Delicious in Dungeon, Tuesday, Period 6

[sailor_meshi]

"Now, monsters use a lot of different methods to hunt and kill," Senshi said, the simulation set to show a fairly empty room made of stone. There were some barrels, a front-facing cabinet, and a table placed about but that was it as far as furnishings went. "Some are just big and strong and dangerous - you've gotta be pretty tough and well-kitted out to take on a dragon - some, like the slimes, like to pinpoint areas that're vulnerable on you and attack those places especially, and others tend to rely on camouflage and concealment.

"One of the latter types are monsters known as mimics, large crustaceans that use various normal objects as their shells. They hide within them, usually in places that seem like they're a little hidden, but are actually pretty obvious - tucked away behind corners, under tables-- anywhere that someone might stash something of value if they're in a hurry or not really good at hidin' things. Because at first glance, they look like a mundane object, they get the element of surprise once an adventurer tries to open 'em up."

Both doors of the cabinet opened up, displaying a pair of heavy front claws and two pairs of legs, along with a pair of lambent eyes on stalks that glowed slightly from within. Without warning, it lunged at the class, skittering far faster than one might expect it to be able to move, considering its size - the tops of the claws would easily reach Senshi's waist. "Most adventurers, openin' doors or chests or whatnot lookin' for treasure or supplies often can't react fast enough to avoid gettin' stabbed by the pincers to or dragged into the box."

He stopped the simulation before it reached any, but kept the cupboard open so the students could get a chance to examine it with as many senses as they saw fit to bend towards that activity. "Juvenile mimics are about the size of a thumb and they slowly grow over time. This mimic is probably close to a decade or so, which is well within their lifespan. They're not limited to usin' chests or the like, either; younger mimics will often use other objects as their shells, such as pots, helmets or animal skulls. It's always a good idea to check your helmet and your shoes before you put 'em on in the mornin', just in case. But it's also important to know that mimics can come out of their shells if they wanna. Hungry enough an' with somethin' edible lookin' like it's gonna get away? A mimic will leave their shell behind in order to maximize speed." The cupboard disappeared, leaving the full mimic on view, which was immediately followed by a second one. "You can tell a male mimic from a female by flippin' 'em over." He did for both simulations, pointing to the various points of difference between them. "You're really lucky, you'll get a female with a belly full of eggs, cause that's also good eatin'.

"They're sneaky and fast, but then, they gotta be because otherwise, they're really easy to kill," he continued. "The carapace they have on their bodies is very thin and fragile, which is why they use objects for their exterior shells. So they're pretty vulnerable to anythin' that could smash or crush 'em once their outta their shells. They're also pretty vulnerable to magic," he added with a sigh, because it was true but that didn't mean he liked it. "As to how to avoid 'em or sense them - well, sometimes you can hear 'em shiftin' around in their shells, but that's usually only when they've just moved into a new object and are still getting used to it. Sometimes bangin' hard on the top or the sides'll make 'em reveal themselves, lashin' out with a leg or a claw. Mostly the trick is to be clever and pay attention. Does it make sense to have a random treasure chest right here - and if it wasn't placed here by a fellow adventuring party, then why is it there?"

"And that's your job today," he said, adjusting the sim to look like a storeroom. "Let's get you a mimic and learn how to cook it!"

This Sh*t is Bananas; Tuesday, Third Period [06/04].

[somethingwithturquoise]

There were three cloches in front of Summer at the start of the class today, which meant you were all definitely in for some real treats, right? But there was also a print-out ready to go on each station, wherein the students would discover three recipes as a preview for what they were in for this time.

"Hey, everyone," she said cheerfully. "Welcome back. Today, we're literally taking a page from this 1970s book called Be Bold With Bananas, published by the Banana Control Board in South Africa, with an absolutely brilliantly avant garde cover that really makes an enticing case for how delicious these fruits are when done up in terrible ways. We're sticking with some more savory recipes, and we're focusing today on three incredible recipes that make it clear that, when you think bananas, you should also thing pigs.

"But there's got to be something to it, right? Let's find out. Today, if you're feeling ambitious, you can try a couple of the recipes, but I want you to at least try one: we have a nice pork cutlet and banana bake, essentially a banana with a sausage in the middle of it, and the bananas and ham recipe on the list is very much like the bananas and hollandaise we've already covered, but, since it's on the page and also includes a little bit about a cheese sauce to put over your bananas and ham, I figured we could have some fun with that.

"And, of course, while we're working on these and trying them, we can speculate about the thought process, if they surprisingly work out well, what you might have done differently, so on and so forth, to make it feel like this is actually a learning experience and not just gawking at what poor things have been done to the banana in the past."

Make Your Own Pizza!, Tuesday, Period 2

[carbsliftthespirit]

Raiden cracked his knuckles before declaring to the class, "Let's make some sausage." Aw yeah. "Sausage is one of your classic pizza toppings (and one of my personal favorites), and it's really not that hard to make your own! And you can use it in so many things other than just pizza! The recipe we're going to be using today is really flexible: you could use ground turkey or ground chuck if you don't have or wanna use pork, although turkey has less fat so keep that in mind, and you can change up the seasonings however you like, especially the red pepper flakes, to make it more mild or hot. Remember, when you're initially seasoning, you can always add more! You can't take it out once it's in there. Oh, and, uh, you may want to put on a pair of food service gloves, since we're going to be getting our hands all up in raw meat. And even if you are putting gloves on, wash your hands first, okay? Okay. Let's go." Raiden proceeded to demonstrate to the students how to make sausage, talking them through it as he went. "To test your seasonings, you can fry up like a little patty of the sausage, and then you can adjust as needed. Are there any questions? Anybody need help with their sausage?" Not dirty, omg.

Earth Tourism, Tuesday 5th period

[unusual_sith]

Lana greeted them all at Portalocity with a huge smile and a huge crate. "Since you all seem to have no problem with heights, we're going to extremes today, so rather than have you all purchase ridiculous amounts of Earth equipment, I've brought some from home. I hope you all wore comfortable shirts and trousers to go under it, as I handwavily suggested."

She opened the crate and started passing out hooded jumpsuits of a dirty white colour with straps to secure them everywhere. Everyone also got a face mask equipped with breathing apparatus and comm unit. "These will keep us warm and alive and let us communicate more easily." She put on her own to demonstrate how it worked for those of the students who hadn't been to Hoth before. When they were all done, she nodded to the gnomes, and their portal opened up. Lana stepped through.

"Welcome to the highest location on Earth, Mount Everest. It's almost 9,000 meters above sea level, and is normally only accessible by experienced climbers with a lot of specialized equipment and a month or two to spare. And quite a few of them still die," she noted. "So please be careful. But it is a spectacular view, isn't it?"

Practical Philosophy, Tuesday

[endsthegame]

"Last week, we touched some on the subject of community," Ender began, setting aside his sandwich as the last student took a seat. "Throughout the history of this planet, what a community is has shifted and changed. Once, taking care of the children was something an entire village came together to do, something that fostered bonds between those within the larger group. Distances were long, those who were closest to you were what mattered."

He picked up his water. "In the previous century of this particular place, community as a concept got split right down the middle. You had the core community, the 'nuclear family' - two parents and their two children, living together in one place. Surrounding that, you had the state, a collection of beliefs and ideas about what was normal and what was not, what was good and what wasn't."

He took a sip. "That's an intimidating concept for a species still physically equipped to think in groups no larger than perhaps a hundred individuals," he said. "And thus, an idea that has often broken down. But it also has advantages, in that it allows for people to exist beyond the norms, to push the community forward, if it is willing to listen to its outsiders."

"In the 1980s, we saw an upsurge of what's called 'communitarianism'. Those philosophers pose the idea that we are all shaped by and in relation to our community, and the individual has less power than one might think. But we've seen ideas about community and philosophy entrenched in the very core of our politics, too; authoritarianism, the political philosophy where one single leader holds control, often posits that that leader is somehow ordained or uniquely wise to the ways of 'the people', a concept of a single monolith of a community that is 'true' while all other things are false."

Another sip. "On the other hand, liberalism, another leading philosophy of this time, seeks to counteract the very idea. It argues that individuals are more important than community, or that a community actually thrives best when each individual pursues an improvement of the self in whatever way they see fit."

He set down the bottle.

"But let's not get too far into politics," he said. "I am curious what your relationship to community is like. How much were you shaped by the one in which you grew up? Do you still look at it kindly? Or did you reject it - or it you? What do you consider 'community' now, and how important is it, do you think?"

Self-Defence For Shinies, Tuesday, 1st Period

[snipsnspecks]

For a change, class was in the Danger Shop, which was either a very good or very bad thing. The giant hairy not-a-yak that was standing next to the teachers was probably a sign it was the latter.

"We will begin working with weapons today," Anakin said, holding up a lightsaber made of Nerf foam.

"Learning to use a weapon is a responsibility," Ahsoka said, "Once you pick up a weapon, you are responsible for the harm it causes, intentional or otherwise."

Hence Nerf foam sabers. But, look, they came in multiple colours. Not red though. Weirdly.

"We have set up various fake targets throughout the space for you to hit with your saber. We will also let loose this nerf--" he pointed to the yak-thing, "--which you are not to hit with your practice weapon."

"Try and avoid hitting each other as well, no matter how tempting it may be." No, Ahsoka wasn't looking at Anakin while she was saying this, what made you think that?

"I think everyone hit me quite enough yesterday in paintball," Anakin said with a light frown.

Ahsoka just smiled beatifically. "How will you ever learn to block with that attitude?"

"They can learn to block next week," Anakin decided.