Homer's Iliad: More than just an epic

As part of my Classics major I have to take Humanities 101 this semester. To put it bluntly, I did NOT want to take this class. It's a gen ed like class and I do not like them. I specifically chose Grinnell College because Grinnell does not have any gen ed requirements, it is a completely open, student picked curriculum and that is how I like it. But nonetheless, here I am in Humanities 101, a very gen ed class. The first day of class did nothing to reassure me that I would like the class either. If I was going to be forced to take this class I at least hoped it would be easy. I could really do with an easy A class. HA! Not the case with this particular Hum 101 class. I should have know, the professor is a Classics professor. That really says it all. There is nothing quite like a Classics professor when it comes to intensity, expectations and rigor.

We started with Homer's Iliad. I had tried to read both the Iliad and the Odyssey many years back and the poems waere too difficult and boring for me to get very far in them. But now, I had no choice. I'll admit, there were moments in reading the Iliad where I was pretty captivated. Once you get past the style of the writing and the formatting of poetry you can actually read through it pretty quickly. One student in class today (the last day of the Iliad) said that the book was like reading a movie for her, and I think that's a pretty fair way to describe a lot of the poem. It does kind of read like a movie (no surpise really, can you say Troy http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0332452/ ). But some parts of the poem were just plain dry and agonizing to get through. When Homer lists off the names of 30 something sea nymphs I was particularly enthralled. But, like most "masterpieces" the Iliad gets a lot better in retrospective. Thinking back about the poem I can see the connections, the meaning, the flow of events, the recycling of ideas and motifs and it is all pretty cool. We read an article by David Denby http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Denby_(film_critic) , http://books.google.com/books/about/Great_books.html?id=DKomUUnxmaQC for class today to wrap up our reading of the Iliad. Though this article has a lot of plot spoilers in it I really wish our professor would have assigned it the first day. Denby has a very unique was of writing and a very fun style. The way he writes about the Iliad leaves you absolutely dying to read it, again and again and again. I have only just finished all 497 pages (and it was an uphill battle) but after reading Denby's article I seriously find myself longing to read it again. Denby is an miracle writer no doubt and I realize now that I must give Homer the respect he deserves as a true master of the epic poem.

The Imperial system needs to die...just saying

I saw this diagram on a friends Facebook page and had to repost it here. I am a physics major and as such use the metric system all the time. Except for weather temperature I never use the US system of measurements. When I first got to college and had to adjust to using metric for everything it was difficult. It was a chore to learn all the scales both small and large: nanometer, micrometer, milometer, centimeter, meter, hectometer, kilometer, etc. At first it's a lot to process, but as you start to use the metric system more it dawns on you how absolutely genius it is. You need to covert from kilometers to meters? Easy, one kilometer is 1000 meters. You need to covert from miles to feet? Well, yes most everyone knows 1 mile is 5280 feet. But .432 miles? Can you do that one in your head? I doubt it. But .432 kilometers to meters? Easy, 432 meters. It's genius. And you can go as small or as big as you want. It's not just in length either, the metric system uses this kind of scale for EVERY type of measure, volume, mass, time, area, etc. Once you learn the system once, you know it all. Can't say the same for the US way of doing things.

Then there's the whole matter of temperature; who decided that 32 degrees was a good point to set the freezing point of water? I'll tell you who, it was Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit, and while he had an actual scientific reason at the time for making his scale as  he did, it still sucks. And the scale of temperature that he used? 180 degrees to the boiling point of water? Why?  Water then boils at 212 degrees? Because that makes a lot of scene. Now let's take a look at Celsius...oh simple, beautiful Celsius. At what temperature does water freeze? 0. At what temperature does water boil? 100. ...Genius.

I understand why getting the United State to convert over to the metric system would be a very daunting task. It involves a lot more than just teaching everyone in this country the metric system (in fact most every college educated person already has at least a basic understanding of it), it would involve a complete overhaul of so many things: road signs, household and industrial appliances, the entire culinary industry, all transportation vehicles,  and the list goes on and on. The conversion to the metric system would cost this country billions and billions of dollars.

Even though I acknowledge and understand the difficulties in converting this country I adamantly believe it is absolutely crucial we begin the process of getting the metric system in the US now. We are only one of three countries in the WORLD that still use this system, so not only does it put us at a distinct disadvantage, but it's just plain stupid.

I'm life and I'm gonna bite you in the ass!

I watched Bridesmaids for the first time last night. I expected the movie to be quite amazing considering all the awards it won. The movie won AFI Movie of the Year, Melissa McCarthy was nominated for an Oscar, the film was nominated for a BAFTA Award, both the movie and Kristen King were nominated for Golden Globes, the movie was nominated for a PGA Award, there were tons of Screen Actor Gild Award nominations, and a Teens Choice Award nomination. Given all of this I expected a pretty amazing movie. At first I was sorely disappointed,  but it grew on me. 

Now, I am by no means a film critic but I thought the first half of the movie to be pretty slow and not really that funny. I'm definitely not one to enjoy stupid comedy so that may be a lot of it, but I feel like the movie had a really slow start. However, Bridesmaids style of humor did grow on me, and by the tennis scene I was interested. Now a warning here, if you haven't seen the movie and plan too, stop reading here. There are SPOILERS to come.  

There were some pretty hilarious and well written scenes in the Bridesmaids, especially towards the end. I really loved the scene were Annie was trying to get Rhodes attention in her car. That was friggin' hilarious!!! I literally could not stop laughing throughout the entire scene. I also loved at the end when Annie's car was broken down on the side of the road and Rhodes was there. Then Ted shows up and it goes like this:

[Ted drives up and stops in front of Annie and Nathan as they're arguing]
Ted: Boom! What's up, fuck buddy? Called for some road side assistance?
[Annie doesn't answer]
Ted: Thanks, officer. I can handle it from here on out.
[Nathan looks at Ted then turns to Annie]
Officer Nathan Rhodes: Come on!
[he turns and walks back towards his car]
Annie: I just...I didn't have anyone else to call! I didn't know you were gonna show up!
Officer Nathan Rhodes: That's the problem with cops, Annie! We're just never there when you need us!

The way that Rhodes says "Come on!" is so perfect!

But, the part that really makes me like this movie came at the end when Megan was trying to cheer Annie up. 

 Megan: You lost Lillian. You got another best friend sittin' right in front of 

you, if you'd notice! Huh? You can stop feeling sorry for yourself, okay? Cause I do not associate with people that blame the world for their problems. Cause you're your problem, Annie. And you're also your solution. Right? I mean that's...you get that?

When I heard that line "Cause I do not associate with people that blame the world for their problems." I was like that is absolutely how I think! That's me! I hate it, absolutely hate it, when people blame the world for their problems, "Oh, I had a bad childhood", "Oh, my boss hates me", "Oh, I'm so unlucky and nothing ever goes my way". I hate it when people feel sorry for themselves. The only person in this world who can control your happiness is yourself. If your unhappy then it's your own responsibility to change something, not whine about how it's somebody else's fault. OK, you had a hard time, you were unlucky, something bad happened, get over it! Pick yourself up, brush yourself off, and turn your focus and concentration on changing things. You definitely are your own problem, but most importantly you are your own solution.

        

Overall I really liked Bridesmaids and recommend it to other people. It definitely grew on me and had some really funny and inspirational lines.

About my blog name and URL

So, about my blog name and URL. soles occidere et redire possunt is a Latin love poem written by a 1st century B.C. Roman poet by the name of Catullus. The line translate to "Suns are able to set and return". This is the fourth line of what is known as his fifth poem.

vivamus mea Lesbia, atque amemus,
rumoresque senum severiorum
omnes unius aestimemus assis!
soles occidere et redire possunt:
nobis cum semel occidit brevis lux,
nox est perpetua una dormienda. 
da mi basia mille, deinde centum, 
dein mille altera, dein secunda centum, 
deinde usque altera mille, deinde centum.
dein, cum milia multa fecerimus,
conturbabimus illa, ne sciamus,
aut ne quis malus invidere possit,
cum tantum sciat esse basiorum

Which translates into English as:

Let us live, my Lesbia, and let us love,
and all the rumors of more severe old men
let us value at only a penny!
Suns are able to set and return:
when once the short light has set for us,
one perpetual night must be slept by us.
Give me a thousand kisses, then a hundred,
then another thousand, then a second hundred,
then immediately a thousand, then a hundred.
Then, when we will have made many thousand kisses,
we will mix them all up so that we don't know,
and so that no one can be jealous of us when he finds out
how many of kisses there were.

I choose the soles line as my blog name and ABriefLight as my URL because I loved what those lines really mean. Suns are able to set and rise again, they can have many lives, millions. But we, mere mortals, have but one brief light, and when that light is set for us and we die, one perpetual night must be slept by us. I think it really reminds us that we only have one short life to live and so we need to take every moment for all it's worth. I think choosing to use this poem  really speaks to some of my philosophies about life. We do only have one life, a mere 100 years or so on a planet that's seen billions. It can make you feel really insignificant. But I think that this poem really highlights the importance of cherishing every moment. We need to live our lives with no regrets. And never for a second should we settle for something just because the alternative is "to hard". We have but one brief light before our perpetual night, it's up to us to live it for all its worth.

Who Am I?

Who am I? Now there's a difficult question to answer. Who am I? Can that question even be answered? Who am I? How does one even start to answer that question? Who am I? ...Do I even know?

Who am I? I am me.

Where to start....ahh yes, the beginning. I was born and raised in rural Iowa. I will forever be a country girl at heart and truly hope to live in the country the rest of my life. I went to a very small school,  K-12. Graduating class size? 127 students. I graduated as valedictorian. I now attended Grinnell College, a very small private liberal arts college, where I study physics and Classics.

My parents are still together; they have been for 30 years and are still going strong. I grew up in a happy, healthy home. My dad is an engineer and my mom was a stay at home mom while I was growing up and now works at a financial agency.  I have one brother who is ten years older than me. He is also an engineer.

I am tiny: 5' 2, 104 lbs and 20 years old. I have extremely long dark brown/black hair. I've never had short hair and still have no desire to cut it. My eyes are hazel most of the time, though sometimes they verge more on brown. I'm exceptionally pale, but I love that about myself. I never tan, and am always very careful about sun exposure. I don't want skin damage and I want to keep my skin like porcelain. I am getting back into exercising, I ran cross-country and played soccer a lot in high school but it's been awhile. I really enjoy yoga, cardio, and strength training. When it's nice outside I love bike rides.

As I mentioned I am a physics and a Classics major. I've known I would study physics since the 8th grade. I read the book "E=mc^2: A Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation", http://www.amazon.com/mc2-Biography-Worlds-Famous-Equation/dp/0802713521, and absolutely fell in love. I was hooked from that moment on. When I got to Grinnell there was no doubt in my mind I was going to be a physics major, and it still remains my passion. It was in my second year of college that I discovered my second passion, Classics. I'll be completely honest, I decided to take a Latin course because Latin was something that "smart people" knew. But, just like with physics, I fell in love. The Classics are about so much more than just Latin and Ancient Greek, they're about history, culture, a people, and most importantly, they're about our past and are a guide to our future.

I absolutely love to read. I may only be 20 but I already have upwards of 800 books. And I've read almost all of them. I also enjoy playing the piano, watching TV, playing video games, drawing and painting. I also enjoy crocheting, something I learned from my mom, and have made 2 blankets and many rugs.

 My favorite color is red. I don't drink and I don't smoke. I can drive a stick and I can handle a gun. I have my ears and my belly button pierced, but no tattoos. I don't need glasses. White roses are my favorite flowers. I'm very afraid of of zombies and the idea of eternity. Spring is my favorite season and Christmas is my favorite holiday. I dislike children at the moment, but I do want children of my own one day. I speak English, am conversational in Italian, can read and write proficiently in Latin and am learning Ancient Greek.

 I'm a strong, individual person, stubborn to a fault but kind and lovable. Fiercely determined I know what I want in life and I will do whatever it takes to accomplish it. I am quiet, and not very social. I dislike large groups of people, but I enjoy the company of a single person immensely. I'm quite naive and easily hurt but resilient and capable of overcoming pretty much anything.

Well, who am I? This is me.

Hmmm...Blogging???

When you google "Why should I blog" the first result is- http://weblogs.about.com/od/startingablog/tp/Top-Ten-Reasons-to-Blog.htm, "Top Ten Reasons to Blog". Some of the ten reasons, namely, "To Make Money" and "To Establish Yourself as an Expert," have absolutely nothing to do with my desires to start a blog, but a lot of the others really speak to why I want to give a blog the ol' college try. Until only recently the idea to blog has never even crossed my mind. I'm not by nature a social person, so to think of me actually blogging seemed absurd. But, the more and more I thought about it the more and more it appealed to me. Perhaps it is because I am not very social that I may enjoy blogging. Through a blog I can find a way to share with people my thoughts and ideas, and tell my story in a way that is comfortable to me. Will anyone ever read this? I don't know. Do I particularly care? Not at all. If I end up writing this blog for myself then I'm writing this blog for myself, and that I am OK with. I now have a place to express myself, to connect with people and keep my friends and family updated on my life. No matter what, this is definitely a new adventure that I am excited for.