" Our Easter Egg Hunt" by Alex and Alejandro, 6A

Hi, We are Alex and Alexander from class 6  A.
Today at school we celebrated Easter and we  had to find a big egg  as every year.Then  the English teachers  brought us a bag of chocolate  Easter eggs and they sang a song.
All the kids in our school participated in the Easter egg hunt and some of them wore fantastic Easter bonnets. 
It was a great fun.

What a show!

Hi guys,
 Last Wednesday we had the pleasure to watch the play " Robin Hood " in our school. English natives were the actors who performed a funny version of this play. We enjoyed a lot. Some of us were asked to go on stage: Renata , Jaime, Iván C and Antía. It was really fantastic. Here you´ve got some photos.

 

EARTH HOUR 2012

Remember March 31st is Earth Hour. At 8:30 to 9:30 switch off the lights. Many countries in the world are involved in this project to save our planet. Look at this video:




Pocoyo is concerned about the importance of our planet:



Play Pocoyo's game and 50,000 trees will be planted!


ANOTHER EASTER GAME


Thank you to Aulatic and pequesPazos

EASTER COLORING

Enjoy yourself coloring these pictures!

Double Chocolate Cookies

title
Friends.  Not just a rollicking tv series, but also an integral ingredient in one’s life.  

There are those who’ve seen you through the tumultuous years of high school and college.  These people have seen you through bad hairdos, small(er) waistlines, and back-seat tequila shots in the university parking lot.  Hang on to these ones – you’ll want someone who knows you were once a bottle swilling free-wheeler when you are shoulder deep in bills and work reports, debating the purchase of a new vacuum cleaner.

There are the new ones who you’ve connected with in recent times, bonding immediately over common passions and beliefs.  People who may have come from far afield of you, whose paths you may not have had the pleasure of crossing but for a shrewd twist of fate and a shared love for gustatory indulgence, getting lost amidst books, Finnish forest creatures, or cheesy movie lines.  Hang on to these ones – they will keep your passions fresh and your horizons ever-expanding.

Then there are friends who are actually relatives.  They are connected to you in ways that nobody else is.  They knew you back when the outside world was still unaware of your awesomeness…and they loved you anyway (well, most of them at least!).  They are where you came from.  And there is a special bond that shared experiences like chicken pox can forge that no man can truly tear asunder.  Hang on to these ones – they’re lifers.

Then, if you are lucky, you have a soul mate friend.  The quintessential ‘best friend’.  The person with whom you share your deepest secrets.  The one with whom you share your deepest joys.  They will stick by you come hell or high water, and fight like a tiger in your defense.  You finish each others’ sentences.  You make each other grow.  I don’t have to tell you to hang on to this one – with tooth and nail if necessary.

And then there’s chocolate.  Both a friend and a very integral ingredient in my life.

Double Chocolate Cookies
(very slightly amended from Donna Hay’s Simple Essentials: Chocolate, page 22)
  • 100 grams unsalted butter, softened
  • 130 grams brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 150 grams all purpose flour, sifted
  • 30 grams cocoa powder, sifted
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 125 grams (4 oz) dark chocolate, melted (I use a makeshift double boiler)
  • 280 grams dark chocolate chips
  • 1 cup walnuts, chopped

- Beat butter and sugar in a mixer until light and creamy, about 8-10 minutes.
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat until fully incorporated.
- Stir the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and melted chocolate into the egg/butter/sugar mixture.  Add to this the chocolate chips and walnuts, stirring by hand until just combined.
- Roll tablespoons of the mixture into balls, place on a parchment-lined cookie sheet, allowing room for the cookies to spread, and flatten slightly.
- Place in a pre-heated 320F oven and bake for 10-12 minutes.  Cool on wire racks.

Fresh out of the oven these cookies are warm nuggets of deep, dark chocolate goodness, with pockets of melted chocolate chips all throughout.  The walnuts are not in the original recipe but I wanted something to both contrast, and complement, all that chocolate.  My cookies did not turn out anywhere near as pretty, nor as flat, as Donna’s.  I am still trying to figure out what caused that lack of spread so comments and suggestions as welcome!

True friends and chocolate.  Gems worth more than anything a jeweler could ever measure!

EASTER EGGS!

Colour these easter eggs. Enjoy yourself!

HAPPY EASTER!

In EASTER people dye the eggs:

cool myspace layouts

cool myspace layouts


We put them in a basket:
myspace graphics

myspace graphics


Chicks came from the eggs:
myspace layout codes

myspace layout


And the Easter bunny is very important too:
free myspace layouts

free myspace layouts

Cookbook Excitement: Pie it Forward


I just received my copy of Pie it Forward by Gesine Bullock-Prado and the word "excited" doesn't even begin to cover my current emotional state. I love this book! It's been in my possession for all of 15 minutes and it's already my new favorite cookbook. It has everything I want in a cookbook: creative recipes and new, inspiring versions of the old classics. Among the recipes that captured my attention are the Spingerle Pear Tart, the Butterscotch Meringue Pie, and the Velvet Elvis Pie, just to name a few. She even throws in some savory pie recipes, to balance off all the sweets. Really, there are so many potentials in this book that I don't know where to begin. Of course, some of the credit for my cookbook crush has to go to photographer Tina Rupp, who also snapped the photos for the Baked cookbooks (my favorite cookbooks in the known universe). Tina is definitely one of the best food photographers around and her images always make my mouth water! Anyhoo, I know that the real test of a great cookbook comes when you actually make one of the recipes, but, until then, I'll be spending my days dreaming of the Yuzu-Ginger Rice Pudding Meringue Pie in my future! Did I mention that I'm excited?? To purchase your very own copy of Pie it Forward, click here.

Chocolate Fleur de Sel Caramel Tart

Strawberry Love Pie

Springerle Pear Tart

Wild Blueberry Pie

Poached Pear Tart

22nd MARCH


Good finds

A deeply welsh tractor.

A pub turned old furniture shop.


Rapping presidential candidates.

WORLD WATER DAY

Here we've got the photos of these days.Lots of experiments with water!

PRE-PRIMARY WATER EXPERIMENTS:


PRIMARY 1,2 AND 3:


PRIMARY 4,5 AND 6:

WATER EXPERIMENTS

On the 22nd March it is World Water Day. On these days we were working to see what important is water for us. With the help of Marian we made experiments with all the levels from 3-4 and 5 years old chidren to Primary 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.
I think children enjoyed a lot and they learnt lots of vocabulary on a different way.
Thank you Marian for your help! You are wonderful!
Here we've got our work about Water Experiments:

ABOUT SEASONS


MVOTD: EXO (Day 158)

EXO, who debuted this year in the SM Entertainment family, has done quite well for themselves. As a concept, having 12 guys who learn the same basic song and dance divide into two smaller sub-groups for singing is both fascinating and disturbing. Fascinating, because it's technically two groups singing the same song, and disturbing because it divides the attention normally afforded to one group between two groups.

As I learned with their previous single, with EXO, often the language version you hear first will be your favourite (unless you prefer a certain pitch of voice). Therefore, I was quite pleased to find this, a comparison/mash-up of their new single, History, so you don't have to favour either the Korean or Mandorin version.

 History is quite a catchy song, filled with ridiculous fringed (harem) pants and metallic fabric. It's got SM written all over it, and is reminiscent of every major boyband SM has had in the last five years. That's not bad though, since that means pretty decent fashion, dance moves, and song. What isn't reminiscent is the member of EXO-M who looks vaguely like Mr. Du from Skip-Beat!. Good choice SM. 

I LOVE SPRING

Spring Here Bird image
Spring Graphics

Spring
I love the spring.
For every day
There's something new
That's come to stay.

Coisas doces.

Parabéns Mari.


Parabéns Mara.


A sweet tat.


A cool design.

Pretentious Word of the Week: Histioblogonate (Day 157)

Unfortunately, the Pretentious Word of the Week this week is not actually pretentious. It is just long.
Histioblogonate, which means to determine what a wrapped present is without opening it, is a word that originated deep in the south of Manitoba, Canada (Morden). It is pronounced hiss-tea-oh-blog-oh-nait. The word histioblogonate has been propogated by select citizens of southern Manitoba (and Alberta) since the mid-90s and has been seen in print (newspaper) before. As many words are, when seen in print they become real words. That means you can use histioblogonate too.

While it is a fun word to use, the real interest in histioblogonate is its various forms. Yes, it means to figure out what a wrapped present is using your senses (hearing, smell, sight, and touch) without opening it, but that opens up other words.
Histioblogonator, someone who histioblogonates. People most often become one of these at birthdays or Christmas.
Unhistioblogonatable, the state a wrapped present is in when it is unguessable. This usually required weights, false sound makers, and a really well stuffed box. It usually also requires that your family/friends like histoblogonating.
Histioblogonating, the present form of histioblogonate, usually occuring when someone is trying to figure out what a wrapped present it.
Histioblogonation, the form used when declaring what one has histioblogonated a wrapped present is. For example, "My histioblogonation has determined that this present is a toy car."

So there you have it. May your histioblogonations be enjoyable.

MVOTD: "Everything" (Day 156b)

Once there was a cheesy, 90's based music video that was recent. It was by Juno, twin brother to popular TVXQ member Junsu.
Everything, by Juno and put onto Youtube by the Avex Network, is kind of unbelievable. Not only do three people (all Juno?) appear out of nowhere, but mysteriously Juno is a superman. Why? Because he uses his special ability of stopping time in order to help people. Mr. Dogooder Juno goes about singing in his low low cut vest and warm heartedly helps people. It's all very lovely and incredibly 90's. The only sad part is that it is a teaser and ends too early.
Please enjoy.

MVOTD: Big Bang (Day 136)

Since the topic of the day was so heavy, here is a music video to match. A music video theme about people rebelling against music being outlawed, along with some truly fantastical ensembles make this both a heavy and funny music video.

Big Bang of YG Entertainment's Fantastic Baby.


Oufits of note: All of them. But really, there is the 8 plus foot long hair, the visors of doom, the French court apparel, the gangsta monk, the brooding prisoner of flexdom, the green eyebrows, the camo lips, the cyborg arm, the giant ruffle shoulders, and the bejeweled crowns. Amazing. Amazing Amazing. The only scary part was the cat ladies.

CAUT (Day 156)

CAUT is short for Canadian Association of University Teachers. Over the past few years they have been discussing whether or not requiring professors (at faith based universities) to sign a statement of faith breaches academic freedom. And by discussing, I mean that they have decided that requiring professors to follow statements of faith means that academic freedom cannot exist.

I recently read one of their reports on a faith based university's academic freedom. CAUT's definition of academic freedom is;
"Academic freedom includes the right, without restriction by prescribed doctrine, to freedom to teach and discuss; freedom to carry out research and disseminate and publish the results thereof; freedom to produce and perform creative works; freedom to engage in service to the institution and the community; freedom to express one's opinion about the institution, its administration, and the system in which one works; freedom to acquire, preserve, and provide access to documentary material in all formats; and freedom to participate in professional and representative academic bodies. Academic freedom always entails freedom from institutional censorship."

Having knowledge of the institution they were talking about, I went through the checklist.
"Freedom to teach and discuss;" Check. They have it.
"Freedom to carry out research and disseminate and publish the results thereof;" Check.
"Freedom to produce and perform creative works;" Check
"Freedom to engage in service to the institution and the community;" Check
"Freedom to express one's opinion about the institution, its administration, and the system in which one works;" Check.
"Freedom to acquire, preserve, and provide access to documentary material in all formats;" Check.
"Freedom to participate in professional and representative academic bodies." Check.
"Academic freedom always entails freedom from institutional censorship." Check.
"The right, without restriction by prescribed doctrine." Technically, the statement of faith would be a prescribed doctrine. It says that all employees must agree with (essentially) ancient church creeds (the Apostle's Creed, the Nicene Creed); namely that God created everything, Jesus died and became alive again (after 3 days of being dead)  in order to enable sinful people to have relationship with God who is perfect, that Jesus was fully human and fully God, and the doctrine of the Trinity. The required statement of faith basically says that those who sign it come at the world from a Christian perspective.  So essentially, faith based universities require their employees to come at life from a Christian perspective. This is entirely reasonable since faith based institutions want employees and teachers who believe what is being taught. However, only hiring people who believe these things is seen as requiring a prescribed doctrine. The issue that faith based institutions argue is that all universities have an implied standard of beliefs required for employment (standards which are most often secular humanism), so therefore all universities function as if they have a statement of faith. 

From the checklist it seems that faith based institutions follow all the requirements but the one about prescribed doctrine. Since this doctrine (statement of faith) is basic to being a Christian, the statement of faith ensures that courses (at a Christian university) are taught from a Christian perspective (and no that doesn't mean subject matter changes. Just how it's taught). The statement of faith is the groundwork from where professors academic search begins, just as everyone has a foundation of knowledge/beliefs from where they start academic discovery.

What really got me about the report (and reason I bothered to write this) was the conclusion;
"there must be substantial doubt that free teaching, instruction, research, and public comment occur at [the institution]. The Committee finds it disturbing that [the institution's] courses are accepted for credit at the University of [], and that [the institution's] degrees are accepted as credentials for entrance to University of [] graduate degrees."
I'm kind of offended. Assuming this refers to all faith based institutions, because that is the issue in general, does being a Christian and teaching from a Christian perspective make the following courses unacademic? Courses like math, sociology, psychology, philosophy, aviation, english, media studies, and business. If courses like these don't count because someone who has faith in Jesus Christ as God taught them, then the world is coming to a crazy place. A crazy place indeed.

" Yesterday " by Geta, 6A

Yesterday  I went to school and at two o'clock I  went home.
I had salad,  fish  and eggs for lunch. I   watched  the serial "La que se avecina".
I did homework and studied English.
I went to Meicende to my fooball training.
At home  I watched tv and at 9:30 I had dinner : fish and salad again  at 11 o'clock I went to bed.

Bistek Tagalog

title
We have received some sad news this week.  A beloved uncle has passed away.  He was loved by every single life he touched.  And believe me, he has touched many.  His ability to love seemed too big for his own skin, so it spilled over and enveloped all those around him…and then some.  He lived life to the fullest, and didn’t hold back when it came to the people he cared about.  And it was in the littlest details where he touched people the most I think – a phone call to say hello, a visit to a niece’s volleyball game, a smile, a laugh, a printout of an interesting football article that he knew my husband would enjoy.

I’ve realized, listening to his friends and family, that it is truly in the littlest details that we too can touch other people’s lives the most. Thoughtfulness, kindness, caring...a little goes a long way.  So don't be afraid to be generous.

Just as he had a big appetite for life and love…he also had a big appetite for food.  So tito E, this one’s for you.

Bistek Tagalog
  • Olive oil
  • 250 grams sukiyaki cut beef or 350 grams tenderloin sliced 1/2 cm thick
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed calamansi juice
  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and bashed up a bit
  • Freshly cracked black pepper
  • 2 large or 3 medium white onions, sliced
Optional (for a saucier bistek):
  • 1/2 – 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed calamansi juice
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce

- Marinate your beef in the 2 tablespoons calamansi juice, 3 tablespoons soy sauce, garlic, and lots of freshly cracked black pepper.  Make sure the marinade is mixed well and evenly distributed around the beef. Set aside for 30 minutes.
- Heat a large skillet over high heat.  You want all your meat to fit in a single layer.  Add a couple of generous glugs of olive oil to the pan.
- Remove your meat from the marinade.  Save the marinade for later.
- When the oil is hot, add the beef to the pan, spreading so it cooks in a single layer.  If you don’t have a pan big enough, cook the beef in batches.  Fry quickly just until meat is almost done.  Remove from the pan and set aside.
- There may now be a bit of sauce in the bottom of the pan.  Remove this and save for later.
- Add a couple more generous glugs of olive oil to the pan.  When the oil is hot add your onions.  Cook the onions, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden.  Once the onions have reached this state of lethargy, add the reserved marinade along with the pan sauce you had set aside.  If you want more sauce then add the calamansi juice and soy sauce that I’ve marked as optional above.  Let this bubble up rapidly, tossing with the onions, to make sure the marinade cooks completely.  Sometimes I like to add another drizzle of olive oil at this point.
- Add the beef back in the pan, toss a few times, and then remove to a serving platter.  Serve with steaming white rice!
- Serves 2-3.

As there are, I am sure, as much versions of bistek tagalogas there are Filipinos cooking them, I believe some foot notes are in order on how we like to cook this in our home.  Bistek is personified by the unique balance of the soy-calamansi combination.  Over here, we like it on the tangy side and this recipe reflects that.  If you like is with less of a citrus kick then lessen the calamansi a notch.  We also like it with a bit more sauce (better to coat our rice with), which is why I’ve included an option for it here, although it is still good without it.  For the beef I like to buy sukiyaki cut because it’s nice and thin.  I get it from a purveyor at my weekend market that sells locally raised wagyu beef.  The nicely marbled slices make for a luxurious bistek experience.  I also use tenderloin sometimes, as indicated above.  Do not overcook your beef – you want it tender and yielding.  Olive oil is admittedly not a local flavor but I love my bistek with it, so in this instance I’ve given up authenticity for pleasure – I've no excuses so please don’t judge!  I like to cook my onions until very soft and almost burnished.  Others like to keep a little crunch in them.  So feel free to cook them as you like them.  I’m also very generous with the black pepper…crack that pepper mill like you’re working out (as if I would really know what that feels like).

We are leaving the city for the weekend.  Summer is here and making us all yearn for childhood vacations, while our adult self is stuck in front of a computer screen the whole week.  So we stuff our bags full of bathing suits and possibilities; pile ourselves, our spirits, and the Pack ‘N Play into our little red car; and head out to enjoy the sun whilst it shines, and each other most of all.  Life is short, pick up that phone, connect, snuggle in bed a bit longer, let somebody else answer the phone while you watch your sleeping child.  Love each other. 

We will miss you tito E.

My school

Hi! I'm Geta . My  class is 6A.  We are a big class:11 boys and 12 girls.
My classroom is yellow. My best friends are Ivan, Dani... .
My teacher's name is Carmen. My favourite subject is Science.
I don't like school.
My school is orange and very big.
My favourite sport is football.
I play for  Imperator Football Club. .

SAINT PATRICK'S DAY

Happy St image
St Patricks Day Graphics

Learn about this special day for the Irish people:


Now try to do this puzzle:


"MY LAST WEEKEND" by Juan Carlos 6A

Hi friends!!!!!!!!!!


MY LAST WEEKEND 

I studied a lot last weekend.Last Friday I did my homework and then I went with my aunt to buy my birthday present. I bought three books: "El diario de Greg 2" ( Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules " Aventuras de la mano negra" ( Adventures of the Black Hand Band) and "Ulysses Moore". Last Saturbay I studied in the morning and in the evening I went to the park.

Robin Hood

Hi kids,
On March 28th, we´ll see the play " Robin Hood " by a theatre company from Madrid. They will visit our school. I´m sure we´ll have a great time.
Image by Face2Face Theatre Company

"Robin Hood" is the legend of a heroic outlaw and his band of theives, the evil Sheriff of Nottingham, and a damsel in distress. . Follow Robin Hood through the town of Nottingham as he seeks justice for the poor and humor for the grumpy in Face2Face's latest comic adventure.
Click here to listen and practice before seeing the play: 
* the song " Help me Marion"


* Scene 1

* Scene 2

* Scene 3

* Scene 4

* Scene 5


Robin Hood, Prince of  Thieves. on PhotoPeach

Dani Griffin´s concert.

Hi guys,
On the 16th of April all of you are going to Dani Griffin´s concert.
This is Danny Griffin. He was born in Chicago ( USA).He is the most successful English- language children´s music artist. He is the composer of the songs of the book " Cool kids"
His work as a drummer includes 3 Latin Grammy- nominated albums.  He plays the drums and the saxophone in " Fito y los Fitipaldi".
He is an English teacher and tutor elementary- three years in bilingual classroom in Chicago and Madrid.
At this concert, Dani is going to sing some songs like " Africa", " Slide", " Ride my bike" " London Bridge " , etc.
Each song has different steps . So it´s very important we learn them before going to the concert. 
Thanks to Oxford University Press for inviting us .
Click here if you want to listen to all the songs.( Blog : Ready, Steady, Go...)  Let´s sing and dance.

"When I was 3 years old" by Óscar Ares 6ºA

Hi friends! Today I'm going to tell a story. 
"This story is  about a child called Óscar. He was 3 years old. He lived in A coruña with his mother and his dad. He liked to make clay figures and he loved playing with his grandad's dog. The dog was called Lucas, and  It sometimes stole his snack!. He went to the park everyday. He didn't have videogames."
I can't belive that he enjoyed without computers and videogames!

"When I was one " by Paula F, 6A

Hi friends!
When I was one I live in A Coruña with my dad and my mum. My favourite TV programme was " The Teletubbies ".My favourite book was "Teo". I liked to go with my friends to the park. I always went there with my dolly.
I loved animals, I had one hamster. two tortoises and three fish. My favourite animal was a dog.
I always wore a ponnytail.My mum made my ponnytails.
 I liked to paint sketches I painted very good.
 I didn´t eat ice-cream. I ate fruit. 
When I was three, I went to school. . I walked to school.
When I was three, I was very playful.


MVOTD: David Bisbal (Day 155)

It's David Bisbal time!

David Bisbal is such a lovable, and sometimes creepy looking, pop singer. There's usually something to really enjoy in each of his music video's. For Esta Ausencia, that special something is the way he goes "oooooooo" at the end. Yes, the song is great and is a pleasure to listen to, but the "ooooooo" really makes it special.

On the more serious end, Esta Ausencia  is actually a pretty serious song that includes lots of crying. There are roses and rose petals which obviously mean something important. Maybe he is sending his love out to them. Anyway, it is artistically rendered and a very nice music video. Please enjoy.


...and also, I really like the way he goes "ooooooo".

Skip-Beat! Episode 10 Review (Day 155)

Episode 10
from en.korea.com

I really really enjoyed this episode. The costumes. The hotness. The way it included all the important characters and Gong Xi wasn’t irritating. Mmmmm.
When we first meet our hero, Gong Xi, she is riding up to meet the music video producer. This requires some special features, so Gong Xi uses her grudge spirits to have her bicycle ride itself in front of the building. She then goes in and pretends that she’s not Gong Xi. Now she is Gigi and is excited by everything and everyone. Meanwhile, Bu Po Shang is wearing a horrid metallic tank top. When they eat lunch, Bu Po finds out she’s lying about who she is and decides he needs to check if it’s really Gong Xi or not. Therefore, he finds a perfume bottle and whips it out in front of her. She goes crazy talking about how the perfume is amazing and he smiles wickedly having revealed her true identity.
Once Bu Po knows who she is Gong Xi has nothing to lose and shows up on set cooly and setting his heart pitter pattering. They fight. Other people get jealous. Gong Xi tries to strangle Bu Po. Other people get jealous. Gong Xi realizes that she needs to work on her acting and so she tries to call Dun He Lian, but only manages to give half a message on his answering machine (a very suspicious message it is). Then she calls Jiang Nan Qin and figures out her problems. Gong Xi acts her heart out, wins, and makes Bu Po Shang more susceptible to her charms.
Dun He Lian heads south for filming, and while away, Mr. Du confronts him about his affections for Gong Xi. Lian brushes it off, but it serves as good foreshadowing. It also gives Siwon a chance to show off his sweet English skills. Oooooh.
Thanks to the great crow outfit Donghae wears as Bu Po Shang (and looks great in), the poofy ‘angel’ outfits Gong Xi and friend get to wear, and the long scene where Mr. Du accuses Dun He Lian of liking Gong Xi (which was great because we all want to see more of Mr. Du) this episode was great fun.

Catching up with the Dude.

Classical



Pop


Hes got it.

MVOTD: SS501 (Day 154)

It's amazing what dark lighting and a bunch of tv monitors can do for a music video. For SS501's Deja Vu, these things worked wonders, and, along with the camera angles, made the music video dynamic and engaging. The costumes were pretty good and the song was pretty good. Overall, Deja Vu is a pretty solid music video.

How To Be Pretentious: Book Quoting (Day 154)

It's Sunday and therefore it's time for a 'How To'. Many people feel annoyed at people who think that everyone around them is less smart than they are. If you want to ruin their false notions, or if you want to become that person, being pretentious is helpful.


Today's 'How To' is book quoting. Remember all those classics that you have sitting on your bookshelf? Well, start referencing them in conversation. Depending on your situation, you may want to reference different books. For example, in many hoity toity circles Jane Austen is just a romance writer so referencing her books wouldn't be very pretentious. However, in non-hoity toity circles referencing Jane Austen means you like classy writing. You just need to feel it out to determine what books you want to reference.

Once you have determined what books you want to reference, read them/read parts of them. Memorize the book title and author. You can't be pretentious if you don't remember the source of your reference.

Once you have your selected books read, start practising comparing normal life to your books. You will soon be able to throw book references into any conversation, making yourself one step closer to acting/being pretentious.

"My favourite game for Wii" by Maria Rivas Rey 6ºC

Hiiiiiiiiiiiiii again friends!!!


My parents gave me this game for my last birthday. Tintin, his dog and his friends try to find a lost treasure. The sound is OK and the graphics are very good. I love this game. I like when captain Haddock helps Tintin and his dog Snowy. If you like adventures this game is excellent for you.

Bye for now & take care! 

Birthday Cake Oreos


I am not, by any means, a person who lives life on the edge. I have never, as Billy Joel once sang, walked through Bedford Stuy alone or driven my motorcycle in the rain. Instead, if I feel the need to do something crazy, I'll probably just eat some over-processed, packaged baked goods. An Oreo cookie is my equivalent of an all-night bender. Okay, not quite, but as a person who runs screaming in the opposite direction from any food that contains the words High Fructose Corn Syrup or Partially Hydrogenated Oil on its ingredient list, eating an Oreo is a pretty dangerous proposition. But let's face it, sometimes, even for a goody goody like me, exceptions have to be made and the Birthday Cake Oreo had my name written all over it. Created for Oreo's 100th Anniversary, this limited edition cookie tastes and smells exactly like Funfetti/Confetti cake, that delicious sprinkle-filled cake that was my childhood favorite. And it did not disappoint. The strong vanilla scent that spilled out from the opened package immediately brought back the memories of all those birthday cakes of yore and I ate two cookies (!!) in rapid succession. Totally brilliant! If you're a Funfetti/Confetti cake fan, I would definitely recommend them, but act fast, these cookies are only available for a limited time.

Breakfast #57: Purple Rice Pudding

title
This is a special year.  It’s the year little C will be going to school.  We’ve already attended a trial class, where she (thankfully!), after a few nervous but firm “mama sit down chair”, she dove right in.  Between the toys, the kids, the snacks, and the lovely teachers who never tired of her endless desire to “wash hands!”, she seemed quite pleased.  So far, so good.  I only hope this continues through actual classes where I am not conveniently “sit down chair” in a corner.

This is also the year I introduce her to sweets.  I can already hear the divided outcries of mamas everywhere.  One camp says, “You’ve never given her anything with sugar in her whole two years?? Your poor little daughter!”.  The other camp decries, “Why would you want to give you child sugar at all??

I don’t know much about motherhood, but I do know this: you can’t please everyone.  And the sooner you accept it, the sooner you can start having fun! ;)

So, yes, sweets…this is the year.  And by sweets I mean cakes and pie and pancakes and French toast.  Cookies and jam and honey and, oh yes, chocolate.  These are things I enjoy, and things I want her to enjoy too.  I held back until now so she could get a good baseline of natural flavors.  Now it’s time to add another layer to that. 

I’ll admit, another reason why I am slowly initiating her into the world of sweets has a lot to do with school.  I know she will soon be exposed to all manners of sweet things there in a way that she never was at home, and I want to make sure she tries homemade cookies and good chocolate first.

The last reason is purely selfish.  I want to be the first one to see her face when she tastes the bliss that is chocolate.  Is that so much to ask?

You can just imagine my excitement as I hold a perfect square of 66% chocolate, meticulously brought to room temperature, before her.  I take a bite first, as I always do before feeding her anything for the first time.  “Mmmmm!” I say offering her a bite, “Do you want some chocolate?”  She looks at me and, for the first time upon being offered a new food, says, “No!”  This is the same girl who has readily tried everything from asparagus, to lamb, to salmon, to truffle oil pasta.  “It’s yummy I promise!”  But she is having none of it.  “No!  Egg!  Rice!

And so, as I ponder the incongruity of my own flesh and blood refusing chocolate, I stick to things more familiar.

Purple Rice Pudding
  • 1/4 cup purple rice
  • 2 cups milk
  • 2 tablespoons dark muscovado sugar
  • Optional: a couple of spoonfuls raisins

- Place milk and rice in a saucepan and bring to a simmer.  Once simmering, add the sugar and raisins if you’re using them, and stir.
- Cook over medium-low heat, stirring regularly, until the rice is tender and has absorbed a lot of the milk.  Once the milk starts getting absorbed and the mixture thickens you will need to stir more frequently to ensure that the rice pudding does not stick.
- Taste and add more sugar if you’d like it to be sweeter (I didn’t need any).  Give it a final stir making sure any additional sugar dissolves. Serve warm.

I made this with the purple rice I procured from one of my friendly purveyors.  It is harvested only once a year from the Cordilleras, a mountainous region in the North.  The rice’s color, plus the dark muscovado I use (from here), make this look almost chocolate-y.  I've marked the raisin as optional – I used it here but I would be just as happy with this plain.  This is a very simple, bare bones sort of rice pudding recipe, no eggs or fancy stirring techniques, and thus works very well for breakfast.  Its simplicity however does not take away from its creamy, milky, comforting embrace.  Perfect for busy moms and little ones who won’t try chocolate (for bizarre reasons known only to themselves).

Thinking more rationally about it, I suspect she is refusing the chocolate because of its color.  I, personally, have nothing against brown, but if you've spent your whole (2-year old) life eating colorful fruits and vegetables, I suppose an unidentified brown square can look a tad dubious.  Especially if the most common brown thing in your young life is…something mama is not going to mention in her food blog.

In any case, the joy and excitement is in the journey, lest we forget, and there will be other days to try chocolate.  Until then, we’ll enjoy a bowl of rice pudding!

MVOTD: BOA Duet (Day 153b)

So that there are more music videos to review later this month, here is a music video that is both simple and complex. It's smooth and almost classy. It's BOA's duet with Daichi with the song I can only guess is called Possibility.

This music video shows how impressive and interesting simplicity can be. There's the separation and longing, the playing with shades, and the heaviness of the relationship/characters that is communicated in simple sets and a very simple colour scheme. It's almost touching.

MVOTD: Backstreet Boys (Day 153)

Today, as I was watching music videos on VHS, I realized that the Backstreet Boys haven't been featured on this blog yet. The backstreet boys are pretty great. Their vocals are good and their dancing is decent. One thing they did make me realize though was how much I appreciate that Super Junior members wear shirts in their music videos.

This particular music video, As Long As You Love Me, features a very romantic and unrealistic song but a fun concept. I especially like the face changing and the bad outfits.

Epic 80's Movies : GoBots (Day 153)

Remember the 80's? Remember Transformers? Well, of course you remember Transformers, but do you remember GoBots? GoBots is pretty much essentially Transformers, but the plot moves faster and the characters have lamer names.


In the GoBots movie, the evil Cy-Kill(who is a motor Cy-Kill. Ha ha ha.) and the Renegades escape Gobotron to dun dun dun...Earth (of course, because aliens love earth) where he is discovered by a group of snoopy Americans. The Americans lives are threatened but they are saved by Leader-1 and his GoBot Guardians. Cy-Kill then proceeds to pursue his evil plan of total world/Gobotron domination one step at a time. He steals stuff. He blows stuff up. He uses mind control technology. He uses Cheyenne Mountain as his evil headquarters (which is great, because so does the Stargate Program in Stargate SG-1. Coincidence? I think not). With the mind control, Cy-Kill gets all the humans to attack the Gobot Guardians. They then have hostage situations, car chases, attempts to take over Gobotron,  and the eventual Gobot win. Ta da!

Best parts of GoBots = the bad names. Leader-1, Cy-Kill, Crasher, Scooter.
Second best part = the plot line moves faster than the Transformers storyline. Stuff happens at almost normal speed.
Third best part = the use of Russian vs. American relations, aka. the traditional Russian bad guy who isn't really the bad guy. It lead to some fun English jokes...and reminded me of Stargate SG-1 season 2 episode 1967.
Fourth best part = Crasher. While she's crazy, she is actually a cool female character as the flashy sports car and Renegade lieutenant.
Fifth best part = the mind control. It's so so bad with the humans being all zombified and saying lame things.
Sixth best part = all gobots can fly...and shoot electricity from their feet...or maybe that's just Crasher.
Biggest Transformers Rip-off = the giant dinosaur motorcycle...who shoots flames.

I give GoBots a 4 out of 5. If it is on while you are doing something else, it is very watchable and entertaining sounding. Cy-Kill has an epic voice. Scooter has an annoying one. Lots of things that defy logic occur. Overall, very cheesy and thus worth watching.

 

DAYS OF THE WEEK

ANIMAL BOOGIE

Cuanto más cool estés.. lo conseguirás!!

I have overheard some magical quotes this week, but the above (courtesy of Roberto Rodriguez. Lecturer and general Peruvian legend) is the winner.

'The cooler you are, the more you can do it'.

I spent today in an acting workshop. My character? A corrupt greasy restaurant owner named Fang.



Nations. Myths mainly. Some propaganda. A little bit of conflict. Throw in a historic language.
Boom.
Casas' 'La Carga' 1899.


Procrastinate, yo?