Blog purpose, beginnings

I'm taking a class at University of Pennsylvania on Coursera. It's on Greek and Roman mythology.

Through my travels in life, I've developed a love of mythology. Part of it's the Jungian psychological aspect, some of it's the love of antiquity, and some of it came about because my son got into the novels of Rick Roiordan. I've read about 7 of the 10 novels with ancient Greek and Roman themes. My son needs to give me the 8th one for me to read that one. He keeps forgetting.

Some of it comes from the influence of Sangharakshita, who's writings have opened me up to the ideas of so many things. The idea that paganism and other spiritual traditions that were stomped by Christianity might hold some keys to ourselves.

I've recently read Madeline Miller's The Song of Achilles, and quite enjoyed it. I've read Mary Renault's work, and one of my favorite books is Courtesans and Fishcakes: The Consuming Passions of Classical Athens.

I took classes on ancient Greek philosophy with Terrance Penner at the University of Wisconsin in the 80's. He studied at Oxford, among others with Gilbert Ryle, who is famous for coining the phrase ghost in the machine, which Sting borrowed.

Finally I'm writing about this because I've got a bit of an existential crisis, and I've found that taking classes really helps me to keep my mind alive.

The class starts June 8th, and I've decided to try and keep ahead of the syllabus. And I've been reading The Odyssey.

Reading the first two chapters, my question is what is Penelope doing to keep these guys around. If she walked around for a day puking on herself and urinating on herself she could drive these guys away. I wonder if she likes all the attention and having been single for 10 years and again yearning for the company of a man.

I wonder if people spoke in speeches in those days. I feel like I can't get through a paragraph before someone interrupts me.

What does it tell us about hospitality in those days, that he can't tell these people to buzz off.

I wish I had more visitors, I was more social. I spend a lot of time alone. I suppose when TV and books were not the great things, visitors were more important.

I have to read 38 pages a day to finish the book by the time the class starts. I only read 12 yesterday, and I need to get to p.76 today. I'm only on 26 now. I'm going to have to spend more time on this. When left to my own devises I will not push through. A class helps me to have better follow through.

Of course this sets up all kinds of tendrils of inquiry. I have a graphic novel of the Odyssey to read and there's secondary material, and I never read the Illiad, and there's just so much to read. I'll focus on reading for the class, and if I have spare time I will read around it a little.

I find it interesting that Athena inhabits bodies, and comes unannounced. It reminds me one time I imagine I was going out with the Buddha. What I felt was a woosh of compassion.

I wonder what an updated polytheism of ancient Greek gods would look like. I wonder at Battlestar Galactica's future version.