I forgot to mention...

...how helpful having my "every 2 weeks" journals. I had TOTALLY forgotten some of the things that I had done over the summer and how I felt about them. To have the journals was especially imperative for me since I had so many different aspects attached to my learning activity. By researching my own journal entries, I added a lot more to my presentation because I was able to talk about all the different things that I did. I know that the requirement is different now, but I really think that doing the journals was helpful. I know not everyone's projects lent themselves to this format, so maybe the modification can just be to advise the seniors next year to write after every single time they do something of significance. Make sure they write down EVERYTHING because you really don't know if you're going to need to remember something or use it later.

DONEEEEEEE (April 23rd)

I've successfully completed 97% of my Senior Exhibit!! Hooray!I still have to get my written document in (Menu) but my presentation is ALL DONE.

I think that it went really well. I wasn't really nervous about doing it, but I really didn't "want" to do it. I was afraid that I'd forget to mention something like I did in my rehearsal. I spent several hours constructing a list of "key words" to go with each slide that I had in my powerpoint so that I wouldn't forget anything, but eventually I started writing sentences. At the time, I felt like I was wasting my time with that because there was no way I was going to stand in front of a room and read from a sheet of paper, but I think that just by writing it all down, I memorized it because in the end, it all came out okay. In the words of Mrs. Nobles, I "filled the holes with mountains"- the holes being the copious amounts of information that I neglected to mention in the practice run. Afterward, as I was talking with Mrs. Nobles, I kept thinking of little anecdotes here and there that I forgot to talk about but, I nonetheless talked for 45 minutes and Mrs. Nobles said that it was totally fine.

I really tried to focus on the journey aspect of my project and what I learned. To me, those were the most important pieces: knowing that if something doesn't work out, try something new and all the skills I picked up from going out into the world and doing things for myself. Snobles said that she looked around the room at one point during the presentation and saw the look on the students's faces...apparently they looked surprised by all that I had done. I say "apparently" because I couldn't tell if they weren't interested in what I was talking about or tired or whatever else. That was really nice to know, and actually Carmen said that to me also- she said how she really had no idea what I had been doing (like going to Poppy Hill), and she thought that was really cool. I loved hearing a classmate telling me that...it felt like my work was being recognized. To me, it was obvious that I needed to do something else with my project once my UMW thing fell through, but Snobles was telling me that most students would have just let it go and "made it work" for their presentations, like some have done in the past. I never really thought of it like that. One of the things I tried to share with the group was how I learned to take things in stride and just keep a smile on your face, even if everything is going wrong. Without meaning to, I practiced what I preached in front of all of them because during the beginning of my presentation my projected went out. Twice. It kind of frazzled me a little at first, but I knew that I couldn't just stop, so I kept going. Mrs. Nobles was great though- she was on her hands and knees trying to fix it for me. She eventually fixed it and the show went on, and I actually forgot that it even happened since it was early on. Later, Snobles told me how it was cool that I was able to keep going and how it really showed that I actually DID learn to take things in stride, instead of me just blowing smoke up everyone's you-know-what about all the things I've learned. The conversation I had after my presentation was really nice because I was able to see that people were actually really listening to me. An example is what I just said- Mrs. Nobles was really paying attention to me to make that observation. Yes, she's a teacher and my mentor, but still. Mr. Durso told me about how for the accreditation lunch, I had much, MUCH more pressure on me than I knew. Apparently before they came, the admins were talking about how it important it was for them to be happy and well fed, especially since we only fed them twice while they were here. That means that they really trusted me to make that happen. I didn't realize until later how vital that really was, and how easily that could have gone terribly, terribly wrong. It felt really great to hear that the admins felt that they could trust me based on Mr. Durso's and Mrs. Nobles's observations of me and the work I've done with Baking Club. Baking club was so good for me- it was really stressful at times, but it really helped me in so many ways.

In the end everything really worked out for me, and I'm happy with the results that I've gotten. The best thing about this project was learning that I can flourish in a foreign atmosphere. My favorite part however is knowing how proud people are of me. Several people who are important to me (faculty) but are not necessarily super close with have told me how impressed they've been with some of the things that I've done (mostly Baking club). That means so much to me. And at the accreditation lunch, all those people were so gracious and easy to talk to. It's been a long 18 months, I'm glad it's over, but I'm also glad it's done.

Monday's Rehearsal (April 20th)

Today I had my rehearsal...I have to be honest. I had about zero nerves about it. Not because I was well prepared (the opposite!) or anything, it just wasn't something that I was worried about. I know that I can talk about my subject for a long time, so that wasn't an issue. I also was thinking that I would rather have a sub-par rehearsal with lots of suggestions and then work really hard to meet all of the suggested criteria in the final rather than have a stellar rehearsal, feel confident, not do any more prep prior to the final, and forget something. Maybe that doesn't make sense to everyone, but it works for me. At least, I'm hoping that it works for me...the final is on Thursday, which is totally crazy to me. I've done SO much for so long, it seems strange that this whole thing is almost totally over with. Thank God!
I've certainly had some ups and downs, and I'm happy with the final result, but it will be wonderful to not have to worry about this anymore. Once I am done however, I don't see myself being extra motivated to do any other school work...it's getting pretty hard to do so as it is.

For the rehearsal, I made a power point with some pictures to illustrated just how multifaceted my project had been. I included very few words so that I would be able to just talk to my audience. It's simple, but it looks clean, so I like it. The panel, Mrs. Nobles, Mr. Eckerson, Mrs. Walsh, and Mrs. Hopple, liked it too. As far as what I talked about, I winged it. I mean literally, I winged it. You could tell- the whole thing was about 20 minutes long and I totally and completely failed to mention anything about Baking Club. I failed to mention a lot of things here and there, but I couldn't believe that I actually forgot about Baking Club! Oh well...Mrs. Hopple wrote down the suggestions of what I should include in the final and they were all things that I could have figured about myself. I knew that I forgot stuff, but it was nice to see EXACTLY what they wanted to hear more about. Mr. Eckerson said that my speech speed and cadence and all that could stuff was great though, so at least I don't have to worry about something fundamental like that. Today didn't make me feel especially good about my presentation since I didn't do the best job ever, but I really think that I can make it all come together when it matters on Thursday.

UPDATE: I've gone to Poppy

Yesterday I took a little journey to Poppy Hill where Scott and I talked about my menu. I went in knowing that there will be approximately 12 or less people at the accreditation meetings and that I will be serving one breakfast and one lunch (different days). I went in planning on only discussing the lunch menu since I have a fairly solid grasp on breakfast goods. I told Scott that I wanted it to be pretty light since it'll be spring time and it's only lunch, so it shouldn't be a really heavy lunch. I want them to walk away satisfied, not wanting to hibernate.
So far we came up with
- Crab cakes
- Open face sandwiches
- Salad

and for dessert
- homemade vanilla ice cream
- strawberry short cakes

I'm good with this...mostly things that I would be able to take care of in advance, so that's good. I'm so glad I went to Scott to talk to him about the menu, I know that I would have had a hard time coming up with this myself just because there are so many options. I'm happy with this "rough draft".

Over break I plan to test some of these out for that I can figure out what I want to keep/change on the menu.

I was thinking about what I'm going to present on that night in May when we all have to present our exhibits again, so I was thinking that I would make a poster board with some of these pictures from over the summer when I was still struggling to get my project back together by doing random cooking activities (I'd explain further, obviously). That way the students/parents will see that there is not cookie cutter way to have a successful project.

Presentation Outline (rough)

Personal Journey (About 10 minutes)
- I knew that I wanted to do something with cooking…but what?
- Even explored the possibility of learning those amazing knife skills that the guys at Sakura have.
- Food is what I’ve always loved, and nutrition is what I want to study in college, so what better way to prepare myself than with an excuse to cook more than I do already?
- I’ve seen my mom do though many a family get together and she’s always so stressed out. I never really knew why, since they always go just fine. That feeling of ease was a product of her well planned and executed preparation, so I decided that it would be hue of me to learn that skill myself. There’s a chance that I would love to open my own restaurant one day, or even be a personal chef, however, if that doesn’t happen, I know that no matter what, there will be parties that I’ll want to plan, so this is the perfect thing for me to do.
- Originally wanted to plan the food for Prom…
- So began the saga of Jepson Alumni Center. I met with the Director of Operations, Susan Worrell, who gave the impression that she was extremely excited for me.
- Talked about getting an AV guy to film my progress, and giving me a job.
- Met with Thais Lomax, Director of Catering.
- Didn’t work out
- Got some contacts for restaurants

Core topic (What I've learned)(10ish)
- learned can plan more things than I thought (ravioli)
- not to give up! Things are better than what I had originally hoped for.
- Had a practice run with the breakfast I catered for the Board and with Baking club. Both have proved to go very well.
- baking club actually taught me a lot. I knew the first bake sale would be difficult and that the first time is always the time you figure out what you’ve left at home or forgot to buy. Went to the grocery store with some member and planned out the right amounts for doubling certain things and everything.
- taught me to roll with the punches (blueberry muffins ((forgot to double)) and how to work with people. It’s incredibly hard to plan a bake sale and even more so when you have to coordinate with everyone’s schedules and make sure that they get to do stuff.
- how to make connections with people (Whittingham's --> Jepson, Poppy)

Conclusion 5ish minutes
- Talk about the first time I fed a committee
- Contrast with the Board (April)
-

Presentation: Powerpoint or something else...something cooler if there is such a thing. 5ish minutes/feed them cake!
- The wedding cake from Alice’s (or something from that book). Have a Power Point (or something like it); have pictures from each step of the cake as an example of something that I have to plan out meticulously.
- Have menu from Board Meeting as written document (and rough drafts with Scott).
- First Board Meeting (surveys and notes) (Orange Rolls, Blueberry Muffins, Banana Nut Muffin (not crunch), Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti, and Parfait with homemade granola).
- Baking Club: show the first notes (blue folder) and second (planner)

Questions :)

Christmas Break....or was it?

Since break began, I've been to Poppy Hill Tuscan Kitchen (http://www.ciaopoppyhill.com/main.html)twice and have worked for a total approaching 9 or so hours. From the very beginning I had an excellent response from Scott Mahar, the owner, and was very excited to begin working with him. I had had a preliminary meeting with him about what I was looking to accomplish, and he was eager to help me out. He even started talking about some of the things we could plan for my menu for April! I couldn't believe how willing he was/is to help. However, once break started I was a little fearful of a repeat of what happened over the summer- I had been emailing Scott about when I would be able to come in to the restaurant, and he told me when it would be closed. However, after I emailed him a few times asking if I could come in, he stopped responding. My Mom and Dad urged me to just go ahead and call him, which seemed like the right thing to do since he gave me his cell number. It makes since that a man who runs a popular restaurant and has two kids wouldn't be able to respond quickly to email, so the phone was the definite best option. So I called and I went in that very night. I was shocked to see how a kitchen could seem cramped and immense at the same time. It IS tight quarters, trust me, but it seems like there are little corridors here and there that take you around the whole building- an impressive feat for a basement location. The first night I met some people, Kent the fresh-from-college cook, a few blonde waitresses that didn't pay much attention to me, a few high school helpers (which surprised me), and of course, Scott. I mostly hung with Scott the whole night as we made lobster ravioli, which was totally awesome. I'd never made pasta before, so that was fun. I did some chopping here and there for the salads too, so it was cool the way that he let me actually DO things. Scott and I talked a whole lot about food and cooking which may have been the highlight of the night because it's hard to find a teenager that loves (to talk about) food as much as I do. It was a interesting night all in all, especially since I had NO idea how long I was going to stay there- Scott just said to come in at 4:30. I stayed until 8:30. The time passed quickly, even though I was assured that it was a slow night, for a Friday (it was right after Christmas). The thing I learned from that night was that the pasta ravioli we were making was for the following week for New Years, which was booked. They make them ahead and just freeze those puppies, which is something I could totally do. So once I find out if anyone from the Board has some weirdo food allergy, I may or may not decided to make some ravioli myself.
The next time I worked was the night before New Years. Turns out, that was a a really good thing. Scott has anticipated another slow night, but it was practically full. That night it was only Scott, Kent, Sarah and Jen (waitresses) (nice ones) and ME. That means no dishwasher. Since Scott was so willing to help me out with my project, I decided that I would have no problem with helping out with some dishes. Yeah...I've never cleaned more dishes in my life- I've never even SEEN that many dishes. But it was fine, I really don't mind doing dishes- it's laundry that I loathe. Besides, I learned some stuff about washing dishes in a restaurant, you're actually supposed to REALLY wash the dishes before you load them up...something I learned the hard way. Turns out it's more of a sanitizing thing than a "washing" thing. Also, I was taught how to make the House and Caesar Salads, which I made about 14 of. I know it seems small, but it was so cool to know that there were people paying for a salad that I made. ME...even if they didn't know that :) But still, it must be so cool to make ALL of the food and have people who regularly come back to eat it. I like that.
I helped out so much that Scott actually offered me a job. That feels nice...I know that I wasn't doing everything right, but I think that he knew I was doing my best. I'm pretty sure I'll be taking it, a little cash never hurt anyone.
Scott and I talked about starting to plan my menu out the next time I see him, and maybe test some stuff out (he's so helpful!!). I told him I'd get back to him once I talked to my adviser/Mrs. Nobles.
I haven't heard from other restaurants the way that I had thought I would, but that's totally fine. If I only worked with Poppyhill, that would be more than sufficient in helping me with this project.