Famous Last Words: Cats in Bandanas are Cute!

This week I wrote my first story for my Storybook project. It was a challenge to write in the Arsene Lupin style despite how much reading and preparing I did for it. I'm looking forward to revising next week, because I want it to be even better. One of my next stories will be based on the legend of Ishikawa Goemon, and there isn't much source material about him, so I will be making my husband watch a couple of movies based on his legend to help me get into that world a little bit better.

Yesterday we had orientation for our capstone internship at the veteran's center. I think it's going to be a really good experience. I'll be helping with their weekly art class, a monthly photography class, and taking pictures during field trips to the park. I think it's funny how they didn't mention in advance that we were going to have a bit of a health exam, including a TB test at the orientation. My blood pressure was up pretty high, so I'm going to have to work on that and follow up with my doctor soon. And they need record of an MMR vaccination. I'm older than the other students, and didn't grow up here. I know I had it twice, but have no record of it, so I'll be going to the health department Monday to have another. Sounds like fun, doesn't it? I also have to go back Monday to have them read my TB test. Then comes the good part, I get to start next week. I'm excited to see how art class goes.

It's almost October already, which I find fairly terrifying. Mario is excited, though, because October means I buy him a little pumpkin to hang out with, and bowtie day will be here soon! I was considering getting him a bit more of a costume this year (if he'll wear it). Though he could always put on his yellow bandana and go as Morgana! Yes, part of the reason I like Persona 5 so much is because the cat looks like my cat!

(Photo from my persona collection, Mario dressed as Morgana!)

For me, October means I have to get myself together with this grad school application thing. One of my teachers blew our minds in class this week, and I'm rethinking my entire life's purpose now. I was only going to apply to the PhD program and decide what to do after that, but I think I'm going to apply to a couple of different Master's programs as well. That way, if I don't get into the PhD program, I won't have to wait a year and a half to start a Master's. Part of me almost thinks I belong in one of the Master's programs anyway, and that it might be best if they reject me. I can always reapply later, after I have my Master's. It doesn't really change much about the application process, which is a relief. I guess we'll see what happens.

Week 7 Story: Coffee and Curry

“Akira,” Sojiro began. “I have a favor to ask.”

Akira looked up. He was curious about what his guardian could possibly need his help with, besides washing dishes in the cafe. “Do you want me to brew the coffee?” he asked hopefully.

“No, no, I can handle that myself. Besides, you’re still learning.”

“I could start the curry, then. You taught me the special recipe and I’ve gotten much better at making it.”

“It’s not like that,” Sojiro said, looking serious. “It’s my daughter, Futaba.”

“You… have a daughter? Why am I just finding out about this now?” Akira looked at his cat, Morgana. The cat just shrugged and went back to grooming. “Sojiro?”

“It’s a long story! Futaba isn’t well. Her mother committed suicide a couple of years ago, and it’s always been hard for her. Over the past 6 months, it’s gotten much worse. She refuses to leave her room at all.”

“Oh,” Akira said gently. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.” He looked down for a moment, feeling awkward. Then he raised his head defiantly. “Wait a minute, what exactly do you think I can do about it?”

“Oh, come on. I know there are things you aren’t telling me. Things that you can do. Stuff like those ridiculous Phantom Thieves that are always on the news.”

“You think I’m-”

“No. Let’s just leave it be. I don’t want to know anything more than I have to, alright?”

Akira nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“Just help me out! If you save Futaba, I’ll… give you her hand in marriage or something.”

Akira and Morgana went up to their room in the attic. The cat spoke, referring to Akira by his codename. “So what are we going to do, Joker? We’re going to help Futaba, aren’t we? It sounds like she might be in serious trouble.”

“I agree,” Akira replied. He opened the MetaNav and spoke the name ‘Futaba Sakura’ into it, instantly getting a hit. “She has a palace. It sounds like we might need to change her heart. I’ll contact the other Thieves right away.”

(Photo from Megami Tensei Wiki)

It turned out that Futaba wanted to leave her palace. She wanted to heal her heart. But she was trapped inside by a shadow called Yamata no Orochi, the eight-forked serpent. Joker sent the rest of his teammates to deal with finding a route to Futaba’s treasure. “I need your help with a special task, Mona”, he said to the cat.

“Anything you need!” Mona replied. “So what’s the plan?”

“We’re going to trick the serpent,” Joker replied. “See those eight doors? The snake will be coming to this very spot. We’re going to put out some bait to slow it down,” he said with a mischievous smile.

“What kind of bait?” Mona asked. Joker opened his bag. He pulled out 8 bowls, a big container, and a thermos. “Wait, did you seriously bring a bunch of coffee and curry with you?”

Joker nodded. “The curry should make it feel full, slowing it down. Least that’s what it always does to me when I eat it. And the coffee will make it feel hyper and dizzy.”

“I see,” said Mona. “So we’re going to feed half of its heads the curry, and half the coffee, to confuse it, right?”

“Right!” Joker exclaimed with a brilliant smile.

And so they put out bowls of coffee and curry. Joker and Mona waited patiently in the shadows. Then the serpent came and ate the curry, and drank the coffee. It became sluggish and dizzy, losing motor control due to the conflicting states it was in. Joker began shooting some of the heads, while Mona aimed his slingshot at the others. Before long it was knocked down, and Joker dealt it the final blow with his knife. When it was quiet again, a short girl with long, orange hair emerged. She gave Joker a shy smile. “Thanks! You saved my life.”

“Come on, we have to hurry and take the treasure!” Mona said excitedly. They joined the rest of the Phantom Thieves, finished the job, and headed home.

They arrived at the cafe just before closing. Akira and Futaba walked in together, with Morgana hitching a ride in Akira’s bag. Sojiro almost dropped the mug he was holding. “F-Futaba! I can’t believe it!”

“Curry please, Sojiro, I hunger!” Futaba announced, sitting at the counter. Akira sat beside her while Sojiro dished up two plates of his special curry for them. When they finished eating, Sojiro’s smile faded into one of shock.

“What’s wrong with your face?” Futaba asked.

“Oh, uh, I sort of… promised this guy your hand in marriage if he rescued you,” Sojiro replied with a blush.

Futaba looked at Akira. “Hmm. I might be down with that. I guess time will tell!”

(Photo from Pinterest)

Author’s Note:

This story is based on The Eight-Forked Serpent of Koshi from Romance of Old Japan by E. W. Champney and F. Champney. In the original version, the princess Kushinada-hime’s parents offer the god Susa-no-wo her hand in marriage if he saves her from the serpent. He leaves out 8 bowls of sake, and the snake becomes intoxicated. Susa-no-wo easily kills it, and marries the princess. I have based my retelling on characters from the game Persona 5. Akira (Joker) and Morgana (Mona) live in the attic of Sojiro Sakura’s cafe. In the game, his daughter Futaba asks Akira’s group of vigilantes, The Phantom Thieves, to change her heart. They have the ability to enter a cognitive world in people’s minds when their thoughts become distorted, using a navigation app on their phones. They steal the core of the distortion, thought of as a treasure, which triggers a “change of heart” by changing their cognition. In my version, I decided to mix the two together. One of the game's many enemies is Yamata no Orochi, who is based on the eight-forked serpent of Koshi. I thought it would be fun to have Sojiro offer Akira his daughter’s hand in marriage for saving her life. Since all they serve at the cafe is coffee and curry, I liked the idea of being able to slow down the snake with the things our heroes had on hand at the cafe.


The Eight-Forked Serpent of Koshi from Romance of Old Japan by E. W. Champney and F. Champney. Web Source.

Reading Notes: Japanese Mythology Part B

(Photo from Pinterest)

The Faery Robe - A fisherman hears singing. A fairy comes down and touches the water, hanging her robe on a branch, and leaps into the water like a mermaid. The fisherman thinks her robe will bring him fortune. The fairy tells him to give her robe back so she can fly, and he tells her to dance for him first. She insist she can't dance without the robe, and he gives it to her, setting her free. She puts her rainbow wings on and sings as she flies back up (celestial dance). The fisherman falls in love with her beauty, and then everything is silent again when she is gone.

The Jewel of Heart's Desire: The Quest - Takeuchi has lost the crystal sword after the Empress asked him to watch over it. A fisher maid named Tamatori who wishes to marry him follows him to a cliff at night and he tells her the situation. They see shining in the water and decide it must be the crystal. Tamatori goes in the water to get it. Sharks, swordfish and other sea creatures come after her when she takes the crystal, and she fears death. the dragon comes, and she knows it won't let her live, so she plunges the sword into her chest, then thrusts the jewel into the wound. The dragon went away, and her body washed up at Takeuchi's feet. She was honored in death. The Empress named her the Princess of Heart’s Desire. Some say they were secretly wedded.

Japanese Mythology from Romance of Old Japan by E. W. Champney and F. Champney. Web Source.

Reading Notes: Japanese Mythology Part A

Izanagi and Izanami - Izanagi: god of heavens, Izanami: goddess of love. Married and gave birth to generations of gods, men, animals, fish, the sea, mountains, etc. Created a flower that became the sun and moon, and gods and goddesses. The last were Izanagi, all powerful god of the air, and Izanami, fair goddess of the clouds. All life was issued from them. 

“Floating-Bridge of Heaven” - between the celestial and lower world. 

They gave birth to the 8 islands of Japan. To rule the earth, they had a daughter, the Bright-Shining-Amaterasu, and a son, Susa-no-wo-no-mikoto. Amaterasu was told to rule the heavens, and took a throne in the sun. Susanowo was told to rule over the moon and the water. Izanami gave her earth children (the 8 islands) godlike powers, which upset Susanowo. She was banished to Yomi, the abode of departed spirits. Izanagi goes to look for her and asks her to come home, and she tells him to not look at her because she has eaten the bread of Yomi. He tried to save her, but her form had already changed, and she turned to mist and vanished. He ascended to isle of Ahaji, in an abode of eternal gloom and remained there. 

(Photo from Pinterest)

The Miraculous Mirror - Susanowo shoots a fireball at Amaterasu, so she flees down to earth and hides in a cave, refusing to come out. They eventually send Uzume, goddess of laughter to dance outside the cave. Amaterasu opens the door to see what's going on. The people tell her they think Uzume is more glorious than the sun, which makes Amaterasu jealous and she comes out of the cave. Taji-Karaô blocks the cave with a boulder so Amaterasu will remain in the sun.

The Eight-Forked Serpent of Koshi - Susanoo - god of seas and storms. Agrees to slay the eight forked serpent Orochi in exchange for princess Kushinada-hime's hand in marriage (also to save her life). Turns her into a comb which he puts in his hair. Brews sake of eightfold strength. Made 8 portals, put a vat of the sake at each door. The serpent got drunk on the sake, and then Susanoo killed it, turned Kushinada-hime back into a princess and married her.

Kushinada-hime - (Wondrous-fair Princess), daughter of Ashinadzuchi (Foot-stroke Elder), son of the Mountain-God and Tenadzuchi (Hand-stroke Elder).

Note for me: This could be Sojiro asking Akira to save Futaba. He would use coffee instead of sake.

Japanese Mythology from Romance of Old Japan by E. W. Champney and F. Champney. Web Source.

Growth Mindset: Pinterest Cats!

(Photo from Growth Mindset Resources)

I like this kitty for several reasons. 

1. I think believing in this is the only way I'm going to get accepted into grad school. I'm not a typical student, so I'm going to have to bring something different to the table. 

2. We used to have a grey striped, pale blue cross-eyed kitty named Aliera.

3. Cats dressed as unicorns? Absolutely.

(Photo from Growth Mindset Resources)

Not only does this cat look a lot like Mario, but it makes me think about how nice my park adventure was the other day and how much I need that back in my life. We also were talking last night about how long it's been since we went camping or hiking, and it's been a little over 2 years. Much, much too long.

(Photo from Growth Mindset Resources)

First of all, that looks like a baby Mario and it's sooooo cute! Secondly, I have way too much stress and anxiety in my life right now. I tend to avoid making plans with others because I feel like I'm too busy for it right now, but at the same time, an hour or two here and there to slow down and spend time with others would probably do me a world of good. 

And just like that, this became a cat blog again.

Famous Last Words: Still Stressed Out

This week, not much progress was made. I still haven't heard anything about my internship. People that chose the other location are already working. I feel so behind, and the situation is completely out of my control. I prefer to have control, so not having it makes me crazy. I also got my official GRE scores back which were not the greatest. Verbal is fine, quant is awful, writing is ok. I don't see how I can possibly improve them in a month or two's time, so I am not going to retake them. I'm going to hope the rest of my application makes up for it.

I got to revise my introduction this week, which was fun. I think it turned out really well. I'm a little nervous about writing my first story this week. I've been reading various Arsene Lupin stories, and have reread the chapter I plan to use, taking detailed notes. I also watched 6 episodes of the Lupin the Third anime series, The Woman Called Fujiko Mine. Hopefully this will prepare me for writing in a Lupin style.

(Photo from my personal collection. Arbor Gardens Park.)

It seems we're going to need a new dryer. That's always a bummer, especially when you just spent your extra money on new running shoes, and there isn't enough left to cover the dryer. On the plus side, I've had at least one extra park adventure in my new shoes. I need to make time for much more of that. I finally have some hope that I can do something about the pain I've been having in my legs for a couple of years now. Mario says that as long as there's still tuna, not much else matters. I guess that's something else I can work on this coming week, not letting everything get to me so much.

(Photo of Mario from my personal collection.)

Reading Notes: The Arrest of Arsene Lupin

(Photo from Geocaching)

I have chosen this as the base for my first story, so I decided to reread, taking more in depth notes.

The story begins with a description of a trip on the transatlantic steamship 'La Provence'. Mentions the extreme intimacy of being confined to a ship for several days with people who all didn't know each other the day before. A bond unites them over the water, the bond is a wireless telegraph. A message is received mysteriously. The second day of the voyage, the message is received that says "Arsene Lupin is on your vessel, first cabin, blonde hair, would right fore-arm, traveling alone under name of R-"Lightening interrupts the telegraph so only the initial is known.

Due to gossip, all the passengers knew the famous Arsene Lupin was hiding amongst them. Arsene is described by the narrator as an irresponsible burglar whom Ganimard, the shrewdest detective had been trying to catch with no success. He breaks into the homes of Barons, leaving behind cards with notes that he will return when the furniture is genuine, and so on. He is also described as the "man of a thousand disguises."

The narrator, Monsieur d'Andrezy speculates that Lupin could be anyone, including his neighbor at the table or his roommate. Miss Nelly Underdown is appalled at this fact and hopes he is arrested. She asks d'Andrezy to share any info he knows. He is attracted to her, becoming impressed by her charm as the ship's atmosphere becomes more intimate. His feelings deepen beyond a mere flirtation. He sees another passenger as a rival for her affection, "it struck me, at times, that she preferred his taciturn humor to my Parisian frivolity." d'Andrezy suggests to Miss Nelly and her circle of admirers that they can investigate the mystery as well as Ganimard. He suggests they look at the passenger list for a man traveling alone with blonde hair and the initial R. Only 4 with the initial were traveling alone, 3 were known and did not fit the description. This left d'Andrezy's rival for Miss Nelly's attention, Mon. Rozaine, who was in fact blonde. All eyes turned to him. He says he doesn't speak because considering his name, position as a solitary traveler, and the color of his hair, now he thinks he should be arrested. Miss Nelly points out that he doesn't have the wound, and he shows them his arm. d'Andrezy notes that he only showed them his left arm.

Miss Nelly's friend Lady Jerland comes running up and tells them that someone stole her jewels. The finest and most valuable stones had been removed from their settings, the rest left behind. The passengers concluded it must have been Lupin. The captain placed Rozaine under arrest. The passengers feel safe and carefree, and d'Andrezy confesses his feelings to Miss Nelly under the moon at midnight. The nest day, Rozaine was freed. His documents checked out and he had no wound. It was brought up that Lupin could furnish all sorts of documents, and could commit a crime without being present. When Rozaine approaches the group, the women walk away.

Rozaine offers a reward for the discovery of Lupin or other person in possession of the jewels and claims he will unmask them himself if no one helps. The vessel was searched by the captain's orders. d'Andrezy says they should be searching the lining of their hats and vests and shows Nelly his camera that he's been using to take pictures of her with, stating that a person could hide all the jewels in an object no larger, and pretend to take pictures with it, and no one would suspect him. Nelly says that every thief leaves behind clues. d'Andrezy says Lupin doesn't, "because he concentrates his thoughts not only on the theft, but on all the circumstances connected with it that could serve as a clue to his identity."

The investigation makes no progress, and the captain's watch is stolen. The next evening, Rozaine is found tied up on the deck with a card, having been robbed. The note says that Lupin accepts the reward. Since he couldn't have bound himself and the handwriting on the card didn't match his, Rozaine was cleared. The passengers were afraid of Lupin and clung to each other as they moved around the ship. "Arsene Lupin was now, anybody and everybody." On the last day, Nelly spends time with d'Andrezy for protection and he is very pleased, silently blessing Lupin for being the means that brought him and Nelly closer together.

When the ship approached the shore, the two of them watched as each passenger left the ship, passing by Ganimard who was waiting to arrest him. When Rozaine is about to pass him, d'Andrezy gives Nelly the camera and tells her he thinks it would be interesting to get them in the same photo. Before she can take one, Rozaine passes him and nothing happens. When d'Andrezy and Nelly try to pass Ganimard, he stops them and says "Lupin, is it not?" d'Andrezy gives his name, and Gainmard says that Bernard d'Andrezy died 3 years ago. He shows him his papers. Ganimard calls him out on the papers being fake, and slaps his arm, on the wound. He has to surrender. Our narrator d'Andrezy was Lupin the whole time. Nelly hears the whole thing, and when he looks at her, she glances down at the camera, which contains Rozaine's money and the jewels. He makes a gesture that lets him know she understands everything. He wonders if she will betray him. She passes by, and then discretely drops the camera into the water and walks away, not looking back. He tells Gainimard "why should I retain a definite form and feature? Why not avoid the danger of a personality that is ever the same? My actions will serve to identify me."

The Arrest of Arsene Lupin from The Extraordinary Adventures of Arsene Lupin, Gentleman-Burglar by Maurice LeBlanc.

Wikipedia Trails: From Lupin the Third to Samurai Champloo

(Photo from zerochan)

1. Lupin the Third - This an an anime series about Arsene Lupin III, grandson of the original Arsene Lupin, gentleman thief. They initially got in trouble for using Lupin's name, but the original Arsene Lupin book series is now a part of the public domain. The character in the anime has similar adventures to his grandfather in the books. He also has some interesting friends that include Goemon Ishikawa  XIII.

Edward from Cowboy BeBop (Photo from Bebopedia)

2. Cowboy Bebop - An anime series set in the future about bounty hunters (aka Cowboys). Heavily influenced by the Lupin the Third series. The art and characters loosely resemble part of the Persona 5 cast, which was obviously influenced by both Lupin the Third and Cowboy Bebop.

Futaba from Persona 5 (Photo from Pinterest)

3. Shinichirō Watanabe - Japanese anime director. Known for blending together genres in his series. For example, in Cowboy BeBop he mixed westerns, film noir, jazz music and set the show in space.

4. Samurai Champloo - another anime series directed by Watanabe. Set in an alternate version of Japan's Edo period with a score comprised of hip hop music. A swordsman, Mugen and a ronin named Jin help a girl named Fuu on her quest to find the samurai who smells of sunflowers.

Week 6 Story: A Fox and an Oracle

(Photo from Pinterest)

It came to be that The Phantom Thieves were inside a palace, fighting a group of shadows.

“Good job, Fox, that was quite witty of you,” said Mona after the battle was finished.

Oracle snorted. “Fox?! Witty? I’ll believe that when I see it!”

“Hey, now,” Fox responded. “That is rather closed minded of you. Of course I am witty. My name even implies it.”

“Your name implies it? Umm, HELLO! My name is Oracle. Now that implies wit. Stupid Inari,” muttered Oracle.

“I beg your pardon,” Fox said, his voice beginning to rise above its usual soft tone. “There is absolutely no way that you are more witty than I am.”

“Ha! No, I am not ok with that! I am No-K!” Oracle shouted. “I-I… I challenge you to a… battle of wits!”

“A battle of wits?” Fox let a nefarious chuckle escape. “I accept your challenge.”

Skull rolled his eyes. “Oh man, not this again. You guys, we’re gonna be here all day if we let these two go at it.”

Joker just shrugged.

“Seriously?” Skull whined. “But mom was supposed to make my favorite dinner tonight.” He sighed and walked off, sulking.

“I think it sounds like a fun idea!” said Noir cheerfully. “Although, I happen to think that you’re both quite witty.”

“Oh no no,” Oracle said in a singsong voice, wagging her finger. “We are most definitely not matched in wit.”

“Agreed,” said Fox. “We will compete to see who is the wittiest of all.”

“And I will emerge victorious!” Oracle announced boldly.

Joker put his hand on the top of her head, which barely reached the center of his chest. “Calm down,” he said softly.

So The Phantom Thieves thought about what kind of challenge they could do while exploring the palace.

“Oooh, I know!” Oracle exclaimed. “Let’s ask that shadow up there to help divide up our ‘children’ in the divorce,” she said slyly.

“What?! You and I married? How preposterous,” glared Fox.

“Actually, that’s pretty perfect,” Joker said quietly. “Whoever outsmarts the shadow wins the title of Wittiest Thief.”

“Oh yeah, great idea!” Panther said with a smile. “Then we can finally go home!”

Fox and Oracle approached the shadow together. “Should we hold hands?” asked Fox. “We’re supposed to be married, aren’t we?”

“Eww, no! We’re getting a divorce, remember?!” Oracle said under her breath.

Fox cleared his throat and spoke to the shadow. “Hello kind sir. Would you be able to lend us some assistance?”

Joker and the other Thieves held their breath around the corner. It was entirely possible that the shadow would simply attack them. Thankfully, they were prepared to intervene at a moment’s notice.

The shadow snarled and drew its weapon. “Ahh!” Fox yelled, startled. He wasn’t sure how, but he ended up crouched behind Oracle’s tiny figure.

Oracle was not shaken at all. “My, what a lovely sword you have there. Say, we were thinking, since you’re so dark, tall and handsome, maybe you can solve a little disagreement for us. My… husband and I are getting a divorce, and we can’t decide how to split up our seven, umm, children. Think you can help?” she said with a mischievous smile.

“She’s a much better actress than you, Panther,” Skull whispered in the shadows.

“Shut up!” Panther whispered back, elbowing Skull in the ribs.

The shadow considered Oracle’s proposal for a moment. If he agreed to divvy up these so called kids, he could kill all of the intruders at once, instead of just these two. “Fine. Take me to the children.”

“Oh, great, right this way!” Oracle said loudly with a plastic smile. Then she whispered to the others, “safe room, go go go!” She and Fox led the shadow back to the nearest safe room, where the rest of the Thieves had run to. Fox, still in a panic, ran into the room behind them. Oracle stayed at the open door. “So? What do you think?” She smiled brightly as she began to close the door.

“Wait, what are you doing?” the shadow yelled as she slammed the door. He tried to open it but the palace’s distortion was too weak inside the room. There was no way to get in, and the intruders got away.

“Not bad, right?” Oracle asked, beaming at Joker. He smiled back proudly. “Inari? Don’t you have something to say to me?” Oracle spun towards him. He towered over her in height, yet he looked incredibly small at the moment.

“You are in fact much wittier than I,” Fox said, bowing before her.

“Whoo hoo, now that’s what I like to hear!” Oracle shouted happily. The Thieves all shared a laugh together as they walked back to the subway.

(Photo by Freinoir Art)

Author’s Note:

This story is based on A Fox and His Wife from Folklore of the Santal Parganas by Cecil Henry Bompas. In the original, the characters are an actual fox and his wife. Mr. Fox brags about how witty he is, but when faced with a tiger he panics. His wife outsmarts the tiger, asking it to follow them back to their hole to help them divide their five children between them. The tiger figures eating 7 foxes is even better than eating two, and is fooled by her flattery, so he agrees. When they arrive, Mrs. Fox backs down the hole having outsmarted the tiger, as it can’t reach into such a small space. In my version, I have used characters from the game Persona 5. Fox and Oracle are constantly bickering, so I figured they would disagree on which one of them has more wit. In the game, the group they belong to, the Phantom Thieves, can enter into a person’s cognitive “palace” if said person develops a distortion. In the palace they would fight shadows, including the shadow self belonging to the palace owner. Rooms within the palace are referred to as safe rooms because the distortion is not as strong in those spots. This allows the Thieves to take refuge, because the shadows can’t follow them inside. I thought it would be fun to have Oracle live up to her wise name by outsmarting a shadow when she leads it to a safe room and slams the door in its face.


A Fox and His Wife from Folklore of the Santal Parganas by Cecil Henry Bompas. Web Source.

Reading Notes: Santal Folklore Part B

(Photo from Pexels)

The Tigers and the Cat - a cat lived with some tigers, and they used to all eat their meat raw. The tigers sent the cat to get fire to cook their meat with because he was small and could sneak into a house to take fire from the hearth. He found a pot of milk and wanted to drink it, so he climbed on the fireplace burning his feet. He decided to wait for the fire to go out and the fireplace to cool to drink the milk. When he finally returned with fire the tigers were angry and said they would eat him. He ran away. The tigers tried to chase him but some dogs were in the way and the tigers thought their tails were nooses. They asked the jackal to tell the dogs to not use their nooses on them. The jackal told them they were just tails, so the tigers ate the dogs. They never found the cat.

 Notes: Mona stealing milk from the stove in the cafe, being chased by an angry Sojiro.

A Fox and His Wife - a fox brags to his wife that he is full of wit, and she claims to only have a small amount of wit. They run into a tiger and he panics. She outsmarts the tiger by asking it to help them decide how to split their 5 children. They take the tiger back to their hole, and Mr. Fox goes inside, afraid. Mrs. Fox goes in backwards, flattering the tiger as she goes in. The tiger can't get into the hole to eat them and is angry about being outsmarted.

Notes: Fox and Oracle fighting about who has more wit. They get into a situation and it's Oracle who outsmarts the foe.

Folklore of the Santal Parganas by Cecil Henry Bompas. Web Source.

Reading Notes: Santal Folklore Part A

(Photo from Pexels)

Ledha and the Leopard - a man named Ledha helps a leopard pull a lizard off its rump. When the leopard decides to eat him, he tricks it into thinking the lizard is hiding up a tree with him and the leopard runs away. Then Ledha secretly sweeps up after the buffalo to live in the tree above them. They discover who is taking care of them and appoint him as their servant, providing milk and a home for him. One day some of Ledha's hair falls out and he sends it down the river in a bundle. A princess finds it and has her father search for him. A crow finds him and steals his flute, bringing it back to the princess, and Ledha is locked in a room with her until he agrees to marry her. They build a palace in the jungle so he can be near the buffalo. 

Some of these stories are so morbid that it's almost funny. I think this was the only one in Part A with any potential for me to write a retelling of it, although I did enjoy reading some of the others.

Folklore of the Santal Parganas by Cecil Henry Bompas. Web Source.

Reading Notes: Even More Lupin

(Photo from Pinterest)

This week I read 6 chapters of Arsene Lupin versus Sherlock Holmes.

Baker Street Wiki -

"The Blonde Lady" (or Blonde Phantom in some versions), that has Holmes again called back to the continent to help French authorities reclaim the priceless 'Blue Diamond', which Lupin has stolen thanks to a blonde female accomplice. What proceeds next is an ongoing battle of one-upmanship between the two evenly-matched opponents that ends with Holmes getting the upper hand, delivering the Gentleman Burglar into the hands of the police. Yet despite this, Lupin manages to escape in time to wave Holmes off and bid him farewell at a train station.

Notes:

Joker as Lupin, Panther as the blonde accomplice, Crow as Holmes.

Lupin has a stake in the newspaper the Echo de France, much like Joker has a relationship with reporter Ohya Ichiko who uses him as an unknown source to write articles about the Phantom Thieves, boosting their popularity.

Holmes sees others who seem to be following Lupin, then realizes that they are part of his band: "his bodyguards, his satellites, his vigilant escort". They were his accomplices.

Holmes uses a letter of introduction to gain access to the architect's home as a secretary under a fake name, much like we gained letters of introduction to open the door in Shido's palace.

Famous Last Words: Standardized Tests Make Me Very Tired

(Photo from Pinterest)

This week I tried to work ahead in mythology because I would like to stay a week ahead for the rest of the semester if possible. So Wednesday I wrote both my week 5 story and my introduction. The introduction ended up being really fun to write. Laura's comments breaking it down sentence by sentence were awesome! Because most people that end up reading my storybook won't know much if anything about Persona 5, it was so useful to see exactly which things didn't make sense, so I can go back and try to explain them more clearly. I'm looking forward to editing it this week.

Thursday morning I was asked to help out at my new lab. We had to move some old stuff out of the room we'll be running participants in, into a very small storage room. The stuff all belonged to a professor who has been trying to retire for the past year or so. He was a great teacher and I wish I had the chance to work in the lab when he worked there. We moved old computer printouts, and I hadn't seen anything like that since my childhood, and huge, old computer monitors. Even the "flat screen" monitors we moved were heavy because they were so thick. It was nice to meet one of our grad students and a couple of the other research assistants ahead of our first meeting, which also happened Thursday evening. I'm glad we've finally got the ball rolling, I feel less stressed out about what to expect. In between those two events on Thursday, I did a little more studying for my GRE, picked my daughter up from school and took her to an appointment. It was a really busy day. I spent a lot of the week up until that point studying on top of doing homework, so my husband felt bad every night as I passed out in front of the TV an hour or two before bed every night.

Friday morning I took my GRE. That was a really horrible experience. I was so glad when it was over. I saw my unofficial scores, and my verbal was fine. Math not as fine, but I don't know if retaking it would improve my score very much. I would have to take it pretty soon since there isn't much time between now and submitting my application for grad school. I'm not sure it would be worth it. I feel like I did pretty well on the writing section, but I won't know for sure until the official scores are in, a couple weeks from now. When I came home, I was starving, so I ate and then took a 3 hour nap. I'm still not over it. I think I'd feel better if I could sleep for a week. That was so mentally draining.

This week I should hear something about my internship. I'm looking forward to getting that started. Hopefully it will be a little bit quieter of a week for me. I could use a little time to take better care of myself, and to not feel behind on everything. I'm working on finishing up some extra reading for week 5 right now. I need to decide which Arsene Lupin tale I want to base my first story on going into next week, so I'm engaged in a 6 chapter story of Arsene Lupin versus Sherlock Holmes right now. It's so fun. I probably won't end up using it, but I sure am enjoying the reading.

Week 5 Story: Crow's Great Sacrifice - Major Persona 5 Spoilers!

(Photo from Pinterest)

Crow had followed his plan to the letter, spending months getting close to Joker, followed by several weeks of making friends and teammates with the Phantom Thieves. He became much more emotionally invested in Joker than he had counted on. He started visiting the cafe more and more often, staying later into the evening in hopes of having a brief conversation with the boy before going home. Crow had never felt a real connection with anyone before. And yet he spent countless nights at the cafe waiting, then telling Joker way more about himself than he ever meant to. It made carrying out the plan much more difficult for Crow, but he went through with it anyway.

Crow was completely shocked to find out that Joker and the others had outsmarted him. He had been absolutely fooled by their plot. He expected to feel full of rage, but instead he felt… proud. Impressed. Awed. And when Joker tried to talk him down and change his mind, it made him very, very angry. They were inside his father’s palace. The man who rejected his mother and abandoned her. The one who never even knew he had a son, let alone cared about him. The one who had been using him to gain political favor. Using him to kill. The killing didn’t bother Crow anymore at this point, not really, but his ultimate goal of killing his father had to be achieved, no matter what. And so Joker stood before him, telling him to give it up, and all Crow could do was laugh.

He showed them all his true self, and his true powers. How interesting that he and Joker shared similar abilities. Was that why Crow felt so connected to him? But he didn’t have Crow’s true power, the ability to cause someone to go mad. To bring about a mental shutdown that ultimately led to their death. He showed the Phantom Thieves what he could do, that he was special, and they defeated him anyway. It made him feel sick and broken when they still begged him to let them help. When they forgave him for killing their loved ones, for trying to kill Joker. Until he became a Phantom Thief, Crow had no idea that there was another way, a way to change a heart instead of killing. If he had met them a few years ago when he first discovered his powers, things could have been completely different.

Crow was about to accept, he really was. Joker had promised that they could change his father’s heart together, that it didn’t have to end like this. That they didn’t have to be enemies. The boy tugged at his heart. No one else ever really had. Joker believed in him. That was when his father sent a cognitive version of himself to kill him. If he wasn’t going to follow orders, he would be eliminated, by another version of himself. He knew that the cognition would also kill Joker and the others after he was gone. That no longer felt like an acceptable outcome. His cognitive self shot at him, but he wasn’t done fighting yet. When the alarms began going off, he knew it was his turn to act like a leader for a change. His powers were the same as Joker’s, so that made them the same in other ways, didn’t it?

Joker held his hand out, begging him to do it together, but Crow shook his head. He fired his gun, causing a partition to come down between Crow and the shadows, and Joker and the Thieves. The side Crow was on would flood. Joker would be saved. “No!” Joker yelled in anguish. “Don’t do this! You can’t survive this on your own!” Joker and Crow each placed a hand on either side of the partition.

A shot was fired on Crow’s side, and Oracle screamed. “No! What happened!”

Joker spoke quietly. “He knew he couldn’t survive this, but he had to try. He had to try and do the right thing this time. There’s no way for us to get to him in time; if he wasn’t shot to death, he will drown.”

The Thieves all mourned the loss of their friend, and promised to change his father’s heart.

(Photo from Pinterest)

Author’s Note:

This story is a retelling of The Crow that Thought It Knew from Eastern Stories and Legends by Shedlock. In the original, Buddha becomes a crow named Viraka, and a crow named Savitthaka pledges to be his servant in exchange for some of the fish that Viraka brings up from the bottom of the water. Savitthaka doesn’t understand that Viraka is a marsh crow and he is not. He thinks that because they look the same, he can do the things Viraka does. He tells Viraka that he will get his own fish from now on, and dives into the lake and drowns even after Viraka warns him. When Savitthaka’s wife asks Viraka where he has gone, he replies with the following:

"He was not born to dive beneath the wave,

But what he could not do he needs must try;

So the poor bird has found a watery grave,

Entangled in the weeds, and left to die.”

This made me think of the ending to Crow’s story in the game Persona 5. I have not really changed much about the way it happens, so it is sort of a retelling of its own.

“The Crow that Thought It Knew” from Eastern Stories and Legends by Shedlock. Web Source.

Reading Notes: Jataka Tales (Shedlock) Part B

(Photo from Pexels)

The Crow that Thought It Knew - Buddha becomes a marsh crow, Viraka the strong. A different crow, Savitthaka, and his wife decided to live next to Viraka. Viraka was a marsh crow, so he could dive into the water and bring up fish. Savitthaka sees how he is living off the fish, and offers to become his servent. Viraka begins eating only as much fish as he has to and giving the rest to Savitthaka, who does the same, giving the rest to his wife. Savitthaka becomes filled with pride, and decides that since he looks the same as Viraka, they are the same and he says he will catch his own fish from now on. Viraka tells him that he isn't a marsh bird and will destroy himself if he goes under the water. Savitthaka does it anyway, gets tangled in weeds and can't come up for air. His wife asks Viraka if she knows what happened to him, and he tells her:

"He was not born to dive beneath the wave,
But what he could not do he needs must try;
So the poor bird has found a watery grave,
Entangled in the weeds, and left to die."

Notes: Joker as Viraka, Crow as Savitthaka. (Instead of a wife, the other thieves are present). Crow insists he is better and more powerful than Joker after he sees Joker's way of doing things in the palace. He insists on doing things his way and they fight. In the end, his father sends a cognitive version of himself to eliminate him for not following orders. Joker tries to persuade him to change his mind, it's not too late, they can do it together the right way. Crow is about to accept Joker's help when things go south and that part of the palace is about to flood, trapping them all. Crow ensures that Joker and the others survive by bringing down a partition that traps him and his cognitive self in the area that floods. He doesn't make it out.

The Dreamer in the Wood - I really liked this story but am pretty sure I will use the other. Saving a link to it just in case. 

Jataka Tales from  Eastern Stories and Legends by Shedlock. Web Source.

Reading Notes: Jataka Tales (Shedlock) Part A

(Photo from Pixabay)

The Parrot that Fed His Parents - A parrot (Buddha) is seen by a Brahman eating rice like the others in the flock, then taking more and flying off with it in his beak. The Brahman decided to trap the parrot and question it about its greed. When he tells the Brahman that he takes some back to his ancient parents who can no longer travel and some for the weaker birds that can't make the trip, the Brahman gives him a portion of his land to come and eat. The parrot goes back and gets his parents, relocating them to their new food source.

The King Who Saw the Truth - A King decides to give both of his eyes to a blind Brahmin. Other officials tried to talk him out of it, but he insisted that he gives him his eyes for the joy of giving. Eventually the king's sight was returned, but not the sight he had before. Eyes that could see the "perfect and absolute Truth."

Notes: Joker as the king.

The Elephant that Was Honored in Old Age - an elephant that was previously honored by the King after doing great deeds for him has her honors stripped and is tied to a cart like the oxen. She is insulted, and Buddha defends her to the king. The king returns her honor.

I'm not sure if I will use any stories from this part of the reading. These three interested me, but I think I will find more in Part B.


Jataka Tales from  Eastern Stories and Legends by Shedlock. Web Source.

Wikipedia Trail: From Charles Island to plastic flamingos

Charles Island - Suspected to be the site where Captain Kidd may have buried treasure in addition to the treasure he left at Gardiners Island. If so, it was never found. The island is a sanctuary for rare birds in the summer, so the best times to visit are spring and fall. You can walk to the island via a slippery, dangerous sand bar, or take a boat. The sandbar floods twice a day, so you can get stuck there.

Floreana Island - Formerly called Charles Island, named after Kind Charles II. One of the Galapagos Islands, where Charles Darwin did his infamous study of finches and how their beak size determined survival depending on the food source and competition.

(Photo from my personal collection. Flamingos at OKC Zoo.)

Flamingo - a "flame colored" bird that lives on Floreana Island. There are four species of flamingos in the United States. It isn't understood why they stand on one leg.

Plastic Flamingo - The official bird of Madison, WI. I am not kidding. One of the most popular lawn ornaments in the U.S. 

(Photo by James Lee)

Famous Last Words: Chasing the Sun

(Photo from my personal collection, Sunrise 9/5)

I'm working in a mostly shady spot in the backyard right now because it's such a beautiful day. I am getting so much done out here! I may have to make this my regular workplace on nice mornings. I'm actually out here because my husband is cleaning up an old couch to take to his office. It's right by my desk where I was trying to read for another class, and he kept spraying febreeze on it. My allergies have been crazy the past week or two, so after a second round of that I could no longer breathe. I took some allergy medicine and escaped to the backyard! He's also playing video games, which is fine, but I was having trouble concentrating.

I enjoyed reading Cupid and Psyche this week, it was a really fun story, but I found it hard to think of how to write my own story from it. I finally just made myself start writing Wednesday while my daughter was in her class at OCCC. It's nice and quiet in the art building there, and I seem to write better there than at home. It was also fun to look at a few of my classmates' stories this week. I like how we all seem to come up with completely different things, even if we base them on the same stories.

My internship hasn't started yet and probably won't for another week at least. It's both good and nerve racking. I've had a lot of anxiety this week, and none of it was for rational reasons. I've done things to relieve some of it, so I feel much better, but there were some nights I just didn't sleep because I couldn't turn off the anxious thoughts. We haven't started in the lab yet, either. I suppose in some ways this is good, because I'm taking my GRE this coming Friday, and I've had more time than I would have to study. I'm going to have to fit in as much study time as I can this week. I definitely don't feel ready. Can't wait for it to be over with.

My husband's birthday was this week, so we did a little celebrating. Nothing too big, but there was cake, which is never bad, only bad for me. I need to get serious and make time to eat better and exercise more. I'm doing a photo challenge on Instagram this month, haven't done one in a long time. I actually made time to catch the end of sunrise Tuesday morning after dropping my daughter at school, and that was super nice. I used to attend as many sunrises and sunsets (with my camera in tow) as I possibly could, but it's been awhile since I've made the time for it.

That's about it for now. I'm looking forward to doing the week 5 assignments this coming week. Writing my introduction for my storybook is going to be interesting!

Reading Notes: More Lupin, Goemon, Kidd

The Mysterious Traveller - Lupin is in a train car with the wife of the director of the penitentiary service. Another man busts into the train car, and the woman is anxious and afraid. Her husband told her Lupin was on the train and she is sure it's him. The real Lupin dozes off and the other man attacks, gagging and tying his hands. He takes his wallet and the women's jewels and waits for the train to arrive. When it goes through a tunnel and slows for construction, he leaps from the train. Lupin gets the women to agree to pretend they know each other to convince the police to start looking for the escaped "Lupin" right away. He offers to go with them to help capture him.  After a long chase they split up in the woods, and Lupin catches the man, who turns out to be assassin Pierre Onfrey. he takes back his things and leaves the man incapacitated with the women's things nearby, and leaves. The newspapers say that "Arsene Lupin effected the arrest of Pierre Onfrey", and was responsible for the woman's things being returned.

The Way of The Ninja - Goemon - considered Japan's greatest thief in history. No teacher would admit to him being their student. Many claim he was born in the home of the ninja's, the Iga Province. Used ninja techniques to steal from others. Some think he was a samurai and became a thief after his father's assassination. Liked by commoners, compared to Robin Hood - stole from rich, gave to poor. 16the cen Edo era - huge class differences. Either super rich or a peasant, Goemon wanted to "iron out" the differences.

A respectful history of Ishikawa Goemon XIII - 20th cen, classic anime character - foe-turned-friend and long-time ally of master thief Arsene Lupin the third - 13th generation descendant of the legendary 16th century samurai-turned-bandit of the same name. his personal emotional pull between the nobility and dignity of the samurai and the stealth and banditry skills of the ninja is, I think, what originally drew him to the Lupin gang. Goemon's loyalty to Lupin is so strong that he withstands the most grueling torture rather than give any information on him to rivals.

The legend of the forty seven ronin is connected to Goemon as well.

(Photo from Spookhouse)

Charles Island: Connecticut's Buried Treasure Hunting Grounds -

Captain William Kidd, is known to have stopped along the Connecticut coast in Milford in 1699, shortly before he was captured in Boston, (later he was transported to England and hung for piracy in London). It's well documented that Kidd had a full cargo of booty in his ship when he stopped in Milford and that he buried treasure before leaving Long Island Sound at Gardiners Island. What's not known is if he buried all his treasure at Gardiners Island. Later, Kidd would claim that the treasure found was only part of his stash and that if he was not executed he would lead authorities to the rest and give it to the English Crown.
Connecticut tradition holds that before he sailed out of Milford he buried much of his treasure on Charles Island. Over the years many have tried to locate the treasure but according to local lore Captain Kidd's ghost protects it and the stash is haunted.
The island is often accessible from the main land at low tide via a half mile sandbar
the sandbar is flooded twice a day and the crossing window is usually brief and sometimes does not occur at all, a fact which has left many would be pirate hunters temporarily marooned on the island over the years. Silver Sands Park officials also warn that the sandbar is slippery and dangerous to cross on foot and advise boating to the island instead
The island is designated a Natural Area Preserve for the local bird population of herons and egrets and the Department of Environmental Protection prohibits visitors on the island for much of the summer, so schedule your treasure hunting expedition for the fall or spring.

Note: If I end up visiting my mom in CT for spring break, I am totally going to look for treasure here! 

I think it would be fun for Skull's story to involve either looking for or burying treasure at the beach.

Comment Wall

(Photo from The Spriters Resource)

Joker's Storybook

Week 4 Story: Behind the Mask

(Photo from Pinterest)

When Lady Ann entered the castle by accident, she had no idea she would become the thief called Panther. Even less clear was that she would end up falling head over heals for the leader of the Phantom Thieves, Joker. Ann had never fit in at school in Japan. She was foreign and beautiful with long, blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Everyone made the assumption that she was stuck up and thought she was better than everyone. Other than Shiho who had made friends with her and was the only person who never seemed to care about Ann’s appearance, she was friendless.

She had followed two boys towards the school, and accidentally ended up somewhere else. A castle? She didn’t understand the half of what was going on, but the volleyball coach who had been harassing Ann and Shiho, Kamoshida, was there. He was decked out in a pair of pink boxers, a royal looking robe and a crown, and ordering a bunch of shadow monsters to kill her. Ann had been so confused, but eventually her anger got the best of her and the spirit of rebellion within her released her persona, Carmen. That was how Ann had become a member of the Phantom Thieves, along with the two boys she had followed there. She was certain the blonde one was Ryuji. He talked like a fool and had the same build and mannerisms. Ann didn’t really consider him a friend, but they had gone to middle school together, so she was well aware of how be sounded and behaved. For some reason, they were using code names. Ryuji was known in this world as Skull, the weird cat-looking thing was Mona, and the leader was called Joker.

They all had on masks and costumes, so it was difficult to tell who Joker really was. He wasn’t someone too familiar. But he was beautiful and charismatic. The way he held himself confidently, how he athletically leaped from the chandeliers, and how gracefully he flipped his body into action when fighting the shadows. It was all perfection in Ann’s eyes. She wanted badly to know who he was.

When they took a break in a safe room, she playfully tried to raise his mask. She just wanted a peek at what else was behind there, other than those piercing grey eyes. But his hand shot out, preventing her from removing the mask, accompanied by a quiet but firm “no”.

As they continued to explore the castle, watching Joker slink through the shadows was enticing. Each time she got a glance at him in the light, Ann couldn’t keep her eyes off of the way he moved, perplexed at who he could be. Ryuji had no friends, at least not since the track team had been disbanded. Mona kept engaging her in conversation, giving her lessons about the world, but Ann couldn’t stay focused on the cat.

When the group was finally too tired to continue for the day, they exited the Metaverse. She was shocked to find herself back in normal clothing, standing beside Ryuji, an actual kitty cat, and that new transfer student that sat behind her in homeroom. “Wait, seriously?! Kurusu, right? The transfer student?”

“Akira,” he replied with a soft smile. “Do you like coffee?” he asked. ‘I live above a cafe.” He took her arm and they began walking.

“Ugh!” Ryuji called after them. “Coffee is so bitter! Guess I’ll catch you at school tomorrow!”

The cat ran at their heels, trying desperately to keep up. “Slow down, Akira! I live at the cafe, too, Lady Ann! I can’t wait to show you our room!”

(Photo by Autumn-Sacura)

Author’s Note:

This story is based on Cupid and Psyche by Apuleius. In the original, Psyche is not allowed to see what her husband looks like. Her jealous sisters talk her into peeking at him while he sleeps. She is afraid he might be some sort of monster and plans to kill him, but she instead finds the handsome Cupid asleep in her bed. He wakes, and his mother Venus is angry when she finds out about his involvement with the beautiful mortal girl she hates. Venus makes Psyche complete impossible tasks and still won’t allow her to be with Cupid. In the end, Jupiter allows them to marry and forces Venus to accept it. For my retelling, I have again used characters from the game Persona 5. When Ann accidentally stumbles into the Metaverse, the others are wearing costumes and masks. She’s quick to figure out who Ryuji is, but Joker is more of a mystery until they return to the real world. I thought it would be fun to play with that, keeping her in the dark for awhile.


"Cupid and Psyche" from The Golden Ass by Apuleius. Web Source.

Reading Notes: Cupid and Psyche Part B

(Photo by Waterhouse)

Venus and the Goddesses - A seagull tells Venus that Cupid is in love with Psyche. She is furious and threatens to adopt a slave boy and give him Cupid's wings and bow. She's mostly upset because she thinks everyone is laughing at her. She sets off to seek revenge on him. She runs into Juno and Ceres, asks them to find Psyche. They defended Cupid, and told her he hadn't done anything different that Venus herself had in the past.

Psyche's Prayer - Psyche searches for Cupid. She enters a temple, and Ceres finds her there. Psyche cries and prays at her feet, asking her to let her hide there until Venus calms down. Ceres says she is too close to Venus to help her. Psyche finds another temple and prays, Juno hears her and says she also can't go against Venus.

Venus and Mercury - Psyche tries to think of another way, Venus searches the heavens. She sends Mercury with a message that anyone who finds Psyche will be given a reward of kisses from Venus. Psyche approaches Venus' door, and her servant Familiarity captures her.

Venus and Psyche - Venus drags Psyche around by her ear, gives her to Anxiety and Sorrow to be punished. Venus tells her the marriage wasn't legal, so her child will be illegitimate if she even lets her have the baby. Venus beats her up, then combines a bunch of grains and lentils in a pile, tells Psyche to sort them by the evening.

Psyche's Task - Venus returns and Psyche has completed the task. She says it wasn't her own doing, it was Cupid's, gives her bread and goes to bed. Cupid was locked in his room. In the morning, Venus gives her a new tasks, to bring a piece of golden fleece from the sheep by the river. Psyche jumps off a cliff into the river to escape, a reed in the river tells her to hide until afternoon, because the sheep's wool is hot and the are agitated and will bite. It tells her that if she waits until they calm down, she'll be able to find wool stuck to the trees. Venus isn't impressed and assigns her a 3rd task, to collect water from the heart of a stream that feeds into the river Styx.

The Third Task - The heart of the stream was surrounded by an impassable rock wall and serpents. Jupiter's royal eagle was there, and had helped Cupid before, snatched the vial from Psyche and filled it for her.

The Jar of Beauty - Venus still isn't impressed, tells her to plunge the jar into the underworld and ask Proserpine to fill it with enough beauty to last a day. Psyche tries to throw herself off a tower to get to the underworld, the tower tells her how to get to a portal, and to bring 2 barley cakes soaked in honeyed wine and 2 coins. It tells her the steps to take and things to not do to get to the underworld. It also tells her to not look in the jar of divine beauty. She accomplishes her task, then decides she would be a fool to not take at least a drop of the beauty for herself in order to please Cupid.

The Sleep of the Dead - Psyche opens the jar which is filled with Stygian sleep. Cupid sneaks out his window to find Psyche, and wipes the sleep from her eyes. He tells her that her curiosity almost ruined everything again, and sends her to give the jar to Venus. Cupid flies to heaven to see Jupiter, who says he will help despite all the awful things Cupid has done to him.

The Wedding Feast - Jupiter gathers the gods and tells them that the best way to take away Cupid's immaturity to to let him marry Psyche. Jupiter gives Psyche a cup of ambrosia to make her immortal and she and Cupid are wed. Their child is born after, a daughter named Pleasure.
Lucius and the Robbers - The old woman finished telling the young girl the story, and the robbers returned, loading up their loot and taking it home. The donkey hurt its hoof and they debated putting it down. 

The Escape - the donkey gets free, but the old woman catches his ropes. The donkey dragged her along. The young girl twisted the rope out of the old woman's hands, mounted the donkey, and they escaped. She prays to Fortune to help her get home to her family and her lover.

Notes: I'm still mulling over how to turn this into a retelling. I still think Ann will make a good Psyche, but haven't decided which part of the story I want to tell. I think Akira (Joker) would have to be Cupid as he seems to put a love spell on everyone he meets. 

"Cupid and Psyche" from The Golden Ass by Apuleius. Web Source. 

Reading Notes: Cupid and Psyche Part A

(Photo by Reji)

Her Dream - the young woman tells the old woman that she dreamed she was snatched by thieves the day before her wedding to her childhood friend that she loves dearly. One of the thieves threw a rock that killed her fiancee as they kidnap her. She woke up terrified. The old woman told her that dreams during the day don't come true, and that nightmares usually mean the opposite will happen.

Psyche's Beauty - the old woman tells the young woman a story. A king and queen, 3 beautiful daughter's, the youngest the most beautiful. People gathered around and revered her as if she were the goddess Venus. It was rumored that Venus had begun appearing among mortals, and the people thought it was the girl, so they showered her with flowers when she walked outside. This made Venus angry; she vows to make the girl regret her beauty. She summoned her son Cupid who had been going around ruining people's marriages and shows him Psyche and asks him to make her fall in love with the most wretched of men. 

The Oracle of Apollo - Psyche had been admired by all like a statue, but no one wished to marry her. Her two sisters became engaged easily. Psyche was left alone and sad. Her father asked the oracle of Apollo to find her a husband. The oracle told him to lead his daughter to the mountain for her fatal marriage. The prophecy made her parents sad. Her wedding was more like a funeral procession. Psyhce tells them to stop crying and waiting, that they should have cried for her the day her name became associated with Venus, and to take her to the cliff to meet her husband. The town's people and her parents left her at the top of the cliff. A wind carried her down to the bottom. 

The Magical Palace - Psyche woke by aa exquisite palace that must belong to a god. She entered the palace, surprised that none of the treasures were locked up. A voice told her that everything there was hers, and to make herself comfortable. Food and nectar appeared at the table when she sat, without servants to carry them. 

The Mysterious Husband - Psyche went to bed, afraid because she was all alone in a strange place. Her husband came to her in the night (in the dark so she can't see what he looks like) to consummate the marriage. One night he tells her that her sisters will come to the cliff top and to not answer or look in their direction or it will cause him great pain. She cried and begged him to let her see her sisters. He said she could, and could give them gold and treasure, but that she couldn't allow them to persuade her to investigate his appearance. She told him she loved him and even Cupid couldn't compare to him. 

The Jealousy of Psyche's Sisters - When her sisters come crying on the cliff, Psyche runs out of the palace to let them know she's there and they don't need to cry for her. She summons the wind to carry them down to her, and shows them the palace. They became envious of her riches and wanted to know who her husband was. To keep her promise, Psyche made up a description of a handsome man who was a hunter. She gave them gold and jewelry to distract them, but they were jealous and angry that they didn't have a life like hers. She sends them away on a breeze and they decide to not tell their parents she's alive, and to find a way to get back at her for her arrogance. 

Psyche's Husband Warns Her - The sisters hid her gifts and plotted to murder her. Her husband warns her that she is in danger and they are plotting by tempting her to see what he looks like. He reminds her that if she does, she'll never see him again. He tells her if she keeps their secret, they will have a child. She becomes pregnant, and her husband warns her that the sisters are coming. She again pledges her loyalty to him, and asks him to let her see her sisters.

Fears and Doubts - The sisters come and pretend to flatter her, they tell her if the baby takes after its father it will be a Cupid. They ask questions about her husband. She makes up . new story about him, gives them more gifts and sends them away. The sisters realize that she may not know what he looks like, so he must be a god, and may give birth to a deity. They go back and tell her that her husband is a serpent, reminding her of the oracle's prophecy. They tell her that he'll devour her after she has the baby. She admits that she has never seen her husband's features and asks them to help her.They give her a blade and a plan to sneak out of bed, turn on an oil lamp and sever his head. They promise to come help her escape with his treasures afterwards.

Psyche's Husband Revealed - Psyche implements the plan and reveals her husband to find handsome Cupid asleep in the bed. He tells her that he disobeyed his mother by shooting himself with one of his own arrows and falling in love with her, instead of making a wretched creature love her. He tells her he will get revenge on her sisters, and punishes her by leaving.

Psyche's Despair - Psyche goes to the river and Pan happens to be there. He tries to soothe her by telling her instead of suicide she should pray to Cupid. She goes to see one of her sisters and tells her what happened, but adds that he said he was going to embrace the sister and threw her out of the palace. The sister immediately makes up a story to tell her husband, goes to the cliffs and tells Cupid she is there to be his wife. She falls to her death. Psyche tells the other sister the same story, and she has the same fate.

Notes for me: The Beautiful Lady Ann (Panther) as Psyche. I haven't really worked all the details yet. I think I need to do reading B before I'll know where my story needs to go. 

"Cupid and Psyche" from The Golden Ass by Apuleius. Web Source.