Fall of Morningstar from Paradise

Ok, so I was planning on commenting on others blogs this week, but could not really concentrate enough to read each blog and then think of a creative comment to post. But then I realized that we have recently been discussing one of my favorite myths ever (or at least a small segment of it), which is the fall of Morningstar and his army from Grace and Paradise. There are many different versions, but the one that interests me is the one that I came across when I was reading the Blue Bloods series (and yes, this is a real myth). The myth tells the story of how some of the most famous of all mythic creatures came to earth- Vampires.
As we all know (or should know), Zeus and Lucifer are brothers. Lucifer is also known as Morningstar. He recieved this name because in Paradise, he was the brightest, most beautiful angel, the dawn of the new day. Morningstar was deeply jealous of his brother though, who was always the favorite, and slightly more powerful. Morningstar eventually became jealous enough to build up an army, which faced Zeus's army. Morningstar and his army lost, and as a result were banished from Paradise. The Archangels Gabriel and Allegra followed the fallen army to Earth, maintaining their titles as the 'Innocent', as they were the only angels to willingly fall.
Azrael and Abbadon were two of the most devout to Lucifer and genrals in his army. However when they reached earth, they, as well as nearly all of the other angels who were banished, chose to leave the Morningstar, and follow Gabriel and Allegra, in hopes of one day being allowed to return to paradise. Abbadon is better known as the Angel of Destruction, whereas his sister, Azrael, is known as the Angel of Death.
The fallen army became Vampyres, immortal souls, trapped in mortal bodies. In the Blue Bloods novels (one of my favorite series, and much more interesting than Twilight, although I did like that series too) the author elaborates on this myth and turns it into her own, all without making it trashy or overly cliche. Think Gossip Girl combined with Twilight and Paradise Lost. Sound interesting? Oh, indeed it is. :)

The Fresh Prince of the Zodiac

Now, this is a story all about how
Some stars got flipped-turned upside down
And I would like to take a minute
Just sit right there

I'll tell you how they became the princes of a town called Zodiac

In west outer space born and raised

On the playground was where they spent most of their days

Chillin' out maxin' relaxin' all cool

And all shootin some comets outside of the sun

When a couple of meteors

Who were up to no good

Startin making trouble in their neighborhood

They got in one little fight and their universe got scared

She said 'You're movin' with your auntie and uncle in the Zodiac’

They begged and pleaded with her day after day

But she packed their suite cases and sent them on their way

She gave them a kiss and then she gave them their tickets.
They put their walkmans on and said, 'We might as well kick it'.

First class, yo this is bad

Drinking orange juice out of a champagne glass. Is this what the people of the Zodiac Living like?Hmmmmm this might be alright.

But wait I hear there're prissy, wine all that

Is Zodiac the type of place they send these cool constellations?

They didn't think so

They will see when they get thereMan, I hope they're prepared for the princes of the Zodiac

Well, the black hole landed, and when they came out

There was an astroid who looked like a comet standing there with my name out

They ain't trying to get arrested

They just got here

But then they sprang with the quickness like lightening, disappeared

They whistled for a time loop and when it came near

The license plate said fresh and it had dice in the mirror

If anything I can say this cab is rare

But they thought 'Now forget it' - 'Yo homes to the Zodiac'

They pulled up to the house about 7 or 8And yelled to the cabbie 'Yo homes smell ya later'

They looked at their kingdom

They was finally there

To sit on their constellations as the Princes of the Zodiac

I really love the Fresh Prince of Bel Air in case you can't tell. And next week it will be Saved By the Bell, I promise. Anyways, that is not what I wanted to talk bout for this blog post. I wanted to talk about the Zodiac. Astrology is something I have always been interested in, and I think that it does have some validity. So far, this has been my incentive to read Grendel. I though that for this blog, I might look into the basic symbolism of each of the first three signs of the Zodiac: Aries, Taurus, andGemini.

Aries, The Ram (March 20- April 19)
The sign of Aries is asscociated with fresh, new beginnings and is the first sign of the Zodiac. While those that fall under the sign of Aries are said to be adventerous, passionate, and humorous, they are also said to be intolerant, impatient, and boastful.


Taurus, The Bull (April 19- May 20)
Taurus, the sign of the Bull, is often associated with material pleasure. The Bull is often associated with calmness, patience, and loyalty. Don't let that fool you though- the saying "When you mess with the bull, you get the horns" can be absolutotly true when it comes to the Taurus.

Gemini, The Twins (May 20- June 21)

The Gemini Twins are often associated with youth and versitility, and are known for their fun-loving, lively, yet restless and lazy personalities.

When you compare these little tidbits to the first three chapters of Grendel, you can see the comparison. The first chapter is the turning of a new leaf for Grendel, it "begins the twelfth year of my [Grendel's] idiotic war!" (Gardner 5), which is brought in with the "grim stirrings of springtime," (Gardner 8) by the ram. In chapter 2, which is associated with the tempermental bull, the Zodiac influence can be seen in the bull's calm persistance in hitting the tree and in Grendel's calm whilest being attacked by the bull. I can see the Gemini personality in Grendel throughout the noveld as his character develops, especially the restless potion.

Sittin' Here Singin' the No Computer Blues

As you may have gathered from the title of my blog for the week, I currently have no computer. My precious little notebook has to be sent back to Dell land because my Operating System (Vista...EWWWWW) is corrupted. I told my mom I should have gotten a Mac. I would even be willing to bet its because I was on SparkNotes for some background information on a book I'm currently reading. Actually I think it was from a Facebook application, but I figured I might as well play along with my teachers' notions that SparkNotes is bad. My best friends dad thinks it was a worm that killed my OS which got me thinking about Grendel (not really but I needed a lead in and that worked pretty well).
In the book, the monster Grendel lives like a worm, is treated like a worm, and acts slightly like a worm. The author even mentions some snakes (I think... what are Firesnakes?!?!?!) (PS- Snakes are CREEPY) which are kinda like worms. But anyways, I feel bad for Grendel. What did he ever do to anyone? Especially that bull. He is a poor, helpless, scary looking baby who doesn't really know anything about the world, and therefore doesn't know why he is the way he is or why he receives the scorn and treatment that he does. Why does Hrothgar treat him so cruelly when he is trapped in the tree? Hrothgar mercilessly throws a hatchet at him when Grendel tried to say "Pig". Did Hrothgar seriously expect something that is "part of a tree" to speak English (or whatever language they spoke)? What kind of story would that have made? "Hi, my name is Grendel, and yes, I would greatly enjoy a pig right now. And if you could release me from this trees binding grasp while you're at it, I might remember that when I try to kill you in a few years

The name's Wulf- Beowulf.

I will be the fitst person to tell you how much I hated Beowulf when I read it in 9th grade Honors Lit with Ms. Scott. In fact, I remember loathing everything I was forced to read that year, except for one of my summer reading books (The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver), which I adored...until someone stole my copy :( . Over the past 3 years, I have had to go back and re-read some of these books, such as Farenheit-451 (which I hated when I first read in 7th grade, again when I read it in 9th grade, and still when I read excerpts from it in 11th grade). But now that we have started reading Beowulf again, I find myself enjoying the stories a bit more than before. They do have a breathtaking quality to them, one that I was to young to enjoy before.This discovery has lead me to wonder why schools teach some books so early. Just because we are in advanced classes in middle school, doesn't necessarily mean that our teachers should be introducing Honors and AP level books to us! A perfect example of this can be seen in my 7th grade honors Lit class, where the first required reading book was The Good Earth. UGGH. If you were to ask me today what that book is about, all I can tell you is that there’s an Asian guy who is poor in the beginning and he marries this ugly girl, but then he becomes really rich and has lots of whores as wives. The End. Oh and there was something to do with Opium in there, but nobody really pays attention to illicit drugs anymore. Never have I read a book that was harder to read into or understand.
This is similar to how I used to feel about Beowulf. But not anymore! Now I see him as more of a olden James Bond, scouring the Danish and Geatish (is that even correct?) lands to rid them of mythical creatures and the offspring of Cain. Pride becomes and issue sometimes, but this agent has no fear. He is abandoned by his team every now and then again, left for dead, but he comes out alive when they least expect him to. He improvises well, using whatever he comes upon to defeat his enemy, and can always be called on to help. I bet his driving was horrendous, too.
I never saw any of this when I read Beowulf in my freshman year of high school. If I had, I might have actually wanted to read the end of the book (stupid dragon) and ask questions about why everything was happening the way it was. But instead, I read what I was told (skimmed would probably be a better word), did my assignments, and handed the book back in as soon as I was allowed to be rid of it. I never saw Beowulf’s death as fate, or the monsters symbolic of his fears/ emotions. (503 words right there :] ) I actually feel happy that we reviewed Beowulf before reading Grendel, and remorseful that I didn’t give it more of a chance in 9th grade. Can we try The Good Earth next?

Things That Don't Work featuring Tone Words.

1. My Blog
So far, this blog has been a successful failure. Why? Oh, I don't know. However I spent part of the half day this week attempting to fix it. Hopefully it works because if not, I really and truly may scream. I will be very IRATE if this fails to work. Also, I will be very DISMAYED.
2. Not Subtracting Z Scores from .5000
This is how you fail a Statistics test. Although, I do find it somewhat AMUSING that I helped alot of the class on understanding this subject. But then I took the test and completely bombed it. Thankfully, Ms. Raji is letting us retake it, making me feel very RELIEVED.
3. This Weather
Ok, so this would be where I throw in a funny story that nobody will really think is funny. Thats ok, because this story delights me. Nearly a year ago, my mom bought me a 1998 Dodge Ram 1500. I named the truck Oakley and she has been my partner in crime ever since. However, Oakley is not perfect. The previous owners took very good care of this truck, and even renovated some things, such as the installation of power windows and locks (kind of). When they were doing these things, they also tinted the windows. When the back window was put back in, the mechanics did not properly reseal the frame. Do you know what happens when your car window is not properly sealed? Well, I can tell you. What happens is water leaks in through the cracks in the sealent, and collect inside the vehicle. Have I ever mentioned that mold DISGUSTS me? I guess we all know what I get to do on the next sunshiny day :)
4. Driving to a Cornmaze in the Middle of God-Only-Knows-Where and North of Cartersville and Calhoun When You Have to Be Home By 11pm.
This past Saturday, I figured out how Odysseus felt when sailing home. Some friends and I decided to go to Cagles Dairy and Cornmaze. Did you know they have two locations? One is about a hour away from Alpharetta, while the other is about 3 hours away. Well, when we left Cartersville (I have some friends that live there) for the dairy, I assumed we were going to the Cornmaze near Alpharetta. Long story short, I was very, very late getting home, and am now very, very grounded for the remainder of the week. FRUSTRATING, yes, but I am still THRILLED that I got to go.
5. Bill Long going to Georgia Tech
Bill is one of my best friends, and is currently a sophomore at Tech. While I do like this quite a bit more than when he moved to freaking Michigan to live with his dad, I still never get to see him. If only he lived closer than 45 minutes away. That would be JOYOUS.
6. Trying to Eat a Full Entree from Ippilitos
As much as I love Chicken Eggplant Parmigiana and Chicken Parmigiana, I can really only eat the spaghetti that come with one of these entrees, which is quite DISHEARTENING. What a pity.

Hopefully this works :)

No Love Lost

From the week of September 16 I'm feeling a bit sympathetic for Tess tonight. I also feel like I am beating a dead horse by saying this, or even bringing Tess up for that matter, but its literature and it relates to my feelings at this very moment. That poor dead horse. And I'm not talking about Prince. I used to think Tess just needed to get over herself. Now, however, I'm starting to wonder if things would have been different for her if she had done something about her predicament sooner. What if she had stood up for herself when Alec kept hitting on her? What if she had never gotten involved with him, knowing what a player he is? Oh the things we think about after the fact. Why do girls always fall for the bad boys first? Its a classic theme in life. Girl meets boy, boy is bad for girl, girl is stupid and falls for boy, and then boy is stupid and doesn't fall for girl. So then when the girl tries to get herself back on track, other boys are like "Psht, no.". Like in The Princess Diaries (the books, not the movie), Mia falls for Josh (Josh is the bad boy), but when she figures out that she really should be with Michael, Michael is already going out with fruit-fly girl (she has a name, I just fail to remember it). The Lars, Mia’s bodyguard, has to drag Michael out to the dance and be all “Dance with her. NOW” and Lilly (still Michael’s sister and Mia’s best friend) has to help Lars, and after multiple trials and tribulations, Michael breaks up with Judith (that was her name!) and goes out with Mia. Yeah, I’m lost too and I’ve read the books about 10 times each. Why can't people just fall in love and be happy? Does everything really have to be the trial that we put ourselves through each time? Or is it just girls that are this insanely complicated?

If love was not so tragic and confusing, however, many of the greatest novels would never have been written. Tuck Everlasting, Ella Enchanted, Tess of the d’Urbervilles, Romeo and Juliet, and Candide would not be around for us to read. We would not be able to enjoy the satisfaction in the end of the novel when the hero and heroin finally get to be together, or the burning disappointment and dissatisfaction we feel when we realize that they will never be together. Its disappointing, frustrating, aggravating, and irksome. But at the same time, that nagging feeling reminds us that loss is ok and that there must be someone out there that is better for us or them (depending on whether the situation applies to your real life or you are reading about it in a novel). I think tragic love in novels prepares us for real life in a way by letting us know that its all going to be ok in the end.

That and its good angst reading if you happen to be feeling that way in real life.

Vampires, Statistics, and Copyright Infringement.

From the Week of September 10th 15 minutes into the series premier of "The Vampire Diaries" and I have Thomas Foster ringing in my head. All I can think of is how this rip off of Twilight CAN'T be copyright infringement. Boy vampire comes upon girl he cannot resist and puts himself and everyone around him in danger so that he may get to know her. She is clumsy and eventually falls, cutting open her leg. He flips out and disappears. Stephan Salvatore (boy vampire's name) lives with his uncle, and the girl (name to be determined) lives with her slightly erratic and irresponsible aunt. They all live in a small town. Is this town called Forks? And does mystery girl have a friend/ potential love interest that just so happens to be a werewolf? I bet $20 I know how this soap opera turns out. According to Thomas Foster (who I keep calling Thomas Hardy, much to the amusement of others), there is no such thing as an original story. I, for one, have a very hard time believing this. If there is no such thing as an original story, the wouldn't that mean that there is no story to begin with? This concept makes no sense to me. There has to be at least one original story in order for there to be any story. Where did the Greek myths that we base our stories come from? Where did the Bible come from? If these things are not original stories, where are the stories that inspired these, and why have we not heard any of them? This concept of no story being original when there is no original story absolutely baffles me every time I think about it.
I do agree that most stories are based off of others, however. A perfect example of this is Harry Potter (alright, you got me, I just really wanted to write about Harry Potter). Really though, Harry Potter is one of the best examples of a most unoriginal writing EVER. The maze that J.K. Rowling comes up with for the Triwizard Tournament? Reminds us of the Labyrinth, as does the last few chapters of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone where Harry navigates the deep undergrounds of the Hogwarts Castle. I think she ended the series because she could not find any more myths to twist into her own.
This all brings me back to my question of how there can not be an original story. If there is one, I would like to know what it is. Imagine how epic that would be- reading the story that started all stories. Wow. Now THAT would be a story to remember.
A story free of possible copyright infringement- I never though I would see the day.