Which Culture Represents You?

Before I can go to France with the BYU Institute for the month of July, we are required to take three weeks of preparatory classes on BYU campus. In these classes, we talk about French culture and how we are going to share what we learn and observe abroad with our students in the Fall. The five of us are all reading a novel about some aspect of French culture. Each day in class, we share a bit about what we learned the night before. Today, we had a discussion about shutters on windows versus open windows. Generally speaking, the French have shutters on the windows of their homes. These shutters are usually closed. They also have fences surrounding their yards.






Americans, on the other hand, often have open windows and yards that extend right out into the street. We welcome visitors with long driveways and wreathes on the front door. The curtains are almost always pulled back during the day. At night, it is not uncommon to be able to peer into the neighbor's home and see movies playing or kids running around. This says a lot about the differences in culture. Americans are usually more open than the French. At lunch with other teachers, I often hear them share how much they paid for their house or car. We write blogs that the world can read. I feel that I am a pretty open person. The French, however, are often more private. I took a picture of a bakery worker at BYU a few years ago and when she heard it was to show to my high school students for a Compare/Contrast culture lesson, she was happy to help out. When I tried to get a similar picture of a bakery girl in France, she became very upset. She didn't want her picture taken for whoever it may be. I learned that if I wanted pictures of people there, I had to sneakily take their picture and then ask for forgiveness later, if they saw me. Do you consider yourself a more open or private person? Are the shutters on your life closed, except to a special, select few or open to the world?




Another difference in culture is the way we eat. The French love to take their time at dinner. It is not unusual for them to take 2 hours to enjoy a 6-course meal, ending with cheese and dessert. They have small portions, but they enjoy each bite. Because life in France is generally more relaxed, I love eating at a restaurant or cafe there. The servers are paid a set salary and do not depend on tips as they do here. A tip is not required after a meal, but is included in the price. You are allowed to purchase a simple drink or pastry and then sit at that table as long as you would like. The servers don't rush you out. I tried this three years ago. I sat at a cafe and enjoyed my crème brulée. I forced myself to stay and people watch for about two hours. It was not easy, being from a rush rush American lifestyle, to sit and do nothing, but I rather liked it for a day.




Americans often don't have time to cook a variety of dishes for dinner. We prefer a big bowl of spaghetti or Easy Mac that we can quickly eat and then get back to whatever we were doing. We are too rushed to put time into glamorous place settings. We love drive-in fast food restaurants and even eat in our cars. If you look at the packaged and frozen food aisle in the USA, it is three times as large as those in France. France, on the other hand, has several more fresh cheeses, yogurts and breads than we do. These products have an expiration date that might last one or two days. I never saw high fructose corn syrup in any of their labeling. I don't like this aspect of American culture. I would rather find time to cook my own meals from scratch, though it is not easy to do. Well, these are my observation along with some of the books we have been reading. Do you agree with these stereotypes?

Boiling Bagels

My mom and I, both teachers, have a favorite topic to discuss in the summer: what are we going to make for dinner? We invited some special dinner guests over tonight and and we didn't want to make our traditional Dutch Oven potatoes for the 4th time this month. We brainstormed and brainstormed. What could be tasty, easy and unique? Homemade lasagna? Nah--we've had plenty of that in the canyon over the past few weeks. Tomato Basil soup? Too hot for summer. Suddenly, it came to me: Homemade Bagels! Why not? My mother went to a Bosch cooking class months ago where they showed her how to make homemade 100% whole wheat bagels. I have been curious to try them out ever since.






Have any of you ever tried making homemade bagels? It is not as easy as picking them up from Einstein's, but it definitely is worth it, let me tell you. First thing you do is grind the wheat flour so that you can get all the vitamins from the freshly ground flour. Next you make the dough, similar to bread dough. You roll it into several balls and then shape them into bagels. You next put them in a boiling pan of water to set their shapes.







Once the shapes are set, you bake them in the oven and voilà--you've got a dozen tasty bagels. This is my cookie sheet of bagels. Because they are 100% whole wheat, they are smaller than regular white bagels. They are one of the tastiest things I have ever had!








You can put all sorts of sandwich fillings inside. I loved putting in fried up roast beef, cheese, lettuce, tomato, sprouts and olives. These even keep and make good lunches for the next day. Making these made me want to watch Master Chef. Speaking of this show, a blind lady has been doing really well this season! She cut her finger on a live crab, trying to cook and cut it apart, but other than that, she is easily speeding past the competition. She made this flaky apple pie crust last week that really impressed the judges. She is blind, people! She had no way of seeing how flaky it was! Maybe you just have to watch it to understand. I am learning that cooking can be fun and creative, but it can also be stressful and demanding. It is fun to cook when you have time to really try a healthy new recipe. P.S. If you like the bagels, there is also a delicious homemade 100% whole wheat pita pocket recipe from the same Bosch class!

More Ups and Downs

My last post was about the ups and downs of life. This post is about ups and downs of life part deux. Last night, I had some literal ups and downs: I went to a Trampoline Park in Orem. I honestly was a bit nervous because this was something that I had never done before in my life! I went with some good friends. When we got there, they made us practically sign our lives away. You have to fill out a bunch of online forms using their computer where they ask for your email address, physical address, birthday, phone number, basically anything and everything you that sets you apart besides your shoe size. Next you have to watch a safety video and sign a two-page waver stating that you understand all the rules. I couldn't hear one word from the safety video because of all the shouting and echoing in the gym. I signed my life away anyway, showed my driver's license and got a wristband. Finally, you leave your shoes and socks in a little cubby hole and take off to all the trampolines.




They claim that Open Jump is the biggest trampoline park in the USA. There were lots of trampolines with foam pits ahead of them, a section of dodge ball trampolines, trampolines that are really elastic and trampolines that are more firm...some of us ran over to the trampolines in the corner. We started jumping on the same trampoline and tried to get each other to go pretty high in the air. One minute later, a teenage boy worker ran up to us and told us that there was absolutely no double bouncing people! Oh. Sorry, kid. We didn't catch that in the video. We split up and started jumping around. My friends were really good. They easily jumped super high and from place to place. Many of them could do back flips and all sorts of tricks. I was the super cautious one in the group. I basically just jumped up and down. Yippee.





I had a really fun time, but soon one friend challenged me to jump from the trampoline onto this wall. Oh no! Something hard for me. I was so super scared--I don't even know why. I tried to get up the courage to push myself onto the wall in front of me, but whenever I did, I would get so scared and back out. My other friends joined in. "Come on! You can do it!" I felt the pressure. They all could jump easily onto the wall. Why couldn't I? They didn't let me just back out and say I couldn't do it. They kept encouraging me and thinking of new ways to get me to do it: "The wall is heaven and you just need a little jump to get there." I didn't want to let them down. I knew that I shouldn't let my fears rule over me. I spent about 20 minutes, trying to get the courage to bounce right up onto the wall--this is something I had never done before and I really wanted it. It was as if time stopped. I had to get up onto that wall. I don't know what happened, but I finally just forgot my fears and pushed myself up. I did it! It felt so good. I realized that this Trampoline Analogy works with life: many times we get so scared to do something that shouldn't be scary at all. Jumping up on that wall was fulfilling and fun. I was so happy that I stayed with that task until I made it up. I can always remind myself that we should let faith override our fears in life. There are many things to enjoy and we can do that if we have the confidence to follow through and focus on what we can do instead of our weaknesses. I think I will probably go back to the Trampoline Park. Hopefully I will be able to get up more quickly next time.

Life is Like a Roller Coaster

Don't you ever just look at life and feel like you are on a roller coaster? There are just so many ups and downs. One day, the sun is shining and we are on top of the world and the very next day, everything comes crashing down. I guess this is what helps remind us that we are alive. It also makes us notice and appreciate the ups. I know that when I get better after being sick, I try to remind myself not to take my health for granted. When the cold and snow finally melt away, I look forward to summer that much more. Well, today, I was reminded again about the highs and lows that come with life.





This is the last week of French Camp. I began my class as usual at 9:00am, with the daily quiz and song. I noticed that one student, Jimmy (name changed, obviously), was absent. He hadn't told me that he was going to be gone today. He is a fun kid. He beatboxes, plays the drums, speaks French and Spanish and has been saving up his hard-earned money at Arbys for months to leave for France on Wednesday. He will be there for the rest of the summer. He is funding this trip himself because he wants to learn French before beginning college in the Fall. His parents have not been able to help out. Around 10:00, Jimmy came in the door, looking as deflated as could be. He slumped in his desk and put his head down. "Ça va?" I asked him. He lifted up his head and shrugged his shoulders. Something was wrong. He couldn't seem to get the French to come out right. He finally blurted in franglais that he slept in this morning and therefore had to speed to class. A police officer pulled him over. He was given a ticket for speeding as well as a 2nd ticket for driving without insurance. Oh no! He said that it will be about $490 in all. I didn't know what to say to such a good kid. I looked around the room, scrambling for something...I found the prize basket. "Pringles?" I asked. He shook his head. "Cinnamon hand cream?" Again, he just shook his head, sadly. "Toblerone?" I put it back in the basket before even waiting for his response. He perked up, "Chocolate?! OUI!" I handed over the Toblerone bar. He broke it open and got a smile on his face as he sunk his teeth into the first bite. Kids everywhere started raising their hands, telling me that they too got a ticket. It was good that we could all have a good laugh, but I felt so bad for this kid, now having to spend most of his savings on one bad choice.




Right after class, I felt like checking up on one of my good friends, Amy (name also changed). I sent her a text to ask how everything was going, since I hadn't heard from her for a couple of weeks. She wrote back immediately and said she wasn't doing so well. Her boyfriend of several months just broke up with her out of the blue! How does that happen? I know that breaking up doesn't get easier as you get older. My heart hurt so much for her.



I opened a book called Almost French, that I am supposed to read in preparation for my France trip. It is about a lady who marries a Frenchman and moves to France. She never seems to be able to fit in: she is always wearing the wrong clothes or saying the wrong thing. At French parties, she feels like a wallflower. It is nearly impossible to get into French social circles--some of them have continued for centuries. I guess that explains the saying that the French are like baguettes: hard and crusty on the outside, but warm and chewy on the inside, if you can get inside.





Luckily, I will finish today by making a delicious dinner of potatoes, hamburger and carrots with cherries and grapes on the side. Mmmmm! Then, I am going to watch Joseph at the Murray Arts in the Park performed by the group that I was with last summer. Nothing like a play to escape the problems of the world!

Behind the Scenes

About this time of year, I always feel a tinge of nostalgia for all the good times I had as a kid during my summer vacations. My mother has been an elementary school teacher for as long as I can remember, so summer always meant something really exciting to us. I have just one younger brother and often our little trips around the country consisted of just the three of us, unless we could talk some cousins into coming along. These trips were not always easy--my brother and I really picked on each other, I know--hard to believe, huh? But today, I am so happy that my mom worked so hard to plan some amazing adventures for us. These memories will always be treasured.




It seems we all have different interests when planning trips. Some people like good hiking trails, others seek out museums and still others look for historical monuments. My mom's favorite places to visit on our trips were...FACTORY TOURS! That's right! Most often, these offered free admission to take a behind-the-scenes look at how items are made. I am wracking my brain now, but I believe I must have visited over 20 factories around the United States. Who even knew some of these factories existed? Candy factories are fun. The Sweets Factory in Salt Lake still offers free tours all summer. You get a fresh orange stick right off the conveyer belt and warm, freshly made taffy. It is crazy to see the huge sugar vats and notice how many pounds of sugar they go through each month! We Americans love our sugar. My mom also took us to the Hershey Chocolate Factory in Pennsylvania. This is one of my favorite places on earth! You get to ride a Disneyland-type car through the factory and look at cute, moving displays. The smells of chocolate and baked cookies overwhelm the senses. At the end of the ride, they offer free samples of different items like Hershey kisses and Cocoa Puffs. Mmmmm!!






We went to San Jose, CA to visit my mom's cousin when I was in junior high. Who knew that they had a fortune cookie factory there? Pretty cool.











Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Factory in Vermont was super fun. I remember that we loved the free sample of their cookie dough ice cream so much that we waited in line for a second mini cupful. If you think the frozen stuff in the pots is delicious, one day you have to try out the fresh stuff. We planned our whole trip to Vermont just for this factory, the Teddy Bear factory and to get some fresh maple syrup.






Can you think of anything you'd rather have than hot potato chips off the press? It is interesting to see where the food we all consume each day comes from. I saw the movie Food Inc. and that made me want to become a vegetarian, but other than that, I usually really enjoy seeing the Behind the Scenes story to the products I use. What type of things do you seek out on family vacations?

Visit to the Dentist

Yesterday, I had my regular six-month appointment at the dentist. Yay! The dentist is somebody that I just love and hate all at the same time. He is a really nice and friendly guy, but he makes me nervous, all the same. I have yet to have a cavity in my life--I give all the credit to ACT fluoride mouthwash and sealants that have protected my teeth since I was a kid. I still get very nervous though, as I thumb through a magazine in his office, hoping it will be another cavity-free day.




I showed up for my 4:00 appointment an hour early. I left the French Camp as quickly as I could and raced to the dentist, hoping to get it all over with as soon as possible. The receptionist was very surprised to see me there so early, but she was able to squeeze me in anyway.









The Dental Hygienist is a funny lady. She got me all set up in the reclining chair and had her tools in my mouth, checking around, when she asked me, "So...what is new with you since you were here six months ago?" Hello, lady! Can't you see that you have all these metal thingys in my mouth?! How am I supposed to talk back to you?! "Uh...I'm going to France in July," I manage to get out, not sure if she even understood. She took out the water and air hose and started spraying around in my mouth. "What will you be doing in France?" Okay. Is this a big joke? Seriously. How are we supposed to have a real conversation. I wrack my brain, trying to think of the shortest possible answer. "Eating a baguette." She didn't let it drop. "Is the bread much different from our bread here?" I honestly wonder if she just gets bored, working in silence. Don't get me wrong--I don't like much silence either, especially around strangers, but I think if I had her job, I would be tempted to put on a movie or something. Anyway, after a while at trying to hold a conversation that wasn't quite working, she just started talking all by herself. She told me stories that I had never thought I wanted to know about before like the hospice care system at the Murray Hospital that offers patients rooms with views of waterfalls. She has a friend staying there who is just waiting for "the blue bus to come and pick her up and take her to heaven." Hmmm...well, at least it beats me trying to get any words out. I just nodded and smiled.





It was finally almost over. The dentist came in to inspect the teeth. The hygienist informed him that I was going to France all just in hopes of eating a French baguette and some cheese. Sure, lady. He smiled as he flattened my chair and got out all his different-looking tools. He looked around and looked around and finally said, "Well, go and eat some cheese to celebrate that you have NO cavities!" Phew. It was over. I always like taking home a brand new toothbrush. And I did celebrate, not with cheese but with some ice cream.

Surprise Visitors

It has been a nice, toasty Friday at the French Camp. After hours of games, lectures on the Tour de France and sharing langue de chat cookies (literally means cat tongue cookies...mmmm) out on the front lawn, I hopped in my ovenlike car and headed home for the weekend. I was singing The Scarlet Pimpernel soundtrack at the top of my lungs, reliving my days as a chorus member in this play last summer, when I looked up to see...not one, not two, but THREE vans parked in front of my mom's house! Who are all these people visiting my mom on a Friday afternoon?!!





The first truck I saw had long hoses coming out of it into the front living room. Oh, the Carpet Cleaners were here. Nice! I tiptoed inside and looked up at the staircase. Amazing! All the crumbs and cat fur were gone and replaced with fresh, clean stairs. Awe, summer cleaning is great! My mom ran around the corner to greet me. "Isn't this exciting?!" she shouted. "Your cleaning of your bedroom inspired me! Our house is going to look like a Time Share before the day is through!" The carpet cleaner man came to find my mom and have her sign the receipt. He smiled as he admired his work. "I love doing this job!" he said. "Your house was pretty easy too! I see a lot of blood and urine in this job. Just last week, I had to clean up a suicide. All the cops do is take out the body and we do the rest. I have also gotten used to cleaning up drug busts." Oh. Not what I was expecting him to say. Sounds challenging. And I thought I had lots of stories to tell as a high school teacher!






I then went around the corner and who was in the kitchen, polishing the cupboards?! You guessed it--the Merry Maids. My mom has lived in this house for 5 years now and this is the first time we have had maids come by to deep clean. The fridge is gleaming and all the baseboards are sparkling white! The showers also look brand-new!














Lastly, I noticed a whole crew of kids out mowing the lawn and pulling weeds. I looked in the garage to see five boxes of D.I. junk from my mom's own closet. What a transformation we have had here this week! If only cleanliness was something that you could hold onto forever. It just doesn't last long enough! I feel bad now because I have to make some homemade pizza dough and sauce for a group date in her perfect kitchen. When your house is this clean, it makes you never want to dirty a dish or take a shower again!

Send the Kids to Summer Camp

Today marks Day #2 of the French Camp! We have had a pretty fun start, let me tell you! As I was pulling into BYU's campus yesterday morning, I thought to myself, "Wow! This is where all the kids hang out all summer!" Outside on the soccer field, hundreds of little munchkins were running back and forth, kicking the ball and screaming at the top of their lungs. Later in the day, those same Soccer Camp kids were coming out of a classroom and whoa--you could smell them from a mile away! In other areas of campus, you could hear the huge groups of EFY teenagers doing cheers as they clomped from place to place...and then it was time to welcome the 42 new French Camp arrivals. (If you are wondering why there is a picture of Nutella here, it is because seriously, who does not like Nutella? I will get back to this picture later.)



We had a parent meeting with those 42 chillins yesterday morning to kick off the day. Many of these kids were very scared, looking at the floor as all of us teachers filed in and told them of all they could expect out of this camp: arts and crafts, fencing, soccer, cooking, games, music, dance, presentations by BYU Faculty--that's right! we will turn them into little Frenchies in no time. Most of the parents were beaming. I am sure they were excited for their kiddos to be entertained while they got to enjoy a summer vacation themselves. After the parents kissed them goodbye, it was time for the placement tests. The kids took a computerized test as well as completed an oral interview with one of us teachers. We used the results to decide if they would go in the Intermediate class or in my Advanced class for the mornings. There were all levels of French speakers in these interviews. One kid came into my interview room with his glazed-over eyes and ipod playing. He collapsed in the chair. I asked him, "Comment tu t'appelles?" (What is your name?) He stared at me with a blank expression of don't know, don't care. After a minute, he said, "Am I supposed to talk to you in French?" Oh, buddy. This is going to be a long three weeks for you! I guess he is one that the parents signed up and shipped off, saying, "Have fun! See ya later!" At the same time, on the other end of the spectrum, I saw some super genius kids! One 14 year-old boy spoke French to all of us teachers with no hesitation. He said that his parents spoke to him in French all growing up and now it is second nature! How adorable! I want my kids to be like that!



They survived the tests yesterday and today was the first official day of classes. I was very happy with my Advanced Group. They came to class smiling and ready to learn. We sang a few songs, took notes, talked all about ourselves and played a game. In the middle of the class, I surprised them with a Nutella and Crackers Break! Mmmmm....now you see why I put up a picture of Nutella earlier on. After lunch at the Morris Center, we split up into smaller groups. I hung out with the Fencing kids. They were pretty good! Fencing is a serious sport with tons of rules! I didn't realize that you have to shake hands with your opponent after a match or you get disqualified. The kids put on all the gear and showed off their stuff. I watched as some EFY kids peaked into the classroom. One kid whispered to another that he wanted to learn how to fence. Only at French Camp, buddy!



We then walked down the campus to Cooking Class. On the menu today? French onion soup! The kids did everything--they cut the onions, cooked the broth, cut up the baguette and put it all together. C'etait delicieux! (We taught them that expression today.)











These kids already seem to have made lots of friends here. I am actually a big fan of summer camps. I remember that my mom shipped me off to some Mayflower Camp when I was about 10. All I remember is making all sorts of boats and tools out of toothpicks and marshmallows. This type of thing makes great memories forever.

Best 10 Hours Spent

If you were given ten hours right now to do whatever you wanted, what would it be? I am the type of person that does not do well with too much free time. This is probably one of the reasons I am excited to work at the BYU French Camp this month and travel to France for most of July. The Camp starts tomorrow, which means today is my only weekday off in June! Hmmmm....what to do? Watch a Chick Flick with a batch of homemade popcorn? That sounds super nice, actually. (This home theater looks so inviting too. No, it is not my home theater. I just found it on google.) However, today I decided to do something not quite as fun at the moment, but very fulfilling now that it is over! I decided to organize my whole bedroom, closet and bathroom!




As many of you know, I moved home to Lehi from West Jordan this past weekend. I will be staying here for the summer so that I can be closer to BYU while I teach and save on rent for a few months. With the crazyness that comes at the end of the school year, it was a hurried move. I just filled up my car with boxes and bags of who-knows-what and took off. When I got to my Lehi bedroom, it was already full of my collection of stuff from past years. I dumped all my newly-moved stuff on the ground and stared. Ugh! So not fun to sit in a room where you can't even see the carpet! I decided that it was time for a makeover. I actually started this project on Saturday and only finished today. I began by pulling everything out of my closet. Everything. I then dumped all the contents out of all my storage boxes that were stacked there and emptied all my dresser drawers. Holy Moly! My room looked horrible! Where did I get all this stuff?!



I was so surprised at all the things that I had forgotten about: a pink CareBear nightgown from when I was 6 or 7 years old. I think I originally planned on saving it for my daughter. Yeah, it was gray and gross looking. Garbage! I rounded up tons of razors in all sorts of random places, found my pointe shoes from my ballerina days, tons of Tahitian Noni cream from when I worked there that had gone rancid along with two new bottles of Tahitian Noni Juice that expired in 2007! Dang--that stuff is expensive! How wasteful of me! I didn't even share it! Anyway, I filled up three garbage bags and six boxes for D.I. Some things were a little bit hard to get rid of, but I know I will not miss them. For example, I loved wearing my black jumper every week on my mission in Brazil. It was comfortable and practical. It hasn't seen daylight since. Goodbye. The hardest thing for me to downsize is letters. I just love letters and cards from people. I found two boxes filled-to-the-top with love letters from guys that I dated in college as well as letters from old friends who don't even know I exist today. What good are those doing now? I managed to throw away at least half of the letters. The rest, I shoved in a box for another day. I also found floppy disks of all my high school writing projects. I don't know if I could find a computer that those would work in today. I ended up saving them, just in case.







Awe! When the last box and bag was put away, I vacuumed my newly-found carpet and just couldn't stop smiling! Wow! I could just stare at my work for hours now! I can breathe! It wasn't an easy task, but it was so worth it!















My clothes are now all organized according to colors. Beautiful! My necklaces are now all in my jewelry box and all the tarnished and tangled ones are gone forever.




















Even my bathroom is all cleared out. Pure sunshine! I guess I could start making my popcorn now and get the Chick Flick ready!