2014: JUNE 23

2014: JUNE 23: So far my grade with three quizzes and three assignments is a 95.  I guess I hadn't forgotten my grammar after all. This class is broken...

JUNE 23

So far my grade with three quizzes and three assignments is a 95.  I guess I hadn't forgotten my grammar after all. This class is broken down into units with each unit giving assignments and then a quiz at the end.  My first assignment was to write two complete sentences.  They start you off with some options...the boy rides, or the lady walks and we have to add pronouns, adjectives and adverbs to make this a minimum 12 word sentence.  I was happy with the boy rides, frankly.  (adverb)   When I started reviewing adverbs and conjunctions and nouns etc, I remember where I was when I first learned of such grammar....Saturday mornings watching Schoolhouse Rock!  I didn't need a teacher...I had the cartoons!!!   Conjunction junction, what's your function??

2014: JUNE 20

2014: JUNE 20: Finally my temp assignment is over and I am ready to take on my resolution for June.... Crafting an Effective Writer: Tools of the Trade (...

JUNE 20

Finally my temp assignment is over and I am ready to take on my resolution for June....

Crafting an Effective Writer: Tools of the Trade (Fundamental English Writing)

As some of you may already know, I write children's books.  I have three published and am proud of that but  I have had an idea for another book but have not felt my writing skills were up to par.  I felt that English was one of my better subjects in grammer and high school but for some reason, I can barely remember what an adverb is these days.  I have felt for awhile that in order to pursue this new "novel" as it will be, I needed to go back to school.  This being the age of technology, I can do that from the comforts of my own home and have decided to take this online class to better my writing skills.  I'm sure it will all come back to me as I get into it and the good part about taking classes from home, I can eat, talk, chew gum in class without getting called out on it!!  Take that Mrs. Beatty!

JUNE 11

Wow....June has proven to be a very busy month!!  With my temp assignment I have struggled to find time to decide on my June resolution pick.  I'm torn between three that will accomodate my schedule.  The idea is to pick something new and interesting that I've wanted to try and am hoping once my temp assignment is over, I will get to do just that for June.   Stay tuned for my June pick!!

MAY 18

Second attempt at the homemade pasta for the month of May....delicious!  What a difference a pasta machine makes.  (and a lot of help from my daughter in law)  Actually, she made the first batch of dough while I watched.  I made the second batch which will be used for baseballs.  The third batch she stood right over my shoulder and supervised as I wasted so much flour on the second batch we were afraid we'd run out.  We teamed up the pasta with alfredo sauce, a lemon caper sauce and marinara sauce.  (grilled shrimp was optional)  All three sauces were a hit and the pasta was sooooooo good.  You wouldn't think you could taste the difference in store bought pasta and homemade but I am here to say you absolutely can.  Even Mr Hall complimented the meal.  I will try a homemade ravioli next week (with the pasta machine).  I just need to work on "eyeing" how much flour to add...that makes a difference in what comes out.... dough or baseballs.

MAY 9

Have you heard of the pasta wars?  Well that is the best way I can describe my first experience with homemade pasta.  It hurt I didn't have the pasta machine.  I  had a pasta machine but it mysteriously disappeared.  The recipe tells you to form a sort of  "well"  with the flour.  Once the "well" is formed, you are to add the whisked egg yolks and slowly pour them into the "well".  So far, so good.  What the recipe failed to mention is that as you begin to mix the flour into the whisked eggs, sometimes the eggs decide to run out of the "well" and take a trip down the cabinets!  It was all I could do to scoop up enough egg yolks to form a dough.  It kind of went down hill from there.  After the dough set up for a while, I began rolling it out.  Ugh. This is where the pasta machine would have come in handy.  I could not roll the dough out flat enough, thus, very thick pasta....not so good.  I will try one new homemade pasta dish a week for the month of May but I will get the pasta machine so I have nice thin pasta and not pasta dreadlocks!  Bon appetit!