Edible 3D Model of a Plant Cell

Yes, I know it's been awhile since I've blogged, but hey, sue me.

This morning Joseph submitted his science project .... two days early! He was motivated by design.

The assignment was to create a 3-D model of a plant or animal cell with 13 parts identified. Extra credit is given if it's edible, and his is completely consumable! He went with a pound cake (denser and less likely to fall apart), lemon icing dyed green for the cytoplasm then darker green for the vacuole, and various candies for the other parts: green Skittles for the chloroplasts, green Mike & Ike's for the mitochondria, white pearl parils dyed green for ribosomes, red gummy worms for Golgi complex; green gummy worm for the smooth endoplasmic reticulum; sugar-coated sour gummy worms for the rough endoplasmic reticulum, a green Hostess Sno-Ball for the nucleus cut in half to show the nucleolus and nuclear membrane; and red fruit roll-up for the cell membrane and tye-dye fruit roll-up for the cell wall.

He typed up a legend showing the parts identified with candy and made toothpick flag markers for the other parts.

I think the best part is the display box I got at Wal-Mart. Got to find and hold on to those recycle items that can be repurposed for school projects!

Scrapbook products used: Glue Arts GlueGlider Pro

FND: October 2010

I just had a great idea: instead of trying -- then failing -- to blog every Friday Night Dinner, I'm going to do a monthly recap. I'll post the menus and guests and the photos that are worthy. And if I don't get everything right -- heck, if I get nothing right -- I'm OK with it.

So, here's October's proof that FND happened three and one-half times:

October 1 - Chick, Pauline, Steve and Gretchen for grilled shrimp apps with lupino beans, and outside for cod over lima beans, potatoes and asparagus. Gretchen provided Little Miss Cupcakes for dessert.

October 8 - Chick, Pauline, Sharon for grilled shrimp and humus nachos then outside for Eddie's famous pallella

October 15 - low key with Chick and Pauline for pork tenderloin over raviolli in a cream sauce.

October 23 we hosted the Oenophiles Fall Wine Dinner at Sunflower Cafe, so FND for 10/22 was cancelled per tradition. The food was difficult to photograph, but here's a shot of the scallop with baby watercress.

October 29 we had Chick, Diana an Jim over for pre- and post-Halloween party parties. Not an official FND,  but Eddie made guacamole, spinach and mushroom quesadillas and beef tacos. Uh, no post-worthy photos.

That was quick and painless! I think I might be able to do this. So look for some posts of previous months for awhile to catch up.

The Eagle Eye: TV Coverage of Scott Re-opening

The Eagle Eye: TV Coverage of Scott Re-opening: "We made the news! See the Channel 39 coverage of the Re-Opening of the Scott Campus "

Windows in the News

Here's an example of how small an island Galveston is:

Chick has been coming to Friday Night Dinner for years and, on many occasions, told Eddie if he ever wanted to sell his house to give Chick first dibs. Chick lived on the Strand before the big Galveston downtown restoration over 20 years ago. He bought the third floor of the Magale Building built in 1870, and he grew tired of climbing the stairs. So when Eddie and I bought our home, Eddie sold his 2-bedroom bungalow to Chick.

Little did we know, while we were making wedding plans and moving into the new house and Chick was moving into Eddie's house, Eddie's brother, Kevin, was buying Chick's loft. See? Small island.

Kevin has wonderful plans for the space, but lots of demo has to happen first. He's been cleaning out the place for awhile now, and recently decided to see what was up above. The ceilings are 13 feet, but he was thinking of raising the fourth floor attic for another six feet. That's when he came across the windows: more than a hundred windows many of which are at least a century old, crafted of old growth woods no longer found.

Now we're learning that this section of the Strand was known as the hardware district, and the Magale Building was home to a sash window and door warehouse. Instead of moving out the windows years ago, it must have been easier to hole them up and build in an attic.

Stashing the sashes then has resulted in finding a historical treasure now, making for a newsworthy story. In addition to being on the front page of the local paper, the Houston ABC affiliate also did a segment on the windows.

Part of a Conversation from Last Night

Topic: Negotiation Skills

Veronica: Well sweetie. You know what the means. In that respect, I'm liberal.

Eddie: I have another word for it.

V: What? Weak?

E: No. Foolish.

V: Weak. Foolish. Liberal. What's the difference?

FND: 10.02.05

* friends * Steve & Gretchen weren't the only ones to skip the President's Ball (although last year we had a great time!) Instead they joined us and Chick for FND. We shared ski and scout stories. Their son, Sean, is an Eagle scout, and Steve remains active with the Bay Area Council's fundraising campaigns.

* food * The menu was a little convoluted (wow, I spelled that right the first time!). Eddie discovered these cute dim sum-type appetizers that are wrapped up in phyllo and tied with a bow of leek. And since it was the last FND before Mardi Gras (Vendredi Gras?), Eddie made a luscious batch of beef stroganoff and we had another King's Cake for dessert.

* fun * Gretchen is so funny. She works on Saturdays, and she drinks beer, even brings her own. And as an avid runner, she does a good job of watching her consumption. So much so, we woke up to a fridge of beer, but it's O'Doul's! She needs to come get her "beer" before we pour it down the drain!

FND: 10.01.29

Better late than never....

* friends * My yoga buddies, Vanessa and Patty, were our recent guests for Friday Night Dinner. Vanessa just celebrated her 40th birthday, and she invited me and Patty and several other friends to enjoy relaxing pedicures then a very fun belly dancing lesson at Yoga Haven. Patty, ironically, lives right next door to Chick. She moved in about a month after Eddie moved out of his other house and Chick moved in. Small world!

* food * Eddie went with an oriental theme tonight: tuna on a new soy cracker he found that looks like a mini rice cake but tastes much better; and gingered salmon with peanuts and cilantro.

* fun * Although there was no belly dancing, I think the girls had fun! Who wouldn't!

Here comes the Sun (Salutations)

National Yoga Day was last Saturday, but that's OK because Yoga Haven in Galveston is celebrating it tomorrow. I hope to be there. Read more about it in The Galveston County Daily News.

FND: 10.01.15

We hosted the first Friday Night Dinner of 2010 with old friends and in Mardi Gras style.

* friends * Last Friday night, after a pedicure and belly dancing birthday party with girl friends, Eddie met up with us at Club 21. Before I found my seat, I found a familiar face. Martin Benoit, Mr. Everything at Lamar University when I was there years ago, had just moved to Galveston. Friendly as always, it was easy to catch up with him quickly and share our stories of how we each made it to Galveston. That next Sunday, while at church, I turned around and there was Martin again! Our paths has crossed twice in two days. He was destined to be a FND guest! And for old times sake, we invited Wanda, who we missed at New Years.

* food * Appetizers were smoked salmon on toast points (below) served in the lounge. For dinner, Eddie made pork tenderloin in a marsala sauce with a mushroom risotto, green beans and stuffed tomatoes.

Dessert was a delicious marzipan-filled King's cake from Randall's (yes, Randall's!). And wouldn't you know it, Joseph got the piece with the baby!

Then surprise! Diana texted and wanted to come over, so she stopped by for awhile.

* fun * I think Martin really enjoyed himself :-) At one point he said that he was looking forward to a home-cooked meal, but he didn't expect the level that Eddie delivers. He was impressed. But the best memory was the look on Martin's face when Eddie presented him with a to-go container filled with another serving of pork and goodies! Martin actually was giddy!

2009: The Year of the iPhone

I can't, in all consciousness, note 2009 without mention of the iPhone, more specifically, my iPhone, my constant companion. I can't think of a device that has changed my life as much as the iPhone. And I can't wait to see what the future technology will bring. That's the feeling a device like the iPhone can evoke. Once the light goes on illuminating the possibilities, you understand that this device can replace your computer and will be a significant tool in your daily life.

I'm almost lost without my iPhone. Just yesterday, Eddie and I went to lunch and I left my iPhone in the car to charge. In our conversation between ordering our food and getting it, we needed the iPhone no fewer than two times: to check the weather in Llano, TX for Joseph's camping trip this weekend, and to start a packing list for our upcoming ski trip.

Checking email, texting grocery lists, alarms to get to school on time, identifying a song on the radio, listening to my favorite radios shows and podcasts, finding a restaurant, tracking traffic, locating the nearest Hobby Lobby, checking flight status, looking up definitions, texting photos on the fly, reading Shakespeare, watching YouTube....it's all on my iPhone. And don't get me started on the social media stuff!

And I'm sure I've only touched the surface of what this device can do with the hundreds and thousands of apps launched and updated daily. The iPhone certainly has affected my life, and I like it!