Confetti Jello

Yikes!  Last week was bad.  Why do students go all crazy right before long breaks?  For that matter, why do adults act like assholes before long breaks.  Last week, I asked a science teacher if she could assist one of my students.  I am NOT a science teacher (the 10 credits from college are indeed telling), but if a student needed assistance with their language arts work, I wouldn't hesitate to help them.  Well, this science teacher told me she is "busy too" (what the hell is that supposed to mean...she wasn't teaching a class), and if this student needs help, she should go see so-and-so or so-and-so during her recess or after school.  Where did that rant come from.  A simple, "I cannot" or "I'm busy now" would've sufficed.  The lingering bitter taste in my mouth triggered my suspicious brain cells and left me wondering if the science teacher was unable (competency-wise) to help.  Luckily, a competent science teacher was willing to assist.

Wednesday was one of the worst days I've seen in a while.  There were at least a half-dozen fights.  The first fight happened before school even began.  It was actually two separate fights happening at the same time at the same place.  The adults in the area had a hard time keeping order and were lucky that a well-respected student was there.  He single-handedly pulled off 2 of the fighters and was talking nicely to them, asking them to calm down.  I'm glad he was there because I could've easily been hit too.  I assessed the situation and saw no adult in the immediate vicinity.  I surmised that the boys he pulled off were likely done fighting (if they weren't, they would've wrangled free of him and attacked again) and were looking for an out.  I suggested they leave the area and go to a quiet place to gather themselves and get back in control.  Both boys obliged politely.  Whew!

Later that day, the student who stepped in to help break up the fight told me I should not have stood where I had.  He said he did not want me to get hit and if I had gotten hit, he would've stepped in and done something.  He told me not to ever do that again because he won't always be there to look out for me.  D1 echoed his sentiments, telling me I was stupid.  Probably.  Would I do it again?  Probably.  It's not in my fabric to just sit back and let kids punch each other silly.  But it is nice to think that a student thinks enough of me that he would have my back.  Bless him. . .he is awesome.  Bless his family. . .they did a great job raising him to be an honorable young man.

The thing that's most bothersome with fighting is that students all just wanna watch.  It takes a lot to be someone who attempts to dissolve a fight.  Most of the spectators are there for the show and don't want the fights stopped.  As a parent, if it was my child fighting, I would want someone to stop the fight.  It's just wrong.  

Anyway, both recess and lunch on Wednesday were fighting times.  Two fights occurred near my room.  Security actually had to pull one kid off of another kid.  Ughhhh.  The other fight was between 2 girls.  I saw some JROTC boys trying to hold one of the girls back.  I know there were other fights (I saw crowds of students heading in one direction en masse), but mercifully, they took place away from my room.

I was worried about Thursday and Friday, but they were both quiet days.  I managed to get my grades done.  Now I can work on pacing guides during my break.

D1 attended her last winter ball (as a student, and I hope, for the love of God, that she does not become an educator and has to chaperone or advise the winter ball).  I asked Aunty 3M to keep an eye on her.  At last years dance, she seemed to have befriended this attitude-rich boy.  Unfortunately, I saw him picking up a permission form this year, and I can only hope she didn't rekindle any friendship with him.  With all the nice guys out there, I don't know why she would want that one!

Because D1 went to the winter ball, I was banned from attending.  I was hoping to begin my vacation, but someone asked me for a favor, so I went to school yesterday to chaperone some students.  It was a good chance for me to prep for 3rd quarter.

So now I am finally on vacation, and it could not have begun soon enough!  Unfortunately, this means the holiday party season is upon us.  I'm really not into the whole holiday party thing.  It's just so much work for just a few hours.  It also bugs me when guests don't come on time, or they come with food that isn't ready to present.  I think I inherited that part from my uncle.  I knew that irked the shit outta him to no end.  With any luck, this holiday season will be quiet.

If I need to go anywhere, I decided that my go-to potluck dish of the season will be confetti jello.  Many people love jello desserts, and I am one of them.  I grew up in a home which did not make a lot of desserts, and our refrigerator was always full so there was never enough room for a pan of jello.  I usually alternate between layered jello and confetti jello.  What I like about confetti jello is that you can switch up the colors for the occasion (red & green for Christmas, red & blue for Independence Day, orange & yellow for Thanksgiving, etc.).  It also firms up fairly quickly, allowing you to make it in the morning for serving that evening.

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Confetti Jello

     4 (3 oz) boxes Jello in assorted colors/flavors

     4 c boiling water

     4 envelopes unflavored gelatin

     1 1/2 c hot water, divided

     1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk

     1/2 c water

Dissolve 1 box of Jello in 1 c boiling water.  Pour into 8 x 8" pan (or simlar) and chill until firm (2 hours is adequate).  Repeat for remaining Jello flavors.  In a 2-cup measuring cup, sprinkle unflavored gelatin over 1/2 c hot water.  Let sit 5 minutes.  Add remaining 1 c hot water and stir until gelatin is dissolved.  In a 1-qt measuring cup, stir condensed milk with 1/2 c water.   Pour gelatin mixture through a sieve and add to condensed milk mixture.  Let sit until cool (room temperature).  Cut flavored Jello into small cubes and toss gently in a 9 x 13" pan.  Add condensed milk mixture to cubes.  Chill until firm.  Cut into serving size pieces (we like to cut into 1 3/4" pieces because they fit nicely in serving cups).

For several past posts, I've mentioned D1s saga in applying to various colleges.  So far, she has received email acceptance (unofficial to me...I'm old-fashioned...I wanna see the hard copy letter) from one school and official (yes, paper) acceptance from two schools.  One of the "real" acceptance letter places is in her top three.  Rawr!!!

I hope she hears from the other places, especially the other one in the top three, soon.  She needs as much time as possible to mull over her choices and make an informed decision.

While D1 and I are proud (and relieved) that she has options, D2 is ecstatic.  She was worried that no college would accept her sister and she'd be living here for years to come.  D2 sent me a text a few weeks ago:  "mom, D1 needs to get out of the house NOW".  I explained that it was nearly 11 pm and there was really nothing I could do at the moment.

This will be my last post before Christmas, so I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas.  From my family to yours. . .

Customize your own digital greeting

East Meets West Fruit Salad

In less than a week, I will have house guests.  My cousin LA is coming to town!  She and her boyfriend SN will be here for his friend's wedding.  We are excited because this is the first time we are meeting SN.  LA's parents will also be in town to celebrate her dad's birthday.  Even though he no longer resides in Hilo, UM often comes here to celebrate with his siblings.

LA and SN will be staying with me (UM stays with Kikukat Mom).  I am entering panic mode because my house is very messy at the moment.  I will need to do some blitz cleaning on Friday afternoon/evening since they arrive on Saturday.  I hope SN isn't allergic to cats or mess.  He went to a private school, so maybe he might be scared off by the kitty hair and clutter.  LA is tough so I'm not worried about her.  She survived NYC during the 9/11 attacks.  A little kitty hair won't bother her!

While the lovebirds (LA & SN) will be busy with the wedding on Saturday (provided SN gets over the initial shock of my house mess), the rest of the family will likely get together.  I hope there will be no opportunity for UL to cook on a hibachi.  I also hope there will be no opportunity for AS to get plastered in a restaurant and display offensive behavior.  Shame!

Since I am often asked to make some kind of dessert for family gatherings, I'm anticipating this coming weekend will be no different.  In expectation for warmer weather, I was hoping to make this fruit salad.  Unfortunately, we seem to be entering into another ice age rather than spring.  I love Guy Hagi (local weather bunny for the soon-to-be-geriatric set. . .sorry, Guy), but he seems to always be delivering bad news about the weather.  Well, even if I end up making a warm fruit cobbler, my heart will be pining away for a cool, fruity dessert.

I love this creamy fruit salad.  I think its a variation of halo-halo, a filipino dessert.  The creaminess comes from cream cheese and condensed milk.  You may vary the fruits and sweets.   It makes a whole lot, which is why its good to serve at a gathering (versus trying to eat the whole thing yourself).  Coconut gel, pineapple gel, kaong (sugar palm nut), and macapuno, can be found in the Asian section of most supermarkets (or at the Chinese store).  They are sold in shelf-stable jars.  If possible, try to look for white/plain kaong.  Some stores carry kaong which has been dyed a horrific magenta color (see picture at right. . .the kaong is visible between the mandarin orange segment and the kiwi).  If you use that, be warned that eventually, the entire salad will take on a pink tinge.

If you like canned fruit cocktail, you may also use it.  I go to great lengths to avoid canned fruit cocktail because canned pears and grapes (other than fermented liquid) give me the willies.  I cannot stand those little hard granules in pears, and grapes are kinda close to the Devil's condiment on my list of foods to avoid.  I have tried and tried to like grapes, but I just cannot.  I think it has something to do with the area where the grape is attached to the stems and the disgusting seeds.  Plus it takes so dang long to peel them; the skin doesn't come off nicely...it breaks up into bits and gets all over.  I've gone through a ton of napkins just to get the skin off my fingernails.  What?  You say you don't peel grapes?  You've got to be kidding me!  Euwwwww.  Don't even get me started on jaboticaba.

Now that I've totally grossed myself out with the grape description, I need to pull myself back together.  I've got too much to do before Saturday.  I can't afford to lose my focus.  The Ds need to get cracking with their rooms.  The more they clean, the less I will need to do on Friday evening.  The purr-mobile is a total mess, but I can't clean that until Friday, when I'm done using it for work.  The hallway bathroom also needs to be tidied.  There are enough hair care products on the counter to open our very own Fantastic Sam's!

LA is one of my favorite cousins. . .I will not be the reason for SN running away.  We've got other family members who have the potential for making that happen without even trying!

click on recipe title for printable recipe

East Meets West Fruit Salad

     1 block cream cheese, softened
     1 can condensed milk
     1 jar coconut gel, drained
     1 jar pineapple gel, drained
     1 jar kaong, drained
     2 cans mandarin oranges, drained
     1 jar macapuno
     1 cantaloupe
     1 kiwi
     2 c blueberries
     1 lb strawberries
     1 mango, if available

Beat cream cheese and condensed milk.  Add diced fruits and sweets.  Chill until ready to serve.

It was a busy week in Hilo. . .Merrie Monarch Festival time.  This year was the 50th anniversary of the festival, and Hilo was crawling with tons of people.  Traffic everywhere was crazy.  The Help reported seeing people holding up traffic at an intersection while trying to look at a map.  While I made it a point to stay out of the downtown area, I did manage to sneak a plate of Hawaiian food (okay, okay, the Hawaiian food stand is located outside of the downtown area).

The most popular (this is just my opinion. . .don't wanna offend anyone) Hawaiian food venue during the festival can be found on the main highway (Kanoelehua Avenue) and is operated by Ka Uhane Hemolele O Ka Malamalama.  The entire Keawekane ohana and friends are always hard at work preparing tons of plates.  I have tried all kinds of stuff (pastele, butterfish luau, laulau), but my gold standard is the kalua pig plate (Hawaiian style).  Hawaiian style plates come with lomilomi salmon, chicken long rice, white rice, and haupia.  Local style plates come with white rice and macaroni salad.  Gotta pay extra for the poi (worth it!).  I like how they chop all the lomilomi salmon ingredients really small because I hate getting a mouthful of onion.  And there are pieces of salt salmon in the lomi...these days, many places seem to forget that part.  By the time this post hits the internet, the festival will be a fond memory and the food stand by HPM will be dismantled, but don't despair.  During non-festival times, the Hawaiian food truck can be found parked at Hilo bayfront. 

In the salt mines. . .The High Commander did it again!  She bought me and a whole bunch of other people lunch in an impromptu show of appreciation for our work.  She handed a Benjamin to my coworker and asked her to take orders and go to get the orders.  Wow!  Generosity is a character trait which impresses me, and its easy to look up to and respect a leader who has traits we value.  The work drives me mental, but when you have a leader you respect, you know that the road, though bumpy, is going to lead you somewhere you want to be.  And maybe that should have been reason enough to listen to her when she told me the fish mcbites I ordered was nothing special.


The tangent to this story. . . my coworker and I were just gushing about how the High Commander has the grace to show aloha and appreciation for hard work.  Upon hearing us, one of the lieutenants mentioned nice things she and the other lieutenants do for the foot soldiers they supervise, and then she us asked what our boss does for us to show appreciation for all that we do.  I would've loved to capture the look on her face (and upload the pic to this blog) when my coworker and I answered in unison, "nothing".  The lieutenant was totally floored.  Yup. . .no aloha spoken at my office.