Week 13: Not really famous, but really the LAST words for Fall 2020

So here I am, wrapping up Week 13 because I want the longest possible Thanksgiving break....... and I am actually really happy with how my Storybooks turned out. This was the first time I've done both classes at once and done the two Storybooks, and I am very pleased with both of them. Like always, it's about having faith in the PROCESS: adding stuff week by week so that in the end I am really glad that I was able to find the time and put in the effort. And with this post, the semester is done: 380 points. I'm always amazed that I can find time for the class... and always glad when I do.

The best thing about the Tiny Ramayana Storybook is that it gives me a model to do the web presentation of the Tiny Tale versions of the epics I am writing for Spring semester. I really like using images with the stories, so I will make a website for each epic, 20 pages with 10 stories on each page. I don't know exactly when I will get that done, but that is my goal for Spring: finish the books in times for students to use them, and, if possible, to make a nice website along with the usual book, audiobook, etc.

The best thing about the Twine Games project is that I learned how to do actual programming in Twine with variables and if/then conditions for the final game that I added, the Anansi game. For literally years I had wanted to do that, and this project gave me an excuse to finally get around to that. It was so fun, and it was really not that hard, so I will try to make a Twine game to go with each Tiny Tale book in the future. I don't have time now........... but I will have time after the Spring semester is over.

And it's now been ten days since I announced my decision about resigning from OU after this Spring, and I haven't felt any regrets about that decision. Just the opposite. The more I talk about it with friends and colleagues, the more I can see that there is real work for me to do that is different from my work at OU... work that I think will be more productive and useful to others, even though I will really miss teaching. Every semester has been a GREAT semester. Including this semester, even during the pandemic. And I will hope for a great final semester in the Spring........

And to wrap up this post, here's an awesome and inspiring video that I learned about from a friend just this week: the old folk ballad Tam Lyn made utterly new by Benjamin Zephaniah (lyrics here):

And for a taste of the old ballad, here's a tradition version (lyrics here):

And from Twitter, a great image for helping and being helped. I hope everybody gets the help they need to get through the rest of the semester! :-)

JUST KEEP GOING!