Grow Your Own Garden, Tuesday, Period 6

[sailor_meshi]

The students had been directed to meet at the Community Garden, where they would be met by a Senshi dressed exactly as he had for trekking into the dungeon, save for the addition of a straw hat pulled over his helmet, complete with holes for his helm's horns to poke through.

"Welcome to Grow Your Own Garden," he said when his students arrived. "I'm a big fan of sustainability and believe that food tastes better the closer to home it comes. You just can't beat the feelin' and flavor of vegetables you grew yourself. Also, it's one more way you can increase your self-sufficiency, because knowin' how to provide for yourself is important. I know the first week is supposed to be for introductions, but we need to take advantage of all the growin' time we've got. So we'll be combinin' introductions with learnin' how to prep the soil of our garden so we can be ready to plant next week."

( Soil Preparation )

He gestured to four large sacks behind them. "Now, most compostin' should happen in the fall an' winter to make sure the compost has a lot of time to finish decomposin' before you start plantin' in it. Now, the compost we have here are quite aged, so all we gotta do is spread it over the top of your garden and then mix it with with your trowel. Then you can wait a week and it'll be ready and rarin' to go with the actual plantin'."

Nightmare Party Planning from the Mid-Century; Tuesday, Third Period [07/09].

[somethingwithturquoise]

The weekend leading into talking about the weekend leading into getting drunk because of the weekend left Summer without a whole lot of time to prepare for her class today, which, sadly, meant no monstrous party food offerings to kick things off. Not even any really wild themes or anything, either, but that was fine. Sometimes, starting at a relatively normal base-level was the best way to start letting things grow more and more like a nightmare as the weeks went on. Really build up to the good stuff. And so, with a few hours to actually prepare, she would up with a print-out of a article from 'The Country Gentleman' from 1950 to use as their primary resource that week.

"Hey, everyone," she said, meeting them all with a smile, "and welcome to another class of exploring bizarro thing from the mid-to-late last century, but from a party-planning perspective. To sort of ease ourselves into it," and not because she didn't have time to go into something really wild for this week, "we've got ourselves an article from the 1950s giving the basic accepted structure and ideas for a pretty simple, run of the mill mid-century party. In here, we've got suggestions for music, for types of games to play, what kind of food to serve, including a few recipes, with an emphasis on cook-your-own or make-your-own options that mean less work for you and more engagement from your guests. 'One hot dish' is recommended, always, so you know, good time to bust out your new and impressive crock pot or electric warmer! A salad spread isn't a must, but would be appreciated, and it does warm my heart a little that it suggests just throwing a coleslaw into a ring mold for an attractive display. Sodas on ice, sundae bar for dessert. Pretty basic stuff, really, so you might be wondering, 'But Summer, where's the nightmare?'"

Her smile went a little scheming and dark.

"Ask me that question when we're at the end of the seven weeks."

Her tone brightened again immediately.

"But today? Just the basics, a starting point, keeping it relatively simple. You've got to have a good foundation to build on if you're going to bastardize it and make it grotesque. Or at the very least somewhat morally questionable.

"So, today, we're going to see where we are. Some of the sundae sauces in the article actually sound really good," looking at you, coffee-butterscotch, "and so we're going to take the first half to the class to pick a sauce and make it, and then I've got all the stuff for the ice cream bar so we can make ourselves some sundaes and while enjoying those, we'll talk party planning. We're going to break it down and discuss a few categories: music, games, and what kind of make-your-own-food set-up would you like to bring to the table? Alright, then, pick a sauce, let's get to making it, and then we'll get on with the rest of it."

The Wonderful World of Pizza, Tuesday Second Period

[carbsliftthespirit]

Raiden's students should have received a message telling them to meet him at Portalocity, where their portal awaited them.

"Good morning, everyone! Today we're headed to the birthplace of modern pizza, Naples, Italy. While there have been of course flatbreads with stuff on them since ancient times, it was in Naples that this was really refined and tomatoes were added to the mix, creating the modern pizza. At first, pizza was sold at open air stands, frequently by the slice, and it was food for the poor and working class, something you could easily pick up and eat on the go. It only really took off after it got royal approval in 1889...but that's another story. Today we're going to the oldest pizzeria in Naples, the Antica Pizzeria Port'Alba, which got its start as one of those open air stands in the 1700s before moving into a brick and mortar building during the 19th century. You can try the pizza--the Margherita is, of course, a classic, but in a port city like Naples you can't go wrong trying the seafood--and then explore the city a little, maybe pick up a pastry like a sfogliatella, another regional classic. Sound like a plan? Let's go!"

Practical Philosophy, Tuesday

[endsthegame]

They were back out on the lawn again, albeit this time in the shade. Alongside the usual drinks offerings sat several pitchers of water, pieces of cucumber and lemon peacefully drifting within.

"I think I'll spare us all the extended introduction this time," Ender said, as soon as everyone was seated. "I thought I'd focus our topics somewhat, this half-semester. We, as sentient beings, struggle always to comprehend others, for our thoughts are both alike enough to inspire curiosity, and yet different enough to inspire confusion. And when the confusion outweighs the curiosity, it can result in horror."

He took a sip from his small glass of water.

"I'll be dragging along a few old, dead philosophers for the ride later on," he said. "For now, I'm simply interested in one question: when was the first time you actively remember yourself being confused by the actions of another being? And, with the benefit of hindsight, do you now understand why they did what they did?"

More Earth Tourism, Tuesday

[unusual_sith]

Lana met them all at Portalocity and nodded to everyone. "Before we start, let's get out of this heat." Not that Portalocity itself was hot, but it was the principle of the thing.

Their portal dropped them off on Easter Island. Which was 68F/20C with just a few scattered clouds. You're welcome.

"Today we're visiting Easter Island. Or I believe the current natives call it Rapa Nui; there seems to be some dispute, but let's go with their version. It's one of this planet's most isolated inhabited islands. Its closest neighbour is around 1,200 kilometers to the west, and it's got less than a hundred inhabitants. It's a volcanic island, part of an underwater mountain range, and is most known as the location of giant statues called moai. They were apparently originally thought to only be heads, but excavations have shown that they actually do have bodies."

She led the way over a hill to view some of them. "This is Ahu Tongariki. We'll be spending some time here, then heading over to Orongo village so we can see petroglyphs." Because she was a nerd.

"Oh! And in case I or someone else doesn't know you, please introduce yourself by name and where you're from."

Self-Defence For Shinies 2: Mind Games, Tuesday, 1st Period

[snipsnspecks]

The class had been directed to the meet in the salle today, which they would find had been cleared of equipment and set up with a number comfortable looking cushions arranged in a rough semi-circle. They would also find Ahsoka sitting cross legged at the front of the semi-circle, eyes closed, breathing steady, a picture of serenity despite the very aggravated tom cat that was furiously attempting to pounce on her.

Of course it that the cat was bouncing off thin air instead of having any of his pounces actually connect probably helped a lot with keeping that air of serenity. When the last student had arrived, Ahsoka opened her eyes and stood up. "Welcome, everyone. For those of you new to the class, my name is Ahsoka Tano. Normally this is when we'd do introductions, but unfortunately Master Skywalker is currently...indisposed." And cranky. And furry. "So we'll leave those for another week, as well as discussions why meditation is vital to self-defence, and instead we'll begin by learning how to breathe, as regardless of whatever form of meditation you end up most suited for, it all starts with breathing."

She gestured around the room. "Find a spot and make yourself comfortable. Whether it's sitting, or kneeling, or even lying down, I'll need you to find a position you'll be able to hold without fidgeting, or having a limb fall asleep, or ending up with a cramp after. At this stage focus is more important than form." And if this was a version of the speech that Jedi creche-masters gave their younglings, well, vanishingly few people here would know that.

Once everyone had settled, Ahsoka continued. "I want you to close your eyes and focus on your breathing," she said as she paced through the room. "In...hold...release. In...hold...release.

"As you breathe attempt to empty your mind of thoughts," she said, the pace of her words calm and measured. "This is harder than it sounds. If your mind wanders, don't try to force it to stillness, let the thought come, hold it for a moment, understand it, then release it with your next breath. As you let your thoughts and feelings go, stillness will come on its own terms."

Though given that Anakitty was randomly pouncing on people, achieving stillness may be even harder than usual...