the need to shop! Now you probably think that every girl feels the need to shop, and while I would generally agree with that statement, I have rarely felt the need in the past year. Let me explain.... When I was living at home with my mom during my year off (I was working at the CDC in between undergrad and grad school), I shopped A LOT. Perhaps this had something to do with the fact that I had a real job and thus was making real money (this should be qualified- "real" money as compared to NO money in college), not to mention the fact that I didn't have to pay rent, utilities, groceries, etc. (Now before you get all huffy about me living the "good life", I want to let you know that my money went to a lot of places other than shopping. For instance, I paid off two of my credit cards, and paid off the one I was currently using which had racked up some damage over the year. In addition, I started paying on my student loans, saved several thousand dollars to move across the country for grad school, and even managed a sizeable down payment on to a new car).
Okay, back to shopping. While I was at home, I had the greatest shopping temptation of all... my shopping buddy (a.k.a. Mom)! My mom LOVES to shop! Mention the word "sale," and she's there. Try something on that you even mildly like, and she will convince you to buy it. Needless to say, my wardrobe was greatly expanded by the end of the year. (In my defense, I bought very little during college and I wore my clothes to death!) In addition, I found the most perfect tailor ever! I'm a small girl and very rarely does anything that I try on in the store actually fit. (Cords from The Gap and stuff from Bebe being the exception). This used to be a deterant to shopping, but as my mom oh so skillfully pointed out, things clothes can always be taken in and tailored to fit. With that thought in mind, I went crazy at my new favorite store, The Limited.
The move to California was expensive, and although I had saved money, there was little left over for freelance shopping. Moreover, I had gone from a nice paycheck to a virtually nothing left over once essentials were taken care of (ie. living with a real job to living off a graduate student stipend). Even if I were in the mood to shop, there was no money to do so. And while the financial side of things improved slightly over the subsequent quarters (I was overpaid), the urge to shop did not return. This is quite funny given that my roommate loved to go shopping. (I however, could just not bring myself to shop in a mall where one of the cheapest stores was J.Crew - the nearest mall. Nor could I bring myself to drive 20-30 min to the next nearest mall when gas prices are $3+ a gallon). This does not mean that I did not do ANY shopping this past year. That would be unrealisitic. I did do a small amount of spending at a couple of outlet malls.
After perusing websites, the shopping but has once again bitten. My favorite website of the week is for the REI outlet. How long can I hold out? Waterproof jackets and shoes beckon!...
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Remarkable Educators
As most kids across the nation (and teachers, too) are gearing up for another rip-roaring exciting year of education, I pause to remember some of my favorite teachers and experiences.
For my most formative years of grade school (fourth grade to eigth grade), I was in the magnet program. I loved the magnet program. Besides being in small classes, we were really academically challenged in a supportive environment that made me LOVE going to school (gasp!). I think one of the best things about the magnet program was that it fostered creative thinking. For example (and if I ever teach grade school, I would definitely implement this policy), in the 7th grade I had a language arts teacher, Mr. Galyean, that had a standard policy with regard to projects. At the beginning of each project assignment, he would hand out a sheet that listed the project criteria. If you met all of the requirements, and recieved the maximum amount of points for each section, the highest grade you could get was a 70, which was a D. (Now for a class of "high (aka "over") acheivers, a D was not acceptable). For every thing you did above and beyond the requirements (e.g. an extra visual aid, a poem/story, etc.), you had the possibility to earn 10 extra points. Essentially, to receive a grade in the "acceptable" range, you had to do 3 extra things for each project. Now while some might think this policy is harsh, it was actually fun. It challenged you to think outside of the box and to go the extra mile.
I would have to say that my favorite magnet school teacher of all time (not the one I was personally closest to) was Mrs. Persaud-White, my eigth grade language arts teacher. It was in her class that we learned how to analyze poetry and literature and even music lyrics. Besides being awesome, it was a tool that held me in good stead for the rest of my academic career. I distinctly remember Mr. Galyean saying one day to "read between the lines" of some work we were studying at the time. All of us looked at him like he was crazy and major frustration ensued. However, Mrs. Persaud-White actually taught us to do just that and I can remember "ah-ha" moments when she would say something in such a way as to turn on a little lightbulb in our heads. My personal favorite of the year was the poem "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" by Langston Hughes.
Other memorable magnet school moments include:
1) Laura Ingalls Wilder Day in 4th grade where we all dressed up in costume, redocorated the cafeteria, made her wedding cake from scratch and my friends and I re-inacted her wedding to Manning.
2) Passport Around the World (4th-6th grades). Each homeroom class was a different country and we would learn all we could about that country - food, culture, money, politics, economics, language, dances, etc. We would then pack a small suitcase, our passports, and our plane tickets (all made out of construction paper, of course), and travel to another country (i.e. a classroom down the hall). In 4th grade, my class was Mexico. This was great because my teacher had a Latino background and her mother had a closet full of traditional clothes. So, we got dressed up and even learned some traditional dances and songs, and of course, we offered yummy foods, too.
3) Making commericals in 7th grade German class (my group was the grocer).
4) 8th grade earth science: We made time-lapse movies to learn about erosion. We had a fashion show using characteristics of the nine planets as insipiration. We got to decorate a ceiling tile as our favorite planet.
For my most formative years of grade school (fourth grade to eigth grade), I was in the magnet program. I loved the magnet program. Besides being in small classes, we were really academically challenged in a supportive environment that made me LOVE going to school (gasp!). I think one of the best things about the magnet program was that it fostered creative thinking. For example (and if I ever teach grade school, I would definitely implement this policy), in the 7th grade I had a language arts teacher, Mr. Galyean, that had a standard policy with regard to projects. At the beginning of each project assignment, he would hand out a sheet that listed the project criteria. If you met all of the requirements, and recieved the maximum amount of points for each section, the highest grade you could get was a 70, which was a D. (Now for a class of "high (aka "over") acheivers, a D was not acceptable). For every thing you did above and beyond the requirements (e.g. an extra visual aid, a poem/story, etc.), you had the possibility to earn 10 extra points. Essentially, to receive a grade in the "acceptable" range, you had to do 3 extra things for each project. Now while some might think this policy is harsh, it was actually fun. It challenged you to think outside of the box and to go the extra mile.
I would have to say that my favorite magnet school teacher of all time (not the one I was personally closest to) was Mrs. Persaud-White, my eigth grade language arts teacher. It was in her class that we learned how to analyze poetry and literature and even music lyrics. Besides being awesome, it was a tool that held me in good stead for the rest of my academic career. I distinctly remember Mr. Galyean saying one day to "read between the lines" of some work we were studying at the time. All of us looked at him like he was crazy and major frustration ensued. However, Mrs. Persaud-White actually taught us to do just that and I can remember "ah-ha" moments when she would say something in such a way as to turn on a little lightbulb in our heads. My personal favorite of the year was the poem "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" by Langston Hughes.
Other memorable magnet school moments include:
1) Laura Ingalls Wilder Day in 4th grade where we all dressed up in costume, redocorated the cafeteria, made her wedding cake from scratch and my friends and I re-inacted her wedding to Manning.
2) Passport Around the World (4th-6th grades). Each homeroom class was a different country and we would learn all we could about that country - food, culture, money, politics, economics, language, dances, etc. We would then pack a small suitcase, our passports, and our plane tickets (all made out of construction paper, of course), and travel to another country (i.e. a classroom down the hall). In 4th grade, my class was Mexico. This was great because my teacher had a Latino background and her mother had a closet full of traditional clothes. So, we got dressed up and even learned some traditional dances and songs, and of course, we offered yummy foods, too.
3) Making commericals in 7th grade German class (my group was the grocer).
4) 8th grade earth science: We made time-lapse movies to learn about erosion. We had a fashion show using characteristics of the nine planets as insipiration. We got to decorate a ceiling tile as our favorite planet.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
La-La Land
I've been having trouble focusing of late. It's like my brain can't think ahead to the next step until it's right on top of me. While I suppose this mindset could be okay for certain situations, it is definitely NOT ideal for lab work/research. I need to wake up and get my brain in gear...major decisions are coming up....WAKE UP!!!
Sunday, August 13, 2006
Where in the world have you been?
create your own visited countries map
or vertaling Duits Nederlands
Hmmm...it looks like I have a lot more places to visit!
Friday, August 04, 2006
5 Things
I've seen these types of things around, so I thought I would update it with my own version...
5 Things in My Refrigerator:
Iced Tea, White Cranberry Peach Juice, Brie, Tortillas, Eggs
5 Things in My Car:
Area Map, Umbrella, Ray Charles CD, Tool Kit, Jumper Cables
5 Most Frequently Watched TV Stations:
Food Network, HGTV, MTV, TLC, NBC
5 Things I Like to do in my Spare Time:
Read, Watch TV, Go to the movies, Make Jewelry, Dance
5 Favorite College Courses:
Lab on DNA Manipulation, Chem 111, Genetics, Cell Bio, Intro to Theater Production
5 Least Favorite College Courses:
Orangic Chem I, Organic Chem II, Greek Classics, Biological Clocks, Immunology
5 Things I will Spend Good Money On:
Food, Travel, Clothes (including Shoes!), Movies, Dance Classes
5 Places I've Been Abroad:
U.K., Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Russia
5 Places Abroad Where I Want to Go:
Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Scotland, Egypt
5 Things in My Refrigerator:
Iced Tea, White Cranberry Peach Juice, Brie, Tortillas, Eggs
5 Things in My Car:
Area Map, Umbrella, Ray Charles CD, Tool Kit, Jumper Cables
5 Most Frequently Watched TV Stations:
Food Network, HGTV, MTV, TLC, NBC
5 Things I Like to do in my Spare Time:
Read, Watch TV, Go to the movies, Make Jewelry, Dance
5 Favorite College Courses:
Lab on DNA Manipulation, Chem 111, Genetics, Cell Bio, Intro to Theater Production
5 Least Favorite College Courses:
Orangic Chem I, Organic Chem II, Greek Classics, Biological Clocks, Immunology
5 Things I will Spend Good Money On:
Food, Travel, Clothes (including Shoes!), Movies, Dance Classes
5 Places I've Been Abroad:
U.K., Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Russia
5 Places Abroad Where I Want to Go:
Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Scotland, Egypt
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Finally!
You may have heard me lament before about how I'm no Betty Crocker. Well in the past couple of days I have tried again. On Sunday I wanted an omelette for breakfast. I am notoriuosly horrible at flipping them in the pan, so when I came across a recipe for making them in the oven, I thought, "Fabulous! A fool-proof way to get my omelette fix!" Well, I followed the recipe - adjusting for my favorite ingredients of course (pineapple, bell pepper, and cheese), and 20 minutes later I had an unbeliveably disgusting concoction that I had the unfortunate misfortune to put in my mouth. I quickly threw that recipe in the trash! That night I had decided to make fajitas for dinner (I found a fajita marinade in Target that I decided to try - glutton for punishment that I am). The directions suggested marinating the meat for several hours, so I mixed marinade with the beef strips and popped in the fridge for 3 hours. Hmmm...the marinade was pretty thick so cooking the meat in the skillet with the peppers was interesting to say the least. The outcome was edible, but barely....Strike two. (It probably would have been okay if I had left out the marinade...note for next time!)
Despite two less than steller experiments, I decided to try one more time. Given that I still had all of the ingredients from the fajitas (tortillas, 4 mexican cheese mix, pico de gallo, shredded lettuce), I figured I would give chicken quesadillas a try. Well, this one finally turned out right and quite yummy, too! I didn't follow a recipe; I just winged it! Yay for winging it! Hmmm...what's next?
Despite two less than steller experiments, I decided to try one more time. Given that I still had all of the ingredients from the fajitas (tortillas, 4 mexican cheese mix, pico de gallo, shredded lettuce), I figured I would give chicken quesadillas a try. Well, this one finally turned out right and quite yummy, too! I didn't follow a recipe; I just winged it! Yay for winging it! Hmmm...what's next?
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