The End

Well, with one class left in the semester, I feel like I should at least get one more blog in before it's all over. This class has been a real eye opener for me and I view the world differently because of it. It's been cool getting all of this new knowledge and whatnot. But there is one point I wanted to make in this post.

Though we covered destruction myths (however briefly), I've noticed that there is rarely a mythological explanation for the end of something. Perhaps this is because most gods are immortal and they rarely have to worry about something coming to an end. Eh, maybe, maybe not. Who knows?

Well it's been a good semester guys. Thanks for all the insight!

A Little Jumble of Everything

So today I had multiple little ideas for a blog but not one that would be long enough to sustain a whole blog so I'll throw in a little taste of all three.

 First off- Left Handed-ness. According to Wikipedia, the Latin word for being left handed is "sinistra" which originally meant left but started to be connected to evil and bad luck. This ties in with our talk of the trickster well because the trickster is rarely ever seen in a positive light.

Next- Herms. Just to let you guys know, if you google "herm" be prepared for a lot of porn. A midst all the porn there were a few picture of herms though. And interestingly enough, Charity drew them very well! This is what a majority of most herms look like.

Finally- My theory as to why the weather has been so weird lately. I'm pretty sure the thermostat in the heavens is broken. That's why we'll have nice 50 degree days one week and then get a few inches of snow the next. Then we revert back and eventually we're all just slopping around in the mud and puddles. I'm not sure how long it will take to fix the thermostat but I hope they fix it soon. This teasing is getting old.

Crowds... not such a good thing

In class on Friday, we talked about the cult of Attis and their strange ritual festival. For those of you that weren't in class, here's a short recap.

1. They go out into the forest and find a tree and decorate it with small carvings of Attis.
2. They take the tree into the city and set it up for the festival.
3. They cut themselves and spatter the blood all over the tree as a sacrifice
4. The males in the group cut off their manhood and beat a statue of Cybele with it.
5. Finally, they run through the streets, throwing the severed manhoods in random doors.

Weird huh? The strange thing about this phenomenon is that effects like this are still present today. What effect? This effect can be called the crowd effect, mob effect, or herd behavior. Basically what happens is people get into a large group and jump around (usually to some sort of high energy music or beat) and psychologically lose themselves in the process. These people may come into a mental state in which they may do things they don't want to do.

A good example of this is Woodstock 1999. In my high school government class, we looked at a video of this (which I can't find). I believe when Korn was singing, this effect took place. Suddenly, everyone started jumping at the same time, in the same rhythm. This doesn't seem like a bad thing, does it? Well, as the effect wore on, many people were raped and some injured and killed. Kinda makes you rethink a mosh pit huh?

Why Babies Cry

Why do babies cry when they come out of the womb? Wouldn't it be nice if they just came out laughing and smiling and doing that cute little gurgling thing they do? But no, they come out looking like aliens and screaming at the top of their lungs.

I did some looking into this subject and a lot of people seem to think that they cry because they are scared, which could very well be true. I believe that babies actually cry because of the fact that the first inflation of the lungs is decently painful, at least that's what I learned in human development. Babies "practice" breathing in the womb but the lungs don't actually inflate until they are filled with oxygen. That's not a very interesting explanation though.
If we looked through the eyes of a baby, how would we see this?

• First off, the baby could be cold. In the womb a baby is almost always 98.6 degrees. How many hospitals are that warm? I can answer that question- not many, at least none that I've ever been in. 
• Secondly, the world is LOUD! If you've been living in a decently quiet place and suddenly you're pushed out into a world with beeping, crying, yelling, talking and bustling around you wouldn't be very happy either.
• The umbilical cord allows for constant nourishment to the baby and all of the sudden it has been sawed off. That's it. No more food. Suck.
• You've been floating around in random fluids for 9 months. Now you're being tossed around from doctor to nurse to other nurses to mom to dad etc etc. Not fun. Talk about motion sickness!

These are just a few things that popped into my head about how I would feel if I had just been born but I guess we'll never know since we can't be born again.

Foot Fetishes Explained

So in class we talked about how someone (I can't remember the name for the life of me) was pierced in the heels by his mom and this resulted in his inability to sexually desire anyone but his mother-- gross. Then we covered another one of Freud's many theories about why weird (and most of the time, disgusting) things happen in the mind.
The connection between the feet and desire reminded me of a book I read for my seminar class last semester called Phantoms of the Brain (really interesting book for anyone looking for a good psychological read!!!!). In Phantoms of the Brain, there is a section covering the "body map" that we all have in our brains.

On the left, you have the body map in it's entirety and on the right, you see the homunculus. I can't fully remember why certain parts of the homunculus are enlarged and others aren't but I think that the bigger the part, the more sensitive it is, but don't quote me on it. The purpose of this map is to show us the relationships between certain parts of the body. The closer the parts on the map, the more closely they're related using sensations such as scratching or tickling.

If you look closely at the body map, you'll notice that the toes are located directly adjacent to the genitals then the rest of the foot is located next to the toes. This explains our theory of the foot fetish! When your genitals experience some sort of sensation, your feet will react in some way as well. Also, this is the reason why foot massages feel so good. If you don't feel weird about yourself right now, I don't know what would make you feel weird!

Fallen Heroes

I think by now we've all had our fair share of hero myths and we know the basic plot inside and out. Through all these myths, I've seen a very obvious trend: the good guy wins.

In our world, we always hope for good things to happen and things to work out but the chances of the good guy winning EVERY time is pretty slim. So what happens when the good guy loses? When bad triumphs over evil? And most importantly, what happens to our fallen heroes? Thoughts?

Athletic Heroes?

So most of you don't know, but some do, that I am totally in love with football. I love the competition, the spirit, the athletic demand, and yes, the players. A classmate recently posted a blog addressing the issue of whether or not athletes should be viewed as heroes (thus giving me the idea to post THIS blog). Saying that athletes shouldn't be heroes seems irrational to me. If you look at our definitions of heroes you'll see that football players fit the bill almost perfectly. Let's go over the checklist shall we?

• Strong- Check. Anyone that says NFL players aren't strong could very well be blind. You can see their muscles even through all the gear they wear and they train 10 to 11 months out of the year. 

• Possessing superior qualities in any given field- Check. Players are the best in the world at what they do. They're fast, strong, strategic, agile, and many other things. Also, when we look at the college level, student athletes are required to uphold a certain grade point average and do a set amount of community service. I realize that not all players go to college before they hit the draft though. 

• Courageous- Check. I think this one is fairly self explanatory. If you willingly put yourself in the line of fire to be hit by another man that is approximately 300 pounds and over 6 feet tall, you're pretty dang brave in my book.
• Noble- Check... mostly. I know that there are exceptions to every rule but I think that for the most part, NFL players have fairly high morals. Though the public constantly focuses on Michael Vick's dog fights and DeSean Jackson's numerous incidents, along with OchoCinco's straight up dumbness, most of the guys are upstanding citizens.

• Fortitude- Check. By definition, fortitude is mental and emotional strength in facing adversity. If this doesn't scream quarterback to you, I don't know what would. When you snap the ball and eleven huge men are doing everything they can to make your face meet the ground, you have to be able to keep it together. You have to think "This is the play, my receivers should be here here and here, what do I do if they aren't etc etc" all in the 3 to 6 seconds that your line can keep you in the pocket. 

• Male- Check. Every definition of hero plainly states that the hero is the leading male. Yes I could look up heroin, yes that would say it would be the leading female, but we're not looking at the Journey Of The Heroin (if there is such a thing). All NFL players must be male so they fit the standard.

This is my take on why athletes can definitely be viewed as heroes in our society. Obviously not everyone is as into football as I am and some couldn't care less and that is perfectly ok. Whether or not you care about football at all, I think you can agree that players meet these standards even if it's not in the totally traditional way.