Thursday, March 24, 2011

food and culture project for green media

food and culture project for green media

1. select, research, and cook a dish that means something to your family, culture, and/or heritage.

2. enlist a family member to help you cook - or help you learn how to cook - your dish. your family member can be anyone - a mother, a father, a grandparent, a great grandparent, a cousin, an aunt, an uncle, a brother, a sister, or anyone else related to you. although the family member does not need to live near you, s/he does need to be accessible via communication (phone, Skype, email, letters, carrier pigeons). ideally, the family member you select should be someone you enjoy learning from and spending time with.

3. using words and photography, document your cooking process in the form of a blog post, flickr set, or video. be sure to include a recipe. you may use up to 20 photos - no more. if you are making a video it must be under 2 minutes long.

4. at least one of your photographs must be of your family member or of the communication between you and your family member.

5. your goal with this project is to tell two stories - one about the relationship between food and culture and one about the relationship between you and your family member. this part will not be easy. be creative.

6. once finished and certainly by class on tuesday, april 5, tweet your food and culture project. Be sure to include a link and #greenmedia somewhere within your tweet.

7. bring your dish to class on tuesday, april 5. bring serving utensils, a plate, a bowl, a fork, a spoon, and your appetite.

paper 4 for golden gate park first-year seminar

Paper 4 for Golden Gate Park

1. Select any topic related to a) Golden Gate Park and b) your major (or prospective major) and write a paper about it. Be sure to select a topic that truly interests you.

2. Find and use at least three outside readings. As discussed in class, your readings must be from credible and legitimate sources.

3. At some point in your paper, you must introduce a naysayer. For this part, I highly encourage you to re-read Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein's chapter, "'Skeptics May Object': Planting a Naysayer in Your Text," in They Say / I Say.

4. Also at some point in your paper, you must answer two questions: "Who cares?" and "So what?" For this part, I encourage you to re-read Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein's chapter, "'So What? Who Cares?': Saying Why It Matters," in They Say / I Say.

5. As decided collectively in class, your paper is to be between 3-5 pages - no more, no less.

6. Edit carefully. If I find three or more errors - spelling, grammar, typos - I will stop reading your paper, return it to you, and ask you to re-edit and re-submit.

7. Sometime between now and class on Tuesday, April 5, tweet the topic of your paper. Be sure to include the #rhet195 hashtag in your tweet.

8. Paper 4 is due in class on Tuesday, April 5. No late work accepted.

Sunday, March 06, 2011

the horse sculpture in the WPA horseshoe pits in golden gate park (1955 and today)

in 1937, artist jesse s. "vet" anderson completed two bas-relief concrete sculptures - "horse" and "horseshoe pitcher" - overlooking the WPA-funded horseshoe pits in golden gate park. in 1955, "horse" looked like this:


today, "horse," like so many of today's federally-funded programs that benefit everyday people, looks like this:



Thursday, March 03, 2011

food media person project for green media

food media person project for green media

1. select someone - anyone - who makes food media and prepare a 5 minute presentation about that person. your presentation must feature some kind of media - a television show clip from youtube, video, blogs, photography, a book - made by that person.

2. i suggest you select someone you strongly like or dislike. selecting someone you're indifferent to will make this project more difficult.

3. in your presentation, share what you like or dislike about your food media person. be sure to address what you like about their tactics and techniques as well as their personality and style.

4. make sure your presentation is under 5 minutes and does not include powerpoint.

5. sometime between now and class on thursday, march 10, tweet about your food media person. Be sure to include the #greenmedia hashtag in your tweet.

6. on thursday, march 10, be ready to share your presentation in class.

paper 3 for golden gate park first-year seminar

Paper 3 for Golden Gate Park

1. Select any topic you wish related to either the Midwinter Fair of 1894 or the Japanese Tea Garden. You are required to choose a topic that interests you.

2. Research your topic. You must have at least three sources: one from our class readings and two from outside our syllabus. As discussed at length in class, your sources must be legitimate.

3. I highly encourage you to walk into Gleeson Library, make a left, and head to the Reference Desk. Share your topic with a librarian or library staff and see what happens.

4. Keep in mind that everything we do in this class is cumulative which means by now I expect you to know how to introduce your topic, how to summarize your sources, and how to select and integrate quotations into your argument.

5. In this paper, I am especially interested in your ability to differentiate what others say about your topic ("they say") and what you say about your topic ("i say"). Consider re-reading Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein's chapters “‘Yes / No / Okay, But’: Three Ways to Respond” and “‘And Yet’: Distinguishing What You Say from What They Say” (pp. 55-77).

6. Edit carefully. If I find three or more errors - spelling, grammar, typos - I will stop reading your paper, return it to you, and ask you to re-edit and re-submit.

7. Sometime between now and class on Thursday, March 10, tweet the topic of your paper. Be sure to include the #rhet195 hashtag in your tweet.

8. Paper 3 is due in class on Thursday, March 10. No late work accepted.

Wednesday, March 02, 2011

first friday farmstand

please join the garden project living learning community this friday at harney plaza for good food and fresh produce. first friday farmstand offers homemade meals made with fresh veggies, fruits, and herbs grown in our organic garden on campus. lunch will be served from 12-2 or until the food runs out. bring yer own bowl and receive a half-priced soup or salad!


menu includes: happily harvested garden greens, potato leek soup, veggie sandwiches on homemade bread, veggie quesadillas, collard dolmas, garden tea, and a to-be-determined dessert. friday's farmstand will also feature salves and tinctures made by garden project students during a homestead workshop with sarah duscoe of the wellness place.


this farmstand is in sponsorship with robin kuehn, a history major at USF and garden project student during 2009-10. this summer, robin is participating in a 4,000 mile bike & build ride across the US with stops to help work on affordable housing projects. half of friday's farmstand proceeds will go to support robin's summer quest.

Tuesday, March 01, 2011

garden salad with herbed vinaigrette

lunch project for green media

garden salad with herbed vinaigrette

1. from a garden, a farmer's market, or a grocery store, select some greens for a salad. remember: the more diverse your ingredients, the more delicious your salad. for this salad, i harvested a selection of mixed mesclun lettuce, arugula, and (for the vinaigrette) some fresh herbs.




2. wash and rinse greens and herbs and set aside.


3. get your ingredients for the herbed vinaigrette ready. this includes: red wine vinegar, dijon mustard, olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic, a shallot, and fresh herbs.


4. in a small bowl, put 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar. add 1-2 pinches of salt and whisk. add 2-3 shakes of ground black pepper. whisk.

5. add 2 cloves minced garlic and/or 1 diced shallot.

6. whisk in 1-2 teaspoons of dijon mustard.

7. whisk in, a tablespoon at a time, 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil.


8. optional but highly recommended - add 1-2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh herbs. depending on season and access, consider using any or all of the following: basil, marjoram, oregano, parsely, savory, tarragon, and thyme. whisk.

9. place the herbed vinaigrette at the bottom of a large bowl. place the lettuce greens over the vinaigrette. place anything else - diced avocado, chopped hard boiled egg, walnuts, you name it - over the greens and mix your salad.


10. if possible, eat your salad outside with others.


11. when making the vinaigrette, consider doubling or tripling the recipe - sealed in a jar and placed in the fridge, the vinaigrette can dress a week's worth of salads.