Approved!

The dreaded Independent Professional Project Panels were today, and although many were left disappointed and must re-pitch their project ideas, I was one of the lucky ones who was approved.

My entire morning was taken up with rehearsing what I would say for my two-minute spiel at the beginning of my pitch. I went over it again and again during the drive in, coming up with as many questions as possible that may come up about the project.

Little did I know, this was all for nothing, or so it would seem. When I arrived and was seated across from the IPP instructors, my whole prepared speech seemed to be unimportant. I simply said a few small details about the project that were not included in the proposal, completely discarding my original speech.

The instructors began to ask some simple questions, and as promised, they found all the flaws my project had within it. A few minutes later, and it was approved.

The whole experience was great. I now know what problems I may face in the next year in doing this project, and ways to fix them.

Minolta MAXXUM 3000i

After a look around my dad's house a few months ago, I came across an old SLR 35mm camera. It had two lenses and a flash, but unfortunately, wouldn't turn on. I was set on getting it working.

After a week of struggling with it, and learning a lot about cameras in the process, I finally gave up. The camera found its place in a corner, and life went on.

This week, on Mywinnipeg.com I found an ad for a similar old camera, at the low price of $30! I was very interested and contacted the owner right away. The camera is not similar to the one I found at all. It was about 10 years newer, and was a more automatic camera than manual SLR.

Nonetheless I went and bought it. I just picked it up about an hour ago, so haven't had time to test it out, but it looks to be promising. anyway, here it is, my Minolta MAXXUM 3000i.

Feel Like Having a Quick and Easy Meal Tonight?

A great homemade meal doesn't have to take up a lot of time. Try out the following recipes, they are easy to make, and only take about 35 minutes.

Entree - Sweet and Sour Chicken (25 mins.)

Rating: Moderate

What you will need:

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1 can of condensed chicken broth

1 tablespoon of vegetable oil

1 pound of skinless, boneless chicken breast, diced into 1-inch pieces

1 can of pineapple chunks, drained

1/4 cup of sugar

1/4 cup of vinegar

1 green pepper

4 cups cooked rice

Putting it all together:

Follow the directions on the packaging to cook the rice. Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet, add the diced chicken and cook until browned. While the chicken is cooking, mix together the cornstarch and chicken broth. Once the chicken is browned, add the broth mixture, pineapple, vinegar, sugar, and green pepper. Stir until it boils and thickens. Reduce to low heat, and cover the skillet for 5 minutes. Serve the Sweet and Sour Chicken on a plate over rice.

Dessert - Banana Pudding (10 mins.)

Rating: Easy

What you will need:

1 8-oz container of sour cream

1 8-oz container of whipped cream

1 package of instant vanilla pudding mix

2 cups of milk

1 package of vanilla wafer cookies

4 peeled and sliced bananas

Putting it all together:

In a large bowl, thoroughly mix together the sour cream, whipped cream, pudding mix, and milk. In a glass casserole or trifle dish, place a layer of vanilla wafers at the bottom, followed by a layer of the pudding mixture, then a layer of sliced bananas. Repeat the pattern until all the ingredients have been used. Refrigerate until serving.

Try This: Replace the bananas with another sliced fruit, such as strawberries, or peaches. Also, try using graham wafer crumbs instead of vanilla wafer cookies.