essay frustration #1 – bilingualism

Posted on by
9

While I love that I speak two languages, when trying to write an essay, it is less than helpful. I keep thinking of the perfect words…in French. I’m sure that simultaneously translating documents is only making the situation worse.

While some of the French words exist in English, and they are the exact words I want to use, I just don’t know that they work. For instance, who actually says “ameliorate”? Oh, wait. I do! I do!

And “comportment”? I don’t even know that I’ve ever heard someone use it in English. I know it’s a word and I know what it means, but will other people? Will the people reading my essays assume I just pulled out a thesaurus to diversify my vocabulary and think I’m a complete idiot?

I HATE THIS!!!

and the craziness continues

Posted on by
6

In case you wonder where I am until November 1st, I’ll explain:

I’ll be here, in P-town, getting everything I have to do done. What do I have to do? Funny you should ask.

  • I still have 12 essays to write for grad school applications, most of which are due November 1st. And the four already written…well, there’s still some work to be done.
  • As I mentioned, I volunteer for an NGO called Sowers of Hope (I’ll link the blog once I have permission). Today I received an email asking if I would be willing to translate some documents from French to English. Of course I said yes. And truthfully, it’s only EIGHT documents, so no big deal. Seriously, though, I am really excited to be doing this. Nothing like some translation to really hone in on those French skills. And this will allow me to become really familiar with the project and what the goals of it are.
  • I am currently taking a French class and I am a little behind. Hopefully, I can get caught up this week.
  • The MBA field studies project continues, with publishing on the horizon (just in the school’s magazine, but it’s still a big deal to me)
  • I am totally sleep deprived and feeling pretty under the weather.

Yep…it’s time to take a blogging break. But, there will be many posts to look forward to…my pumpkin cheesecake post, Big Shot Karaoke, the end of the applications, and my birthday. So, while I am gone, please miss me and post encouraging comments and send emails. And I promise I will be back ASAP!

But before I go, let me give a shout out to Big Shot Karaoke, which will be my one social outing for the next week.

This Thursday Sarah, Candice, Kelly and I (and several of our friends) are headed to Comedy Sportz in P-Town for Big Shot Karaoke…and this time, there will be singing coming from us. So, if you are really missing me and want to stalk me and you are looking for something to do tomorrow night (after good t.v.), that’s where I’ll be. It starts at 9 p.m. P-town time.

turkey-barley soup

Posted on by
Reply

So, this is a picture taken before it was totally done. I completely forgot to take one after the carrots were completely cooked (and floated to the top), the barley was done and the turkey was added. The soup was a hit and is a great way to use up the Thanksgiving left-overs (assuming you’re turkey eaters), not to mention that it is a great twist on the old classic, chicken noodle. It looks a lot more complicated than it is, I promise.

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 onion, peeled and diced
  • 2 carrots, scraped and sliced
  • 2 celery ribs, sliced
  • 4 cups sliced button mushrooms
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 6-8 cups turkey broth
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup barley
  • 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cups chopped cooked turkey meat (make sure all bones are removed)

Instructions

  • In a large skillet, heat oil and saute onions, carrots, celery and mushrooms; sprinkle thyme on veggies and continue to saute until softened, about 6 to 8 minutes.
  • Pour turkey stock into a large pot (if you have less than 8 cups of stock, add water to make up difference) and whisk in the tomato paste; stir in sauteed veggies; turn heat to high.
  • Stir in barley, vinegar, salt and pepper.
  • When soup comes to a boil, turn heat down to a simmer and cook, covered, for about 1 hour, or until barley is tender.
  • Stir in turkey meat and continue to simmer just until soup is heated through.

A few changes…rather than make this in a large soup pot, I did it in a crock pot. I sauteed in a saute pan, but the rest: crock pot. And, rather than boil it for an hour, I just left the crock pot on overnight (I started cooking at about midnight, so that gave it a good 8 hours of cook time) on low and then added the turkey in the morning. Because it was for a lunch thing, I had to transport the crock pot to work (lots of plastic wrap = no spills) and I turned it back on warm once I arrived. It was perfect!

asian salad

Posted on by
1


Here is the original recipe. I, however, read the reviews and followed a tip given by a reviewer, which make the recipe much, much lower in fat and calories. I recommend following those instructions.

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 (3 ounce) packages ramen noodles, crushed
  • 1 cup blanched slivered almonds
  • 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1 head napa cabbage, shredded (I just used the prepackaged and chopped cole slaw mix…so you add a few carrots to the mix, no big deal)
  • 1 bunch green onions, chopped
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce

DIRECTIONS

  • In a medium skillet over low heat brown ramen noodles, almonds, and sesame seeds with melted butter or margarine. Once browned, take off heat and cool.
  • In a small saucepan bring vegetable oil, sugar, and vinegar to boil for 1 minute. Cool. Add soy sauce.
  • In a large bowl , combine shredded napa cabbage and chopped green onions.
  • Add the noodle and soy sauce mixture. Toss to coat. Serve.

Changes provided by Micke.

“Way too fat for our tastes…changed to 1/4 cup oil, 3 tbsp vinegar, 3 tbsp sugar. Didn’t use butter at all, but toasted sesame seeds and almonds in oven at 350 for 7 minutes. Every one raves over this recipe, and it’s a lot healthier, with less juice in bottom of bowl. I also added the flavor pack from the ramen noodles to the dressing and it was to die for. Thanks for the great start though.”

thoughts on marriage

Posted on by
8

Yes, I realize that I am not married, but I decided to go to the marriage and family relations class on Sunday and it was fascinating. I really have to be studying for a French mid-term right now, but I wanted to share this thought from the instructor. I think it’s brilliant.

“I believe the reason so many
marriages become lackluster is that people fail to deliver in marriage
what they were selling in courtship.”

Think about it.