I’m back with another newsletter! Sorry for missing the past two weeks! I have been out-of-town on vacation and on a retreat this weekend, so I was not able to post a newsletter (even though this was all written multiple weeks ago). It was nice to be able to have a break from posting every week, but at the same time, it is good to be back! Enjoy!
In This Newsletter…
I was wrong about this book!
What were my favorite movies as a kid?
iPadOS 17: The big updates AND the little updates!
Build your own Dominion in this game!
Literary Picks
The Odyssey
Over a month ago, I wrote about how I was dreading reading The Odyssey. Well, after reading the book, I realized I was wrong. I am willing to admit that I was wrong about this book. It isn't my favorite book that I've ever read, but it was much better than my original thoughts about it! Let's just say, for a book written about 3,000 years ago, it is still a good book today! The Odyssey is about a Greek warrior, named Odysseus. After the victory at Troy, he must get home to his house, which has been taken over by suitors, who are plundering his wealth, trying to marry his wife, and wanting to kill his son. Along the way home, Odysseus faces many challenges as the gods seem adamant about keeping him from getting home.
Descriptive language was probably the best element of this book. Homer did a great job describing what was going on in the book through descriptions, analogies, and other elements of literature. Though some of these descriptions were gory, they were effective in helping the reader understand what was going on in the text. Most of the chapters in this book were exciting since they were packed with dialogue, conflict, and a great plot. Another intriguing aspect of The Odyssey is the characters. What was interesting is that Homer created many characters that the reader didn't sympathize with. Even Odysseus, depending on who you ask, isn't a character that you sympathize with. This was a very intriguing and unique approach!
Not only was the book good, but the translation was also (sorry, I can't read Greek). There are endless translations of The Odyssey. The version I read was translated by Emily Wilson. While I haven't read any of the other translations, I will say that I was satisfied with this translation. There are two great aspects of this translation. First, it is very close to the original text. For example, it is written in iambic pentameter and has the exact same number of lines as the original text (the only translation to do so). At the same time, though, this translation is fairly easy to read. It is still a heavy and difficult text, but less so than I expected.
This wasn't my favorite book of all time, but it was better than I expected it to be and much better than I painted it in my 'books to-read' newsletter from a while back. I enjoyed the characters, the plot, and even the translation was great! This book should definitely be reserved for an older audience since it contains violence, sex, and other disturbing themes (14 and older is probably fine). Overall, this book was very important to the Greeks, and I think it still holds some value for us today! You can buy The Odyssey on Amazon.
Watchlist Wonders
Best Disney Kids Movies
Today, I'm going to embarrass myself and talk about my favorite movies as a kid. Just kidding, this isn't embarrassing to me, and honestly, I still enjoy some of these movies! Say what you want, but these are quality movies!
Toy Story 2 (1999): As a kid, I did NOT like Toy Story 1 or Toy Story 3, but I loved Toy Story 2! I don't really know why I liked this movie more than the other two. I think it mostly had to do with that it wasn't as scary. Toy Story 4 came out more recently. I watched it around when it first came out, and I hated it! It was creepy, had a terrible plot line, and ruined the entire Toy Story franchise for me! They should have stopped after the third movie…
Wall-E (2008): This was easily my favorite movie growing up, and I still enjoy this movie! I watched Wall-E daily as a kid (I'm not kidding) and was super obsessed with it! Something about the robots, space, and the overall plot really appealed to me (and still does). I would honestly watch it right now! If I ever have kids, they will be watching this movie!
Cars 2 (2011): While I liked the original Cars movie as a kid, I liked the second movie a lot better! Something about the spies, the gadgets, and the overall plot was just better (at least I thought so). Cars 3 was just okay. It is still a good movie, but not as good as the original two!
Planes (2013): Planes was another one of my favorite movies as a kid! I loved watching them quickly race around the world and cheer on Dusty Crophopper. I loved this movie so much that my room was actually themed from the movie Planes (still is).
Big Hero 6 (2014): Big Hero 6 was my final favorite movie as a kid and the newest of these five movies (though still almost 10 years old!!!). It was my favorite superhero movie as a kid. Nowadays, I enjoy Marvel a lot more, but back then Big Hero 6 was all I knew!
These movies are all G or PG-rated (the first 3 are G-rated and the last 2 are PG) and very appropriate (unlike the more recent kids movies). I don't think there is anything bad in them (as far as I can remember). Since all of these are Disney movies, you can watch them on Disney+ (though I suspect many of you have them on DVD).
Tech Thoughts
iPadOS 17
Last newsletter, I talked about iOS 17 and watchOS 10, but this week I'm talking about iPadOS 17! iPadOS 17, similar to iOS 17 and even macOS Sonoma, was a bit of a catch-up update! It added some features that were already on the iPhone, as well as adding some new smaller features!
3 Big Updates
Lock Screen Overhaul: This is definitely the biggest update in iPadOS 17, and it is similar to what was given to the iPhone is iOS 16. With this update, you are now able to customize your iPad's lock screen. You can change the background to a variety of options and add lots of widgets. These lock screen widgets are really helpful because they allow you to see info at a glance! One of my favorite parts of the lock screen is that you can link them with focus modes, which is extremely useful! Finally, Live Activities has come to iPad, allowing you to see current music, a timer, or a variety of other things from your lock screen! Overall, this lock screen overhaul is a great upgrade!
Interactive Widgets: Apple announced this in iOS 17 as well, so I won't spend too much time on it. Interactive widgets allow you to take actions with your apps on your home screen. You can play music, check off tasks, and more! I really like widgets and find this very helpful!
Health App: While this might not seem like a major upgrade, it is the first time the Health app comes to iPad! It isn't much different than the iPhone health app, but it is on a much bigger screen! Because of this, you can view all your health info on a larger screen (this is especially great for graphs). I think Apple did a great job with the iPad Health app!
5 Little Updates
Stickers: I already talked about stickers last newsletter with iOS 17. They also came to the iPad and can be used in relatively the same way.
Profiles in Safari: This is actually more useful than it may seem like at first. Safari now has profiles, which you can switch between at any time. These profiles allow you to have different settings, cookies, etc. on the same websites! For example, I have 3 profiles: personal, school, and newsletter. If I go to my website from any of these profiles, it will show a different account than if I log in from another. It is super useful because it means I don't have to switch between accounts so often!
Link Notes: This is a feature that has long been requested in Apple Notes. You can now link notes in Apple Notes, which is pretty useful!
Auto Correct: Apple also upgraded the infamous Auto Correct in this update, and it is better than I thought it would be! It now makes better corrections and can make in-line predictions for what you are going to say. All you have to do is tap the space bar, and it will add that to your line of text. The Auto Correct was overdue for an upgrade, and I would say this upgrade is pretty solid.
Crossfade: This is a super minor feature, but I want to mention it. If you use Apple Music, you can change this feature in settings which allows you to fade between songs. I really like this since it cuts off the last few seconds of the song where it is silence, clapping, etc and transitions into the next song. This update is small, but useful!
There are SO many more features in iPadOS 17! You can go to Apple's website if you would like to learn more! So far, this update seems to be pretty stable. I have noticed some glitches and a bit of battery drain, but it isn't terrible. If you have any questions, be sure to drop them down in the comments!
Wild Card
Dominion
I haven't talked about a board game since newsletter #36, so I think it is time we revisit the board game category! Actually, Dominion is a card game, as there is no board. Dominion allows you to build your dominion and attempt to make it better than any of the other players' dominions. You do this by playing cards that represent different people and places in your empire. These cards have different values and allow you to conduct different actions in order to expand your empire. The entire game is built around these cards. Something interesting about the game is that you aren't physically building an empire, but rather adding people, buildings, coins, and victory points to your deck. In other words, it is a deck-building game. If you don't know what a deck-building game is, it is pretty much what it sounds like. You are constantly “buying” cards throughout the game to add to your personal deck. In Dominion, these cards allow you to take more actions, purchase more cards, gain coins, draw more cards, and so much more! Each card in the game has its specific actions on the card (more on that later). I really like deck-building games because you have to be smart about what you are adding into your deck. Just because you can buy another card doesn't mean you should because it could “clog” up your deck. All the different cards, the artwork, and many other details of this game immerse you into the world of dominion. This makes it a lot of fun to play and make you feel like you are building your own dominion!
Another great part of this game is that it is pretty easy to explain to those who are new to the game. Even those who haven't played very many board/card games should be able to pick up on the game fairly easily. Most of the game is determined by which cards are in play anyway, making the actual game rules mostly straightforward. I would say most people ten years old or older can play this game. Overall, Dominion is a great game and just a lot of fun to play! You can purchase this game on Amazon (there is a good deal for it right now)! There are tons of Dominion expansions (I have played Dominion: Intrigue and Dominion: Seaside) that you should check out if you like the original game. As always, if you have any questions regarding this game, feel free to post those down in the comments!
Remember, the referral challenge (which I announced in the last newsletter) is still live!
I miss taking you to movies when you were little. 💙