Famous Last Words: First Week of School

First, my Winter Break was very fun and relaxing. I did not go on any vacations, however, I was able to spend a lot of time with my family and relax. New Year’s Eve was definitely the highlight of my break though because I was able to hang out with a lot of my old high school friends and catch up. Once school started, I was able to get into the swing of things with going from total relaxation to working again. First off, this weekend I was able to watch the divisional NFL football games with all of my friends. The games were very good, however, my girlfriend and friends were pretty disappointed that the Dallas Cowboys did not win the game. Once school started, I was able to get in the groove of things. I have a relatively easy load this semester. I am taking my Capstone course, Surface Production II, Oil & Gas Law, Federal Government, and finally Myth Folklore. I am most looking forward to Capstone because I feel that it will really test my understanding of the material I have learned that last few years. I know that it will be a lot of work but I am also excited to get to work with my friends. In addition to school, I have finally stared It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. My friends have always told me to watch it and I finally started. This show is extremely funny and I am definitely addicted to it so far! My favorite character is definitely Charlie because he is so strange and weird.  

Wikia: (It's Always Sunny)

As for next week, I am looking forward to reading Homer’s Illiad and Odyssey. After reading about the Trojan War in the Wikipedia Trail, it seems that the story is extremely interesting and entertaining. Also, I am excited to start my storybook or portfolio. Overall, it was a great week and I am excited to get this semester started again. 

Tech Tip: Canvas App Download

Since I am always signing into Canvas on my phone, I thought it would be convenient to have the app downloaded. It was very easy to download and easy to set up. I was able to go into my settings and change my notifications in order to send myself notifications when I receive grade changes. I am looking forward to using the app this semester.

Canvas Logo

Wikipedia Trail: From Odysseus to Achilles

Since I plan on reading Homer's Illiad and Odyssey, I started my Wikipedia Trail with the hero Odysseus. I have always heard about his adventures in both of Homer's epics, therefore I wanted to know a little more about him. One thing I learned was that during the Trojan War, he was one of the volunteers that almost fought the famous Trojan warrior Hector. This led me to click on the next article about the Trojan War. I read about the main parts of the Trojan War described in the Illiad. I learned about the main warriors and what happened to them during this part of the war. The main thing learned was that Hector killed the cousin of Achilles causing Achilles to be overcome with grief and anger. This resulted in the death of the famous Hector by the hands of Achilles. This led me to click on Achilles himself to understand where he came from and why he was fighting in the war in the first place. He's fate was given to him that he would either live in glory but die young, or live a long life with no adventure. Since he wanted glory, he chose to fight in the Trojan War and ultimately died because of that choice.

Wikipedia: (Triumph of Achilles)

Week 1 Review

This week has been a great start to the semester. I really enjoyed browsing through the storybooks because I felt previous students were extremely creative and developed great storybooks. I am looking forward to either writing my own storybook or portfolio. It definitely feels great to get back into the swing of things at school.

Growth Mindset

Growth Mindset

I learned about Carol Dweck and the growth mindset last semester when taking Epics of India. I cannot speak for all majors, however, I do find that as an engineering student at the University of Oklahoma the grading of process versus final grades is in the works of trying the growth mindset. Many professors nowadays grade highly on the process at which you attack a very difficult problem, with only a few points considered for the exact answer. This encourages students to truly study the material instead of memorizing a certain solution to a problem. To focus on what went on in their brain and thought processes allow for students to feel worthy of the task at hand and not get discouraged when failing. I have personally always thought that process is the most important aspect of learning, therefore, I will continue researching the growth mindset this semester and in future. I feel that every teacher/professor needs to look into the growth mindset project and utilize the ideas of Ms. Dweck in their own curriculum. Overall, this idea, along with Ms. Dweck’s growth mindset, are what we need to focus on in the future.

My own goals will continue with what I have thought of in the past. With going through difficult courses, I of course want to get the final grade of an A. However, I value the actual content and processes I have learned versus the letter grade I receive. I would much rather get a “B” in a course and learn a great deal of knowledge versus and easy course that I receive an “A” in. Furthermore, I found the following meme to fall directly in line with how I feel. Working with groups the past few semesters, I have realized that being honest with yourself is the best way to learn. For example, if I did not understand a certain aspect of a lab, I would not try and be prideful but instead ask for help. This allowed me to actually learn the information and grow myself. When someone is able to accept their weaknesses, they will be able to focus on that and grow themselves more and more.

Growth Mindset

Time Strategies

In order to be successful in anything you do you have to work extremely hard and be organized. Since I have taken the Epics of India course, I am familiar with what needs to be done in order to succeed in this class. First, I will bookmark any pages that I find myself searching for more than once. I find this allows you to be efficient with your time and not waste precious time on browsing through the files. Secondly, I will work on this class any time that I am not working on my Capstone or major classes. If I have free time, I will be working on this course. Finally, I will always have a check list on my phone and a calendar on my computer in order to keep up with the coursework in a timely manner.

Cronofy: (Google Calendar)

Reading Options

First,  I am interested in weeks 2-3 due to the ability to read Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. I feel the stories will be full of adventure and I want to know what happens. I have always been curious and wanted to read these epics so I am choosing these. I hope they are great stories!

Wikiwand: (Odysseus and the Cyclops)

I am also looking forward to reading about Native American units in weeks 9-10. I feel that it will be extremely interesting to learn more about a culture that I simply do not know a lot about. I read a little of the Cherokee unit and enjoyed reading it. I am sure when it comes to choosing the unit I will do more research into what unit I want to read. 

Finally, I feel that I would enjoy reading the units for weeks 11-12. I want to read  Robin Hood due to the way it is written. I read the first ballad and was able to understand the content while enjoying reading it. Additionally, I am leaning towards reading Beowulf. I have read this story before, however, it was Sophomore year of high school. I really enjoyed it the first time I read it and am curious on how I would interpret the story now.

Storybook Favorites

The first storybook that I found to be interesting was The Legend of “Calico” Jack Rackham by Will Robson. I mainly chose this story based off the image depicting two ships battling. The introduction really intrigued me because I felt as if I was in the tavern and discussing the life of a famous pirate. The hook at the end of the introduction forced me to read the rest of the storybook, therefore, I felt that if I wrote a storybook that would be something I would need. Also, the ending of the storybook was excellent. The description as the pirate walked out of the tavern, along with the hint that the man was indeed Jack Rackham was great. I found this to be my favorite storybook I read. 

The Legend of "Calico" Jack Rackham by Will Robson

The second storybook that I clicked on was by Morgan Smith and was called Tracking the Werewolf. I found the title to be very intriguing and I felt that it was something that would interest me. I was not wrong. The dialogue was excellent throughout and the introduction was very detailed. The diction allowed me to place myself in either the dimly lit study of John Abbott or the gloomy Backwood-Inn. Furthermore, I liked how the story is written as almost a journal article of John Abbott’s. This allowed the reader in the end to judge whether or not they believed these werewolf tracking stories or not. I enjoy times where the author allows the reader to decide if something truly occurred or not due to the first person perspective. Also, the images chosen allowed me to depict the 1800’s and what John Abbott encountered during his journey.  

Tracking the Werewolf by Morgan Smith

The third storybook that grabbed my attention was Tragically Ever After. I thought the title was extremely inviting due to the play on the commonly known phrase Happily Ever After. The first thing the reader sees on the storybook is a gloomy image that really depicts what the rest of the stories are about. I have never really thought about what happened to the Disney characters once they stories have finished, but if I had it definitely would have been full of happiness. This storybook is completely opposite from the common story and the author did a very good job. The diction chosen really depicted the grief these Disney princesses were facing after these “fairy tales”. Overall, the stories were very well written and the layout was very clean and easy to navigate.

Tragically Ever After

Introduction to a Future Petroleum Engineer

            Hello my name is Trevor Eckard. I am originally from Boerne, Texas near San Antonio, however, in high school I moved to Lucas, Texas just north of Dallas. I am currently a senior Petroleum Engineer (PE) and plan on graduating Spring 2017. The coolest thing about being a PE is the many opportunities to travel and experience new locations. You can either stay in the United States, go offshore, or even go out of the country to European or South American countries. The past summers I have had an internship with Denbury Resources in both Houston and Plano Texas. Both were extremely great opportunities that I thoroughly enjoyed. 

           One of my favorite things to do is to travel. Some of my favorite locations I have been is Costa Rica, Germany, San Francisco, and Montana. I have a few places that are on  my bucket list that include Lake Louise, Australia, and to ski the Swiss Alps. I hope I can see these places very soon. If there are any other suggestions please let me know!

View in Domincal, Costa Rica

             My favorite book series is the Vince Flynn series about Mitch Rapp, a young aspiring CIA agent and his life after becoming one of the top agents. It is a great series that includes historically correct events with entertaining stories about Rapp’s adventures. Also, I am a huge movie person, with my favorite movie being Shawshank Redemption. Other favorites include the Batman movie series, Hell or High Water, and The Prestige. I am usually up for any movie and am always looking to watch new ones! Going along with the movie scene, my favorite snack food is popcorn by far. I definitely love going to the movie theater just get popcorn with jalepenos (trust me it’s good).

My hobbies include cooking, poker, and playing sports (specifically basketball and golf). I enjoy playing and watching almost any sport though and know plenty of useless sports trivia. My only sports team I really root for is the Spurs though (I am going to miss Tim Duncan!).  

Ruger and I

          Also, I am a huge dog person and finally decided to get a golden retriever puppy this past summer. His name is Ruger and is currently 7 months old. He is a great dog that loves playing fetch (sometimes...) and sleeping!

Ruger actually playing fetch in the creek

It is nice to meet everyone!                     

-Trevor-

Week 1 Storytelling

Source: Cabin in the Woods/Paradise

The “Sold” sign slowly disappeared as my parents and I drove off. We were moving again, of course.  This was the third time this year and all I could think about was how many more times will I have to be thrown into another school. A new place, new friends, and a whole new beginning, again. My parents said this move will be different though, they called the new cabin an oasis in the middle of a secluded forest.

As I looked out of the window at the foggy landscape, I could feel my eyes yearning for sleep. I did not want to miss any of the drive so I fought with all my might to stay awake. Just then I heard the blinker on the car turn on and we exited off the highway onto Eerie Forest Road. We were driving on the bouncy road as huge oak trees consumed the sky above me. All of a sudden the car jerked forward as the car came to a complete stop. My dad revved the engine, trying to free us from whatever had stopped our car. As I looked out to see what it was, I could feel the car slowly sinking into the mushy ground beneath us. It dawned on me. I quickly unbuckled and yelled to my parents, “Quicksand!”. We jumped out of the car just in time as the quicksand completely engulfed the car until all we could see was the antenna poking out. We all stood in shock staring at the ground, trying to figure out what actually just happened. We knew that the best way to fix this crazy event was to head towards the new cabin and call for help, so we started walking.

We walked for what seemed like forever when my dad decided he needed to go to the restroom. With my dad gone, my mom and I heard a murmur coming from the distance. As we waited and waited the murmur got louder and louder. All of a sudden, my dad came running towards us, screaming, with a large swarm of killer bees following closely. As I turned to run, I noticed a stream of water. We all were able to make it to the water and to escape the deadly stings of the bees. Just in time.

              As we continued walking, we finally made it to where the cabin was in sight. Just as we let out a sigh of relief, we heard a chopping sound near the cabin. From behind the house walked a crazy axeman screaming at us to get off his land. As the man ran after us, we hid behind a large oak tree, breathing ever so softly. As the axeman searched for us, I accidentally moved my foot, causing the axeman to hear where we were. He started chopping down the tree we were behind. With the cabin nearby, I went around the left side of the oak and yelled “Over here!”. As the axeman quickly looked my way, my dad came out from behind the tree and tackled the axeman, sending his ax flying away. We all sprinted as fast as we could to the cabin, with the axeman right behind us. He quickly caught up to me, and as he lunged forward to grab me, I woke up to my mom holding my arm as we arrived at our new cabin. It was all a dream, nothing but a dream.

Author note: Written from the inspiration from Tom Gauld's Map of the Area Surrounding our Holiday Home. I started from the South, worked Northeast, and finally arrived at the cabin where the axeman was located. 

Map of the Area Surrounding our Holiday Home, a cartoon by Tom Gauld from his book ROBOTS, MONSTERS Etc., 2006. http://onlinecourselady.pbworks.com/w/page/12763863/week1storytelling 

Favorite Place

Cayman Islands

One of my favorite vacations was when my family and I would go to the Cayman Islands during the summer. The crystal clear water and white sands were always a relaxing way to end my summer vacation. If you have not been to Cayman, I definitely recommend going! (especially Stingray City and the Turtle Farm)

7-mile beach is the prime tourist location with many restaurants and hotels. If you go, I would definitely stay on 7-mile beach.

Stingray City is an awesome and rare way to see wild stingrays in their own habitat without being enclosed. It is very exciting. 

-Trevor-