Cupcakes!
Cupcakes, oh how I love them! There pure deliciousness is irresistible, and their splendour is impeccable! I have yet to meet a cupcake I didn't like. Each one is so yummy and they are always a 'treat' to bake with a friend. Chocolate is the best but I like just about any kind. I don’t really like icing because it makes desserts too sweet. If I don’t have icing I can probably fit at least 2 cupcakes in my tummy before I get full/sick. One of my favourite cupcake adventures was with my boyfriend Matthew. We baked and decorated Easter themed goodies, and they were good indeed! They were chocolate and vanilla cupcakes with plenty of colourful frostings to choose from. We decorated them with candy carrots, gummy easter eggs, and just about every popular candy we could find… My cousin also rocks the art of "cupcakery;" she has even gone as far as to successfully depict Disney characters, animals, flowers etc… I however, am a bit more low key ad of lesser baking talent.
I bought some neat baking things this summer and brought them up for school, so hopefully I'll have to make time to do some baking... The three little kids I babysit throughout the year love it when I make them treats, and it’s always fun to bake stuff with them. However, feeding them desserts makes for an afternoon of scrambling to keep them in line and out of trouble.
I was the Summer Coordinator for a kids day camp this summer and I designed the entire program around baking. I called it the "Fishes & Loaves Cafe." We baked special snacks with the kids three times a week! Cupcakes, jell-o, brownies, fruit kabobs and more! They went crazy from sugar, and crazy for it!
Madonna
Well, my initial response to Madonna’s reaction to the hydrangea incident is “typical celebrity.” Poor girl, someone she doesn’t know went to all the effort to buy her flowers, wait in line and hand them to her in person. Does anyone else see a problem with that? Her response was snobbish. Plain and simple!On the other hand, she has the right to her own opinion, as are we all. I just don’t think her ‘official response’ was very polite. Seems to me she’s acting quite childish…The media is kind of stupid to make such a big deal of what she originally said “I loathe hydrangeas,” I mean come on! Who cares, what doe sit matter?! But please, don’t get me wrong; I’m not condoning her actions. The entire issue could be resolved by her shutting up about it. Maybe it’s simply an act for the publicity.
Social Media Purge
Social Media is a great thing, but it has come at a high cost. Yeah it connects people from one end of the world to the other, but personally it prevents me from face to face talking with someone only minutes away. Personally, the amount of time I spend online, Facebook, texting etc… is minimal compared to most, but still takes up a huge chunk of my time. I think it’s an addiction more than anything. I check Facebook and there are maybe 1 or 2 new posts, so a few minutes later I check again, then again, then again.
Madonna
Well, my initial response to Madonna’s reaction to the hydrangea incident is “typical celebrity.” Poor girl, someone she doesn’t know went to all the effort to buy her flowers, wait in line and hand them to her in person. Does anyone else see a problem with that? Her response was snobbish. Plain and simple!On the other hand, she has the right to her own opinion, as are we all. I just don’t think her ‘official response’ was very polite. Seems to me she’s acting quite childish…The media is kind of stupid to make such a big deal of what she originally said “I loathe hydrangeas,” I mean come on! Who cares, what doe sit matter?! But please, don’t get me wrong; I’m not condoning her actions. The entire issue could be resolved by her shutting up about it. Maybe it’s simply an act for the publicity.
Social Media Purge
Social Media is a great thing, but it has come at a high cost. Yeah it connects people from one end of the world to the other, but personally it prevents me from face to face talking with someone only minutes away. Personally, the amount of time I spend online, Facebook, texting etc… is minimal compared to most, but still takes up a huge chunk of my time. I think it’s an addiction more than anything. I check Facebook and there are maybe 1 or 2 new posts, so a few minutes later I check again, then again, then again.
It has gotten to the point that people depend on social media networks to get through their day. A mom needs to keep tabs on her kids so they text back and forth, a business man needs to meet with clients, so he sets up a meeting via email. A photographer is trying to start a business, so he uploads pictures to flickr. A husband is going to be home late, so he sends a Facebook message home. A woman stops to get a coffee, so she tweets about it. ETC…
Christmas Vacation
Over the Christmas holiday, I want to spend time at home. I want to walk into my house on December 16th, plop my bags on the floor and sit in the kitchen with my mom. I want to bake cookies so that when my dad comes home from work, the house is sweet smelling. Beyond the initial call to relax in my most comfortable environment, I wish to spend my days catching up with friends, skating, watching Christmas movies and doing the wonderfully stupid things we usually do. I plan on eating the most delicious foods to ever pass before my eyes, well at least in the run of a year. I want to decorate the tree, sit in front of a fire, and slide down the driveway. I want to walk in the woods and take pictures. I want to wonder aimlessly. I want to spend so much time with my family it makes me want to come back to school just to get away. I want to be 100% festive, carrying on traditions. I intend to spend my Christmas vacation being totally and whole-heartedly, absolutely, positively happy.
The Hidden Beauty of Pollination
Hyper-realism versus Super-realism.
Upon watching the Ted Talks video on pollination, I felt distanced from the marvel of the natural process. It was as if I was watching a 3D Disney movie in an IMAX theatre. The astounding reality of the beauty and intricate ways of an everyday process is awakening. Not only did this video portray the elegance of various animals and insects, it documented the birth, rebirth and growth of plants, fruits and flowers alike. It was as if each video frame was freezing the most important moment in history, and then continuously outdoing itself. This video provided a window into detailed natural life and form, otherwise overlooked or undermined. In the five minute period it took to watch this short documentary film, I likely learned more about the pollination process, animal species variation and vegetation growth process than I have in my previous 12 years of science education.
