Many of you are familiar by now with my play; The Greater Granguer, featuring Rolf and Egon. Well, many of you also know that I had mentioned once before that I would be converting my play into an actual series.
The series itself is Historical-Fiction with tethers to Greek mythology and Norse mythology. So without further a dew, I present to you a sneak peak from the starting process of The Clandestine Power (the first book).
THE CLANDESTINE SOVEREIGN POWER:
The errand boy rushed down the halls of the vast Neoclassical auditorium towards the chairman’s head office. Swiping any strands of disheveled hair back into place, passing various etchings and sculptures of Greek Phidias and Pericles Two soldiers stationed outside the chairman’s office gave him a nod and opened the doors for the errand boy. Fixed his suit and tie, steadying his shaky hands holding the letter of importance and stepped into the office. The doors closed behind him. The office was bigger than he had thought. There were multiple other rooms and various display cases. Paintings worth fortunes hung and framed. The middle of the office was a vast lounge area with a couch and coffee table. The Chairman was there, center of the room nursing a whiskey and staring into the mantle above the fireplace.
“Is It done?” The chairman sipped his beverage, licking his lips. The errand boys’ throat caught from excitement and restrained giddiness.
“Yes.” He walked up to the back of the Chairman.
“Everything has been taken care of sir, we can proceed.” The errand boy clutched the letter in his hands, excitement bubbling in his stomach. The Chairman stood cold and glaring into the fireplace.
“And the letter?” He spared a small glance in which the boy excitedly waved in his face.
“All set. Just need to address it and send it to the post!” A wicked smile spread from ear to ear, eyes glinting with mischief and an unrestrained thirst that even the Chairman seemed uneasy.
The Chairman directed his attention outside of the grand window at his left. Outside was the grand courtyard and beyond were the lights of the city of Schillerplatz. The perfect playground for a perfect new constitution. A bowl on intelligence and creativity, and the Academy of the Fine Arts of Vienna was its center, the piece that tied it all together. The Chairman smirked to his own reflection in the glass.
“Grab a pen.” He turned back to the errand boy.
“So, who are we rejecting?” That wicked, sadistic smile returned. Clicking the pen, hovering over the white broad surface of the letter face.
“To one, Adolf Hitler…”
Germany,
1941.
END
Please note that I do want your feedback on this attention grabber of the first book. If there’s too much or too little of anything and your own personal thoughts on what you think so far! Thank you guys for reading!
I’m kind of really really struggling with these sonnets and the haibums and I do not fully understand why? Not much of an intro today because i’ve got writing in my brain and mhm mhm but anyways. I started the sonnets, like, the day we got them (kind of?) I knew that I wanted a sonnet about like love language and wtv so I could already have it for my coffee house in a few weeks but then I’m faced with questions like “what is my love language?” or “how do I feel most loved?” which, obviously, will not be ever put Into the sonnet but.. like? And of course for a free-verse poem I could do that anyways, but I digress. Not the point of this. What I’m struggling with is the sonnets. I’ve tried to write them in the past, for either school assignments or the requirement to get into MSA or just on my own time, and I’ve only made ONE ever that I actually liked. I don’t like admitting that I feel like I’m a bad writer, or that im struggling with something, or those on and off days where I feel like I don’t even want to write anymore because I have a writers block or I feel like I’m not good enough, but structured poems REALLY just grab that and dangle it infront of my face and go “ha ha!!! You cant write me you cant write me!!” and if I could punch a sonnet I swear on the entire junior literary class that I would.
I do understand a little bit why sonnets are so hard for me. I look at, in the case of a shaksperian sonnet, the 7 syllable lines and the specific rhyme scheme and I do actually hate it. It stresses me out and I can’t be fully creative that way. When people who aren’t used to rhyming try to rhyme they end up, in most of what I’ve seen, forcing it. They have this original concept at the beginning of the poem, like the first two lines, but then comes the past where you have to rhyme and you cant use the word that you want so you have to find and substitute it for another, and trying to match that same rhyme scheme you end up putting another random string of words together that doesn’t make sense at all, all up until you lose the original plot of the poem all together and its just a mess. If I wasn’t writing this on my laptop then I would definitely plug the sonnet I used to apply to MSA, which is a perfect example of this in action, and is the specific sonnet that ruined all sonnets for me. I recently did an analysis of it and it actually made me want to hit things. Very violent. Like, The Romans level violent over these sonnets. Slash Jay.
I try to combat this with like, ignoring the ends of lines.. if that makes sense. Like, i try to carry the sentence over to the next line so I can SAY as much as I want and not feel like what I’m writing is blocky and closed off and a mess. I’ve been working on it, by ignoring the rules of sonnets (a little bit) and then cutting it up to fit sonnet style… I literally do not know. Being told that I have a certain amount of time, or a certain set of this a I have to do a certain thing is the quickest way to put me into a writers block. And I HATE being told ‘just write!!” and that’s all I’m given. It doesn’t help. My writers block comes from not having stimulating enough ideas and then not knowing the words to say this how I want to. If I “just write” it ends up looking like “Amy walked to the store. She needed milk and eggs for her cake.” And suddenly I’m turned into those writing problems that they test 1st graders with. No thank you.
Sometimes, to help with writers block, I pick an OC and I go “okay. What does this person like?” For my OC Halo, he does pottery and photography and a little bit a gardening. “How do these things connect?” Halo could, like, I don’t know, be walking out by a stream. He’s taking pictures by this creek and he finds a whole bunch of clay. He grabs all of the clay and goes home and makes a vase out of it for the flowers he gardens. There! I have a full little short story of an entire character and it’s just so cutesy and he’s getting his alone time. Then I like, double or triple or quadruple this to contain my full cast of characters (2 of which are a 2in1) and then, boom. Short story. Except I haven’t yet realized how to turn this into like an actual story with actual, real plot yet. Usually it’s just dilly dallying. Whatever. That’s the end of this blog about me complaining about not knowing how to write, little bit of venting, then trying to answer my own questions. This is really different from that I normally do, and I’m kind of super not happy with this but I’m so stressed it’s all I can manage. Do you guys have any actual writing tips? Or any ways to get out of writers block that I somehow haven’t stumbled across in my years on pinterest? Please, guys, I am DESPERATE.
Are you ready for the psychology yap I have for you… 🙂
(I have been reading my psychology books. 😌)
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The present feels like an active recording, a live archive, but memory is like a story we keep rewriting. We like to believe our minds store events perfectly, what someone said, what we wore, who stood where, but the truth is far messier. Our memories shift, warp, and sometimes betray us. The strangest part? They’re not failing. They’refunctioning exactly as designed.
Memory Isn’t a File Cabinet. It’s a Reconstruction.
When we remember something, we aren’t pulling out a file. We’re rebuilding the moment from scratch every single time. Your brain takes fragments, emotions, sensory impressions, expectations and recreates the event.
Think of it like sketching a scene from memory. The lines drift a little. The drawing becomes its own version of the truth because it’s your truth.
This is why two people can witness the same event and swear on their lives that it unfolded differently. Both are convinced. Both are wrong in some way.
Emotions Rewrite What Happened
Moments packed with emotion leave the strongest impressions, but also the most distorted ones.
Fear makes events feel longer. Embarrassment magnifies tiny details. Grief blurs time together like wet paint. Nostalgia softens edges until everything’s a little unreal.
Your brain isn’t trying to deceive you. It’s trying to make sense of the experience. It highlights what mattered most to you emotionally, not what actually happened.
The memory becomes a story shaped by feeling rather than fact.
We Fill in the Gaps Without Noticing
No matter how vivid a moment feels, there are always missing pieces. We don’t record every color, every sound, every exact phrase. So, the brain fills in the blanks automatically.
Sometimes it pulls from:
our expectations
similar past events
things people told us later
details we wish had happened
You barely notice when your brain “auto-completes” these gaps. The finished memory feels solid and whole, even if half of it was guessed.
Other People’s Stories Infect Our Own
Retelling an event is one of the fastest ways to distort it.
Each time you explain a moment to someone:
you cut parts
exaggerate others
reorder events
use words that weren’t originally in your head
Over time, the polished version becomes the only version you remember. And when other people tell their version, your memory quietly absorbs their details too.
It’s how a memory becomes a collaboration. This is often why a lot of old folk stories seem so crazy.
Time Gets Rid of What Doesn’t Fit the Narrative
We like our lives to make sense. So, memories evolve to match the story we believe about ourselves.
If you think of yourself as cautious, the risks you once took stand out. If you think of someone as cruel, your memories of them focus on their worst moments. If you think of a time as “happier,” the sad parts fade until they’re almost gone.
Memory aligns itself with identity.
So Is Any Memory Real?
Yes, but not as a photograph. More like a painting touched up again and again. They shift and warp. Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper is a supreme visual example as it has been touched up for hundreds of years to the point its only half the original.
Remembering wrong isn’t a flaw. It’s a sign that your brain is alive, interpreting, learning, and adapting. It means you’re a person who connects events together and tries to make sense of your own story.
In the end, memory isn’t about perfect accuracy. It’s about meaning.
(TRIGGER WARNING: a VERY brief mention of abuse, Everything that goes along with the Medusa Myth (Sexual Assault), and generally just stuff that happens in Greek mythology. Please read at your own risk.)
This is going to be a very very unorganized post about how to properly interpret myths, or at least the way EYE interpret myths because that is the only possible correct way because I am always right and everyone should listen to me!
READ THE OLDEST VERSION OF THE MYTH.
A LOT of myths have lost their meanings over time, including figures throughout the story, meanings, details that change the ENTIRETY of the myth, they’ve been romanized (heracles/Hercules, and MEDUSA, for example), or they’ve been changed to fit perspectives for modern retellings (Icarus, Hades and Persephone, the Minotaur… ect, ect.) A good rule of thumb (not-so-fun fact: the term ‘rule of thumb’ comes from either an old law or just a general rule from the olden days, when women were more objects than people, that a husband could not beat his wife with a switch thicker than his thumb, lest it be unlawful/cruel (more cruel than unlawful)) is to just look for the oldest version you can find, because that’s. like. The source material, and you can do whatever you want with that.
I’m going to go over a few (ish) myths and MY interpretations of them, vs. what people get wrong in general.
My personal favorite: The Myth of Icarus
(I had to give my girl a shirt, but this is my FAVORITE piece of icarus. it’s called Icarus’ lament, or the lament of icarus or something like that. It’s so good. Please look it up.)
People LOVE to throw my boy’s good name around when talking about a fall from greatness, or your ‘pride getting the best of you’. I hate this. I actually despise this.
The myth of Icarus (Ἴκαρος (Ikaros) is his original name. Fun Fact: Greeks did not have a letter for C. they used S or K. Be more like the greeks.) follows a young boy, who people depict being from literally age 8 to 17. The only source I could find that could possibly talk about his age said he was 7, but it was also a deepdive into how the myth of Icarus relates to gaming and how we should all play valorant because of it. I’ll pass.0
Icarus’ father, Deadalus, was a great inventor trapped in a tower by king Minos, ruler of Crete, because something something labyrinth, something something Minotaur. Don’t care. Irrelevant (extremely relevant). Long story short, Daedalus fashions wings of feathers and wax, a pair for both him and icarus, and he and Icarus jump from the top of the tower to escape. They manage to fly with the wings. it’s more like gliding but I digress. He tells icarus not to fly too close to the sun or too close to the sea, because the wax would melt or the wings would get too heavy to fly with.
This, of course, is where the myth splits off. Most Greek myths are cautionary tales, yes, to warn of the Gods’ wrath. Fire. Love to see it. The most common telling of this myth is that, when Icarus gets out there, he gets so excited and overcome with joy for being free that he feels like a god. He looks at the sun and flies to it, believing that he is better than the gods. He scorns them. But as he flies to the sun the wax begins to melt and he falls, laughing the whole time. He dies, and Daedalus had to keep flying knowing that his son has died. This is a cautionary tale to warn against believing you are better than the gods, “flying too close to the sun” aka aiming too high and falling hard. It warns against hubris and unchecked ambition.
That’s literally not what happens. That’s the ROMAN version of the myth. Ancient Romans ruin everything.
What REALLY happened (Homer told me guys, trust) is that, while Icarus was flying, he was so overcome with joy that he felt the best he ever had. That’s, like, it. However, while Daedalus warns him not to fly too high or too low, he also warns Icarus not to fly too slow. The sky is like the gods’ airspace. They’ll be really mad. Daedalus was right, of course, because Zeus sees them flying and gets REALLY mad. He sees Icarus being happy, sure, but it’s Daedalus who has violated him and the gods by fashioning those wings. Zeus, set out to punish Daedalus, either gets Aphrodite to curse Icarus or Zeus does it himself.
They curse him to fall in love with the sun.
“IT’S GAY!!” I scream as they drag me to the padded room. “IT’S ALWAYS GAY!!” I scream as they put me in the straight jacket.
Not only is the sun, like, a male god (Both Apollo, the god of the sun, and Helios, the embodiment of the sun, are male) but that has NOTHING to do with pride. Icarus flies up to the sun, because he’s enchanted by it’s beauty and in love or whatever, and eventually crashes and burns and dies. The end!! Proper punishment for his father, because he, like, still has to live with knowing his son’s death is his fault AND fly back alone. This is me paraphrasing like crazy, the actual myth is incredibly beautiful, but this is a LOT of words as is.
Next myth, actual most popular: Medusa.
(I cannot find a picture of a statue of her that isn’t her beheaded, naked, being attacked, or AI. I am so sorry. However, the most popular statue of her is one where she’s been beheaded by perseus, and it’s SO beautiful. one of the pieces i’d love to see in real life one day. An artist made a parody of it where Medusa is holding perseus’ head as well and it’s just beautiful art. Beautiful art. oh em gosh.)
She was a gorgon. She was. Like. Born a gorgon.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I LOVE the Medusa myth. I love how we have, in modern times, changed it to make it better and more heartwarming. Pretty sure everyone knows the Medusa Myth. Poseidon, in his anger towards Athena and in some tellings after rejection of his advancements by the virgin priestess of athena, medusa, begins chasing after the priestess. Medusa, in fear, runs to temple of Athena and begins praying for protection, but Poseidon enters and sexually assaults her anyways. Athena, having been prayed to, sees this and curses Medusa to be a gorgon who turns anyone who looks at her to stone.
That’s a really horrible myth, and Medusa has become a symbol of sexual assault survivors worldwide. That, however, is the ROMAN version of the myth. Again. The writer of that myth was a man, who I’m pretty sure was post cathlioc takeover of rome, who wanted to scorn paganism in all forms by depicting all of the Greek gods in horrible ways. Like Athena punishing one of her own priestesses for being assaulted. Or Poseidon raping a woman. Though, I personally enjoy the modern telling of the myth as well, In which Athena sees what man does to woman uses the “Curse” more like a blessing, allowing Medusa to protect herself. And, in the original telling either way, Medusa’s ability only worked on men or whatever.
The GREEK version, though, she was just born a gorgon. And could turn people to stone. She had, like, two gorgon sisters. Perseus really killed her for points. The ability still worked only on men, though.
That’s two myths of, like, four that I mentioned? You get the rest next week. Bye bye!!! PLEASE ask me questions, literally ANY question!!!! I HEART INFODUMPING!!!!
Nature is full of beauty—lush greenery, vibrant flowers, and aromatic herbs—but some of the most stunning plants conceal a deadly secret. Poisonous plants can be found in gardens, forests, and even inside your house. While many of these plants have fascinating histories and medicinal properties, they can also cause severe illness—or worse—if handled or ingested improperly.
One of the most infamous toxic plants is the Oleander. With its elegant pink or white blossoms, oleander is often used as an decorative shrub. However, every part of the plant—from its leaves to its sap—is poisonous. Ingesting even a SMALL amount can cause heart irregularities, nausea, and in extreme cases, death. Despite its danger, oleander remains popular for its beauty.
Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea), Its tall stalks of bell-shaped flowers add charm to cottage gardens, yet the plant contains powerful compunds. Historically, these compounds were used to make a heart medication, but in unregulated doses, they can cause vomiting, confusion, and fatal heart problems. Foxglove demonstrates how thin the line between poison and medicine can be.
Nightshade (Atropa belladonna), also known as “deadly nightshade,” has a dark and storied reputation. In ancient times, women used drops made from its berries to dilate their pupils, which was considered beautiful—hence the name belladonna, meaning “beautiful lady.” Unfortunately, the same alkaloids that cause this effect can also lead to paralysis, hallucinations, and death. Its infamy has earned it a place in folklore and witchcraft legends for centuries.
Even popular and familiar plants can pose risks. Lily of the Valley, often associated with purity and springtime, contains toxins that can disrupt heart function. Philodendrons, common houseplants, contain calcium oxalate crystals that can irritate the mouth and throat if chewed. Rhubarb leaves, though attached to a beloved pie ingredient, are laced with oxalic acid and can be harmful in large amounts.
Understanding which plants are poisonous is crucial! especially for pet owners and parents of young children. Many cases of accidental poisoning occur simply because someone didn’t realize a beautiful flower could be harmful.
In the end, poisonous plants remind us of nature’s dual nature—both nurturing and dangerous. Their elegance conceals potency, their beauty a perfect disguise. Treat them with respect and caution, and they’ll remain what they are meant to be, mesmerizing marvels of the natural world.
I don’t really know what to do for this blog, and I’ve been mulling it over for a few days, so I decided. Hey. Let me talk about myself!! I like doing that.
I hate to say something like “the world revolves around romance” or “all everyone ever thinks about is boys/girls” because, while that may be true, it kind of doesn’t reflect my experiance as a person. It’s a quick way to say that I don’t like hearing about romance, I guess. I just don’t agree with putting people who experiance romantic attraction down and suggest they’re childish or stupid for feeling that way and wanting to be loved.
With today’s current culture the world does very much revolve around love. Which is a cute thought, at first, until you realize it’s not so much of “love” and more of “lets tell little girls that the only way they’ll ever be something is if they’re loveable, and tell little boys that the only way they’ll ever be something is if they can provide and protect” and other gender expectations that are just… weird. Throw in a little purity culture, other gender stereotypes, beauty standards, mix it all together then you get, and I am REALLY dumbing this down to not include queer dating culture just yet, girls who don’t feel like they’re enough and boys who feel like they could do better. Or, sometimes, vice versa. The world a little bit revolves around who’s dating who, and it doesn’t so much as make me uncomfortable as much as it makes me sad. I’ve seen people I genuinely love and care about go to extremes because they dug a hole for themselves and now they’re not the same person I knew three weeks ago.
I’ve had people tell me that I just “wouldn’t understand” and that I should “stop talking about something you’ll never experiance” which, ouch. I don’t feel romantic attraction, but that doesn’t mean I’m incapable of loving people. I just don’t really get the hype about finding someone to date, I guess? I joke a lot, and I can say i’ve been influenced to feel like I can only have “the one” and like???? ???? I won’t be correct unless I have someone who loves ME, who wants to date ME, ect. I guess that’s just me being greedy or idk.
I don’t really understand the whole actively look for someone to date thing, i’m gonna be so honest. It confuses me when i meet people and they only talk about people they find hot, or pretty, or want to date. It frustrates me when i see my friends genuinely being upset, angry, pushing people away, then hurting themselves because of someone else not liking them. I genuinely had a friend come to me and say “no one loves me, no one has ever loved me”. I told her i loved her and she told me “That’s not the same.” and i just dont get it. How is it not the same? Whats the difference between romantic and platonic affection? The only way i’ve seen it is that it’s socially acceptable to kiss a romantic partner and not a platonic. Other than that i don’t have a clue. Why do people talk to date and not talk to be friends? Am i crazy? It makes me FEEL crazy every time someone talks about it, so i just avoid the subject.
Whichhhhhh is why I’m so happy with the Aromantic label. I’m fine with a romantic relationship, great with one, even, but the queer community is a diverse place with lots of people who feel the same or similar ways and it’s so, so fun. I’m not going to go into a bunch of detail on different terms, but i found one that kind of just sums up my experience with somehow (????) convincing myself REGULARLY that i have a crush on people, when i definitely do NOT.
The term is “squish”, and it’s like the aromantic version of a crush. Crushes are when you want to be closer to date someone and a squish is that but “I REALLY want to be that person’s friend.” And i get that soooo much. If anyone has had a conversation with me i promise that I’ve mentioned like 5 people that i think i talk about like i’m a little insane and i SWEAR im not it’s just i really really wanna be their friend!!!
That’s enough of that, because i’m sleepy and writing this superrr late because i forgot to in class, so kiss kiss!!!!!! And i’ll see about like actually posting something informational next time we have blogs
V Flower, often stylized as v4 flower or simply Flower, stands out in the Vocaloid world as one of the most distinctive virtual singers. Released by Yamaha and developed by Gynoid Co., Flower made their debut in 2014 for the Vocaloid 3 engine, later receiving an upgraded Vocaloid 4 version in 2015. What sets Flower apart from other Vocaloids is their powerful, androgynous voice and their association with high-energy rock and alternative genres—making them an icon of defiance and individuality within the Vocaloid community.
Flower’s design reflects their persona: bold, sharp, and expressive. Their original appearance features white hair with black streaks, a dark, punk-inspired outfit, and a choker that emphasizes their rebellious aesthetic. Later designs, especially for their V4 and CeVIO AI releases, evolved their image into a more futuristic and nonbinary style. This design evolution mirrors their vocal versatility.
Unlike other Vocaloid’s designed to sound cute or traditionally feminine, Flower’s voice sits in a gender-neutral range, filled with roughness and passion. This unique tune has made their particularly popular among producers who want to convey deep emotional intensity or themes of frustration and self-expression. Their voice captures both the beauty and chaos of teenage angst, resonating with listeners who crave authenticity over perfection.
Flower gained widespread recognition through popular songs on Niconico and YouTube, such as “Error” by niki, “Goodbye Declaration” by Chinozo, and “Doll” by Niru Kajitsu, “Lower ones eyes” by Lanndo. These songs highlight their ability to convey both power and vulnerability, with lyrics often exploring identity, loss, and rebellion. “Error,” in particular, became a defining anthem for their—its mix of despair and beauty perfectly encapsulates what makes Flower special. Many fans connect with the emotional depth Their voice brings.
Beyond their sound, Flower has become a symbol of androgyny and individuality. Their design and vocal tone challenge gender norms, inspiring a wide range of interpretations and fan art that celebrate their fluid identity. As Vocaloid technology continues to evolve, Flower remains a beloved figure for their raw emotion, expressive energy, and fearless voice. They represent not just music, but the idea that even artificial voices can express most human feelings.
Flower is a big inspiration for many people, in many ways. Gender identity, musical charm, etc. Flower is a beloved character in the Vocaloid world. Flower is discovered by someone new every day and then they are introduced to a whole new world.
Aphrodite, her name meaning “from the seafoam”, is the Greek goddess of love, beauty, passion, pleasure, lust, among other things. She is a fiercely protective deity, a majority of her myths relating to protecting her children and guiding them.
As you can probably guess, her birth was from seafoam. I believe everyone has seen “The Birth of Venus” by Sandro Botticelli, a painting in which a beautiful woman rises nude from a seashell.
Well, yep. This is the birth of Venus, Aphrodite’s Roman variant. The birth story, and overall creation myth, is typically the same between the two groups. No standing on chairs or shedding genuine tears this week, guys.
Aphrodite’s birth is one that I enjoy a lot, but it has quite a bit of misconception around it. In Hesiod’s account, Aphrodite was born when Kronos castrated his father, Uranus. There was this whole thing with the Titans holding the primordial beings’ legs and arms, while taking a scythe and yada yada yada. Not important. What is important is that when they were done doing the do Kronos, this big genius, threw the separated bits into the ocean. The blood of a primordial being (and in some version other excretions as well) mixed with seafoam and ocean water and boom! We got a goddess of beauty!
(This I really like, because literal BEAUTY and LOVE came from a guy’s junk being cut off. More specifically blood from a violent, necessary act mixing with another primordial force.. Greek Mythology is so chaotic and then such good things, like the mother of eros, THE god of love, come out of it.)
Well, we technically got her a long time after that. Some myths suggest that she was actually residing in the ocean for a long time, which would make sense. She needs time to mature, because like she was still born at some point, just like the goddess Athena (though where Athena got her armor is beyond me). She was born during the time in which Kronos overthrew his father, but there is a long time between that and Zeus throwing over his father. Theres a lot of dads eating their kids in Greek mythology. Seriously. Like it happens a LOT.
Aphrodite actually spent a long time in the ocean, even after the Olympian gods were like.. coming into power??? Question mark question mark question mark??? Look I never claimed to be an expert (don’t listen to anything Nick says). There is a myth around the early days of the Olympian gods’ rule, before they became the Olympians, that goes something like Poseidon had a lover Nerites, a young sea-god. He was also known as Poseidon’s charioteer, or the guy that drove him around. In other versions of his myth he was a lover of Aphrodite (potentially he was both), who refused to go with her when she was invited to Olympus. Which, she only really rose from the seafoam WHEN she was invited. Both versions of Nerites’ myth ends with him being turned in to THE first shellfish, though in his myth where he is the lover of Poseidon (because the gods were raging bisexuals, the lot of them) the god of requited love was actually born from.. their love. I guess. In other myths Anteros, the God of requited love and avenger of unrequited love, is a child of Aphrodite and Ares.
(This is like THE statue of Poseidon btw)
(NERITEs was turned into a NERITE snail i actually havent ever seen any pictures of the snail he was turned into this is great)
While, yes, she did rise fully grown from the seafoam (it would be weird if the incarnation of pleasure and sex rose from the ocean as a child, would it not?) she actually spent quite a bit of time in the sea, and there are several myths involving her IN the sea. Love my girl. Aphrodite you mean so much to me. That’s this week’s blog, I SWEAR I’ll get back to the ATLA blogs soon guys I miss them Greek mythology is driving me insane
It’s exactly as the title states. For this blog, I decided to take a break from The Witcher and instead do a small breather so I thought it would be fun to try and blog from my phone. Needless to say, it’s really weird. BUT! You can upload more media from your phone this way.
The screens a little cramped and the words a lot bigger and easier to see. But what may throw some of you for a loop is the navigation to get to this page to start a blog. It took me a moment but I figured it out. (Clearly)
another thing is that the big edit box is just dangling above your screen the whole time instead of you having to scroll up on your desktop or laptop to click italics or bold something, you get the idea.
The biggest issue I can see with this is the fast typing. I type way faster on my phone than I do any computer or device. So I’m trying to be real careful of grammar and spelling mistakes, but thankfully auto correct seems to like me today.
(This may not have been the longest blog, but since we had to listen to the play, I decided to just go ahead and use my phone that way I’m not alternating between devices-)
I honestly recommend trying it out once, it’s kinda neat.
Greek mythology is my special interest, and I’m okay to admit that now. I remember when I first heard about it, I was probably six or seven and had just watched that horrendous Percy Jackson movie with my mom. I then, somehow, got my grubby little paws on a device and googled the only name I really remembered: Athena.
This opened a whole world for me to explore, with things that happened over two thousand years ago that I never thought could exist! There were multiple gods that I was introduced to, hundred of stories and names and places and even animals to learn about and experience and I was excited. I then remember my teacher, Mrs. Young from East Flora, asking my pathways class “what do you want to learn about?”
I had the conscious thought, then. “I can’t teach this to myself.” I knew that I would need to have someone else guide me and tell me who, what, when, where, etc. So, I suggested we learn about Greek Mythology. She loved the idea, and so for the next two months we studied different (age appropriate) myths, built The Parthenon out of toilet paper rolls and masking tape, learned names and correlations, we even looked a little bit into the stars and constellations!
I’m extremely thankful to my teacher, then. I’m glad there was an adult who asked what I wanted to learn, instead of teaching me what she was told to. I had an amazing gateway to Greek Mythology, even if the original source wasn’t so good. So today I want to talk about good, acceptable sources for younger kids to get into Greek mythology, and a few good ways I’ve expanded my knowledge of it as I’ve gotten older.
First and foremost: Percy Jackson
When talking about Greek Mythology in media, Percy Jackson is the first place my brain goes to. It has wonderful modern adaptations of the Gods into an easy to digest, true-to-myth form. The intepretaions of each god that Rick portrays is almost always interesting, fun, and doesn’t take away from the original concept of each god. While in the first series Rick does make some.. choice mistakes, especially regarding the myth of Medusa, he manages to fix his mistakes in a way that doesn’t completely override any horrible storyline.
Percy Jackon, a young boy and the demigod son of Poseidon, is being hunted by called by Mount Olympus and the Olympian Gods, as Zeus’ weapon, the lightning bolt, is missing; They believe he is the thief, when he didn’t even know that he was a demigod until, like, a week before. This book, and the following books, explores Percy’s story in navigating familiar and unfamiliar myths (Some I hadn’t even heard of until I read the books when I was fourteen!)
Overall, the series is one of my favorites. As a gateway into further interest in Greek Mythology all one has to do is consider that his is a children’s book and has to be dumbed down or explained differently for entertainment purposes. 10/10.
Second: The Song of Achillies (And other works by Madeline Miller)
Madeline Miller is such a talented author, from her writing style to how well she captures the parts of myths that we don’t really see. It’s true that we have little, if any, information on Circe besides what is gathered within the Odyssey, even though she is a recurring figure throughout several myths. Consider Madeline Miller’s work as a sort of in-between, and an amazing one at that. Her storytelling with the upbringing of Patroclus is so beautifully told, especially since he is a figure often overlooked despite being so pivotal for Achillies’ story in the Iliad. With both of her books being a kind of in-between, it is entirely possible to read them and get into Greek Mythology that way, by exploring three characters deeply then going into the much broader myths.. even if the ending of Circe is quite odd. Her books are such a creative take on the Iliad and a telling of Circe’s story that I will always ALWAYS recommend these books to people. 10/10
Third: EPIC THE MUSICAL
Just like the last section, Epic the Musical is written and directed (? I’m not sure, I don’t know musicals or music in general) Jorge Rivera-Herrans, which released over two years, each song coming out one at a time from 2022 through to 2024. The musical follows Odysseus, using wonderful modern storytelling to re-tell the odyssey in way it’s meant to be told. I genuinely have no words for how good this musical is. The only complaint I have about it is that, well, Odysseus does cheat on his wife. Sorry not sorry. Greeks had much different standards than we do today.
That being said, I have NOT touched on some of the.. worse ways people have gotten into greek mythology cough Lore Olympus cough cough really bad webtoon cough cough ANYWAYS!!!!!
This is the end of the blog!!! I hope everyone has a wonderful week!! If anyone else likes Greek mythology, how did you discover it? and let me know if you’d want to learn anything about Greek mythology because I know TOO much!!! Blog ideas are welcomed because I need them, lol.
