My students have a hard time imagining that all kids don’t start on a level playing field. After reading George Farkas’ ‘Black White Test Score Gap,’ and showing them this video, they’re changing their minds. (Although I may never convince them that Disney has racist and sexist elements to it.)

My goal is to have conscious effort to teach kids about life’s lessons. Teaching them, among others, Religion, Generosity, Finance, History, Art, Right Manners and Having Dreams….. I really made it sure to have moments with my two boys talking and making stories. Time is short and I believe that most of the lessons we’ve learned were gained while we were still kids….
For this goal, I will consider this complete if I have taught them (or at least, talked to them about) 101 things related to above areas in life and many more. So here is the partial list:

1. Recite “Ama Namin” (“Our Father” in Tagalog) – (Lean already knew the English version since he was 3)
2. Story of the Fisherman’s Wife who was never satisfied, a lesson about greed (Lean)
3. Playing fair and square (while we were playing chess) (Lean)
4. About winning/losing without cheating (while playing Snakes and Ladder) (Lean)
5. Reading aloud a book about “Beliefs” (Lean was having fun counting the word “beliefs” I mentioned)
6. About habit formation at around adolescent years (Jolo)
7. Taught Jolo to save money for something he really wants to buy.
8. About being generous (Lean brought a spare Lego for his friend Aaron)
9. Talking about the course they want to take in college (it doesn’t matter even if they change mind every now and then)
10. Doing the best he can in every project he handles (Jolo)
11. About working hard, and about sowing and reaping (as Lean play the “Farmer” online game)
12. Rewards and consequences in attaining goals
13. Helps Jolo form his habit to clean his face every night, among others.
14. Helps Lean form his “4-things to do” habits every night. (Toothbrush, take a pee, clean his feet, pray)
15. Washing dishes every weekend (Jolo)
(see as the list grow at “Lesson Plan for Kids” at “My Life’s List” widget)

For our future curriculum, we will include:
a. Jolo’s lessons in Civics and history (2 facts everyday)
b. Art attack with Lean
c. Generosity-in-Action, when they accompany me in distributing toys for less-fortunate kids this Xmas
d. More practice on Po and Opo
e. Read World History to Lean (his favorite)
f. loving siblings
g. open bank account in their name
h. about being a friend
i. buying and using money (Lean)
more…….
(see as the list grow at “Lesson Plan for Kids” at “My Life’s List” widget)

Hi! FLASHBACKhoney is here, every now and then, to bring you the best anything that is out. I enjoy talking about music the most but this particular blog is called SHADE 101 and my motto is Throw as much as Possible! LOL SO with no further delay, here it goes…

Now, the last time we’ve heard from Angie Stone, she released her 2007 album The Art of Love and War which, according to Wikipedia, only sold 45,000 plus units. While I’m never concerned with sales really, I have to say this time, that’s a H.A.M. (Hot Ass Mess). Not too mention she had some really good albums such as her certified Gold album Mahogany Soul. Not only does Angie have her new album Unexpected dropping in 2010 but she also dropped some weight as I could tell. Hopefully, it wasn’t a camera trick…who knows! Anyway, speaking of weight, I feel like Angie Stone’s assistant,manager,stylist,and PR are plotting against her because the album cover for this new album is ridiculous. It shows Angie barely making her leg over a motorcycle and looking confused. What is THAT about? Was this the unexpected we weren’t expecting??? LOL Angie placing her butt on a motorcycle???? PLEASE! :-/ I want them to focus on a BETTER way to promote the soulstress Angie Stone besides trying to make her a HIP momma for these little kids still trying to bring the 80’s back! I lived in the 80’s, you’re WAYYYYYYYY off kiddies. Anyway, stay bless, don’t eat TOO much turkey and Gos Bless.

with Love,

FLASHBACKhoney

Angie Stone – Brother

Thanksgiving comes and goes. You eat roast turkey to your little heart’s delight and your tummy’s sacrifice. You’ve packed your fridge with leftovers. The family is mostly gone. And the thought of another bite of straight turkey sends you running for the hills. What should you do with all that day old delicious meat?

Make some Turkey and Rice! That’s what I did and it was a hit! You’ve already done the toughest part, cooking the bird. The easy part is staring you dead in the face. So let’s get to it!

Ingredients
1/2 cp bacon, diced
1 large onion, diced
1/4 cp cilantro, chopped
1/4 cp parsley, chopped
4 cps cooked turkey meat, chopped
2 tbsp vegetable oil
3 cps rice
1 packet Knorr Sazón
4 cps broth or water
1 cp beer (or water if you don’t wish to use beer)
Sea salt to taste

Here’s what:
You will need a large saucepan with a tight-fitting lid. Cook the bacon until lightly brown, then add the onions and cook until they become translucent. Add the cilantro and parsley, after stirring it in add the turkey pieces. Remove all to a plate and set aside.

In the same saucepan, add the vegetable oil to heat up. In the meantime, rinse the rice. Once you have drained the rice, add it to the pan, stirring to coat it with the oil. Now add the packet of Sazón, making sure that the powder is evenly distributed on the grains of rice. Now add the liquid and check the salt, season as needed. Bring it to a boil without disturbing it.

Once the water is almost completely evaporated, add the turkey mix and cover with the lid. Lower the temperature to low and allow the rice to cook/steam for 30 minutes. At the end of the 30 minutes, incorporate the turkey into the rice and serve.

This is how I make turkey every year, or rather, every time I’ve made turkey in the past. This is my true and tested method for a deliciously moist bird without fail. No basting, no fussing. The only fussing I do, takes place a day or so before T-Day. Just long enough to allow the bird to swim about in the briney water, relaxing in all the spices and seasonings I chose for that ocassion.

Then on the day it is to be served, I just lay it breast-side down on a roasting pan, brush it with butter and olive oil and forget about it until it needs to come out of the oven. It is always successful and enjoyed by all. You should try it this way, I promise you won’t be disappointed.

I’m not cooking this one until tomorrow (Thursday), but I wanted to give you a play by play in case you were searching for an easy way to prepare your bird. I will update the pictures as things evolve.

Turkey Brine (1-2 days before serving)
In a saucepan, combine:
6 tbsp sea salt
4 bay leaves
2 tbsp sage, powder
3 tbsp Herbs d’Provence
6 cloves garlic
5 cloves
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 orange, quartered
3 cps water
Bring this to a boil for about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let it cool down.

The turkey I’m working with is a 20-pounder. Remove giblet bag and neck, reserve these to make broth and gravy. Rinse the turkey under cool running water. In an oversized storage bag or a bowl, add the cooled brine, place the turkey in and top it off with more water–about 1-1/2 gallons of cool water. Give the turkey a couple of turns in the bag to ensure the water and brine mix in. Seal the bag or cover the bowl with plastic wrap then foil paper.

Put the whole thing in the fridge overnight. Usually I start this process 1-1/2 days before I am roasting the bird and I flip the bird every 8-10 hours or so, if it’s not completely submerged in the brining liquid.

Roasting Day
Remove turkey from the bag and drain any brining liquid that may be in the openings. Pat dry the turkey. Melt 1/2 cp butter (1 stick) with 1/4 cp extra virgin olive oil, 2 cloves of garlic (peel and cut them in half). Brush this mixture (avoiding the garlic) over the breast side of the turkey. Put it in the fridge for about 15 minutes, then flip the bird so the thighs are on top and brush with the rest of the butter. Place it in the fridge for another 15 minutes.

In the meantime, preheat oven to 400°. Coarsely chop:
2 oranges
2 carrots
1/2 cp parsley
4 cloves garlic
5 cloves
and mix in:
1 tbsp sage
1 tbsp thyme
1 tbsp rosemary
1 tsp sea salt
Use 1/2 of this mixture to loosely stuff the large cavity of the bird and arrange the other 1/2 under and around the turkey. Put the bird in the oven for 20 minutes then lower the temperature to 325° for the remainder of its cooking time.

Once the thermometer reads about 170°  in the thickest part of the thigh, remove it from the oven and cover it loosely with foil. Allow it to rest covered for about 15 minutes. Remove the aromatics from the crevices before you begin carving it.

OK, let’s face it. Mashed potatoes are one of those basics that everyone loves and for which we all have our own standards. I like mashed potatoes, before this batch I didn’t LOVE them. I do now. The potatoes themselves are just standard issue mashed potatoes. I think the difference is in the topping. See, what had happened was…

I wanted to make confit (I did, post to come) and in order to make it I needed to render some fat. I got some pork fat and rendered it, I was left with what I’m guessing are cracklings. That’s the topping. OMG! You could sub bacon for the cracklings, so don’t freak out.

5 medium Yukon Gold potatoes
1-1/2 tsp sea salt
3/4 cp heavy cream
1/4 cp butter (yeah, I know)
black pepper to taste
Dash of nutmeg
1/3 cp cracklins or bacon

Peel and quarter the potatoes and put them into medium size pot. Fill with cool water just to cover the potatoes, add salt and bring to a soft boil. These potatoes are very tender, a hard boil may cause them to break apart. They will need to cook for about 20 minutes or until a knife goes through easily.

Once they’re cooked, drain the potatoes. Place the pot back on the burner with the butter and cream, until the butter begins to melt. Put the potatoes back in the pot and begin mashing them immediately, stirring in the cream and butter. Check the salt, add pepper and nutmeg. Stir and serve topped with the cracklins.

I know I don’t need to say this, but I will anyway. ENJOY!

This was pretty easy to make, took me all of 5-7 minutes from beginning to tableside. I used it to bring some turkey back to life, but I bet it would work with any poultry or vegetable.

Here’s how: Heat up a pan and add 2 tbsps extra virgin olive, add 1 cp finely diced onions and cook until translucent and beginning to brown. Remove the onions from the pan.

In the same pan add 1/2 cp butter and melt over medium heat; once melted it will begin to foam, keep stirring and the foam will begin to brown. Make sure you don’t allow it to burn, though, keep your eye on it.  Add the onions, stir. Then add 1/2 cp vermouth or white wine, you can flame this to burn out the alcohol, or just cook it for a few more minutes.

This rocks over turkey AND over mashed potatoes.

More often than not these days, I feel the need to recalibrate. I can’t go very long without needing to realign myself with the truth of why I’m exactly where I am. I forget it so easily. I fall into distrust and fear so easily.

Yesterday afternoon I decided to drive to Oklahoma to stay with my cousins – a couple days earlier than I’d been planning to for the Thanksgiving holiday. I listened to an old album, and I was struck at how much the meaning in those songs had changed for me.

Four years ago at this time I was living in Minnesota with my parents, working part time, sporadically spending time with friends, and daily taking walks around the lake near my parents’ house. I was in that ‘in-between’ period: no longer in Dallas, not yet where I’d find myself for the next 4 years. I was a little lost, and at the same time more free than I’d felt in a while. I was certainly unaware of how my life would change in the coming years.

Often on those walks, or while raking leaves, I listened to Jill Paquette. Her songs are honest about questions and doubt. She doesn’t defend her imperfection, but stresses her need for God in the midst of it. I connected with the album four years ago, but I was amazed at how much it meant to me when I listened to it last night. Songs I had overlooked before now flooded me with significance. I realized how much I have really changed in the last four years. I realized how much of God I recognize in my experience. I am more than ever aware of my need for him, and grateful for that need.

There’s no telling what the next four years of my life hold. Or the next four months, for that matter. But I don’t want to lose sight of the ways God speaks to me and draws me to him every day. I hope recognizing my need for realignment on a regular basis doesn’t mean I’m failing at what I’m doing. I think it means I see God at work in my life more than I ever have before.

025 Recommend to me month

I am officially invoking this goal. So for anyone reading this, please oh please, recommend something to me. Anything. A book, movie, recipe, lifestyle change, seriously anything.

077 Create a memory box

I have the perfect box for this I just need to find things to put in it.

084 Buy a new laptop with external hard drive

I finally got my financial aid so I bought a 500 GB external drive yesterday from Costco. So now half of this goal is done. Woot! It’s sexy too and matches my laptop.

Seeee, fancy eh?

041    Get Invisaline

This week I cracked down and got a mouth guard for my teeth clenching flaw. My jaw has been killing me for weeks now and I’m hoping this solves it. Night guard down, next up Invisiline

081    Get a new hairstyle (or haircut) every six months [0/3.5]

I need to get my hair cut so bad! I look like a 60s hippy and none of my layers are even noticeable anymore!

038    Budget monthly (keep register daily, pay bills weekly or with paychecks) [3/21]

December budget is in place and ready to go!

067    Maintain a 3.5 GPA each quarter (change if I feel I can maintain higher) [0/6]

I’ve dropped down to a B+ in one of my classes which sucks, but it is a second year class so I’m cutting my self some slack. However, I am still on pace for this goal.

063    Host a dinner party

I’m cooking Thanksgiving dinner for my family this year (at my grandmas house) doesn’t that count?? No? Damn.

054    Send Christmas cards (possibly homemade) to family and friends yearly [0/2.75]

I saw these on sale for 50% off already, but they were a little cheesy so I passed on them.

047    Mail [Private] a postcard monthly [3/21]

Sent November’s out last week so I’m back on track for this goal. I slacked and was sending them at the end of the month instead of the beginning.

101    Plant a tree

I know it sounds silly but I’ve been saving my apple seeds and plan to plant them. This may count if I can keep it alive.

001    Produce a successful blog

I started a new blog last week and it’s a cooking blog so eloquently named How do I boil water?. If you need some Thanksgiving advice head over there and check out my last entry.

Meatballs, that is. My husband loves, loves this dish. He smiles, even giggles as soon as I say it’s on the stove. Albóndigas are the Latin American version of the Italian meatball. This dish, like most dishes with a pan sauce or gravy, improves overnight. All the flavors get to hang out, know each other and get happy. That doesn’t mean you have to make it ahead, just make enough to have some leftovers and have everyone in your office drool over your lunch.

The albóndigas are moist and flavorful as they are helped by the addition of bacon and seasonings. Then they’re simmered in pan drippings and beer on the stove top, leaving you with a light sauce that you can pour over your rice.

Albóndigas
For the meatballs:
2 lbs ground chuck
1/2 cp diced bacon
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp Jugo Maggi (or Worcestershire sauce)
1/2 cp onion, finely diced
1/3 cp red bell pepper, finely diced
1 tsp crushed garlic (3 cloves)
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cp bread crumbs
1/4 cp ketchup

For the sauce:
1 medium onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
1/2 cp Italian parsley, chopped
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
2 cps tomatoes, chopped
1/2 tsp crushed garlic (1-2 cloves)
1/2 tsp habanero sauce
2 cp beer (about a bottle, minus a few sips for the chef)
Sea salt and pepper

Preparing the meatballs ~ Combine the ground beef,  bacon, onions, garlic, bell peppers in a bowl and set aside. In another bowl, beat the egg, add ketchup, salt, black pepper, Maggi and mix thoroughly. This will allow the condiments to be mixed evenly when you add it to the meat. Once you have combined the  meat and seasonings, making sure it is all well incorporated, mix in the bread crumbs.  You are now ready shape the albóndigas. I like making them rather large-a little larger than  a golf ball-you can make them as large or as small as you’d like. However, keep in mind that the fat from the beef and bacon will cook down, so don’t make the meatballs too small.

This amount of beef will make about 15 meatballs. You want to use a pan with a tight-fitting lid, once you’ve shaped your albóndigas, heat up the pan. Add about 1 tsp of oil to the pan and spread it around the bottom using a paper towel or brush.  Gently place the balls in the pan, don’t crowd them. You need enough room between them to be able to turn them. When the meatballs are browned on all sides, remove them from the pan and set aside. You may need to brown them in 2 batches.

Some of the fat from the meat will have been rendered on the pan, add the onions and bell pepper and cook until the onions begin to get translucent. Add the tomatoes, garlic and parsley and stir; you may have some dripping at the bottom of the pan, don’t be afraid of these, they hold all the flavor from the meat. The moisture from the tomatoes will make it much easier to incorporate the drippings.

Add the habanero sauce and beer. You need to have enough sauce to cover the albondigas; adjust your seasonings if necessary. Bring the sauce to a boil, then add the meatballs, spoon some of the sauce over the top of them. Cover and reduce heat to medium and allow it to simmer for 35 minutes. Do give them a stir every once in a while, you want to make sure they albondigas are absorbing the flavors from the sauce.

Remove the lid and allow it to cook for another 10 minutes. The meatballs will be fully cooked by now, what you’re doing at this point is reducing and thickening the sauce.

Listo! They’re ready to serve over rice. I usually serve these with white or yellow rice. The last time I made them I served them with Arroz con Guandú; a very traditional dish in Panama. Follow the link for that recipe.

I hope you’ll enjoy this dish as much as we do, don’t forget to let me know how it turns out.

Cookingly yours,
Anamaris

It’s only natural for me to be the most comfortable cooking traditional Panamanian dishes. It makes sense for these dishes to have special meaning to me. That the mere thought of them takes me back home, to the house I grew up in on Calle L, to watching my mom busily stirring pots and pans. There are dishes that remind me of Sunday dinners with aunts, uncles, cousins.

Guandúes are also known as gandules, or pigeon peas and are commonplace in Puertorrican and Caribbean tables and generally combined with rice. In Panama it is usually made with coconut milk and rabito–salt cured pig’s tail. I don’t have the luxury of using freshly picked guandú, but I can find them in the frozen section or the Latin aisle of most of the grocery stores in my area. Goya is a well-known brand for Hispanic products, they have the frozen ones.  

Arroz con Guandú

2 cps rice
1 cp frozen guandú (pigeon peas)
2 cps coconut milk
1/2 cp salt pork or bacon
1 tbsp vegetable oil
Sea salt

In a pot with a tight-fitting lid, brown the salt pork/bacon rendering some of its fat. Add the guandúes (pigeon peas), coconut milk and a bit of salt. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat until it simmers. Cook it until the peas are tender, about 40 minutes. Strain the liquid and measure, add enough water to make 3-1/3 cps of liquid, set aside.

This recipe uses the frozen peas, however, if you are using the canned variety, just skip the step above. Instead, strain the peas and measure the liquid in the can, then add coconut milk and water to  measure 3-1/3 cups. Fry the salt pork or bacon just before adding the rinsed rice.

Add oil to the pan with the peas, rinse the rice and add it to the pot stirring all the ingredients. Add the liquid, check the salt, stir this well. Make sure you remove any drippings that may have been stuck to the bottom of the pan. Bring it to a slow boil; once the liquid boils do not stir it again. Keep the temperature on medium high.

Once the liquid is almost completely evaporated, bring the temperature to low and cover with the lid. Allow to steam undisturbed for 40 minutes. When you remove the lid, all the peas will be at the top, go ahead and stir them into the rice. You’re done!

Note: The flavor of the coconut milk will intensify with time. You can cook the peas a day ahead to allow the flavors to meld together.

So, how did your pot come out?

Cookingly yours, 
Anamaris

Putting my trust in God.  This has been a crazy two weeks.  Court with the x for contempt charges for being behind on child support, house I live in was sold in foreclosure, My lawyer served my x with papers to get my kids back…God I put my trust in you!  Talk about a bunch of this I can do a 1st step on…I am not in control of any of this.  I am sober though and I feel great.  I am also wanting to escape like a mother fucker.  All kinds of feelings of loose of control, and yet I want to stay sober. 

I have 33 days~ the fist time in months that for 30 days I haven’t got online and looked at porn and masturbated.  I have wanted human touch, because it has been sooooo long, I have flipped through the paper looking at “other” ways to act out on my sexual compulsions, but as of today I havent acted on them. 

I want to have sex, I want to feel the warmth of a female next to my skin…is this bad?  I know that within the SA rules of being sober it is, but what about that?  I have masturbated once in the last 30 days with no porn, and that means according the their rules I am not sober….SAA is starting to look good to me.  I feel dead when I look at porn…I dont feel dead now.  I feel alive, trusting in AA more than SA…work the steps, work the steps.   

The simple fact I am not looking at porn and jerking off with all that I have felt (and wanted not to feel)  this week is awesome for me.  And this I can live with.

Effective intercultural communication should aim to gain the acceptance of the receptor’s affections, and not merely his intellect.

People are not only thinkers, but feelers, as well. Reception of a message always involves the affective dimension (Mark Young, Course Lecture, Spring 2008). Jonathan Edwards, aware of this aspect in the communication process, said:

“I should think myself in the way of my duty to raise the affections of my hearers as high as possibly I can, provided that they are affected with nothing but truth, and with affections that are not disagreeable to the nature of what they are affected with” (Edwards, 387).

One’s values are probably more determinative in making a decision than are one’s allegiances (Mark Young, Course Lecture, Fall 2007).

Unfortunately, a lot of Christian communicators aim to gain merely the receptor’s intellectual assent to their own message. A great danger follows this line of communicating. For instance, an American missionary presents the gospel to a European unbeliever. The unbeliever listens intently to this message as he perceives its contents. After the presentation of this gospel message, the missionary asks the European for a response, to which the European says, “Yes, I believe everything you just said.” The missionary then says, “Pray this prayer and you will be a Christian.” One of the problems with this method of communication, James implies in his epistle, when he describes the intellectual orthodoxy of the demons: “Even the demons believe — and tremble” (2.19). The devil and his entourage believe Paul’s every word in 1 Corinthians 15.

One of the assumptions of this point is that everyone in this world wants to be happy, regardless of one’s culture or ethnic background. We are whole beings, comprised of the mind, heart, and will (though the limits of language often make it complicated when describing the interaction between the three dimensions). Everything we do, whether consciously or unconsciously naturally inclines toward getting happy. God knows this, because he made people this way. Jesus himself is the supreme example for effective intercultural communication that aims to gain the acceptance of his receptor’s affections. Some of his own last words aimed toward his disciples’ hearts for the purpose of increasing their affections in some way or another: “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full” (Jn 15.11). “I have said these things to you to keep you from falling away…But I have said these things to you, that when the hour comes you may remember that I told them to you” (Jn 16.1,4). I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (Jn 16.33).

Perhaps, well related to this point is the important distinction that Jonathan Dodson makes between faith and mere belief.

Note: More to come on this very subject…

I’ve been noticing a pattern lately in forums, emails, and from the lips of friends of people suffering from what I call “101 Syndrome”. 101 Syndrome is feeling like you haven’t advanced at all on your path even if you’ve been on it for a decade or more. This usually comes with a side of “what the hell have I been doing all these years?” and “I feel like books/ my teacher/ my high priest/ess didn’t teach me anything when they should’ve”. But how did it happen? You spent a decade reading every book with Wicca and witchcraft in the title that you could find, you collected all the tools, you attended sabbat rituals, festivals, workshops, a handfasting or two, maybe you even have degrees in a coven, but then why do you still feel like your knowledge is inadequate? Is it your fault? Is it your teacher’s fault? What the hell happened?

The answer is quite simple, you never went beyond 101. But how did this happen? How did you get stuck? The popular Pagan publishing world is a vicious cycle of Wicca and Neo-Pagan 101 books and Neo-Wiccan covens are their product made up of members who have all read the same 101 books and unfortunately know little beyond them. Advanced and academic texts do not sell in the Pagan market, or at least that is what the publishers believe, so they only publish simpler and beginner books. Even books and websites which are supposed to be advanced barely scratch the surface of the mysteries just rehashing the same old information. Publishers like Llewellyn have a place, they are there for the beginners and complete newbies, but when you wish to advance and learn more you must leave behind the colourful easy-to-read books clearly labelled with witchcraft and venture into the worlds of research, scholarship, and folklore. You must learn to think for yourself and make discoveries and connections on your own without an author or teacher to lead you.

You could blame popular publishers for your dilemma, but you still need to look in the mirror and realize that your curiosity never got the better of you. Did you ever stop to ask why for any of the beliefs and practices of your teacher, coven, or the books you read and then research why if you didn’t receive a satisfactory answer? Did you ever venture outside the 101 books specifically aimed at Neo-Pagans on your own for books on mythology, anthropology, ethnology, folklore, or history? Did you ever read the classics that influenced the leaders of modern witchcraft like Aradia, The Golden Bough, The Silver Bough, The White Goddess, Etruscan Roman Remains, Gypsy Sorcery & Fortune Telling, The History of the Devil:Horned God of the West or the famous grimoires like The Key of Solomon, The Black Pullet, or Le Petit Albert? Did you ever look into the history of your own tradition in enlightening works such as Triumph of the Moon, Gerald Gardner and the Cauldron of Inspiration, Wiccan Roots: Gerald Gardner and the Modern Witchcraft Revival, The Rebirth of Witchcraft, A History of Witchcraft, or Witchcraft in the Middle Ages?

“But no one ever told me!” Is usually the response I receive and I say it’s no one else’s responsibility but your own to inform yourself. Don’t feel guilty about it, if you never really looked how could you know? But now that you feel lost and left behind and know you’re suffering from 101 syndrome, you can do something about it! Most importantly, after reading and learning why we believe and do what we do, ensure you implement it into regular practice shifting your ordinary mundane life into the spiritual. Written words are dead words  just promises waiting to be fulfilled until the reader takes what they’ve learned and applied it. One of my first mentors ever taught me this: that knowledge is just the knowing and wisdom is its practical application. To advance on your path you must learn how to change roles from the seeker to the doer and while it’s no easy task, it’s one well worth the doing.

Sláinte!
Sarah

On my activity week I decided to go home for a few days so I could go to the National Portrai Gallery and the Photographers Gallery in London. I first went to the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize exhibition. This exhibition showed contemporary portrait photography showing work from young new photographer, students but also professionals. The different styles of portraits range from formal to spontaneous and intimate moments. I really liked Meta Scheltes- To Love, I found myself drawn to the image and I couldn’t stop looking at it. The image is really intimate yet such a strange pose to photograph, however I think it worked as I really well.

I went downstairs to another exhibiton I didn’t realise was on by Faisal Abdu’allah- chasing mirrors. This work was showing portraiture and self representation.

I then went to the Photographers Gallery to view Jim Goldberg’s exhibition Open See. I really enjoyed this exhibition, it documents the lives of refugees, immigrants and trafficked populations who have had to leave their counties to hopefully make better lives in Europe. They have left places of war, disease, poverty and violence to find a better future. I thought this exhibition was really interesting, especially after looking at Marcus Bleasdale and Sebastiao Salgado’s work which consists of similar images showing people in war, poverty etc and having to migrate or be deported. I liked how sometimes images were drawn on or notes added, not always in english, giving a brief description of what had happened to some of these victims. There was also ephemera shown, articles of abuse written by doctors on the people photographed, there were also diaries and hundreds more photographs that the photographer hadn’t added into the exhibition but to show how many people were having to living this way.

On the 17/11/09 we had a visit from photographer Phil Brooks. He spoke about his ongoing project Sixty Degrees North. This has been a 13year project that started in his final year of his degree. Phil wanted to explore countries that were sixty degrees north of the equator and the landscapes and communities within tis area. He went on a journey that took him to Iceland, Northern Canada, Southern Alaska, Faroe Islands, and Scandanavia. I found some of his work really inspiring. He looks at the land and people who live in the northern part of the world. In Siberia he photographed many environmental portaits these showed depopulation and many images were symbolic. I really liked a lot of the landscape images where he used long exposures, I have never tried out long exposures and after seeing his work I would like to try it out. I also really liked the night time images, even though some of the places he visited didn’t even get dark at night time, however I would like to try out some night time photographs with long exposures to see what effects I can achieve.

On the 02/11/09 our photography group had a lecture given to us by painter Paul Wright. I had never heard of Paul before so did some research on his work before the lecture. I was fascinated by some of his portraits, the images are abstract and his use of brush strokes and colour make each picture unique, as Paul said he emphasised all the colours, and even though the images are abstract they are strangely realistic aswell.

This summer assignment was to make a photographic diary. I used myself in many of the photos but also other around me and my environment. I had to imagine in this diary that someone close to me had left me and how I what affect he had on his immediate environment, I used my dad as this person. I read “The Photograph as Contemporary Art” by Charlotte Cotton, this book made me aware of new photographers such as Nan Goldin and Elinor Carucci, two photographers that photograph everyday, intimate photography.

I am not Indian personally, but I have learned quite a bit about Indian cuisine through various websites and research.  Indian food is rich, flavorful and is definitely a crowd pleaser.  If I can make indian food at home, you can too.  There are some basic ingredients that you can keep in your pantry, that will turn any plain chicken or vegetable dish into a wonderfully flavorful meal that will satisfy your tastebuds.  If you have the following ingredients at home, you can soon be on your way to currying yourself into oblivion.   All herbs in my pantry as listed below, are in powder form, unless otherwise noted.  This is the “dash of this” and “pinch of that” type of cooking.  I prefer this method to cookbooks – let me spread my apron strings!

• Cumin
• Ground Mustard Seed
• Ground Coriander
• Turmeric
• Chili Powder
• Cayenne Pepper
• Ginger Garlic paste  (indian food markets carry this, or you can put equal parts of fresh ginger and fresh garlic in a food processor and make your own – this is how I do)
• Garam Masala (can be found at most indian grocers, but I will post a great recipe to make your own.)
• Whole Bay Leaves (remove from food before serving)

Basically, you can saute some onions in oil – add 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste, and equal parts of 1 or more of these dry ingredients (I usually use about 1 tsp of each – keep in mind the cayenne brings on the heat) to the onions and oil.  The flavors are so great, you can hardly go wrong.  Add your chicken or meat, saute for about 5 minutes, and then cover with a liquid: 

• Tomato Sauce
• Chicken or vegetable stock
• Equal parts plain yogurt and half and half for a creamy sauce (I use fat free to save on calories).  If it’s too thick, add some water.
• Or a combination of all three.

To thicken, add either ground cashews (the authentic way) or 1 tsp of corn starch premixed with 2 tsp water. 

Serve with rice, and if your fancy is tickled by these kinds of things, garnish with chopped cilantro.

Effective intercultural communication seeks a great degree of congruity between different systems of code in a variety of mediums.

The perceiver/receiver determines whether or not the two systems of code are intentional or credible based on their congruity, or lack thereof (Mark Young, Course Lecture, Spring 2008). For example, if the communicator attempts to share the gospel with a perceiver, without any sort of voice tone, hand gestures, or facial expression that seem congruent with the content of the gospel, the perceiver may see the communicator and/or message as not credible or appealing. John Piper tells of the importance of congruence: “Lack of intensity in preaching can only communicate that the preacher does not believe or has never been gripped by the reality of which he speaks — or that the subject matter is insignificant” (Piper, p. 103, emphasis added). He urges, “We simply must signify, without melodrama or affectation, that the reality behind our message is breathtaking” (Piper, p. 104, emphasis added). To further illustrate, he says, “Albert Einstein gave a devastating indictment of preaching fifty years ago that may be more true today: Charles Misner, a scientific specialist in general relativity theory, was quoted like this:

‘[The design of the universe] is very magnificent and shouldn’t be taken for granted. In fact, I believe that is why Einstein had so little use for organized religion, although he strikes me as a basically very religious man. He must have looked at what the preachers said about God and felt that they were blaspheming. He had seen much more majesty than they had ever imagined, and they were just not talking about the real thing‘” (DesiringGod.org, emphasis added).

This phenomenon of congruity between different systems of code relates possibly more heavily to the significance of the code itself than to the message. The German poet, Klopstock wrote, “The tones of human voices are mightier than strings or brass to move the soul” (quoted in Samover, p. 214). This “paralanguage, which involves the linguistic elements of speech — how something is said and not the actual meaning of the spoken words,” was displayed in the apostle Paul (Samover, p. 214). He said, “I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (1 Cor 2.1-5).

Notably, Jonathan Dodson illustrates this very point when he says:

In the end, the evangelist must first have faith in the gospel himself, this authenticates our words more than any saying, method, or defense. All too often we share the gospel without believing it.

Well, it’s time for me to ‘fess up and admit that I failed at giving up chocolate for the month of November. The cracks began to show in the lead up to my essay last week and I finally caved on Saturday when the tide of relief about getting my first essay in on time and the stress of my current work project both hit full force and it was chocolate or nothing!

Failure aside – I am determined to crack this one before July 2012, so I will be back on the no chocolate track in the new year.

Being from a country with quick access to both the Pacific and Atlantic waters, it’s no wonder I love fish and seafood as much as I do. I could, and believe me when I say I’m not kidding, eat from the bounties of the sea on a daily basis. I love it all, or at  least I love every sea creature I’ve tasted to date. Would you like me to list them? There are the obvious, fish and crustaceans; then there’s all the shells–oysters, mussels, clams, scallops. I’ve had octopus, cuttlefish, eel, turtle, sea cucumber. Some others I only know in their Spanish names.

Believe me. I eat and love to eat lots of seafood. There are some I like much more than others, of course. There’s just never enough of them. Today my focus is on shrimp. Let me have a moment to think about that delicate, sweet, and that far away taste of the ocean. I’m hungry.

This is how I make Camarones al Ajillo (Garlic Shrimp). My favorite thing about this recipe is how easy it is and how well the natural taste of the shrimp comes through. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Ingredients
1 lb shrimp, peeled & deveined
3/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
Combine these ingredients in a bowl and set aside. In the meantime, prepare the following:

1 cp onion, diced
2 fresh cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cp parsley, finely chopped
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cp beer or white wine
1 tbsp butter
You will need to use a saute pan with a lid. Heat the olive oil and add the onions. Cook onions until translucent and add garlic and parsley, cook for 2 or 3 more minutes.

Add the shrimp, tossing around and incorporating the onions. When the shrimp begin to lose their transparency, add the beer/wine. Stir very well to cook down the alcohol. Turn off the heat and cover with the lid, allow the steam and heat contained in the pan to continue cooking the shrimp. Uncover and stir it once more. The shrimp are done when slightly pink.

Serve it over white rice or with crusty French bread.
Cookingly yours,
Anamaris