Food, Fear, and .. Zombies?

by Jenny, a Patriot Blogger

Since the beginning of October I’ve been itching to find a way to get into the Halloween spirit.  Research revealed a lunatic asylum in West Virginia that offers overnight ghost tours (Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum), an urban haunted zombie house in Maryland (The Warehouse: Project 4.1), and curse house in Maryland (Bennett’s Curse).  Given the cost of gas prices and pricey admissions, my friends and I decided on Fields of Fear, weekly event about 20 minutes away in Chantilly.  Harvest Festival by day and Halloween attraction by night, tickets include entry into a corn maze (sort of), haunted wagon ride, and torch-lit slide.  The event seemed more geared towards younger crowds, but the dark figures reaching out towards us during both the wagon ride and throughout the maze made it hard to contain a few yelps.  Pictured below is one of the scenes from the haunted hayride.

There were two points in the maze that I can not get over, the man with the chainsaw and the bunny suit.  When I heard the unmistakable drone of the chainsaw, a feeling of dread consumed me and after one look, I doubled back and barreled into my other two friends.  Relieved, I used them as human shields as I made my way to safety and a more steady heartbeat.  Soon after, I was wandering through an area that resembled an abandoned barn and out popped a man in a bunny suit, a concept that my mind wasn’t able to grasp. To convey my shock and disbelief I gestured to him with a mildly profane exclamatory remark and sent him into convulsions of laughter (a detail that was supplied later by my friend).  All in all it was a good time, made even better with funnel cake, apple cider, and apple butter.

That, my friend, is a fried oreo. This coma-inducing combination of melted oreo, crispy batter, and powdered sugar is something I’ve been meaning to try for ages.   The DC Foodfest last Sunday was of the best events I’ve attended in the DC/Virginia area.  More than 50 DC restaurants and food trucks lined Pennsylvania Avenue, with favorites such as Sprinkles, Ben’s Chili Bowl, Shake Shack, and Tara Thai.  I tried the Brixton’s fish and chips, Etete Ethiopian’s sambusa, hoisin duck Waffle sandwich from Wicked Waffle, dark chocolate, vanilla bean, and marshmallow parfait from Co Co. Sala, Station 4′s pork belly, the half smoke from Ben’s Chili Bowl, fried oreos, and finally a samosa from Mayur’s Kabob House.  Call me a glutton, but I have not smiled that much in a long time and to be fair I could not stomach anything else the rest of the day.

I also met some zombies, coincidentally from the The Warehouse: Project 4.1, one of the Halloween events I’ve been eyeing.

“Do You Think They’d Notice…?”

by Jenny, a Patriot Blogger

While I was snapping pictures of this gluttonous fellow at The National Zoo this summer, my friends were scheming on the side about whether the zoo guards would notice if they were one prairie dog short.  To my relief, they decided that the costs of an animal abduction were too high.

We also saw the zoo’s latest celebrities Ally and Caprivi, who are only outside for an hour each day!

After a long day of animal spotting, I concluded three things:
1) Autumn is a better time to visit the zoo, when more animals are less lethargic and you don’t feel like you’re suffocating in the crowds, especially in the enclosed exhibits.
2) I am so glad I chose my comfortable Converses or would have had to nurse some unpleasant blisters.
3) I AM SO HUNGRY!

To silence our gargling stomachs, we set our sights on 2 Amy’s, a pizza place a few blocks away from the zoo with raving Yelp reviews.  Following a short wait, we were led upstairs into a well lit room that, along with the rest of the restaurant, was jam-packed.

We ordered the Bruschetta with Tomato Fondutta and two Margherita Tomato Pizzas, one with a generous portion of  pepperoni.  The pizza itself was hard to cut and the toppings did have a tendency to slide off, but I didn’t even care because the sauce was so disgustingly good!

Other than the zoo and other food adventures, I took a summer class and continued work at my internship and at the GMU library.  In August, I began job at the Dulles Air and Space Museum as a Sales Photographer where we put people in space with the help of a handy dandy green screen and Photoshop.  You can see the green screen on the right in the picture below!

An update on the first week of classes is on the way!

Concerts Galore

by Jenny, a Patriot Blogger

In February my roommate and I attended a Jack’s Mannequin concert at the 9:30 Club that, while satisfied our thirst for indulging in songs from our high school soundtrack, revealed how our tastes have changed.

The venue was packed and the audience was entranced by the soulful melodies of Andrew McMahon, but the only notes on our minds were the ones that the chili cheese fries from Ben’s Chili Bowl would make our tastebuds sing.

One click told me that Jukebox the Ghost would be returning to the area in March.  Three more clicks and I had purchased tickets to see them in Fredericksburg with Speak, The Elwins, and Arctic Atlantic. It was a little odd going back to the music venue I went to in high school, but Jukebox was jaw-droppingly good as usual and Speak and The Elwins performed at a similar caliber.

After the concert, my friend and I drove back up to Arlington for some mouthwatering kabobs at Kabob Palace, which is open 24 hours and has the tastiest chickpeas!

The Drums, who played at The Black Cat in April, was one of the highlights of my semester.  When my friend from William and Mary who hosts radio shows and always has good music referrals introduced me to their song “Down By the Water,” I couldn’t help but hit the replay button over and over again.  After missing their concert for some work/academic related reason last year, I was out-of-my head excited to hear that they were coming to DC.

Later on in the month Jukebox the Ghost came to GMU for the opening of the new dorms Rogers and Whitetop as part of the Sustainable Opening Ceremony!  Having my favorite band come to my school where I could listen and dance without battling teems of screaming fans was so nice, and it was FREE!

And so we have it, a rundown of the concerts I attended in the Spring of 2012.  More to come in the fall!

Science Lab: Consumption of Food Required

by Jenny, a Patriot Blogger

Because I am severely handicapped in most activities science related, I knew from the start that the lab portion of my Science of Human History class would be a disproportionate amount of teeth gritting and hoping for the best.  Before the week of the food lab, Tuesday nights without fail, promised three hour headaches that were alleviated only by the dry wit of equally exasperated groups members.  Optimistic about this lab, I strolled cheerfully into room to find our table covered in with a conglomeration of fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, chips, dips, and guacamole. Throughout the lab, we inspected each of these food products and learned more about their components, origin, and uses.  Then came the enjoyable part, eating! It was hands down the most enjoyable lab I have ever had.

The Hot Spot!

by Jenny, a Patriot Blogger

From maracas and sombreros to paper lanterns embellished with Chinese characters, Mason’s new dining option “The Hot Spot” offers meals from around the world.  Since its debut in late January, feedback from students Facebook page for Mason Dining has determined a new theme each week, which has included a fajita bar, Carribean food, a classic pasta bar and Thai noodle bar.

As a lettuce and tomato discriminator, the meat filled fajita (above) did not leave me thrilled, despite large portions.  The Thai noodle bar (below) however, sent my taste buds on a delightfully spicy journey around the well cooked beef strips, through the loops of rice noodles and up the scoop of rice, slathered in the mouth-watering green curry sauce.

Located on the bottom of Student Union Building I, The Hot Spot has boasted lines nearly along as its neighbor, Chick-fil-A.

Also this semester, Mason has welcomed Subway into our dining family as well as a third convenience store.  With so many options, the only question now is how I will work off all of those additional calories!

Semester Lessons

by Jenny, a Patriot Blogger

Four weeks into school and things are already in full swing.  I have reworked my course schedule and started an internship in Washington DC.  My weekends have been spent social dancing, volunteering for a non-profit organization called A Wider Circle and braving the zero degree topple-over DC winds to get to the 9:30 Club.

Lessons I’ve learned so far this semester:

1.  Do bring a portfolio to an internship interview (extra points for leaving it behind).
I recently submitted an internship application on Internships.com for a Marketing Assistant position for The Menkiti Group, a real estate company located in Washington DC.  Upon seeing the internship posting, I realized that what I do on weekend outings can be translated into actual work!  For the internship I visit the restaurants and other small businesses in Washington DC neighborhoods and gather information to transform the WordPress websites into resources for prospective buyers and current residents.  Most of the internship can be completed virtually, though I have weekly meetings at their office where I confer with the Director of Marketing on the websites and other forms of social media.  It has been three weeks into the project I have toured the first neighborhood and will continue to populate the website with content and pictures.

2.  Do not fall asleep on the metro.
Three weeks, three consecutive DC trips, and three mistake-riddled metro trips.  The first two times were minor accidents, where I realized I boarded the metro in the wrong direction after one stop, but the last one nearly made me late to class later that day.  By the third time, I had become confident in my route, boarding the train without hesitation and unfortunately, without looking to see whether it was the blue or orange line.  Exhausted from accounting homework the previous night, drowsy from a lack of caffeine and happy that I would be back in my warm dorm room soon, I let myself doze off.  I woke up five stops later when I realized I was all the way at Reagan National Airport.  Groaning inwardly, I found myself on my handy metro map app and redirected myself one stop later.  No real harm done, but certainly a lesson in careful reading and the practicality of being conscious on public transportation.

3.    Do pay a visit to academic advising (better to visit your department’s advisor)
After a meeting with a School of Management academic adviser, I was told it would be a very wise idea to reconfigure my schedule.  Instead of a terrifying Typography class, during which the professor employed immediate weeding-out tactics or an easier but still useful New Media in the Creative Arts course, I opted to try and get my Accounting class out of the way- once and for all.  Unlike previous years, scheduling classes was tricky business, especially with pre-requisites and the balancing of more difficult classes with the easy A’s.  As I weighed my options, thoughts of anguish ran through my head as I felt my outlet for creativity vanish and the four financial statements monopolize my waking hours.  The cold hard truth is that in college you’ll most likely have to take classes that make you want to bang your head against the table repeatedly, but then you’ll have classes where you watch dub step videos, learn about Roman burial rituals, even those that make you want drag yourself out of bed at 7:30am every morning.

My classes ended up being as follows:
Integrated Marketing Communications (Marketing Elective)
Most days our professor lectures on textbook material, which is sometimes dry but we are told it is necessary to develop a clear understanding of the subject.  On the good days there’s more group discussion and many examples of current and past ad campaigns.  Exams aside, I’m hoping to get the most joy out of the individual and group assignments, which includes analyzing commercials for certain television networks and creating an advertising campaign for a national brand of a product.
Financial Accounting and Managerial Decision Making (School of Management Requirement)
This is undoubtedly the area that I struggle the most in and I can actually say I’ve read every page assigned in the book.  This professor keeps me on my toes, as she spends a large portion of the class calling on people to provide answers or asking the class to answer questions verbally, forcing us to learn the material or look rather foolish.
Cross Cultural Perspectives (Honors Requirement)
Ho!  The reading in this class isn’t half bad, ranging from Yao Ming’s biography and Confucius to the AP course staple “Things Fall Apart.”  China and Africa are our two countries of interest.  Because my instructor is an Oxford and Harvard educated Robinson Professor, I wish the class involved more lecturing and less class discussion.
Science of Human History and Lab (Honors Requirement)
Another surprisingly interesting class!  If you have read “Guns, Germs, and Steel” you are set for the semester.  If not, you’ll read the entire book in class and discuss why Westerners ended up having have more cargo (material goods) than the people of countries like New Guinea.  The lab portion is tedious and three hours long, but tolerable with most group members.

Campus Favorites Part II

by Jenny, a Patriot Blogger

I’ve gone to bed dreaming about Southside’s omelets.  Available with a variety of vegetables, ham, cheese, and even an egg whites only option, these hearty combinations are the perfect start to a long day of classes.

 

If you’ve got a hankering for chicken and don’t feel like going to Southside, pay a visit to Mason’s sports bar, The Rathskeller, for the grilled chicken sandwich.  The Rathskeller has twelve flat screen TV’s, perfect for Monday night football games.

For more of a kick, try Sangam in the JC food court for some spicy Indian food.  My go-to combination is the butter chicken, yellow rice, naan and vegetable samosa.

Waffles all day every day!  Southside has two waffle makers that are open for use all day, along with warm syrup, butter, whipped cream and fruit toppings.  More adventuresome waffle-eaters may opt for an avalanche of chocolate chips toppling down an mountain of vanilla ice cream.

Winter Break Ends WHEN?!

by Jenny, a Patriot Blogger

One eye still closed, I squinted at my phone and silenced the harsh tone of my third alarm.  I pressed the home button and gulped when my eye fell upon the date, January 17th?!  I go back to school in 8… oops, I mean 7, no 6 days?!  Brow furrowed and stomach churning, I stumbled out of bed, making note to finish applying to the companies on my internship list, Chegg my books and make an appointment to chop off an inch or two of my hair.

What have I been up to during break besides looking at a calendar, you ask?  I spent a very Asian Christmas in NYC with my parents and their friends.  Naturally the theme of the trip was food.  We also strolled around Flushing (which is like stepping Shanghai), stopped at a few shops and bakeries and took the subway to see the Saks Fifth Avenue window displays and show.  Before we left we went to Brooklyn Bridge Park where I was able to enjoy an awe-inspiring view of Manhattan.  The rest of my break has been spent catching up with old friends, searching for internships and working on my new food blog called “The Pan Eats” where I have compiled photos and reviews of more than 25 restaurants.  I also spent some quality time with my pillow, a luxury the semester refuses to offer.

Manhattan and all of its splendor from the Brooklyn Bridge Park

Fried Mini Pork Buns at Chinatown’s Shanghai Cafe, keep em coming!

Lobster Sticky Rice at Flushing’s New Imperial Palace, so moist and tasty

I love me some E-Fu Noodles at Flushing’s Grand Restaurant

I can’t wait to go back to NYC to indulge in more good eats, but first, spring semester!  Believe it or not, I am actually excited for class so I can finally get into the meat of my marketing classes.  Because I have gotten most of the School of Management’s required core classes (Accounting, Business and Law, Operations Management, etc.) out of the way, I can finally focus on learning about my major.  I plan to spend my Monday and Wednesday afternoons learning about Integrated Marketing Communications (advertising, sales promotion, public relations, etc.) and my Thursday nights uncovering the secrets behind Business to Business Marketing.  I am also finishing up my honors requirements with the Science of Human History (why societies have turned out the way they have) and Cross Cultural Perspectives (study of China and Nigeria).  Typography will round off my schedule and I hope to finally discover exactly why I dislike the ads on the metro so much or learn that whether or not they are using an appropriate font style.  I will report the ups and downs of these classes throughout the semester, but now that I realize it’s so close I’m itching to return to college life!

Baking Madness

by Jenny, a Patriot Blogger

sugarbrowniemixvegetableoilpeanutbutterstrawberryjam

The ingredients to my PP&J brownies, while so simple, were making my head spin and vision blur. I could only hope my incurable clumsiness and limited baking experience wouldn’t keep from making my batch. A mad scramble for the mixing bowls, spatulas, and baking sheets and we were off!

A few weeks ago, I attended a free cooking session hosted by CAFE-GMU (Crazy Awesome Food and Entertainment).  When I heard that I was one of the lucky 12 or randomly selected to participate, I immediately made plans to be there and found a sub at work.  While I struggled here and there to keep up, being in a group with an experienced CAFE-GMU member helped tremendously and kept me from throwing in my peanut butter smothered towel.  I did not emerge victorious with a batch of perfectly baked brownies, but I learned to watch the oven like a hawk in the future.

Other cooking classes throughout the semester have been taught by campus executive chef Peter Schoebel, and have had themes ranging from cooking for a date night to healthy food cooking.  The other lessons taught students how to cook starches,  protein, and how to work with spices.

Some of the dishes made during the lessons include:
Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb
General Tao’s Chicken and Rice Bowl
Basic Risotto
Parmesan Mashed Potatoes
Creme Brulee

Above are a few events hosted by CAFE-GMU from this past semester.  Pictured below are some of the tastiest cookies and pastries made that night!

A Little Ethiopian, a lot of JUKEBOX

Above, pianist/vocalist Ben Thornewill belts out beautiful melodies and manages to insert just the right amount of quirk. 

Tommy Siegel, guitarist/co-vocalist (below) dazzled the crowd during Jukebox’s rick roll (above).

Living close to Washington D.C. is a paradise for frequent concert-goers, with 9:30 Club, The Black Cat, and The Rock and Roll Hotel all within grasp, thanks to the Mason to Metro bus and metro system.  Over the years, I have been to concerts featuring Cults, The Bravery, Via Audio, Mayday Parade, All Time Low, and my all time favorite Jukebox the Ghost.

When we arrived at the 9:30 club, the crowd was unusually small and took up only about half of the standing area on the first floor.   Only small clusters of fans stood and sat on the second floor.  The opening bands the Spinto Band and Deleted Scenes each had a few catchy songs but much were harder to get into.  Fortunately for my friend and I, that meant that we were able to easily nudge our way to the front, securing our spot for when Jukebox the Ghost came on.  After the last song of the opening band, I found that there was little standing room left in the club.

It seemed like eternity before Jukebox appeared on the dark stage, but when they did the crowd went wild, knowing that they were in for a good show.  After playing a few notes, pianist and vocalist Ben Thornewill got up and walked in front of his keyboard, bent down, and emerged with a cheeky grin, keyboard plug unplugged in his hand.  A swift insertion of the plug and the show was on the road. Between songs, the band recounted tales of their European tour with James Blunt, including puzzled German fans listening to their song “Schizophrenia” and Jesse Kristin rocking out the drums with baguettes. Jukebox the Ghost surprised and delighted the crowd with their remix of Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” and convinced even the  stubborn souls in the back to move their bodies to the irresistible beat.

A trip to D.C. wouldn’t be complete without a taste of D.C.  The streets surrounding the 9:30 Club are lined with Ethiopian restaurants, though the short walk from the metro stop to the restaurant was nerve wracking as police sirens went off every few minutes.  The dimly lit street and crumbling store fronts made me even more glad I had not decided to go alone.  My friend and I chose to try Little Ethiopia, after seeing the 4 star rating on Yelp how close the restaurant is to the club.

The decorations in Little Ethiopia are like nothing I’ve seen before.  Straw umbrella heads hung from the ceiling, drawings of Ethiopian hairstyles, colorful mystical paintings, and wood carvings decorated the walls, and each sitting area included wood carved and cushioned furniture, including one bench and three small chairs.

I ordered the Lentil Sambusa, a “triangular shaped pastry crust filled with lentil, green pepper, and onion” along with the Doro Wot, which included a chicken leg and hard boiled egg in a spicy sauce with Ethiopian style farmer’s cheese.  The Sambusa was crisp but flavorless and the Doro Wat’s chicken was fell off of the bone nicely but the sauce was nothing spectacular.  Since it was my second experience with Ethiopian food, I knew better than to ask for utensils this time and was able to scoop up the spongy bread with chicken without creating a mess.

While I was unimpressed by the food, after being spoiled by the flavor of Georgetown’s Zed’s Ethiopian Cuisine, the service was very courteous and the our food was prepared quickly.  Though I would not return for the food, I would consider going back for the live Ethiopian music held every week.