Well. Not only is this summer my first internship (therefore first
exposure to the real-world-real-people work), it's also my first summer
with a real kitchen and a real need to feed myself.
Hence, I must learn to cook.
Oh dear.
On
day 1 of cooking, I made eggs for myself, Mommy (who was still here
after driving out with me before flying back home), and my apartment
mates.
I managed to 1) fail at scrambled eggs, 2) fail
at flipping eggs, 3) fail at adding the right amount of oil, 4) fail and
manage to burn the nonstick pan.
Oh dear.
Day
2 of real cooking was my first day of work. I couldn't get the
temperature of the pan hot enough to cook the eggs (I was worried about a
repeat from the day before when the temperature was wayyyyy too hot)
for at least 20 minutes. Good thing I got up so early before I actually
had to be leaving for work...
Day 3 of real cooking saw me turn on the wrong burner and wonder why my pan wasn't heating up for the longest time.
Day 4 of real cooking had the right burner, the right pan, and the right egg flip! Now if only that success can be repeated.
The
only thing I can really say is that I seem like a fast learner, right?
It only took 4 days of forcing myself to cook so I wouldn't starve! But
that was only breakfast. After our first day of work, we all ate dinner
together (me and the 3 apartment mates). Each one of them made a dish or
two....and I washed the dishes.
:) I'd say that was a
fair trade. Observe how to cook while cleaning all the pans and stuff so
that the few dishes could use them too. I will learn by the end of the
summer though!
June 01, 2013
January 16, 2012
Soooo, long time no blog...
But, I am back with a pretty spectacular (if I do say so myself) photo that I took of my friend's research project. In this picture, you can see a drop of liquid carbon...not really. It is carbon, though, but the particles are very fine and are mixed with liquid (I think it's water) to give it that "glob" look.
This carbon was used to create a fuel cell, but I think it makes pretty good art, too.
This carbon was used to create a fuel cell, but I think it makes pretty good art, too.
 |
| Cr. KTPhotography |
September 03, 2011
Spelling Failures
Taking the SAT was hard for multiple reasons.
First, the test is long. Really, really long. As in 3 hours of sitting on your butt, staring at a booklet full of questions, bubbling in your answers (be careful, don't want to finish only to find out that you accidentally filled out question 5's answer in the space for question 6...), and trying to remember everything you've ever learned.
And by everything you've ever learned, I mean all the spelling and grammar rules. The worst part of taking the SAT is coming out of the testing room and back into the real world of improper grammar and incorrect spelling.
For example, after sitting through 3 hours of SAT, I came out only to hear someone say, "Yo, man! Where you at?"
It's WHERE ARE YOU not "where you at"!
Frustrating.
There are other instances where I just feel myself slipping back into SAT mode for spelling corrections. In fact, some of these instances are so common for so many people, that they have become their own internet meme (definition of internet meme as provided by Wikipedia). One such is Asian spelling mistakes. In other words, when something is imported from Asia, the English spelling of all words is not necessarily correct.
I was (un)fortunate enough to be able to experience this phenomenon first hand at a Grand Mart (Asian supermarket).
Example 1:
I guess you could just focus on the artwork...it is a cute picture...
They did put the correct form of you're/your, so not a complete and utter failure.
Although, why a dead fish and another fish about to die is suitable for the quote "You're my sunshine"...
Examples 2 and 3:
They were very inventive; they were unable to spell "cushion" not on one flyer, but two and two different spellings...
I have to give them some credit, though. They got it on the third try.
Anyways, I guess the whole point of this post was to show you just how important it is to follow proper grammar and spelling rules. It just makes life easier.
Off to spellcheck my essay,
Little Star
First, the test is long. Really, really long. As in 3 hours of sitting on your butt, staring at a booklet full of questions, bubbling in your answers (be careful, don't want to finish only to find out that you accidentally filled out question 5's answer in the space for question 6...), and trying to remember everything you've ever learned.
And by everything you've ever learned, I mean all the spelling and grammar rules. The worst part of taking the SAT is coming out of the testing room and back into the real world of improper grammar and incorrect spelling.
For example, after sitting through 3 hours of SAT, I came out only to hear someone say, "Yo, man! Where you at?"
It's WHERE ARE YOU not "where you at"!
Frustrating.
There are other instances where I just feel myself slipping back into SAT mode for spelling corrections. In fact, some of these instances are so common for so many people, that they have become their own internet meme (definition of internet meme as provided by Wikipedia). One such is Asian spelling mistakes. In other words, when something is imported from Asia, the English spelling of all words is not necessarily correct.
I was (un)fortunate enough to be able to experience this phenomenon first hand at a Grand Mart (Asian supermarket).
Example 1:
I guess you could just focus on the artwork...it is a cute picture...
They did put the correct form of you're/your, so not a complete and utter failure.
 |
| "You're my sunchine" |
Examples 2 and 3:
They were very inventive; they were unable to spell "cushion" not on one flyer, but two and two different spellings...
Anyways, I guess the whole point of this post was to show you just how important it is to follow proper grammar and spelling rules. It just makes life easier.
Off to spellcheck my essay,
Little Star
September 01, 2011
First Day
The first day of school is always kind of nerve wracking.
Did I do a good enough job remembering where my classes were from yesterday's walk around campus? When I scheduled my classes, did I leave enough time to get from place to place and enough time to get something to eat?
Did I have anyone to eat with...or would I be a loner?
As a college freshman, it's both better and worse than in high school. In high school (or at least, at my school), all of my friends and I had the same lunch block. In college, classes are self-scheduled and you don't always have lunch with your roommate or with your other friends.
In high school, the classes were all in the same building, and the maps would show classrooms and classroom numbers. In college, classes are all over campus in multiple buildings, and maps show buildings, but never classrooms. In high school, the farthest distance you had to cross between classes was the length of the building. In college, the farthest distance you have to cross between classes is the length between the two farthest buildings you have classes in.
What I'm trying to say, though, is that the first day is the first day. Whether it's the first day of school, first day of work, first day of any other sort of engagement, we all go through the same anxieties. Eventually, we find what works for us and settle in...until the next new challenge, of course.
As my housefellow said, a situation is only as awkward as you make it. Take time to meet someone new, no situation is too awkward as long as you say it isn't.
Off to be (not) awkward,
Little Star
July 21, 2011
The End of an Era
It's inevitable. One day, everything that was there before will change. Everyone will one day face a change in their life...in fact, will face many changes. Some will be for the better, others for the worse. It all depends on how you view it (and life). In other words, do you think the glass is..
Anyways, the point of today's post is that changes happen. One of the biggest changes in a person's life is the moment they graduate high school. It's as if, suddenly, the person is now an adult with adult responsibilities (though, it's sad to think that responsibilities only magically appear after graduating).
Depending on how you look at it, you could be happy (ready to move onto a new chapter in your life), upset (not ready for everything to change yet and holding on to the past), or resigned (it's going to change regardless of whether I want it to or not, so I better prepare).
As I was preparing for my own graduation, my thoughts were a rollercoaster - swinging one way then the next. First, I was happy that it was finally over. All of the work that I had put in, would be finally paid off. Then, I was upset, I wasn't ready for everything to change. Going to college in a new city (in an actual CITY - even more shocking to a girl who has always lived in the suburbs) was frightening.
However, in those few days between the end of attending classes (yes, I went to every class: I only skipped twice - once for Senior Skip Day and the second time to prepare for prom) and the actual graduation ceremony, I decided to let myself get really sad (and sentimental). For the five days leading up to graduation (with the fifth day as the day of the actual ceremony), I posted one song for my friends and family to see. For each song, I chose a video that included the lyrics.
First, I wanted to remind my underclassmen friends that, though I was leaving and wouldn't see them as often, they should enjoy every moment they had together -- especially my rising-senior friends who only had one more year before they, too, departed our high school.
On the second day, also the last day of classes for seniors, it was my chance to say a final goodbye to my underclassmen friends. This time, I also wanted to remind them that I cherished our time together and that we will meet again!
Next, as the reality began to really set in (no more high school, graduation is real), I reminded myself that I should be looking forward to new experiences, though our parting may be bittersweet.
One day before graduation, I had my graduation party (my family's final send off for me because I'd be at our All-Night Grad Party the night of my actual graduation). On this day, I wanted to sum up the four years. The title says it all, it was the "Time of [MY] Life".
Finally, the day of graduation came and I just had to post The Graduation Song. The guaranteed tear-jerker. The classic. I had been banned from including it in our yearbook's playlist that we used in class as we worked. Yet, it was too quintessential to leave out of my own personal musical graduation countdown.
Looking back, three of the songs were in the "country" genre - not one that I tend to listen to often. Yet, the lyrics just seemed right. The last two were tried-and-true graduation songs that were still were fitting though they've probably been played millions of times. I suppose that I had been trying, consciously, to make myself cry. Crying is therapeutic, you know?
By posting this, I guess I'm finally saying to myself that it's time to move on. I've become resigned to the fact that though I may not want to move on, time was going to pass with or without my consent. I might as well make the most of it and enjoy the time I have before leaving.
Looking to the future,
Little Star
 |
| The Optimist (also called...well, just called The Optimist) |
 |
| The Pessimist (also called The Realist) |
or that the
 |
| The Scientist (also called The Real Realist) |
Anyways, the point of today's post is that changes happen. One of the biggest changes in a person's life is the moment they graduate high school. It's as if, suddenly, the person is now an adult with adult responsibilities (though, it's sad to think that responsibilities only magically appear after graduating).
Depending on how you look at it, you could be happy (ready to move onto a new chapter in your life), upset (not ready for everything to change yet and holding on to the past), or resigned (it's going to change regardless of whether I want it to or not, so I better prepare).
As I was preparing for my own graduation, my thoughts were a rollercoaster - swinging one way then the next. First, I was happy that it was finally over. All of the work that I had put in, would be finally paid off. Then, I was upset, I wasn't ready for everything to change. Going to college in a new city (in an actual CITY - even more shocking to a girl who has always lived in the suburbs) was frightening.
However, in those few days between the end of attending classes (yes, I went to every class: I only skipped twice - once for Senior Skip Day and the second time to prepare for prom) and the actual graduation ceremony, I decided to let myself get really sad (and sentimental). For the five days leading up to graduation (with the fifth day as the day of the actual ceremony), I posted one song for my friends and family to see. For each song, I chose a video that included the lyrics.
First, I wanted to remind my underclassmen friends that, though I was leaving and wouldn't see them as often, they should enjoy every moment they had together -- especially my rising-senior friends who only had one more year before they, too, departed our high school.
On the second day, also the last day of classes for seniors, it was my chance to say a final goodbye to my underclassmen friends. This time, I also wanted to remind them that I cherished our time together and that we will meet again!
Next, as the reality began to really set in (no more high school, graduation is real), I reminded myself that I should be looking forward to new experiences, though our parting may be bittersweet.
One day before graduation, I had my graduation party (my family's final send off for me because I'd be at our All-Night Grad Party the night of my actual graduation). On this day, I wanted to sum up the four years. The title says it all, it was the "Time of [MY] Life".
Finally, the day of graduation came and I just had to post The Graduation Song. The guaranteed tear-jerker. The classic. I had been banned from including it in our yearbook's playlist that we used in class as we worked. Yet, it was too quintessential to leave out of my own personal musical graduation countdown.
Looking back, three of the songs were in the "country" genre - not one that I tend to listen to often. Yet, the lyrics just seemed right. The last two were tried-and-true graduation songs that were still were fitting though they've probably been played millions of times. I suppose that I had been trying, consciously, to make myself cry. Crying is therapeutic, you know?
By posting this, I guess I'm finally saying to myself that it's time to move on. I've become resigned to the fact that though I may not want to move on, time was going to pass with or without my consent. I might as well make the most of it and enjoy the time I have before leaving.
Looking to the future,
Little Star
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