My Readings of 2020

 I'll be honest. I don't read a lot of books, and I know I'm not alone. It's not that I dislike reading, it's that I dislike reading books. Something about them turns me off and away. It may be the length of the medium, the boring and old-school ink on paper style, or just that I haven't found one on a topic intriguing and interesting enough to me. 

What I opt out for instead are videos and podcasts. Videos aren't boring. They provide visual stimulation that, if used correctly, can help aide the text in delivering its message across. This visual stimulation can create a resounding and impactful crater in the mind. Compared to staring at black and white texts, imagery holds great power that can excel one in their respective thought. Podcasts are intriguing. Rather than focusing on a string of texts, podcasts drive food for thought into your mind. The concepts and discussions that your ear picks up can lead to wonderfully fruitful thoughts and conclusions. When I drive, I never play music anymore. Instead, I play a YouTube video on some topic that I'd like to hear more about, or a podcast from a few individuals chiming in and giving their thoughts. There's just so many advantages to these alternatives rather than reading. That's why I prefer them over the old bind and paper.

There's Just Something Better To Listening Than Reading- At Least For Me

However, when I'm forced to via college curriculum, then the story is different. 

Bresnan, Patrick. Awakening: An Introduction to the History of Eastern Thought. Routledge, 2018.

• A mandatory textbook for HUM320, sweeping through tons of primary and secondary sources regarding Asian philosophy, religion, way of life, and much more. This book focuses and zooms in on India, China, and Japan with great detail. Introducing concepts and ideologies accompanied with anecdotes and sprinkles of humor, Bresnan's work serves as an excellent backbone to the curriculum.

Ferrell, O. C., et al. Business. McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2011.

• A mandatory textbook for BUS300. This text covers the general basis and an introduction to business, including entrepreneurship, management, human resources, marketing, and financing. It makes for a great beginner's guide and gives a memorable summary to the business world.

Hawley, Jack. The Bhagavad Gita: a Walkthrough for Westerners. New World Library, 2011.

• A translation of the classic and world famous Ancient Hindu scripture. Hawley's translation is very direct and simple, not obstructing the purposes and full shine of the texts. It's filled with intriguing concepts and philosophy, surrounded by an unforgettable story arc with interesting contexts and characters. A great read for both those looking for both a vivid adventure and some inspiring motivation.

Jacobs, Lynn F. Secrets of College Success. Wiley & Sons, Incorporated, John, 2019.

• A mandatory book for HCD310. This text heavily details plenty of tips and tricks to college in the United States. It includes financial help, mental health tips, studying skills, time management, and much more. Layered with plenty of humor and attractive scripture, this is a must-read for all that are both in college and looking to attend college. A very good all-in-one to the truth about advanced education. I highly recommend this text to all high school seniors, especially those looking to attend college in their next semester.

Kafka, Franz, and A. L. (Albert Lancaster) Lloyd. Metamorphosis. 1946.

• A heartbreaking novel for ENGWR300. This novella tells a story about a man named Gregor Samsa that suddenly wakes up one morning as a giant bug. Gregor, as his family's only source of income, is bound to the bed and requires external help. As we progress along the story, we can see the slow decay of the family's care and love for Samsa, due to him changing from a supplier to a burden. At the end, Samsa curls up and dies in a cold corner, as the family gradually forgets about him and moves forward with their lives. It's a very heart-pulling story and gives room to develop commentary about the natural greed of mankind, and how innately we are all still primed for instinctual survival, not the weakness of our hearts. 

What Could Waking Up As A Bug Mean, Figuratively? 

Da Project!!!

For the final project in this class, I was paired up with Nikki and Anny on our attempt at covering the theme of religion. What I liked the best about the project were the nice refreshing touchups back to our first modules. It felt good to go back and review what we've learned, apply our theme to it, and wrap it all up into our project. I personally put in about four hours into this project, from finding sources by going back to texts and videos to snip those useful bits, to processing the information and presenting it how I think it's best shown. 

A Look Behind

At the beginning of this semester, I felt a wide variety of emotions ranging from fear, anxiety, nervousness, to excitement, happiness, and pride. Honestly, I still feel the same way. However, the first week in humanities was very memorable to me. This, to my schedule, was an elective class that I personally chose. I read reviews that the professor was excellent and this was basically the only class that fit my requirement, so I took it. I wanted to learn about Asian culture and traditions, especially Chinese due to my heritage. I didn't necessarily set any goals, but I did expect a good time with a lot of in-depth and intriguing learning about Asian culture. With this expectation, I assumed that the curriculum would be a breeze. Absolute cake walk. Barely feel the workload on my plate, can't wait to start it.

Now, we are at the end of the semester. Did the class meet my expectations? No. The workload hit me like a brick. Soon enough I was miserable, drowning in video vs. text discussions. I barely had time to read the full texts such as the Gita and Bresnan's Awakening, but just enough to fulfill the requirements for the assignments. If I were given more creative and academic freedom along with time to freely dive into the texts, I think this class would've been so much better. Due to my ethnicity, the modules about Ancient China were the most interesting to me. My favourite topics were the Terracotta Army and the process of making silk, which I hadn't known about before this class. Something I did know before this class were the Silk Road, different dynasties of China, and the regional religions. 

What A Wild Ride!