Grocery stores everywhere sell all the basics, from pre-made crusts to pizza sauce and cheese. As our adventures always begin, head to the store and buy anything you want to put on your pizza. If you’re feeling up to the challenge, you can make your own dough (if not, buy some pre-made crusts). Here’s a recipe I used for a pretty tasty crust.

Once the dough is ready to go, add sauce, cheese and toppings of choice. Then, bake at 450 degrees for 12-15 minutes and enjoy!

My advice to you readers out there: if you’re in a hurry and choose the pre-made crust — not a problem. But I promise you the most fun you’re going to have making this pizza is making the dough. Try out a few Italian-style pizza tosses and you’ll feel more professional than Emeril. Bam!

When I was waiting for my English literature seminar to begin a couple weeks ago, it was comforting to hear one of the British students in my class say he only read the first 50 pages of our book right before class.

Comforting in a sense that, yes, students in England procrastinate as well.

With three essays to write and less than three weeks before our massive, five-week spring break begins, I’ve finally realized it is time to start choosing topics, conducting research and spending more time at the library.

Now, there is a difference between this realization and actually doing the necessary work. Because with distractions such as this…

Facebook: The procrastinator's best friend.

or this…

The Painting By Numbers kit I purchased from yet another toy store downtown.

I must say it is difficult to get motivated.

However, time is flying by, and I would much rather enjoy the rest of the term. For one, I plan to flip through my three-notebooks-worth of notes and remind myself of the depictions of libertinism in Rochester’s “The Imperfect Enjoyment” and the rivalry between Picasso and Kandinsky between 1910 and 1914.

Also, Defoe’s “Roxana” needs a review, and I should start on my sociology portfolio as well.

Not to mention the fact I am currently clueless as to how to cite my essays. I just have a feeling it’s something the Brits do a bit differently, such as how they spell “realize” as “realise.”

But there is no reason to stress just yet; I can do this.

So, in an effort to even think about getting started on my work, here’s to motivation and productivity for the weeks to follow.

Cheers.

Multimedia by Laura Torchia

The labor and delivery ward at Wadsworth-Rittman hospital closed its doors on October 31, 2009.  Thirty-three jobs were eliminated, many of them nurses.  OB nurse Sylvia Reed had her labor induced so she could deliver her first child among her co-workers and friends.  Her daughter, Aaliyah Venice Reed, was the last child delivered at Summa Wadsworth Rittman Hospital.

Multimedia by // Tessa Bargainnier

Jennifer Allie Friedrich lives two separate lives. Most people know her as a farm girl from Missouri with cerebral palsy, but a few times a year she gets to pursue her dreams in Ohio.

Review by Sarah Steimer // Photos by Laura Torchia

“Well, I really couldn’t play in Kent, Ohio without doing this one,” Stephen Stills said. He strummed the first few chords as the crowd began to cheer. “No, not that one, we’ll play that one later,” he laughed. And with that, Stills launched into “Find the Cost of Freedom.”

Stills played two shows at the Kent Stage, at 8 and 10:30 p.m on Friday. The audience was a who’s who of great Northeastern Ohio beards, with a few young pups mixed in.

The old venue held two nearly identical shows, and even some of the jokes were recycled.  Stills and his band opened with “Helplessly Hoping,” and the crowd was immediately hooked.  After a shout-out to his old band mate Neil Young, he poked a little fun at Young and his fellow Canadians who stepped forward at the closing ceremony of the Olympics said introduced themselves, in Stills opinion, like alcoholics at an AA meeting.

“Hi, I’m Bill and I’m a Canadian,” he mocked, then apologized with a Canadian accent, “Sore-y.” But it was all in good fun as he played the song Young performed at the closing ceremony, “Long May You Run.” He played without his backing band as the lights got softer, reflecting the “Stephen Stills” written in cursive across the fret board of his acoustic guitar.

After taking a few jabs at John Mayer (“He’s music’s new Kenny G.”), he played a strong, raspy “Tree Top Flyer,” followed by Bob Dylan’s “Girl from the North Country.”  When he finished playing “Find the Cost of Freedom,” which was the B-side of the single “Ohio,” his band rejoined him onstage.

Stills also covered Tom Petty’s “The Wrong Thing to Do” and Traffic’s “Dear Mr. Fantasy.” To the pleasure of many who shouted their request from the dark audience, Stills did play “Rock ‘n Roll Woman,” an old Buffalo Springfield classic.  Before leaving the stage, he and the band burst into a soulful “Woodstock.” He had blown through favorites and even though he’s a few pounds heavier and a few years older than he once was, he played just as ferociously and demanded all due respect from the crowd.

But of course Stephen Stills couldn’t leave without playing “Ohio” as the encore. And of course, the crowd couldn’t stay off its feet or keep the tears out of its eyes.

On a side note, I really didn’t intend most of these to be starring Johnny Depp, but I can’t say that is a bad thing…

“Alice in Wonderland”

From http://adisney.go.com/disneypictures/aliceinwonderland/

From the strange book I read as a child to the iconic Disney animation, “Alice” has been around for many years. (My personal favorite was the little-known “ Adventures in Wonderland”). Tim Burton’s trippy update was released this weekend withJohnny Depp as a gap-toothed Mad Hatter.  Though Roger Ebert gave the movie three stars, it got mixed reviews elsewhere. I have yet to see it, but with my love of all things “Alice” and most things Tim Burton, I’m sure it is an A+ in my book.

“Peter Pan”

From www.miramax.com/findingneverland/

While many kids know the Disney animated movie, I grew up with a fascination for Robin Williams’ “Hook.” Though this movie has Peter Pan as an adult, I was obsessed with the concept of Neverland and  pirates. Since the release of “Hook” in the 1990s, there has been a pretty good update and, of course, “Finding Neverland.” With a look into the mind of “Pan” author J.M. Barrie, it gives deeper insight into one of my favorite childhood stories.

“Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”

From http://chocolatefactorymovie.warnerbros.com/photos.html

The version of Roald Dahl’s story about an eccentric candy factory owner I grew up with was the 1970s movie “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” with Gene Wilder as the titular star.  While Tim Burton’s 2005 film had a certain dark humor I appreciated, I never quite got over Johnny Depp’s weird hair.

“Transformers”

Though these two films added a pretty phenomenal realism to the toys and cartoons of the 1980s, they also made Megan Fox a star. That I just can’t respect.

Monday, 22 Feb. | Dinner: sweet and sour chicken, potatoes and broccoli; Dessert: some kind of crumbly cake with warm custard on top

Tuesday, 23 Feb. | Dinner: fish and chips, peas; This is one of my favorite meals so far.

While I was photographing my meals during that week, I noticed most actually ended up looking and even tasting somewhat decent, of course according to the low standard of food here. But then I realized I usually choose the safer option for my meal, if I have a choice.

Wednesday, 24 Feb. | Dinner: Pasta alla norma (translation: spicy rigatoni); Some friends and I decided to eat out at an Italian restaurant on this evening.

Thursday, 25 Feb. | Dinner: lasagna (?), corn and garlic bread; As soupy as the lasagna looks, it actually wasn't that bad. The garlic bread was delicious!

On most days, my options include a vegetarian, inedible-looking entree and a somewhat-better-looking entree. I cautiously go for the slightly better-looking one on most occasions.

Friday, 26 Feb. | Dinner: pepperoni pizza and spicy potato cubes

Friday, 26 Feb. | Dessert: chocolate cake with raspberry filling

Although it’s difficult to expect what dining services decides to serve on any given day, I can assume there will always be some kind of potato available, sometimes even two variations of the potato. Mashed and cubed are my favorite, but they also serve wedges, chips and fries.

Saturday, 27 Feb. | Dinner: chicken curry (?), broccoli and rice

Sunday, 28 Feb. | Dinner: lemon chicken, cooked carrots and mashed potatoes

I normally do not buy lunch on campus to save money, but when I do make it to breakfast in the mornings, it is satisfying. The hot breakfast, complete with bacon, sausage and Spaghetti-O’s to top it off, should be avoided in my opinion. But I do enjoy my cereal, occasional piece of fruit and bread that I am afraid will burn in the sketchy toasters they provide.

Tuesday, 23 Feb. | Breakfast: cereal, scrambled eggs, bread, orange juice and a fried vegetarian... thing

Thursday, 25 Feb. | Snack: Krispy Kreme doughnuts

A Krispy Kreme Doughnut fundraiser on campus the other day quickly got our attention and gave us Americans a little taste of home. Although I shared a dozen with two friends, I was the one who got stuck carrying the box around all day. I will admit I felt a bit embarrassed about this when I walked into class.

I have gradually adjusted to the meals here, but when I am unable to clean my plate and am starving by 10 p.m., I can always find that extra two pounds to contribute to the blue block La-La’s pizza fund.

Photo credit: Sarah Weeks | A delicious La-La's margharita pizza. We order a couple about three times a week, and then some.

The one I found this week is something my middle school gym class used to do a few times a month: Billy Blanks’ Tae Bo.

Back then, we used to hope for the day we’d go to the gym and see the TV and VCR set up under the basketball hoop. We’d also hope we didn’t have to stand next to the girl who would move left when we moved right, causing a domino effect down the line.

From www.billyblanks.com

For those of you who don’t know, Billy Blanks is a ridiculously ripped man who started a franchise with his cardio workouts that combine boxing and martial arts.

I found a playlist on YouTube with five different Tae Bo Cardio videos.

While I remembered the cheesy techno beat and the obnoxious background people with sick abs who smile while working out, I did not remember these videos being so hard!

Every set starts off slow. Then, he picks up the tempo. Then, it goes to double-time.

By this point, I felt like I was in a boxing ring with 50 Rocky Balboas coming after me. The routine has you punch and kick as hard as you can in every direction for multiple reps.

Just a warning: Billy doesn’t like to switch sides very often. My right shoulder would be burning by the time we switched to the left side.

It’s definitely an intense workout but don’t be intimidated.

The routine isn’t that hard, but it is fast-paced. A lot of times, it would go up to double time, and I would stay in single. But since Billy isn’t actually in front of you, he won’t know if you hit pause to take a break.

Check out the playlist I did here. If you liked this series, check out Tae Bo Boot Camp, Tae Bo Beginners and Tae Bo Advanced.

So what’s so special about a cake? Nothing. How about if it’s four levels high? OK … not bad. What if it’s layered chocolate and vanilla? Getting there… What if each layer is stuffed with a full candy bar of Hershey’s Milk Chocolate or Hershey’s Cookies n’ Crème, separated with a layer of vanilla frosting and then topped off with chocolate Funfetti frosting, candy letters and icing? Now, that’s a cake! (At least for a first try, I’d call it a success).

Notice the Hershey's Milk Chocolate!

So the baking part isn’t the trick here. Mix, put in two (or in my case four) round 9” pans and bake. (Do, however, pay attention to bake times. When you can insert a toothpick into your cake and have it come out clean, take it out of the oven!) The real skill comes in the decorating. Please learn from my mistake friends: Be patient and let the cakes cool when you remove them from the oven! Do not get overexcited and try to remove the cakes from the pans before they are ready. They will fall apart everywhere, and you’ll end up like me: with a lot of broken cake pieces and another hour to wait to re-bake everything. It’s just not worth it — patience!

Let the cakes cool before trying to stack them!

Now, stack your cake layers, remembering to take a knife and cut off the top of each cake if it’s not even. I never knew you had to do this, but for a more stable cake, you need to have a perfectly even surface on each layer, other than the top. So carefully shave off any bumps, hills or not-flat tops before proceeding. Oh, and remember to put frosting between the layers. Not only is it delicious, but it serves as glue.

Now, you get to frost the outside! Frost the top and don’t be afraid to attack the sides. The more, the better. Finally, decorate the top the way you see fit, and you have just successfully prepared a cake. Feel like Martha Stewart yet? I did when I finished. I’m not sure I’ve ever been more proud. Maybe you’ll feel a sense of accomplishment too? Happy eating!

Don't forget to frost between layers.

Follow this rule: The more frosting, the better.

This week, I bundled myself up extra tight because not only was it snowing but it was really windy (go figure, wind in Kent).

It’s usually around 8:30 p.m. or so when I’m leaving rehearsal, and I don’t run into too many people on my way to dinner, but this week I noticed huge groups passing me.

Then, I remembered that there was the Jay Sean Concert in the M.A.C. Center. What caught my eye was not the crowd of people, but that these people were out in a snow storm dressed like it was a hot summer night.

Now, I don’t particularly like carrying a coat around a concert myself, but this went way beyond skipping out on a jacket.

I kid you not when I say that I saw girls wearing tube tops and peep-toe heels walking down the Esplanade.

This is probably one of the most idiotic things I have seen in quite some time.

How dumb do you have to be to go out wearing no coat, a tube top and not only heels but heels that expose your toes?  You have to be pretty damn stupid.

First of all, you can look cute without exposing your entire body. For the love of all things holy, the least you can do is invest in some sort of jacket.

Like this Satin Zip Jacket for $29.80 from Forever 21.

forever21.com

Secondly, I’m going to look beyond the fact that heels aren’t really the smartest choice in footwear for a concert and focus on the style. If you insist on wearing heels in Northeast Ohio in the middle of winter, the least you can do is go with boots.

These ankle-length Steve Maddens found on Zappos.com are adorable, and you are less likely to lose any toes to frostbite.

www.zappos.com

And lastly, a little snow and ice isn’t going to come between you and a night out, but a bout of pneumonia probably will.

Sexy doesn’t mean skimpy. Use some sense when dressing to go out in the winter. You don’t have to wear a parka, but at least wear something that has sleeves.

I don’t care how cute your sequined silk halter is — it wasn’t made to be worn alone without a coat in the middle of winter.