Thoughts on presentations...

Overall I was impressed. It was a fun excercise for getting the story across. I felt that if those stories were being told in that fashion in the time that they were being created they would have been to in much the same ways.

I Had A Thought...

As the class is a basis for discussion, I thought that I'd bring about my thoughts on the "Cupid and Psyche" story.

I was struck by the mention of incest in the story, I wasn't quite sure why at first, but it stuck with me over the weekend. I re-read the story this Sunday and I figured out what it was that was getting under my skin about it.
Ok, Cupid and Venus have a little interlude of "Open-mouthed kisses" implying that they have a special relationship (to put it as "G" rated as possible). Now, Venus is pissed off because of the fact that Psyche's beauty is comparable to hers. Cupid now goes off and falls in love with Psyche (Following where this is going yet). Can this then be said to be a simple story of finding a woman just like dear old mom? I'm sure that Freud or someone else drew a similar conclusion with more $3 words, but it would seem that the mythical entertainment of the story is removed when it is analyzed in this fashion. I know that when I drew this conclusion the story lost much of its entertainment value.

My Santa Experience

I don't really ever remember totally believeing in Santa, so I don't know when I fully disbelieved in him. I suppose I was somewhere between 5-8 yrs old when it was confirmed for me, but I have no recollection of the incident. I'm the oldest child, so I guess that brings with it certain responsibilities, I.E. you don't get to believe in Santa in order to look out for your brother.
Thats not to say that I'm a "Scrooge" about the holiday season, far from it. I love "Decemberween." I have always had a soft spot for kids, and love to see their excitement during the holidays.
I suppose the I see Santa as more of a state of mind than an actual person. Anyone can be Santa if you have the right attitude.

Earliest Memory

I have a great deal of early memories that have amalgamated into a childhood. Most of what I remember of my earliest days were the times that I spent outdoors.
In 1975 I was 4 years old, and as most children I was prone to spending as much time at play as possible. My most vivid memory of this "playtime" can be summarized in a few sentences, but I'll try to expound upon it to make it for an interresting read.
As I rode my Big Wheel through the trailer park where we lived I remember the vibration in the handle grips caused by the choppy, uneven asphalt. My tiny legs pumping away at the foot pegs in a futile attempt to jump the speed bumps that littered the driveway and launch myself into the air. My mother would try to keep her eye on me, but I would cruise the entire length of the trailer park, even going so far as to circle around to the back side where I was always fobidden to go.
One day as I was doing my usual rounds, I stopped at the home of a girl that was much older than me and was watching her cut the small patch of grass that all of the trailers possessed. I remember the loudness of the lawn mower kept me at bay, and I stayed close to my Big Wheel that was out in the street. I don't remember the girls name anymore, but I remember her long, red hair, and the fact that she was always nice to me. She didn't speak to me at this time, but waved and acknowledged my presence.
She was nearly done with her chore when her mower stopped running. She pushed the mower up on its side to get a better look at the underside, but what I would guess to be her lack of upper body strength caused the mower to crash back to the groud right side up. As the mower hit the ground it briefly restarted, but her bare foot was underneath it. The result was that one of her toes was severed and hit me directly in the middle of the chest as the lawn mower spat it out the grass chute.
She screamed and her father ran out of the house to attend to her. I stood there for a few seconds until he told me to go home. My last vivid part of the memory is my father trying to put a positive spin on the situation by telling me that this is why I should always be careful with any tool.

first post

Just getting started here, so I thought that I'd just lead in with something that I found interresting from yesterdays class.
I thought it was nice that we discussed popular recent movies and television as posibilities for modern day myths, but i was disheartened that the the movies we talked about were mostly remakes of other peoples stories. I would like to bring up the ideas that modern myths ARE original.
Food for thought for further discussions.