Posted by
Laura Kunzelman
comments (2)
When my gran came to see Mamma Mia with me (as you will know from reading my previous blog post) she gave me a whole whack apples that she picked from her tree.
I have made one pie people and that was a blueberry pie. I mistakingly bought a very large package of blueberries but didn't even come close to eating them all. So I made a pie.
Never before have I attempted to make an apple pie before. I told people at school that I was going to make one so I couldn't just forget that I had ever said it and pretend there were no pie making plans when one of them brought it up. I am not that kind of person.
Five things that crossed my mind as I was making an apple pie.
1) Is that too much cinnamon? I think that it too much cinnamon. It smells very cinnamony. Should I add more of something else to counter the overuse of cinnamon?
2) I hope this pie turns out. I promised my friend Emily a slice. If I don't show up with pie, she'll think I am a liar and never want to sit next to me in journalism ever again.
3) (looks in oven) Is that the way it's supposed to look? Oh great, part of the top split open. I am a pie making failure. Will a man ever want me now? A woman who cannot bake a decent pie?
4) There is definitely too much cinnamon in here.
5) (takes it out of oven) Hey, this isn't such a bad pie after all. Perhaps I am not destined to be a lonely spinster. Not that there is anything wrong with that.
So if you want these thoughts running through your mind, make a pie!
Laura's Self-Proclaimed Best Ever Apple Pie
*Instead of spending an hour on making the dough for the crust I took the easy road and bought pie dough. I used Pillsbury. Read the directions on the box.
Filling:
7-8 apples
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of ground nutmeg
pinch of salt
2 tbsp butter, softened
Directions:
In a large bowl, combine sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
Peel and core apples; cut into slices. Add slices to sugar mixture, tossing to coat.
On lightly floured surface, roll half of the dough to pit your pie plate. If you need to, trim edges leaving some overhang. Fold under extra and flute edges.
Put filling into pie shell and dot with butter.
Roll out remaining pastry. Whisk egg yolk with 1 tbsp water; brush over pastry rim. Fit pastry over filling; trim if needed and leave some overhang. Fold overhang under bottom pastry rim; seal and flute edge. Brush egg mixture over pastry. Cut steam vents in top; sprinkle with coarse sugar.
Bake at 350°F for 65 minutes or until bottom is deep golden and filling is bubbling and thickened.
Bake at 350°F for 65 minutes or until bottom is deep golden and filling is bubbling and thickened.
Let cool on rack.
Share with friends!
Posted by
Laura Kunzelman
comments (5)
I won tickets to go see Mamma Mia when I entered a contest with Breakfast Television. BT played a compilation of ABBA songs and the viewer had to name all of them. After I had won them, the only person that I would think of taking is my gran who loves the theatre. I was even going to buy tickets for me and my gran, but they were really expensive. Luckily, I won them.
Here are nine things that crossed my mind when watching Mamma Mia.
Here are nine things that crossed my mind when watching Mamma Mia.
1) Are they really singing?
2) Why my gran wasn't allowed a drink in the theater and the lusty old gal two rows up was allowed to bring in her XL Timmy's. I love my gran and do not want her dying next to me of dehydration.
3) Whether or not my gran's car is going to get ticketed because we only paid for two hours but were were going on three.
4)Why no one dresses up to go out anymore. I tortured myself with pantyhose and miss track suit over there is . . . well, wearing a track suit. Have you no shame?
4) If anyone keeps their program. And if they do where do they have a special place for these things? Like a program album?
5) They can't be singing; it sounds too good.
6) Is that the girl from Glee?
7) How my gran would react to a ticket on her car. Would she be in such a good mood because of the show and not worry about , shouting "Dancing Queen" while spinning around the parking lot? Or would she sob crying out "Money Money Money?"
8) I think I saw someone with red wine. I want red wine.
9) They didn't sing Fernando.
With that said, I highly recommend Mamma Mia. The performers are energetic, dressed to impress and very funny.
4.5 stars out of 5. (If they sang Fernando it would be a five.)
4.5 stars out of 5. (If they sang Fernando it would be a five.)
Posted by
Laura Kunzelman
comments (2)
I am sensing a lot of hesitation and hearing a lot sighs coming from fellow CreComm peers as we are starting our Twitter accounts. I have always been on the fence about Twitter, not hating it and not loving it, so what I have decided I would weigh the pros and cons of Twitter and see which is more appealing.
Five bad things about Twitter:
1) I have only been tweeting for a short time, building my base of followers and people that I follow and it is already getting out of control. Whenever I look at my phone, I have received a Twitter alert and sometimes when I go to my Twitter home page it is hard to navigate through the mountain of information that I have before me, including paying attention to all the people I am following. There is just so much information to navigate and it seems hard at times to just see what I want to see.
2) The random people that follow you that you do not know. Stop following me!!
3) It can be addictive. My first day on Twitter I checked it multiple times, tweaking the appearance and finding people to follow, and now that I follow these people I have an obligation to read what they are Tweeting.
4) You have to be extra careful to maintain a professional image just in case a prospective employer looks at your page, or anyone that you don't want to see the vulgar or crass things you Tweet.
5) It is just another thing to distract people from their everyday lives. I can think of many things to do with my time that would be more productive than being on Twitter. Like . . . putting together that bookshelf that you have sitting around but you refuse to find the time to build it, read a book like A Year of Living Generously, or taking your dog for a walk.
Five good things about Twitter:
1) The 140 character limit doesn't give the you a lot of space to babble, allowing you to think more about what you are going to say and in such a small space, it allows people to just cut to the chase.
2) It can be used as a strategy to promote yourself or a business.
3) It is trendy and Twitter is so huge, it has become so powerful that it will not be going any time soon and every day more and more people will get a Twitter account, which by the way is extremely simple. A few clicks here, some information there, another click and boom. You've got yourself a Twitter account and can begin Tweeting.
4) It is a great place to get important headlines that interest you and you know that it will because you don't follow people that won't interest you.
5) Convenient and simple to use, not inly on the computer but on cell phones and iPods.
It is difficult to decide whether Twitter is good or bad. It can be very useful if you use it properly and don't let it rule your life and become a distraction.
I am going to embrace my Twitter account as a part of my life now and make the best of it. I might even learn to like it.
Five bad things about Twitter:
1) I have only been tweeting for a short time, building my base of followers and people that I follow and it is already getting out of control. Whenever I look at my phone, I have received a Twitter alert and sometimes when I go to my Twitter home page it is hard to navigate through the mountain of information that I have before me, including paying attention to all the people I am following. There is just so much information to navigate and it seems hard at times to just see what I want to see.
2) The random people that follow you that you do not know. Stop following me!!
3) It can be addictive. My first day on Twitter I checked it multiple times, tweaking the appearance and finding people to follow, and now that I follow these people I have an obligation to read what they are Tweeting.
4) You have to be extra careful to maintain a professional image just in case a prospective employer looks at your page, or anyone that you don't want to see the vulgar or crass things you Tweet.
5) It is just another thing to distract people from their everyday lives. I can think of many things to do with my time that would be more productive than being on Twitter. Like . . . putting together that bookshelf that you have sitting around but you refuse to find the time to build it, read a book like A Year of Living Generously, or taking your dog for a walk.
Five good things about Twitter:
1) The 140 character limit doesn't give the you a lot of space to babble, allowing you to think more about what you are going to say and in such a small space, it allows people to just cut to the chase.
2) It can be used as a strategy to promote yourself or a business.
3) It is trendy and Twitter is so huge, it has become so powerful that it will not be going any time soon and every day more and more people will get a Twitter account, which by the way is extremely simple. A few clicks here, some information there, another click and boom. You've got yourself a Twitter account and can begin Tweeting.
4) It is a great place to get important headlines that interest you and you know that it will because you don't follow people that won't interest you.
5) Convenient and simple to use, not inly on the computer but on cell phones and iPods.
It is difficult to decide whether Twitter is good or bad. It can be very useful if you use it properly and don't let it rule your life and become a distraction.
I am going to embrace my Twitter account as a part of my life now and make the best of it. I might even learn to like it.
Posted by
Laura Kunzelman
comments (2)
Up until yesterday, I was Appleless. I know what you are thinking, but people like me actually do exist. This may shock you but I have never owned an iPad, iPod, iPhone, iMac or any other Apple device.
Well, that was until yesterday when my Apple cherry was popped.
I was always content with the technology that I had, an MP3 player, a PC and a Moterola. How could I be so naïve?
A Blackberry Storm is what I bought for school because MTS doesn't carry the iPhone. Now that I have come to school in the Creative Communications program at Red River College, I can clearly see how much I stand out and how much I am actually in need of one. It is a wonder that I am surviving without one. I can't even begin to fathom what students did in the dark days when there were no SmartPhones or iPads to bring to class.
Against Apple because of the price and how consumerist the company, I broke down and bought an Apple computer for my home in which to do school work on. But that's not all. For spending ridiculous amounts of money on a computer I received a "free" iPod Touch. What a deal . . . spend $1600 you don't have because you're a starving student and get an iPod. Ya!! I still did have to pay the taxes on my iPod Touch.
I do not know how to use my Apple computer well at all. I have no idea how my iPod works although I do know that I am supposed to put songs on it. What I do not know is how to get the songs so I may out them on my iPod that I needed so badly. I justified my purchase of the iMac by telling myself, friends and family that I am getting a free iPod.
I cannot say that I would have ever bought an Apple computer or an iPod had I not been overcome by an intense desire to get Apple products. When I started attending Red River I began to see all the iPhones, which is now a requirement for CreComm student (or an equivalent to an iPhone). Every second student has an iPhone, all second year Advertising majors get an iPad and a lot of people come to class with their MacBook Pros. In comparison to an iPhone my Blackberry Storm look like one of those with the loud buttons and the long antenna that pulls out.
Apple is a bully. I think that it is sad that I even feel that I need this technology. I don't want them because I think they are the best, even though they may be, I want them because they are what everyone else has and what I feel I need to succeed in the profession I am pursuing. I have it on good authority that businesses have survived without a MacBook Pro or an iPhone. At least I think they did. I may be a sell out, but when people see my computer and iPod, they will be envious and it'll be all worth it.
Apple is a bully. I think that it is sad that I even feel that I need this technology. I don't want them because I think they are the best, even though they may be, I want them because they are what everyone else has and what I feel I need to succeed in the profession I am pursuing. I have it on good authority that businesses have survived without a MacBook Pro or an iPhone. At least I think they did. I may be a sell out, but when people see my computer and iPod, they will be envious and it'll be all worth it.
