Chasing Education turns one today. Before I had this blog, I had blogging endeavors all over the internet (blogger, wordpress and mindtransfer.net) and about all sorts of things. While I still have blogging endeavors all over the internet, this is the longest that I’ve ever committed to any of them and I’m still going strong…at least I think so.

When I started this blog I was just Chasing Education…over the last 12 months I got so much more than I bargained for!

• I took the GRE.
• Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize and everyone was up in arms
• I took a Speech-Language Pathology class and then changed my mind and decided to pursue a Master’s degree in Hospitality Management
• I had some brief artistic endeavors
• I read nine books (give me a break, ok? I’ve been busy!)
• I documented the birth of my apartment garden (have you noticed that I failed to document the death of it?)
• I launched Wiser Today Wednesday (another failure)
• So many tragic events happened across the world
• I fell victim to the economy and went into a serious funk
• I finally submitted my application to grad school
• I started grad school
• I love grad school
• I got passionate about services
• I joined the food revolution and lost 30 pounds by changing the way I eat and exercising! (Please consult your physician before starting a diet and exercise plan)

And now here I am…ready to spend another year Chasing Education.

before they became a puppy snack

While I have neglected to report to you the happenings of the apartment garden over the past few weeks, I have not neglected the apartment garden. However, the sun has neglected the apartment garden and the results are rather saddening.

Before I divulge the details, allow me to preface them with this:

It’s been cold here. I know you northerners think that I am being a wuss and that I live in Florida and therefore don’t know what cold is. May I remind you that I’ve spent my fair share of time shoveling snow in New Hampshire, so I do know cold. Now, whether or not I vividly remember it is a different story all together. But I digress. So as I was saying, before I interrupted myself, it has dropped below freezing every night this week. The skies have been grey and I mean GREY…like snowy grey. I kid you not! See for yourself. All of this cold (the plants are up against the window) and the grey skies have really made the apartment garden sad. So please keep this in mind and don’t judge me as you look at the winter photo journal of the apartment garden.

I had to euthanize the confederate jasmine this month. She kept getting [what I thought were] little black bugs all over her. I fought for her. I researched and made crazy dish soap, oil and water concoctions, but in the end I had to say goodbye.

where the confederate jasmine once lived

awaiting resurrection

Sadly, the confederate jasmine was not the only loss I had this month. The last green leaves on one of my lavender plants turned brown. I am secretly hoping the lavender is just sleeping so I haven’t laid her to rest in a garbage bag just yet. The other lavender plant isn’t looking so good either. I planted the lavender against the advice of the internet. The internet told me lavender wouldn’t grow well inside. They told me there wouldn’t be enough drainage! They told me there wouldn’t be enough space! They told me there wouldn’t be enough sun! I did it anyway. Look where that got me.

There is good news from the apartment garden this month.

The maid of orleans jasmine has bloomed and bloomed and bloomed over the past two weeks. I made jasmine tea and [unfortunately] Kenobi also made a snack of the flowers that fell, as well as the occasional leaf that was within his reach. The last flowers fell today, but new buds are already appearing! I am hoping to break the dog of his newly-discovered taste for jasmine.

Basil, mint and cilantro are doing well. The cilantro never stops growing so I can add fresh zest to every meal! I’ve been too afraid to cut the basil after its near death experience. Maybe in the Spring I’ll be a bit more daring.

for your viewing pleasure: the eater of the jasmine

I trust you’ve enjoyed my photo journal and narration of the happenings of the apartment garden. See you soon!

Maid of Orleans jasmine only keeps its flowers for a day before they fall off. I am collecting them to make tea.

In other news…one of my lavender plants is doing well, the other is quickly dying. My basil is back in the game and my mint and cilantro are growing like crazy!

I already have big spring plans for the apartment garden. I will be giving my confederate jasmine a new home. It sheds way too many leaves! I’ll replace that pot with another maid of orleans jasmine because it seems to be thriving. If the basil and lavender survive, great! If not, I’m going with more cilantro. I’m getting a little ahead of myself!

Because I know you’re just dying to see the apartment garden in high definition, Eric bought me this baby…

And now I can bring you sweeter photos of the apartment garden…among other things.

I trust you’ve enjoyed my photo journal of the apartment garden’s progress.
Happy Holidays from me and all of the plants!

half of my apartment garden

thriving mint

If you have too many plants in your apartment does it make you a plant lady? Is that the equivalent of a cat lady?

I thought that my basil was feeling a little cramped and a little under the weather.  (I’m not quite sure where the Florida sun went, but we would really like it back.) Then it started to turn brown at the tips and a tiny piece just broke off and started looking like death.

I panicked.

I didn’t want dead plants on my conscience, so I did some research on basil and deduced that it was, in fact, in need of some sun (who isn’t?), additional drainage, and some wiggle room. With this in mind, off to Home Depot I went. I was supposed to buy a new pot, a rooting hormone and more potting soil.

BUT

I started thinking about how empty the spot where the basil once lived would be and I ended up coming home with a new cilantro plant. While this may seem crazy on the surface, because I now have 9 plants in one room of my apartment, I am actually quite proud of myself. My garlic has sprouted (well, all but one…give the little guy a chance), my mint and jasmine are thriving, my lavender has sprouted dozens of new leaves. Maybe I have a green thumb after all.

I’ll leave you with this awesome marinade from the Apartment Gardender’s Garden

my apartment garden: where jasmine blooms in December

the beginnings of garlic

4 to 6 sprigs of cilantro–chopped

3 diced garlic cloves (or two if you want to tone it down a bit)

1/4 cup of lemon or lime juice

1 to 2 tablespoons of butter (depends on how much you’re watching your weight)

You can put this as a sauce on your rice or mix all of the ingredients together (without cooking garlic) use as a marinade for chicken, beef or veggies.

]]> http://chasingeducation.com/2009/12/the-apartment-gardener-plant-lady/feed/ 0 http://chasingeducation.com/2009/12/the-apartment-gardener-finished-product/ http://chasingeducation.com/2009/12/the-apartment-gardener-finished-product/#comments Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:59:55 +0000 L http://chasingeducation.com/?p=333

confederate jasmine and provence lavender re-potted for optimum growth!

I have temporarily stopped buying plants. I figured I should make sure that I can keep 7 plants alive–yes 7!– before I turn my apartment into a tropical paradise.

My final inventory:

• two provence lavender plants
• one mint
• one basil
• three cloves of garlic (they have roots!)
• one maid-of-orleans jasmine (it’s going to bloom any day now!)
• one confederate jasmine

What I’ve learned so far:

• jasmine and lavender prefer to be on the dry side (but they need a good watering once they get very dry)
• mint grows like crazy and is nearly impossible to drown
• I need to do research on pruning/harvesting basil, because I’m fairly certain I did something wrong, as the ends turned a bit brown after I cut it down
• maid-of-orleans jasmine blooms every 30-40 days (awesome!)–the warmer it is the better it blooms (even more awesome!)

I have big plans for my apartment garden. Stay tuned!

Now…onto reaping the benefits of my garden! I made pesto with thai basil from my windowsill herb garden. But not just any pesto…white wine pesto chicken. After watching Julie and Julia tonight, I’m inspired to share with you my very own chasing education original recipe. (side note: I’m feeling so inspired by movies lately first Love Happens made me want to be a gardener and now Julie & Julia is making me want to cook. I wonder if I should be watching movies at all in my current malleable state)

you’ll need:

1. 8 to 12 sprigs of basil (My measurements are impeccable, aren’t they?)

2. 1 cup of cooking wine

3. 6 cloves of garlic

4. one pack of boneless, skinless, thin-sliced chicken breast

step 1: season chicken breast with salt and pepper

step 2: put wine, garlic and basil in the blender for a quick spin– don’t liquefy it completely because aesthetically it’s just not appealing

step 3: pour pesto mixture into a pan and heat on medium/low for 5 minutes

step 4: add chicken to pan, cook for 7 minutes on each side, be sure to spoon pesto over the top of the chicken occasionally

step 5: sprinkle fresh mozzarella over chicken before serving

As a side, I tossed some lightly sautéed red and yellow peppers with a tablespoon of goat cheese and a spoonful of whole-wheat rotini (just a spoonful…pasta will not spare your waistline)…voila!  Relax, let us pull up a chair as the dining room proudly presents your dinner!

confederate jasmine and provence lavender grow in my garden

While I should have been reading chapter 10 of Erika Hoff’s language development textbook, instead I was growing an apartment garden.

Apparently I did not learn my lesson about being too hasty. I planted the confederate jasmine in a window box that I fear may be too small. I also planted the lavender in a pot that I fear may be too small. I’m going to give them both a chance in their current homes, but I promise that if they begin to look ill–or even sad– I will move them to a more spacious location.

thai basil, soon-to-be garlic and mint grow in my window herb garden

On the bright side: my herb garden is perfect. I planted some mint, which looks a bit droopy right now. The move from tiny little pot to window box garden was rough on the little guy. But he did sprout a new sprig last night, so he must be happy. The Thai basil was significantly more resilient to the move and is standing tall and smelling wonderful.

As a little experiment, I planted some garlic cloves. Now we wait to see if I have a green thumb, or if this is going to be more than I bargained for!

How does your garden grow?

P.S. Please send sunshine.

I have started a collection of hobbies over the past year…

scrapbooking
painting
blogging
headband making
instant photography

And as if this list were not long enough, today marks the first day of apartment gardening. I really love flowers they smell wonderful and some even taste good! (Don’t knock it until you try it!) However, having someone buy me a bouquet of roses only to watch them die seems like a colossal waste of money.

Having someone buy me flowers so that I can watch them grow and bloom is a brilliant idea!

And so today I sent Eric to purchase the beginnings of my apartment garden.

provence lavender
mint
confederate jasmine
terracotta window box
2 terracotta pots
potters soil
miracle gro

I also learned my first lesson in gardening today (which also applies to life): don’t be too hasty.

You see, I really wanted jasmine so that I could make tea. As it turns out confederate jasmine isn’t a true jasmine. It’s simply been classified as jasmine because of it’s smell. In other words…it’s not good for making tea and putting in salad. Rather than return the confederate jasmine (I felt like that would be the same as adopting a baby and then taking it back, because it’s not all you wanted it to be), I’m keeping it. I did, however, order some maid-of-orleans jasmine from which I will make a tasty tea.

The maid-of-orleans jasmine was a special order from TopTropicals. They say it will ship in 10 days. Considering how impatient I was to get this apartment garden started, 10 days feels like an eternity.

Photos of my plant-potting adventure coming soon.

Here’s to my plants living healthy, happy lives. Cheers!

L. Diaz Copyright 2009

I have a thing for starting art projects and never finishing. My artistic endeavors range from crochet to painting; from coloring books to scrapbooking.

While I have completed two entire scrapbooks and a half a dozen paintings, I don’t plan on opening up an art museum any time soon.

However, I do feel the beginnings of an etsy shop coming on!

Over the past few months I’ve become increasingly obsessed with these chic headbands found in stores like anthropologie. Naomi Davis’s sold out etsy shop, only caused my obsession to worsen. I had to have a headband– or two– but at $30 a piece I would never be able to afford the variety that my fashionista heart desired.

and then my inner [failed] artist decided to take charge!

After an initial mishap with some yarn and a crochet needle, I have successfully created my very own headbands! I have a few adjustments to make to my schematic and I will be offering them (assuming all goes well)– at reasonable prices– in my very own Etsy shop!

What do you think?

I fueled the fire with with, if we were all scientists the world would lack variety and it would be so boring…I mean what about art and journalism? He rebuttals, who says scientists can’t write or paint, if they are moderately intelligent and talented, the scientists can be the journalists and painters too!

Well what if I don’t like science?– the debate gets personal! While he considers my [currently in progress] graduate degree (Communicative Sciences and Disorders) a “scientific” degree, there is not much respect [from him] for the B.S. in Marketing. Hello mister engineer man it’s called Bachelor’s in SCIENCE. I suppose it’s more commonly known as a B.S.– how unfortunate!

He said he wouldn’t get rid of all the non-science degrees, but that in a perfect world we would all get science or math degrees, before heading off to art school or starting an English degree.  Do any of you artists out there hate him yet? hehe…

In the end, I agreed that high school and college graduates ought to have a better grasp on math and sciences than they currently do.  BUT that doesn’t require a degree in math, engineering, physics or biology. It simply requires higher standards. Despite my pessimal geometry skills, I am an advocate of raising educational standards. After all, if they (meaning the mysterious people on top who decide what goes into standardized tests and who gets into college) set the bar higher for math and science, they will eventually do it for language and literature as well. It makes me giddy to imagine a world where students are no longer permitted to graduate from high school if they are still making then/than, too/to, and their/there/they’re mistakes!

But enough of this “raising the bar” talk, it’s for a different post! This post was supposed to be about education and the arts and I have digressed.

My heated, yet loving, debate with Eric got me thinking about art. Photography in particular. When he said the world would be a better place if everyone had a math or science degree, I immediately imagined the world without my favorite photography blogs!  While photography may come naturally to some, including my father, that gene seems to have skipped me! I dream of purchasing a digital SLR, as if that will somehow turn me into the photographers I adore like Deb at Smitten Kitchen! But before I get ahead of myself, I suppose I should follow the lead of Naomi and her husband at The Rockstar Diaries and actually document events with the camera I already own. If I can’t remember to take my camera with me,  what would be the point of making an investment as grand as an SLR?

And so I decided to do a little research to educate myself on how be an amateur photographer!

I have clicked through websites like HP and Kodak, and all of blog entrepreneur’s ten great photo blogs and I compiled a photography to-do list. Now all I have to do is remember to bring my camera along and follow these tips!

1. Get down– When you’re shooting a tiny subject like a baby or a puppy, get down to their level. It fills the frame and makes the photo more interesting!

2. Take many pictures– The beauty of digital cameras is that you can take as many pictures as your memory card can handle. You’re more likely to capture the memory just the way you want to, if you take multiple pictures.  Some cameras even have a “burst” mode that will automatically take several pictures with just one click.

3. Use available light– This is a big one for me. I always end up shooting pictures in a dark corner of a bar with a flash that would light up all of New York City. I end up with overexposed faces and underexposed backgrounds. Standing near a lamp or a window will allow you to capture the image as you see it.

4. Experiment with different angles– Your subject doesn’t have to be in the center of the photo. You can use lines to inspire the angle you’re shooting from. Shoot from above or from below and observe how the focus of the image changes!

5. Avoid distracting backgrounds– HP has a fun online exercise on their website that will help you get an idea of what a perfect background looks like. If you’re observant enough, you can capture the background, without capturing everything that goes along with it.

Stay tuned for my photographic adventures!