BEWARE!!!! Report card is coming soon!!!!

Hi everybody!

As you know, our first term report card is coming soon. I wonder, how my score is.

October 30, 2007
The final judgement day.

For all IB students, especially the 11 graders, you are going to get your first report card in the new school year, 2007-2008, I hope you will be ready to face it. Some tips to face the report card day:

1. Do not think about it much, let it be a surprise (i think this one will make us shock and die)

2. Pray a lot

3. Relax, take it easy (just like Mika's song, hehehe...)

4. Act good in front of the teacher but do not suck up!

5. Enjoy the holiday to relax your mind and to get more energy to read your report card.

6. Prepare your heart and do not let it broken after you read the report card.

7. Keep your spirit to study more what ever your scores are!!!!

8. Be confidence

So, those are the tips and enjoy the field trip in October one. But you still have to beware with the report card's coming.

From your best friend who cares about your report card,
The Report Card Lover

(the letter above is only a fiction that is made by me and there is no such person as The Report Card Lover)

So guys, don't be to scared about your report card. I'm sure it will be fine, but I'm not sure that my repoert card will be as good as yours. I think my math, biology and econ's score will be the worst from all of my scores. Hix...Hix....Hix.... But it's ok! i still can do better in the next term and improve my scores.

Good luck everybody!

-Valencia-

COFFEE

HI! i'm elizabeth
This is some fact of coffee that i found in the internet:

• Germany is the world's second largest consumer of coffee in terms of volume at 16 pounds per person.
  
  
• Over 53 countries grow coffee worldwide, but all of them lie along the equator.
  
  
• Coffee trees can produce up to 10,000 pounds of coffee cherries. That amounts to approximately 2,000 pounds of beans after hulling or milling.
  
  
• The percolator (the coffee machine) was invented in 1827 by a French man. It would boil the coffee producing a bitter tasting brew. Today most people use the drip or filtered method to brew their coffee.
  
  
• With the exception of Hawaii and Puerto Rico, no coffee is grown in the United States or its territories.
  
  
• Up until the 1870's most coffee was roasted at home in a frying pan over a charcoal fire. It wasn't until recent times that batch roasting became popular.
  
  
• Each year some 7 million tons of green beans are produced world wide. Most of which is hand picked.

whew! hahhaa actually i don't like the raw coffee, i like the one in starbucks and other coffee cafe. So this are a few recipe that you can mix and blend with coffee:

This coffee shake is a thick and chilly delight, flavored with coffee and chocolate. The trick to making it thick, is the instant chocolate pudding mix.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup coffee, strong and cold
• 1 cup cold milk
• 10 ice cubes
• 1/3 pkg of instant pudding mix (chocolate)
• 2 tbs cocoa powder
• Hazelnut creamer, to taste
• Sugar, to taste

PREPARATION:

Combine everything in a blender, and blend until ice is crushed and shake is thick.
I think this recipe will be very good and cold, and it's suitable for people who live in a tropical temperature, like us in Indonesia. The next recipe is for the one who like cinnamon because it's a mixture of coffee and cinnamon.

Add the cinnamon before brewing to give this recipe spicy touch. You'll need to stir well to blend in the caramel syrup.

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 tbs ground coffee
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup caramel dessert syrup

PREPARATION:

Mix the cinnamon into your loose ground coffee and then brew a pot of coffee by whatever method you prefer. Add the caramel syrup to the cinnamon-spiced coffee, and stir well until completely dissolved.Chill through in the fridge, and serve over ice cubes, with added milk or sugar to taste. The syrup makes this iced coffee pretty sweet as it is.

The next recipe is also related with coffee and bread!

BREAD PUDDING COFFEE CAKE RECIPE:

Here we have an interesting bread pudding and coffee cake combination flavored with plump raisins and cinnamon. It is sure to please all at breakfast or dessert. Take shortcuts with pre-made sweet dinner rolls and boxed muffin mix. The coffee cake is delightfully moist without being overly sweet. Feel free to make it a day or two in advance. It tastes even better after sitting awhile.

INGREDIENTS:

• 18 sweet dinner rolls (tested with King's Hawaiian)
• 4 large eggs, divided use
• 1-3/4 cups whole milk, divided use
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 box (15.2 ounces) cinnamon streusel muffin mix (tested with Betty Crocker)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup jumbo red raisins, soaked in hot water at least 15 minutes, drained and patted dry on paper towels
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• .
• Glaze:
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 to 2 Tablespoons (about) milk or cream

PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9 x 12-inch jellyroll pan with nonstick foil.

Slice the rolls in half. Set the tops aside. Tear the bottoms into 1-inch chunks and spread in a single layer over the bottom of the prepared pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 of the eggs, 1 cup of the milk, sour cream, granulated sugar, and vanilla extract until well-combined.

Tear the tops of the rolls into chunks about 1 inch in size and add to the milk/egg mixture. Set aside to soak up the liquid.

Combine muffin mix (reserve the streusel), remaining 3/4 cup milk, oil, and the 2 remaining eggs in a large mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed until combined.

Spoon 1/2 of the batter evenly over the bottoms of the rolls in the pan, and gently spread a bit using the back of a large spoon. Sprinkle with raisins and the contents of the cinnamon streusel packet. Spoon the remaining batter over the top of the raisins and streusel.

Spoon the reserved milk and roll top mixture over the muffin batter in the pan. Use the tip of a knife or wooden skewer to swirl the two batters together. Sprinkle with pecans.

Bake about 35 to 40 minutes, until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let bread pudding coffee cake cool completely in the pan.

For the glaze, combine powdered sugar and enough milk until smooth and just thick enough to drizzle. Pour into a ziptop bag, squeeze out the air, and seal. Snip off a tiny corner of the bag and use it to drizzle the glaze in a zig-zag pattern over the top of the coffee cake. Let glaze set before lifting cake out of the pan with the foil. Cut and serve.

Store any leftovers in a covered. This is even better the next day.

hmmm... look at the picture makes me hungry! hahhahaa.... i love cofee =p

-elizabeth-

Tale of Friendship

During the summer holiday, i read some novels in my spare time. The novels i read on this summer holiday include freakonomics, the final book of harry potter: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hollows , tarian bumi (a book that we have to read and analyze in bahasa Indonesia class), and a collection of reflections and short stories called Like The Flowing River.

Out of all the story i read, there is one story that really catches my attention. This short story about friendship is one out of many stories included in the book Like The Flowing River which was written by Paulo Coelho. Out of many reflections included in the book, this story about true friendship is my favorite. When the author traveled to Mongolia, he heard a mythical tale about the great warrior called Genghis Khan. And this is the story he wrote:

One morning, the Mongol warrior, Genghis Khan, and his court went out hunting. His companions carried bows and arrows, but Genghis Khan carried on his arm his favorite falcon, which was better and surer than any arrows, because it can fly up into the skies and see evrything that a human being could not. However, despite the group's enthusiastic efforts,they found nothing. Dissapointed, Genghis Khan returned to the encampment and in order not to take out his frustration on his companions, he left the rest of the party and rode on alone. They had stayed in the forest for longer than expected, and Khan was desprately tired and thirsty. In the summer heat, all the streams had dried up, and he could find nothing to drink.Then, to his amazement, he saw a thread of water flowing from a rock just in front of him.

He removed the falcon from his arm, and then took out the silver cup which he always carried with him. It was very slow to fill and, just as he was about to rise it to his lips, the falcon flew up, plucked the cupfrom his hands, and dashed it to the ground. Genghis Khan was furious,but then the falcon was his favorite, and perhaps, it too, was thirsty. He picked up the cup, cleaned up the dirt, and filled it again.When the cup was only half empty this time, the falcon again attacked it, spilling the water.

Genghis Khan adored this bird, but he knew he could not, under any circumstances, allow such disrespect; someone might be watching this scene from afar, and, later on would tell his warriors that the great conqueror was incapable of tamind a mere bird. This time, he drew his sword, picked up the cup and refilled it, keeping one eye on the stream and the other on the falcon. As soon as he has enough water in the cup and was ready to drink, the falcon again took flight and flew towards him. Khan, with one thurst pierced the bird's breast.

The thread of water, however had dried up; but Khan, determined now to find something to drink, climbed the rock in search of the spring. To his surprise, there really was a pool of water and, in the middle of it, dead lay one of the most poisonous snakes in the region.

If he had drunk the water, he, too, would have died.

Khan returned to camp with the dead falcon in his arms.He ordered a gold figurine of the bird to be made and on one of the wings, he had engraved:

Even when a friend does something you do not like,
he continues to be your friend.

And on the other wing, he had these words engraved:

Any action commited in anger is an action doomed to failure.

This story really inspired me and i now realize how important my friends are in my life. I really learn that we should value our relationship with our friends and try to think before we act. What our friends suggested to us might be against our wants, but we should really think of how it might benefit us. After all, our friends want the best things to happen to us and we should not be stubborn.

This story really change my perspective on friendships and it inspired me to improve the current relationship i have with my friends. I learn a lesson that as friends we should really trust each other as it would strengthen our friendship.

I hope this short story about friendship could be a blessing to you readers because it taught me a moral lesson and i hope it would do the same to you too. :)

-Angelina-

Is it just a tradition or something more?

It happened only once a year for one person,

in a certain date and month,

known as the date that we're born into this world,

the birthday.

A tradition where most people enjoy to do since it involves of parties filled with cakes, presents and laughters with many people.

The fact is, we are just celebrating a year closer to none other than death itself.

People hired event organizers to specially organized someone's brithday party to be the most memorable one yet it's just a tradition that we love to do.

Let me state the facts:

1. It doesn't make us any money but we rather SPEND a huge amount of money.

2. It doesn't give us any guarantee that we'll have longer and happy life but only blown wishes.

3. Getting a year older doesn't mean that you're definitely getting mature but just just understands how to behave better, even you might find old people sometimes are childish.

Maturity has more to do with what types of experience you've had, and what you've learned from them, and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated. - Kaye Cunnigham

Helding birthday parties are just what the majority of people loves to enjoy. I, myself, likes to go and make my own party because spending time with my family and friends is precious.

You are only young once, but you can be immature for a lifetime. - John P. Grier

Then again, birthday is just an international and world-wide tradition.