learning to be human, since 1984
organization
Be a Frugal College Student
11367 days
I’ve been in college for awhile. Just ask my parents. Along the way I’ve learned how to pinch and save so I have enough to live how I want – with what I’ve got. Here are a few of those tips.
- Save what you can. Whether it’s in a checking account or savings, make sure to have money set aside in case of an emergency. It can be hard to do, but it’ll save your ass later.
- Learn how to cook and limit your social expenditures to what you can afford – or less. I buy in bulk when possible and for things that can be stored safely for long periods of time. If you need some ideas, check out my post: The Well-Stocked Pantry. If you can, grow as much of your own food as possible, or at least herbs/spices. It’ll save you a bunch in the long run, and will make your food tastier and healthier. Perusing the grocery store regularly keeps you on top of pricing trends – but also shop at farmers markets. You can usually get a really good deal, and you’ll meet some splendid people. You can’t ask a box of cereal whether its wheat was chemically treated. Learn a little about what you’re putting into your body – you deserve it.
- Ride a bike, walk, or take public transit. If you own a car and it’s feasible to live without it, sell it. In a large city, bikes are the way to go. They are small, easy to store (buy a decent u-lock), inexpensive to maintain, and cheap to fuel – just eat a bit more if you plan on a significant ride! In some cities you can even load your bike on to the front of a bus for a longer journey. The clincher is that on busy city streets, bikes can be faster than cars – just stay safe. If you’re scared to ride on the road, get a bus pass. Most universities offer them for free, or a reduced student cost. If you have a full/semi-full-time job, ask about employer transit passes. You can get some studying done during your bus/train ride, or meet a new friend.
- Don’t waste time. Be as productive as you can – while making sure to not burn out. You could turn your spare time into spare cash. Why sit around watching reruns of your favorite show when you could be sitting around watching your favorite show … and knitting a scarf that you make some spending money on? Don’t have any sweet skills that could translate into treasure? Look for odd jobs on craigslist, or talk to friends/family/neighbors. People always need help – and who knows, it could turn into a semi-regular thing. You might even make a new friend!
- Shop at resale stores, or try a free-cycling event. I help run an event here in Milwaukee called the Free Market. We take donations, organize them, and offer them back to the public for free. It’s like a big, free flea market.
- Fix things that are broken or in disrepair. Get a sewing machine and learn how to sew and mend clothes. Why buy curtains if you can make them? Need a dress, or maybe a pair of mittens/handwarmers? They’re a breeze to make with even the simplest of sewing machines. Did you see an awesome table at the Free Market – only to find it had a broken leg? Maybe a drill, some screws, and some initiative could turn it into an amazing bohemian eating surface, or perhaps a more modern aesthetic suits your style. The choice is yours.
- Use the internet. Need to learn a new skill? Search on your favorite engines till you find something you like. I usually use google and youtube to find tutorials on everything from sewing to playing guitar to programming a website. Direct contact with friends is ideal, but sometimes impractical. I use facebook, myspace, twitter, and this blog to stay in touch with friends, let people know what’s going on in my life, and facilitate meetings with people that are important to me.
- Hand-wash clothing from time to time. It’ll extend the life of your clothes and you’ll need less soap and water. Plus, your clothes will probably get a better cleaning than a machine could ever do. Don’t know how to wash by hand? See #7!
That’s all for now. I’m sure there are things I’ve forgotten – so I foresee a “part 2″ to this post. If you have any suggestions, please post in the comments! Thanks!
A-pear-antly Apropos
11404 days
My last few posts haven’t been food related – nor have I posted recently. I figure it’s time to get back into the habit of writing about what I’m doing – especially with regard to food. That is, afterall, the main reason I started this blog.
That said, I’ve spent the past nine or so months bouncing an urban gleaning project around in my wrinkle-patch. The main focus is communal fruit-tree harvesting. I’ve developed a logo and a loose plan but I need to rally a group of people to help. By getting people involved in community projects in a gradual way – especially people from different backgrounds – we can help those in need and build meaningful relationships that encourage learning and growth in our city.
Ideally, property owners whose land yields fruit (apples, pears, etc.) will be contacted or will contact the group to harvest their fruit. A portion can be kept by the owners and/or volunteers, or entirely donated to food banks in the area. Volunteers will ideally ride bikes, or will use minimal non-renewable resources to transport and harvest the fruit. There’s currently no timeline as to when this will happen – probably not this year – but it could be possible if enough people back it up.
I’m writing about this because I rode by a nearby pear-tree whose boughs are starting to produce teensy-beensy fruit-lumps. It was dark, as this happened only a few minutes ago, but I managed to steal one of the little-ones from its mother. Here’s a photo:
I’m also posting because I need help from you, Milwaukee! If you’re interested in participating, have ideas to discuss, or simply think I’m a total ass for doing this, don’t hesitate to post a comment. I would love to hear your opinions.
Put Your Food Where Your Mouth Is
11521 days
The importance of growing food is undeniable, yet it is something that many don’t even consider. By growing food, a freedom is gained – an independence from the supermarkets and big agriculture. (more…)
Planning for Planting
21522 days
For the past few months I’ve been learning a lot about food, mostly on my own. I’d love to go to culinary school someday. Unfortunately, I can’t really afford to right now. So I plan on graduating, working, saving up some money, and getting to business.
I think the best way to learn is to do. I could work in a restaurant – earn money and learn at the same time. The hands on experience would be invaluable. Can you really know how to bone a chicken if you’ve only watched someone else do it – without running your blade through a bird yourself? This would be a huge change and a tremendous risk, one that could completely devastate my life if things go sour.
On top of that, I’m getting old. Okay, so 24 isn’t that old – but most cooks start between sixteen and twenty. In chef terms, I’m a fossil. So what’s an old bone like me to do?
If there were no risk, I’d drop everything and start learning the industry. There is risk though, and I’m extremely close to my degree. Throwing that away would be a complete waste. I’d have nothing to fall back on.
I have also been feeling disconnected with the food I eat. For awhile, food was fuel, calories, energy. And that’s all. I eat as healthily as I can, avoid processed foods, corn syrup, Hellman’s mayonnaise, frozen chicken breast, even butchered chicken breasts. I do everything myself, from scratch, as much as possible. I make my own bread and my own pasta. I’m buying more and more organic foods, especially produce, fish and poultry. But I feel an irresponsibility, and a lacking.
Luckily, I’ve figured out what it is. And I’ve got a plan.
This summer, I am going to grow my own vegetables and herbs. I figure it will do several things for me. First off, it might save me some cash and certainly some shopping time. I’ve yet to figure out the numbers – but I suspect the cost of pots, soil, water, sun, seeds and love will be far exceeded by the costs of my groceries. Secondly, they’ll be like a pet. I’ll have something to take care of, maintain, and nurture. Third, though I’m doing it for my sustenance, it should do wonders for my pride. Finally, it will connect me directly to what I put into my body – and fill the void that’s been growing for some time. I will learn about food and flavor, how to use new ingredients, how to simplify things. And hopefully, just maybe, I will learn a lot about the extent of my capabilities, not only as one who makes food but as a human being.
The Well-Stocked Pantry
41582 days
It’s not a pantry without a bunch of key items. I’ve listed mine in rough order of importance, the most used and versatile near the top. Mind you, this isn’t the same for everyone, but I think its a pretty good base (a bit sprawling, even). Also, this is stuff that generally doesn’t need refrigeration. And now, the list: (more…)
Mise en Place
11593 days
Nobody wants to stand around cooking for hours. The flood of “quick-meal” cookbooks is a response to the ever increasing pace of business-driven society. Less time, better output. One way to eat well and save time is to minimize both preparation and cooking. Using raw, whole foods is a good solution, and a rather trendy one at that. But what if your favorite meal is port-braised duck with chanterelles and pearl onions? Luckily, there is a method that most chefs – and indeed, the kitchens they run – employ to keep food preparation as efficient as possible.
Mise en place [miz ã plas] is a French term meaning “set in place” or “everything in its place”. It refers to the planning and setup necessary to prepare food, both food and equipment alike. This includes cutting vegetables, gathering necessary spices, cleaning pots and pans, preheating the oven, and so on. Often, especially in English, it is simply called mise [miz]. The brackets denote the pronunciation as transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet. It’s worth learning.
Having everything in front of you allows two things things: easy access to all your equipment and ingredients (and that you indeed have all necessary items), and the ability to spot shoddy ingredients or equipment. A great tip for recipes involving eggs, and certainly part of mise en place, is to crack them one at a time into a small bowl or ramekin, inspecting each one before pouring it into the collective bowl. Every once in awhile, a bad one makes it into your fridge. Thankfully, our pal Mise is there to bail us out.
Okay, so lets get to the application. How exactly do you look at a recipe and figure out the mise en place? There are five steps, roughly, to tackling any recipe or set of courses:
- Figure out each step in the recipe.Usually this is done for you, but sometime it isn’t. Break the recipe down into sequential tasks that make sense.
- Assess which steps can be done ahead of time.This includes all your prep-work, preheating, bowl-chilling, vegetable blanching, etc.
- Decide how you will store your ingredients will be stored until you are ready to use them.Some things, like sauces, need to stay hot. Others need the fridge or freezer, while others yet can simply reside in bowls in or near your work area – so consider both the storage location and vessel.
- Determine the time each step will take.This one is pretty straightforward. One note, however. Sometimes you can use downtime later in the cooking process to get some prep out of the way. For example, if you’re making a roast, it needs to rest after being cooked. You can use that time to make the sauce from the juices. This is where you can multi-task by using passive cooking time to do prep work or cooking. This leads into the final step:
- Look for ways to be more efficient.For example, blanching vegetables partially cooks them while allowing you to chill them, and finish cooking them later. Since they are blanched, it won’t take as long and you can do it ahead of time while maintaining their quality. Also, if you are cooking several courses, look for common ingredients or preparation techniques in each dish. Doing all your julienning at the same time allows you to get into a routine, which saves time.
There are a few key ideas necessary that are beyond the scope of this post. They are knife use (and other tools, in general), and cleanliness. I will dedicate at least one post to each of these topics in the future. I must note this disclaimer, however. I am not responsible for your mistakes in the kitchen. I have badly cut myself, as I am sure most chefs have. It wasn’t fun, but I take full responsibility for it. If your knife doesn’t feel right, set it down. If your blade is dull, get it sharpened. This is what mise is for – getting out all the kinks and working efficiently and responsibly. You are entirely responsible for your own safety. That being said, here are some tips:
- Keep your fingertips tucked under your knuckles, using them to hold the food to your cutting board.
- When chopping, keep the edge of the tip on the board. It never leaves. Simply rock the blade to cut-you can steady it by carefully pinching it with the thumb and forefingers of your non-dominant hand. Let the knife do the cutting-bad things happen when you apply too much force. If you can’t cut something without exerting undue pressure, then its time to sharpen or true your blade, or get a new one entirely.
- Keep your workspace sanitary and free of clutter, cleaning as you go. The only thing worse than not having space in which to work is hurting yourself because of a mess that you left. Keep it clean, keep it safe.
- Make sure all the equipment and food you are using is thoroughly cleaned, dried, and prepared properly.
It should be noted that mise en place also refers to your individual setup-how your workspace is arranged regularly. Everyone does things differently, but there are certain commonalities (salt, pepper, cutting board, etc).
Till next time! Stay safe!
Getting on the Grid, in a Major way
11601 days
Over the past year I have dedicated a lot of time to making sure that the important things in my life are safe and organized, within reason. I’ve been using the book Getting Things Done as a guide, supplemented with other online recommendations.
Here’s a brief and somewhat complete description of my paper system. Important documents are stored in plastic folders in my plastic file box. Each folder has a label printed with my Brother P-2700, which I connect to my computer for more efficient label-tape use. I got it new, with free shipping for $40. Expect to pay far more – I lucked out. A simpler machine will do the same task, but I really enjoy using it, which means I actually file things. The labels make the folders far more uniform than if they were handwritten. I also avoid hanging folders at all costs. Instead, I use plain manila folders, unless the document needs to be water-safe, as previously mentioned. If I need to make a “group” folder, I simply make a list on a sheet of paper (printed from my computer) of folders that would normally be filed inside. This way, I can still maintain a hierarchy while avoiding the clutter of nested folders. Someday (soon, I hope) I will scan some of the stuff and get a safety deposit box. Finally, everything is filed alphabetically.
On to digital/electronic things. Important files are backed up somewhat regularly on my external hard drive. I’m still looking for a program to do this well and automatically. I don’t have Leopard yet, but I will soon enough – I’d like to give time machine a spin. Right now I simply drag and drop directories that I know have changed since the last backup. Much of my work in progress, especially things that I’m working on for others, is emailed to them and myself – and thus also stored online. I will eventually acquire more permanent online storage, other than my web host. I regularly synch my phone with OS X’s Address Book via Bluetooth, then export all contacts as a group vCard that I upload to Grand Central, which I use to manage my numbers and to log messages and conversations, mostly to note how much time I waste. Then I take a breath. I route my email accounts to Gmail. Replies appear as though sent from the same address the original message was sent to. I bi-directionally synch gCal with iCal using GCALDaemon, a server which I manage using Lingon. Lingon is a GUI for OS X launchd configuration files. It makes managing processes prettier and easier. I also use Jott to update/check my gCal via my cell phone. Jott sends me an email and an SMS confirmation/transcription of added calendar events. Also, gCal sends me emails and SMS texts at specific intervals prior to calendar events, depending on which calendar the event stored in. I use this setup to keep track of everything from class times to birthdays to TO-DOs to celestial happenings, like the Southern Solstice. This mobility and flexibility enables easy task capture and review – read/write access to my calendar whether I’m at my desk or on a bus.
I think I’ve lassoed the bucking steer, caged the paper tiger. Now I just have to keep it that way, forever 
. One further improvement, however, would be to print hard copies of all my contacts – a proper address book or rolodex seems in order. I figure tertiary storage is good, but a hard copy doesn’t need to be powered on to use. I will update this in the future, and also write more in depth articles, especially regarding gCal, workflow, organization, and staying mobile. I’d like to hear what others are doing!