Today in class we talked about the aesthetics, labour, spirituality, health and history behind an activity. Because my activity is of course cooking; below is what I have related back to cooking.
Aesthetics
Cooking can please many senses. The smell of fresh baking wafting through the house is bliss! Also the taste of new recipes and also old favorites is amazing. The sight of food in the frying pan with all the colors of the different vegetables together or the rising of a cake or muffins in the oven is very pleasing. There is also nothing like waking up in the morning and hearing the sizzle of bacon in the pan.
Labour
Food is grown all over the world and harvested to send to supermarkets and other food stores. Farmers make a living growing crops or animals so that we are able to use these for cooking. "Whether in the world of man the gatherer of food or in our own world, the man is not free whose life is totally absorbed in labor. His energies are spent in response to necessity, under the aegis of forces that he does not set in motion and cannot control" (Green, 1968,np). No matter how advanced technology gets there is always going to be a need to grow and supply food. Cooking is no longer a job to me as it was before this paper. Work is described as an "activity which corresponds to the unnaturalness of human existence" (Arendt, 1958,np).
Spirituality
At Christmas there is an expectation in my family that there will be a large feast at dinner time to celebrate the day with family. The build up for the day begins days earlier as we do the shopping for food at the supermarket and begin to cook deserts and starters the day before. Everyone helps out or brings over something that they have cooked when they come over and no one seems to mind as it is all very exciting and built into who we are as a person (our spirituality). Cooking can be used as a excuse to get together and celebrate the year and enjoy one another's company.
Health
The consideration of health is very important with regards to cooking. If someone has allergies then it is important to check ingredients properly to make sure there are no traces of the item in the food you are about to cook. Also it is important that you eat healthy foods especially if you are in the 'at risk' population and have high blood pressure for example.
My history of cooking
My earliest memories of cooking will be watching my parents cook when I was very young. I always marveled over how exciting it all looked and wanting to be able to cook myself. I received a plastic set of food and pots and pans etc. for Christmas one year when I was young and loved pretending that I was cooking everyone food before presenting them with a plastic plate and knife and fork so they could enjoy their plastic peas and mash complete with a plastic sausage. This all went so well that when my younger sister received a toy cash register I suggested (or rather enforced) that we team up and open our own restaurant- she worked as a waitress while I completed all the cooking. I later went on to graduate my excellent cooking skills to work with actual food helping my mum prepare nightly dinners. I loved doing this and even if it was only peeling potatoes or doing jobs that my mum didn't really want to do I gratefully accepted and she gratefully gave these tasks. Eventually these skills gained as a young girl went on to get me a job working at the local ice skating rink cooking the fast foods such as chips and burgers for the ice skaters to purchase; at last my skills gained working in the kitchen of my very own restaurant as a young girl were paying off!
References:
Arendt, Hannah (1958) The human condition. Chicago: Chicago University Press.
Green. T.F. (1968) Work, leisure and The American Schools. New York: Random House.
Monday, 17 October 2011
Friday, 14 October 2011
Class blogs
As part of this assignment we are required to leave comments on other students blogs. We are required to give feedback that is both helpful and constructive but also leaving a comment on things that they have done well throughout the posting. There is four blog postings in total that I have commented on and I have linked these below for reference.
Nicole Jordan
Charlotte Cowley
Heath M
Pip Watt
Nicole Jordan
Charlotte Cowley
Heath M
Pip Watt
Affordances
On Wednesday I went over to my friend (Alysha's) flat for dinner. We had talked earlier that day about what we wanted for dinner and had decided on a lasagna. Wednesday night catch up's were some what of a tradition now as we got to catch up on the past weeks events while having dinner. When I got to the flat, Alysha asked me if I felt like potatoes with the lasagna and went on to tell explain that she wanted to try out her Nana's recipe that had been passed down to her mother and eventually to her as well. She explained that she had made them for her boyfriend a couple of nights ago and even though he was very fussy- he loved them. So we walked up to the supermarket where we purchased paprika (for the potatoes) and also decided to try some prawns. Alysha loved them and wanted me to try them also; I had tried shrimp while on placement, suddenly discovered my love for seafood! Once we got back to the flat, Alysha and I began to make dinner. She was teaching me how to cook prawns and I was intrigued when she began adding crushed garlic and pepper for extra flavour. I couldn't help but try one as the aroma was amazing! It was so good and Alysha taught me how to get the meat out of the tail with one easy step. Then we began to cook the potatoes and the lasagna. While Alysha cooked the mince I started on the potatoes. Alysha completed the first potato so I could copy the rest of them. She cut it in half long ways and the proceeded to cut it like a checkerboard but not all the way through. Then we melted the butter and spooned that onto each potato. Once this was completed we sprinkled a generous amount of paprika onto each potato and baked them in the oven. While I was doing this, Alysha started to make her mums cheese sauce recipe from scratch, while I moved onto adding in the sauce and chopped onion into the mince. I had been wanting to learn to make cheese sauce for awhile so I got Alysha to talk me through what she was doing while I multi-tasked and watched as well as make the mince. We always talk non-stop while making our wednesday dinners and this time was no different. We talked about what big things had happened at work for her and how hectic life was at the moment and gossiped about our boyfriends. Dinner was smelling amazing and while we dished it up we couldn't help but finish off the rest of the prawns.. Bliss! We had to wait a bit longer for the potatoes as Alysha explained how it was important to get them crispy. As soon as I got home that night I had to explain the potato recipe to my mum, as they tasted delicious! I will be cooking them for my family soon no doubt.
Labour/food
We must cook to survive and this goes hand-in-hand with cooking to tend to other people. There is still in some cultures a demand for the women to tend to her family by preparing dinner for them each night. There is a cultural expectation so to speak of what we cook and when we cook it. Thanksgiving in America sees American's cooking a turkey to share with their families and Christmas see's us all having a huge Christmas dinner and spending all day preparing for it. Cooking brings people together. In my household we must have dinner at the dining room table. This is the only time in which we are all sitting together at once and we use it to catch up on what each other has been up to for that day. As a student, money is tight and planning on what you are going to eat each week is important. One of my friends sits down each sunday night and writes down all the meals she is going to cook each week and the ingredients she will need for each recipe. This way when she does the weekly shopping she knows exactly what to get so she doesn't go over budget. Cooking is also a individuals responsibility to make sure that they are eating healthy and abiding to diet requirements for example one of my friends is gluten free therefore they must make sure that all the items of food the consume do not have any traces of gluten in it. Because they have recently moved out of home it makes it very real to them that there is no longer someone else to look after them and make sure they are eating the right foods.
Craft/Paper/Work
Through cooking we are able to create something that is visible and tangible. By cooking we can make gifts such as a birthday cake for a loved one or a batch of cookies to share. At funerals we can make a tribute to the individual through cooking their favorite dish or when leaving a place you can cook them something to remind them of you. However time can have a great impact on what we cook and when we cook it. In today's society, everyone is so rushed and constantly busy that the 'frozen food' industry has rocketed. No more are the home cooked meals and the fresh baking always readily available and heavy schedules are the underlying cause for this.
Plays
There are so many cooking competition shows on television today; new prospective 'Master Chef's' coming to try their luck in the seasons hottest television show. Although cooking can be seen in this competitive form of play it can also been seen as a light, fun interactive activity for people. It gives them a chance to experiment with different flavors and textures and gives them a break from everyday stresses to try new things. I had not tried prawns before and cooking gave me the opportunity to discover my underlying interest for seafood. What we cook can define us, who we are as an adult and as a person. It reminds us that we are all so different and what we enjoy and dislike differs greatly. Cooking can also give us a sense of being in control. We decide what we want to cook and what we are going to add in to the meal. Cooking is made easier these days through the use of adapting or modifying cooking by reducing demands, the use of assistive devices (blenders, ovens, microwaves), or changes in the physical or social environment (Fisher, 2001).
References:
Fisher, A. G. (1998). Assessment of motor and process skills: Vol. 1. Development, standardization, and administration manual (4th ed.). Fort Collins, CO: Three Stars Press.
Labour/food
We must cook to survive and this goes hand-in-hand with cooking to tend to other people. There is still in some cultures a demand for the women to tend to her family by preparing dinner for them each night. There is a cultural expectation so to speak of what we cook and when we cook it. Thanksgiving in America sees American's cooking a turkey to share with their families and Christmas see's us all having a huge Christmas dinner and spending all day preparing for it. Cooking brings people together. In my household we must have dinner at the dining room table. This is the only time in which we are all sitting together at once and we use it to catch up on what each other has been up to for that day. As a student, money is tight and planning on what you are going to eat each week is important. One of my friends sits down each sunday night and writes down all the meals she is going to cook each week and the ingredients she will need for each recipe. This way when she does the weekly shopping she knows exactly what to get so she doesn't go over budget. Cooking is also a individuals responsibility to make sure that they are eating healthy and abiding to diet requirements for example one of my friends is gluten free therefore they must make sure that all the items of food the consume do not have any traces of gluten in it. Because they have recently moved out of home it makes it very real to them that there is no longer someone else to look after them and make sure they are eating the right foods.
Craft/Paper/Work
Through cooking we are able to create something that is visible and tangible. By cooking we can make gifts such as a birthday cake for a loved one or a batch of cookies to share. At funerals we can make a tribute to the individual through cooking their favorite dish or when leaving a place you can cook them something to remind them of you. However time can have a great impact on what we cook and when we cook it. In today's society, everyone is so rushed and constantly busy that the 'frozen food' industry has rocketed. No more are the home cooked meals and the fresh baking always readily available and heavy schedules are the underlying cause for this.
Plays
There are so many cooking competition shows on television today; new prospective 'Master Chef's' coming to try their luck in the seasons hottest television show. Although cooking can be seen in this competitive form of play it can also been seen as a light, fun interactive activity for people. It gives them a chance to experiment with different flavors and textures and gives them a break from everyday stresses to try new things. I had not tried prawns before and cooking gave me the opportunity to discover my underlying interest for seafood. What we cook can define us, who we are as an adult and as a person. It reminds us that we are all so different and what we enjoy and dislike differs greatly. Cooking can also give us a sense of being in control. We decide what we want to cook and what we are going to add in to the meal. Cooking is made easier these days through the use of adapting or modifying cooking by reducing demands, the use of assistive devices (blenders, ovens, microwaves), or changes in the physical or social environment (Fisher, 2001).
References:
Fisher, A. G. (1998). Assessment of motor and process skills: Vol. 1. Development, standardization, and administration manual (4th ed.). Fort Collins, CO: Three Stars Press.
Wednesday, 21 September 2011
Affordances
Okay so this week in class we looked at affordances. In my own words affordances are the possible outcomes. So what are the outcomes going to be from completing my chosen task of cooking? Food? communication and stronger friendships from cooking with a friend, learning new things.. wow there are so many affordances! This week in class we also looked at how activities build up connections and make up a story. For example how one activity can lead itself onto another one. For my chosen activity this could be described as how by cooking dinner leads to eating dinner. So our activity in class was to discuss the communication, connections (action properties) and the good and bad aspects; below are a few which we came up with.
Communication
There is such a range of communication that can come from cooking. When I cook with friends there is always a lot of laughing and talking and we always make plans to do things in the future. If one of them is having a problem then I console them and advise them on what they can do. When I am cooking with my mum there is always an aspect of teaching and learning as I learn how to critique my own skills.
Connections
When cooking together with other people it can be useful sometimes to explain to them the certain ways you like doing things and the certain ways they like doing things. This way by setting some ground rules it can avoid later confrontation. Cooking with friends and family allows bonding to occur and you find similar beliefs and interests. Cooking greatly encourages teaching and learning and trail and error. I was able to learn how to cook this meal through watching Eden cook (Fergus, 1999). Through these experiences building memories occurs and you begin to generate patterns and ways of being. Recipes can be passed down through generations and can become a legacy so to speak. There is also a cultural way of doing things and depending on you culture can depend on what you cook and when you cook it.
Good and bad aspects
When I am cooking with my sister she always makes a lot of food, and she does not like eating leftovers so there is always a wastefulness of resources, which is one of the bad aspects of cooking. When I am cooking with my friends in their flats they always decide to add in extra flavor to the dish we are making. Because there are always dishes of herbs and spices around they just use them even though this is stealing another flatmates food. There is also an element of improving things in cooking. A dish may be undercooked after following the recipe closely so trail-and-error proves a way in which you can improve it for next time you are cooking the same dish. You can be greatly rewarded with cooking when the friends and family you are cooking for praise you for the meal you have cooked.
A couple of weekends ago I went over to my friend's (Eden) house for a catch up and to watch a movie. While I was there we were getting quite hungry and we discussed that we would make something to eat for dinner. While looking through the cupboards and fridge for something to cook we discovered chicken which had to be eaten that day or it would go off. After a brief discussion we both decided we would like chicken stir-fry. Eden had an amazing recipe for chicken stir-fry with lemon and ginger and other exotic foods which we decided we would make. She advised me that her parents had made this for dinner before and it had turned out really well and explained the ingredients that they had used that differed from those on the recipe. We talked a lot while making dinner about what we had been up to lately and we always make each other laugh- so there was definitely a lot of laughing happening! We also decided to be extra adventurous and make some chocolate chip cookies for desert - Yum! however after making them there was a bit of miscommunication happening and unfortunately we left them in the oven a little bit too long and they burnt on the bottom! Eden also wanted to put in some extra soy sauce to the stir-fry; as we both love it, although it didn't mix well with all the other sauces we had in the stir-fry and it did not end up tasting very good at all! However all was not lost as we found a packet of peanut butter m&m's in the cupboard (Eden and my favorite's) and we had an amazing supper while watching a movie. I definitely learned a lot while making this dinner- one being to always follow a recipe and don't try and be to much like Jamie Oliver! We both taught each other new things about what ingredients to put into the stir-fry; Eden was telling me that we must put in fish sauce and although I was a bit unsure about this I trusted her and we added it in. We also built memories together- I won't easily forget that night! We also experienced a lot of trail and error- with adding in the soy sauce and afterwards regretting it as it overpowered the taste of the other ingredients. I also gave the non-burnt cookies to my family when I got home as gifts.
Good and bad:
-We did not have any ginger to add into the recipe so we had to improvise and use other ingredients to get some extra flavour.
-We didn't mix the sauce properly before adding it into the stir-fry and the final result had a lot of liquid. We wanted it to be more fried, but it didn't really end up that way.
-Eden didn't like the final stir-fry result and threw away her portion which was wastefulness of resources.
Reference:
Fergus, B. (1999). On being a woodturner. Occupation, 7(1).
Communication
There is such a range of communication that can come from cooking. When I cook with friends there is always a lot of laughing and talking and we always make plans to do things in the future. If one of them is having a problem then I console them and advise them on what they can do. When I am cooking with my mum there is always an aspect of teaching and learning as I learn how to critique my own skills.
Connections
When cooking together with other people it can be useful sometimes to explain to them the certain ways you like doing things and the certain ways they like doing things. This way by setting some ground rules it can avoid later confrontation. Cooking with friends and family allows bonding to occur and you find similar beliefs and interests. Cooking greatly encourages teaching and learning and trail and error. I was able to learn how to cook this meal through watching Eden cook (Fergus, 1999). Through these experiences building memories occurs and you begin to generate patterns and ways of being. Recipes can be passed down through generations and can become a legacy so to speak. There is also a cultural way of doing things and depending on you culture can depend on what you cook and when you cook it.
Good and bad aspects
When I am cooking with my sister she always makes a lot of food, and she does not like eating leftovers so there is always a wastefulness of resources, which is one of the bad aspects of cooking. When I am cooking with my friends in their flats they always decide to add in extra flavor to the dish we are making. Because there are always dishes of herbs and spices around they just use them even though this is stealing another flatmates food. There is also an element of improving things in cooking. A dish may be undercooked after following the recipe closely so trail-and-error proves a way in which you can improve it for next time you are cooking the same dish. You can be greatly rewarded with cooking when the friends and family you are cooking for praise you for the meal you have cooked.
A couple of weekends ago I went over to my friend's (Eden) house for a catch up and to watch a movie. While I was there we were getting quite hungry and we discussed that we would make something to eat for dinner. While looking through the cupboards and fridge for something to cook we discovered chicken which had to be eaten that day or it would go off. After a brief discussion we both decided we would like chicken stir-fry. Eden had an amazing recipe for chicken stir-fry with lemon and ginger and other exotic foods which we decided we would make. She advised me that her parents had made this for dinner before and it had turned out really well and explained the ingredients that they had used that differed from those on the recipe. We talked a lot while making dinner about what we had been up to lately and we always make each other laugh- so there was definitely a lot of laughing happening! We also decided to be extra adventurous and make some chocolate chip cookies for desert - Yum! however after making them there was a bit of miscommunication happening and unfortunately we left them in the oven a little bit too long and they burnt on the bottom! Eden also wanted to put in some extra soy sauce to the stir-fry; as we both love it, although it didn't mix well with all the other sauces we had in the stir-fry and it did not end up tasting very good at all! However all was not lost as we found a packet of peanut butter m&m's in the cupboard (Eden and my favorite's) and we had an amazing supper while watching a movie. I definitely learned a lot while making this dinner- one being to always follow a recipe and don't try and be to much like Jamie Oliver! We both taught each other new things about what ingredients to put into the stir-fry; Eden was telling me that we must put in fish sauce and although I was a bit unsure about this I trusted her and we added it in. We also built memories together- I won't easily forget that night! We also experienced a lot of trail and error- with adding in the soy sauce and afterwards regretting it as it overpowered the taste of the other ingredients. I also gave the non-burnt cookies to my family when I got home as gifts.
Good and bad:
-We did not have any ginger to add into the recipe so we had to improvise and use other ingredients to get some extra flavour.
-We didn't mix the sauce properly before adding it into the stir-fry and the final result had a lot of liquid. We wanted it to be more fried, but it didn't really end up that way.
-Eden didn't like the final stir-fry result and threw away her portion which was wastefulness of resources.
Reference:
Fergus, B. (1999). On being a woodturner. Occupation, 7(1).
Tuesday, 13 September 2011
Ergonomics of cooking
In class this week we looked at our activities that we have chosen and how they fit under the three different headings. These were; Person, Activity and Environment grid. When we are considering ergonomics we must take into account the activity and also the environment and how it fits a person. Our role as the Occupational Therapist is to "make slight invisible adjustments to an activity to adapt to the needs of those taking part and ensure that it continues to work for its intended purpose" (Creek & Lawson-Porter, 2007). In class we had a discussion which we looked at the following concepts.
Person
A person's preferences can have an impact on what you cook. If someone does not like mushrooms you will decide not to make a mushroom pasta dish. Cooking can have a sense of responsibility behind it, if you have children they need to eat and therefore you must cooking them their meals. My grandparents are at the later part of the life timeline and their views on cooking differ greatly on my own. I like things that are cheap, quick and easy, however they prefer to spend more money on more gourmet ingredients claiming they are too old to eat bad foods. They spend a great deal of time in the kitchen working together to form elaborate dishes through recipes both new and old, however they are both retired and have a lot of time to be able to achieve these amazing meals. Because I study and also work my time is very limited and although I would like to spend more time cooking I grab something to eat on the go more often than not.
Activity
Going beyond following the recipes from cookbooks can be both exciting and daunting at the same time. The guiding steps of the cookbook are hard to ignore but the proud feeling of putting together an amazing meal with what you have in the cupboard is always exciting. Adapting a recipe that you have found to fit you own likes and dislikes is also something that I do often. My friend is allergic to chicken - I know, poor her! however I had this amazing recipe which I loved and wanted her to use. I found out later that it had chicken stock in it and she had replaced it with beef stock as an alternative recipe. Another aspect of ergonomics in cooking is the robustness of the materials you are using- are you able to change the equipment to items more readily available? and the other types of equipment available such as having a blunt knife. Costs of activity- lower socio economic groups have different ideas to what they cook.
Environment
Equipment available
Spatial organisation
Cultural aspects- how we do things, seasons.
After we discussed these three concepts we had to relate them to our own activity in more detail. So with my activity of cooking I came up with the following ideas.
Person
Depending on how old you are is what you cook. Whether it is larger amounts or smaller amounts- if you are cooking for yourself or your family. How competent you are; have you been cooking for awhile or are a newbie to cooking. Whether you are cooking for fun or have an obligation to cook for someone. How much time you have to cook a meal- depends on what you cook.
Activity
Adapt the recipe depending on what ingredients are avaliable. Likes/dislikes eg. take out things that people don't like. How fast you go is depending on the time you have available. How much money you have depends on what you cook as well.
Environment
What equipment you have available depends on what you cook. For example do you have a microwave or a oven? Can you use strawberries in winter? the cost of strawberries rises so can you afford to purchase them? Can you cook meat for someone who is vegetarian?
By completing this activity I have now thought about all the different ways that people cook and the reasons in which they cook them. Mince is a cheap meat so it is used a lot to cook for larger families or students who are flatting. It is also a versatile meat and can be used to make many different types of meals. Because it is now readily available to us as we have built up larger and larger societies we are starting to look at it as more than a means of survival. Food is now exciting and is a lot more than something that you eat. It can be an art form. Personally I love experimenting with food and being adventurous and finding out new and exciting meals to make and sweets to bake and feel a sense of accomplishment when they come out of the oven smelling and looking delicious.
References:
Creek, J & Lawson-Porter. (Eds). (2007) Contemporary issues in occupational therapy. Chichester: John Wiley and Sons Ltd.
Person
A person's preferences can have an impact on what you cook. If someone does not like mushrooms you will decide not to make a mushroom pasta dish. Cooking can have a sense of responsibility behind it, if you have children they need to eat and therefore you must cooking them their meals. My grandparents are at the later part of the life timeline and their views on cooking differ greatly on my own. I like things that are cheap, quick and easy, however they prefer to spend more money on more gourmet ingredients claiming they are too old to eat bad foods. They spend a great deal of time in the kitchen working together to form elaborate dishes through recipes both new and old, however they are both retired and have a lot of time to be able to achieve these amazing meals. Because I study and also work my time is very limited and although I would like to spend more time cooking I grab something to eat on the go more often than not.
Activity
Going beyond following the recipes from cookbooks can be both exciting and daunting at the same time. The guiding steps of the cookbook are hard to ignore but the proud feeling of putting together an amazing meal with what you have in the cupboard is always exciting. Adapting a recipe that you have found to fit you own likes and dislikes is also something that I do often. My friend is allergic to chicken - I know, poor her! however I had this amazing recipe which I loved and wanted her to use. I found out later that it had chicken stock in it and she had replaced it with beef stock as an alternative recipe. Another aspect of ergonomics in cooking is the robustness of the materials you are using- are you able to change the equipment to items more readily available? and the other types of equipment available such as having a blunt knife. Costs of activity- lower socio economic groups have different ideas to what they cook.
Environment
Equipment available
Spatial organisation
Cultural aspects- how we do things, seasons.
After we discussed these three concepts we had to relate them to our own activity in more detail. So with my activity of cooking I came up with the following ideas.
Person
Depending on how old you are is what you cook. Whether it is larger amounts or smaller amounts- if you are cooking for yourself or your family. How competent you are; have you been cooking for awhile or are a newbie to cooking. Whether you are cooking for fun or have an obligation to cook for someone. How much time you have to cook a meal- depends on what you cook.
Activity
Adapt the recipe depending on what ingredients are avaliable. Likes/dislikes eg. take out things that people don't like. How fast you go is depending on the time you have available. How much money you have depends on what you cook as well.
Environment
What equipment you have available depends on what you cook. For example do you have a microwave or a oven? Can you use strawberries in winter? the cost of strawberries rises so can you afford to purchase them? Can you cook meat for someone who is vegetarian?
By completing this activity I have now thought about all the different ways that people cook and the reasons in which they cook them. Mince is a cheap meat so it is used a lot to cook for larger families or students who are flatting. It is also a versatile meat and can be used to make many different types of meals. Because it is now readily available to us as we have built up larger and larger societies we are starting to look at it as more than a means of survival. Food is now exciting and is a lot more than something that you eat. It can be an art form. Personally I love experimenting with food and being adventurous and finding out new and exciting meals to make and sweets to bake and feel a sense of accomplishment when they come out of the oven smelling and looking delicious.
References:
Creek, J & Lawson-Porter. (Eds). (2007) Contemporary issues in occupational therapy. Chichester: John Wiley and Sons Ltd.
Thursday, 8 September 2011
First week jitters!
Okay so I just thought i'd fill everyone in on my progress and what i've been up to since my first entry. I decided to cook dinner the other night as a start of my two hours a week.. turns out that it takes me so long to complete a meal that my two hours is pretty much up in the first meal haha; I still am not sure whether this is a bad thing or a good thing! So after consulting with my family I decided to make chicken stir-fry which is, as it turns out a favourite of my household. So I had to go out to the supermarket and get the ingredients needed so noodles, stir-fry veges, chicken sauce. It was fun going around picking out different items that I thought I would need. Then once I got home I started making dinner and in the process was trying to think about all the therapeutic aspects of this task; pulling on information from my fieldwork placement and what I have learnt in my classes.
Monday, 5 September 2011
Semester Two Week One
Today in class we were asked to decide on a topic which we can participate in for at least two hours a week. This topic must means something to us so we can reflect on it via this blog. I decided to go with cooking as it is something that I enjoy and something that I am able to do well. I enjoy cooking for my family and enjoy trying new things and searching for new recipes to try out. I also enjoy baking and love making favourite's such as banana and carrot cake and brownies for everyone to have.
What does cooking mean to me?
It's something that gets family together, I like the fact that after a long day you can sit together and talk about the day while enjoy a home cooked meal. I also like the fact that cooking creates achievement and satisfaction and you can relax and look through cookbooks to find something interesting to try and make.
Practical Considerations: Both my Mum and Dad enjoy cooking as well so I have to let them know in advance that I want to cook dinner two days a week. I am also quite busy during the week so it will be quite hard to find time to be able to cook for two hours. However Mum and Dad are very supportive and will encourage me to cook and also buy any ingredients I will need.
I thought it would be quite useful to find a dictionary definition of what cooking actually was as well and came across this lovely one "to prepare, as food, by boiling, roasting, baking, broiling, etc,; to make suitable for eating, by the agency of fire or heat" (Makins, 1992).
References
Makins, M. (1992).Collins concise dictionary and thesaurus. Glasgow, Great Britain: HarperCollins Manufacturing.
What does cooking mean to me?
It's something that gets family together, I like the fact that after a long day you can sit together and talk about the day while enjoy a home cooked meal. I also like the fact that cooking creates achievement and satisfaction and you can relax and look through cookbooks to find something interesting to try and make.
Practical Considerations: Both my Mum and Dad enjoy cooking as well so I have to let them know in advance that I want to cook dinner two days a week. I am also quite busy during the week so it will be quite hard to find time to be able to cook for two hours. However Mum and Dad are very supportive and will encourage me to cook and also buy any ingredients I will need.
I thought it would be quite useful to find a dictionary definition of what cooking actually was as well and came across this lovely one "to prepare, as food, by boiling, roasting, baking, broiling, etc,; to make suitable for eating, by the agency of fire or heat" (Makins, 1992).
References
Makins, M. (1992).Collins concise dictionary and thesaurus. Glasgow, Great Britain: HarperCollins Manufacturing.