English creative remix

Our neighborhood is not like other neighborhoods.

Our nearest grocery store is 2.3 miles away.

The nearest store used to be a mile away,

but they closed it down under unusual events.

To get to the nearest store, I would have to take an hour-long bus ride,

45 minutes if we were lucky. As a mom, I would put on my thrifted clothes,

make my way to the bus stop and buy the groceries for my children to eat.

Otherwise, we’d be living off of the convenient McDonalds on our block.

I’m sure my kids wouldn’t complain about that. Maybe

they would feel upset if they found out that the reason we can’t

have fresh fruits and vegetables is because supermarkets

don’t see us as anything worth investing in.

They follow the wealthy folk wherever they go

because they know they’ll make a profit off them.

We, however, would not be able to afford

the bananas, tomatoes, and avocados all in one purchase.

Taking a lengthy bus ride might not be as physically taxing

as, say, the Olympics, but under the hot summer sun or amidst the cold winter,

it feels laborious. On top of that, I must carry the extra weight

of the groceries on my trip back. It is enough to knock me out once I get home.

But someone needs to cook. Someone needs to be there

for my children. No matter the sleepless nights

I have, thinking about tomorrow’s lunch meal

or if there’s enough for everyone excluding me.

No matter the fear I have about not earning enough

on my next paycheck or the everyday emotional drain.

I must venture through the empty space of my hometown

and into the nearest Kroger for a piece of security.

As promised, here is the link to your End of Semester Reflection.  Please complete the reflection by Sunday, May 23rd.  Reach out to me with any questions!

End of Semester Reflection

Food Beauty All Gone

The beautiful restaurants made in NYC

All beautiful

Full of people

With energy and dignity

Nothing can steal

Nor repeal

The wonders of it

Not a disease

Without its leash

But if it came out of nowhere

It would be a nightmare

Expecting total closure

One month it was the same

Happy tame days

People coming in and out

No disruptions

Nothing to cause an eruption

Until came the disease

Once the disease came forth

Everything went forth

The seats became deserted

The industry hurted

No crowds

Nor sounds

Just as many restaurants

Were alive days earlier

Are now desperate to survive

The once beautiful restaurants

That were filled with life

Now all gone

Nothing to go on

Just to wait

When everyone comes back

To life

For such restaurants

Returning to normal

Seems less possible

When the dust settles

Nobody will forget

The sickness that painted

And decimated

The once beautiful restaurant

Goat is the Future: An Interview with Tom Rankin

For my third and final review I listened to a podcast titled “Goat is the Future: An interview with Tom Rankin”. It is part of a Gravy podcast series. Tom Ramkin has a farm in Orange County California and discusses his book Goat Light with the interviewers. At the beginning of the interview he is asked how he ended up as a goat farmer along with his wife Jill. He answers by saying goat farming is not something he originally set out to do. He did not just wake up one morning and say “I am going to become a goat farmer” it was something that gradually became a part of his life over time. He said that goat farming has become so intertwined with his everyday life it is not something he even realizes anymore. He acknowledges the challenged that come with goat farming while also stating it is something that he loves to do. He said that the intentions of his book was really to take something that he does in his day to day life and turn it into something more. He said instead of writing books in the interest of other companies he wanted to see what kind of writing he could produce without any other pressure. Writing with just his own ideas in mind and in regards to what he does. He then had a cute little moment with his wife where he starts to just admire the way she took his ideas and their lifestyle and was able to turn it into ‘beautiful’ words. He said that his wife is a writer and in writing his book it was nice to find a common ground between them. His wife usually writes about unrelated topics to what he does for a living so to come together on this project was a very sentimental moment for both of them. He then goes onto talk about the act of goat farming itself and how the world of covid had greatly influence goat farming and his own experience. He said goat farming as a smaller industry got negatively impacted much like many other businesses. He discussed how covid definitely forces him to re evaluate his business model as a farmer and how it has changed. To close off the interview they mostly just discussed the popularity of goat meat and how from his personal perspective covid has made him truly appreciate the nature of a small business. Overall, this was my first time listening to a podcast…ever. I’ll be honest I did not really enjoy it because I felt like a lot of Tom’s answers were repetitive and it was kind of boring. I mostly chose this podcast because it was talking about goats and I love eating goat meat. So at first, I thought the podcast would discuss goat meat more, but it didn’t.

Mindy Hong- ENG2150 Creative Re-Mix Presentation

1. Monday, May17th will be our final Zoom session!!!  We will complete the second half of the Creative Re-Mix Presentations and say our official goodbye as a group!  Please remember to share your presentation on the blog, in addition to presenting it during the zoom.  Some of you will be able to upload materials to our cite, and some of will you will be providing links to your materials.  Please make sure that you have taken care of this by Monday, May 17th.
2. Don’t forget to complete your Creative Re-Mix Presentation Feedback form and submit it to me (either as an email attachment or via google docs) by Wed. May 19th.
3. Missing Work: If you are planning to go back and make up any missing assignments, please be advised that Friday, May 21st will be the last day that I will be accepting late work.
4. Food Media Reviews:  Please take a look at the latest round of Food Media Reviews and make comments on at least two of your peers’ reviews.  This should be completed by Wed, May 19th.
5. Final Reflection and Assessment:   On Monday, May 17th, I will post your Final Reflection and Assessment here on the blog.  This will be your last assignment for English 2150 and will take some time and reflection to complete.  These will need to be returned to me by Sunday, May 23rd.

Gum has become such a popular candy treat throughout the world. It comes in many different flavors like spearmint, Peppermint, original bubble gum, Cinnamon, Dragonfruit, Melon, Watermelon, and so much more. Ever wonder how they are made though? Recently I stumbled upon a video called  “How Gum is Made” By Design Insider that takes you along the very satisfying process and crazy ingredients of Gum. 

About 9,000 years ago, evidence shows that Europeans chewed birch Bark tar for enjoyment and medicinal purposes like toothaches. On the other side of the world, In America the Mayans chewed something called Chicle that was made from Sapodilla trees to quench thirst and fight hunger. In 1860, the modern gum we chew today was invented in Mexico and given to Thomas Adams from General Antonio Lopez, Mexico’s former President, and brought to New York as a substitute for rubber. 

Originally, Gum was made out of tree resin as the base that makes gum chewy. However, today, Gum is completely synthetic, made by chemical synthesis, especially to imitate a natural product. The Gum that we chew or are possibly chewing now is made out of solely plastics and rubbers. First, this synthetic gum base is poured into a mixer and added with food coloring and flavor. When everything thus far starts being mixed, they pour in Glucose Syrup, a liquid sweetener that helps keep the Gum base soft. Then, they add Dextrose, a powdered artificial sweetener. Together, all the ingredients are blended for 20 minutes where the stirring action builds up heat and melts everything together perfectly. 

Once the mixture reaches a bread dough consistency it is ready and poured out into a machine called the pre-extruder that turns the big bulky mixture into thin, long, and manageable strips that could go into extruders. The extruders are the machines that turn the big strips into long strips of the actual size of the piece of bubble gum in each wrapper that will be cut into bite sized pieces later on. Thus, this extrusion process heats up the gum to a point where if they were to wrap it up it would get stuck to the wrapper, so the next stop is the cooling chamber. The gum goe sis for approximately 15 minutes in a 37-45 degree fahrenheit. 

Finally, when the cooling chamber is finished it is cool enough to begin getting wrapped. One machine is used to both cut the long gum strips into bite size and wrap it off right away very quickly. Thus, The gum making process is absolutely mind blowing and something exciting to learn. The fact that the gum we chew today is plastic is why people should refrain from swallowing it, especially little kids!