret order.”

Reward, is the word that Edward focuses on.  So he takes the eagle’s robes, who the letter had identified as Duncan Walpole, and puts them on.

Edward feels a rush of power – feels himself becoming an eagle.

It’s not until later, when he’s on his knees surrounded by the men who call themselves Templars, that he realizes that he wasn’t an eagle – simply a jackdaw dressed as one.

Just a jackdaw after all. [screenshot from x]

Bibliography

Aesop. 2006. The Aesop for Children. Chicago: Rand McNally & Co.

IZUNIY. 2014. Assassin's Creed 4 Black Flag All Cutscenes Movie.

Keane, Mark. n.d. Tumblr. Accessed September 02, 2015.

Reading Dairy B: Aesop's Fables (Winter)

So the fable, The Mischievous Dog, from Aesop's Winter Fables, kinda reminds me of hockey goons. A goon is a type of player who may not necessarily be great at hockey – but is most definitely great at fighting. He is there as a deterrent to opposing players to keep them from messing with star players, usually stars who are very young.

The 2005-06 NHL season, is the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Sidney Crosby’s rookie season. Crosby was known as “The Next One” – a reference to Wayne Gretzky.

Wayne Gretzky, the only player to have his number retired league-wide, and Sidney Crosby, arguably the best player in the game today.

[Sidebar: Gretzky a.k.a. “The Great One” whose 20 year hockey career had been spent setting impossible records. Gretzky is the only player to ever accumulate 200 points in one season. And he did it twice. The only other player who ever came close was Mario Lemieux (Crosby’s future mentor) who, during the 1988-1989 season, finished the season with 199 points (this is the same season in which he became the only player to score five goals in all five ways possible during a single game).]

The ‘05-‘06 and ‘06-‘07 season were difficult for Crosby. He had developed the unfortunate reputation as a whiner – something common to many of the very young players who break into the NHL early. He has since outgrown this, but the cause is simple: Crosby and his fellow superstar rookie, Evgeni Malkin (who had just made a daring escape from the RSL), were often the victims of brutal hits that were mostly ignored by the linesmen (referees).

So, during the summer of 2007, the Penguins acquired Georges Laraque – who, standing at 6’3”, weighing 240 lbs, and with more than 100 fights under his belt, he was given one task: protect the young stars. And he did an excellent job. According to HockeyFights, Laraque was in 13 fights during the ’07-’08 season – winning all but three (one loss and two draws according to voters on the site). Laraque would only stay for one season, not uncommon for goons – often signing only 1-3 year contracts with as many as four, five, or even six different teams.

Georges Laraque isn't an easy guy to knock over. [source]

The thing about goons is this: in order to stay on a team, they have to win fights. This can lead to insecurities and increasingly erratic behavior as seen with Marty McSorley’s slash on Donald Brashear and Steve Downie’s dangerous hit on Sidney Crosby.  The effects of an entire career spent as a goon is shown in the documentary The Last Gladiators.  Many nights spent fighting result can result in concussions and sub-concussions, leading to CTE (or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy), depression, alcohol and drug abuse, and suicide (2011 alone saw the deaths of three enforcers).

The dog in The Mischievous Dog, is “ill-natured” and had to be restrained by a clog. Goons who go overboard are restrained not by clogs, but through their reputations proceeding them which in turn leads to unfair treatment by game officials.  For example, when Steve Downie was elbowed in the face by Ryan Suter, there was no call on the ice.

Reading Diary A: Aesop's Fables (Winter)

The fable I read is from Aesop's Winter Fables and it's called The Eagle and the Jackdaw (it's the second story on the page).  And for my reading diary, I want to relate this fable to the video game Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.  Because that was all I could think about while reading this.

The Assassin Order in this game series kill those who they believe are a threat to The Greater Good and they are often represented by an eagle. In the game there are “synchronization” points, usually at the top of very tall buildings, such as church spires and watch towers, where you go to “synchronize” (I’m putting this in quotes because there’s a lot more to the story – but it’s not relevant so I won’t get into it) and you fill in your map of the area. These sync points are always marked by a circling eagle.

"Concept art emphasizing the eagle silhouette of an Assassin's robes." [source]

An Assassin also has an ability called “Eagle Vision” – this allows him/her to differentiate between friend and foe and aids in finding the target.  Again, there's more to the story, but it's not relevant.

Eagle Vision in action. [source]

In Black Flag, the main character, Edward Kenway, is a pirate who (unknowingly) poses as an Assassin and meets with the governor of Havana – hoping to get the reward the Assassin (now dead) was to get for delivering an object. Stuff and things happen, Edward is found out and, while escaping with a few fellow pirates, steals a Spanish brig.

He names the brig the Jackdaw.

The Jackdaw sailing into port. [source]

As the game progresses, Edward meets other Assassins who challenge and change him (they show him a better way of living), eventually allowing him to join their Order after he had began to change. It’s his transition from a pirate to a high ranking Assassin that embodies the moral of this fable: do not let your vanity make you overestimate your powers.

In the beginning of the game, the Edward who steals the Jackdaw is much like the Jackdaw in the fable: he is greedy and cocky and oftentimes overestimates what he can do. However, as the game progresses and Edward matures – he develops the calm confidence of the eagle and the strength to not only back up that confidence, but to know how to use it wisely.

In the fable, the line “and made off with [the lamb] to her nest” implies that the eagle has young ones to feed – she isn’t killing for the sake of it. While the Jackdaw tries to make off with a ram for seemingly no other reason besides wanting to imitate the eagle and gets stuck in the ram’s fleece. When he’s seen by the shepherd, the Jackdaw’s wings are clipped and is given to the shepherd’s children.

Now, to throw the Black Flag lens over this fable: the eagle (the Assassins) are killing for a reason (to help the weak). The Jackdaw (Edward) attempts to imitate an eagle (in the beginning of the game, he kills an Assassin and steals the Assassin’s clothing) but only succeeds in making a fool of himself (Edward gets caught by the governor of Havana) and getting his wings clipped (Edward is thrown in jail).  Alternatively, the clipping of the Jackdaw's wings - and their subsequent slow regrowth - can be seen as Edward's slowly taking on the role and responsibilities of being an Assassin (there are rules to follow and a Creed to honor - it's not just killing people all the time [and we come full circle: using your power well and not abusing it]).

And while Edward eventually escapes the jail – there might not have been such an ending for the Jackdaw in the fable.

The last line of the fable – “That is a Jackdaw … but if you should ask him, he would say he is an Eagle.” – is great because, in the end, Edward (as the Jackdaw) eventually does become an eagle (a well-respected Assassin).