Final Day at Metheny Weir

Sigh, the last day helping out at Metheny Weir. While the beginning of the day was one spent exchanging goodbye gifts (and a request to continuing helping over the summer!) the rest was one of happy work. Mrs. Metheny was off away at a house painting kitchen cabinets "Old Ochre" and Mrs. Weir continue to work on the Nature Center rain barrel. I worked on creating paint samples.

still more to go but getting there

Each Annie Sloan paint color is presented on a slab of molding, then divided in half, one side with dark wax and the other with clear. This gives client an idea of what their finished product will look like depending on the wax they use.

like this

Yes, the work was trivial. I had to get out every single color (which is a lot mind you), clean all the brushes between pieces of wood, let it dry, apply a second coat, let it dry, tap the wood into two sections, apply clear wax on one side, let it dry, reapply, then do the same thing on the opposite side with dark wax. It seemed to take forever! But then I got to remove the tap. Now let me tell you, never has a simple activity given me so much fulfillment. When I removed that yellow tap, revealing a clean cut between two different shades of the same color... so satisfying. It looked good. It looked great, if I do say so myself.

~Laura

Good Greens Day 10

Today when we came into the office, we met with Keith again and explored further video ideas. This was a joint brainstorming effort and we came up with a few ideas that we will explore in the summer, as we are both working there. After this brainstorming session, we went to lunch with Ms. Cho's entrepreneurship class. While there, we answered some of their questions and encouraged them not to give up on their ideas. After lunch, we were tasked to run a few errands for the office. We picked up water for their cooler and then picked up information cards from Jak Prints. Days like today make me happy to be working for a small company because in the morning we were working with the CEO on one task and in the afternoon we were doing something completely different. It is great to have this variety because it keeps things exciting and keeps everyone on their toes. It's awesome to be able to work with the founder so often because we are learning incredibly important information that will be extremely helpful down the road if we choose to pursue careers in business. 

~Stephen and Ryan

Good Greens Day 9

Today we presented our draft of the video to the CEO Keith. We had shown our video to a few people in the company and they all loved it. This isn't saying very much however, because Keith has a very strong conviction and does not hesitate to tell you what he thinks. Stephen and I knew this coming in because of prior work for him but it still is tough to hear negative reviews about something you worked very hard on. Ignoring all of these negative thoughts, we went to the conference room with the rest of the employees and presented our video.

To our surprise, he loved the video. He had a few critiques but in general thought it was a neat and interesting way to convey our product. This was also a great experience to witness a legitimate company meeting. It is a venue for everyone to share what they're working on and to give positive feedback. I think that meetings are crucial to a successful company because communication is vital for business and and meetings always keep everyone on the same page and up to date with what's going on.

Today was great. I was able to prepare my chicken from scratch to proportions to serving, along with my bacon bits and my croutons.  Not to mention mincing all my tomatoes, onions, hard boiled eggs, and cucumbers and such.  I also made the Caesar dressing this morning too.  I actually feel like I made a from scratch dish and it is really cool how it all turned out/ tasted because I made myself a chicken cob salad.  We also got a new ice cream in called coffee chocolate chunk and it is truly amazing so I had that with my salad.  I am liking the experience we are getting and hope to move further down the line next week.

week 4

Chef let me use his knifes today! I was able to use two hundred dollar knives today to do my various tasks and it was pretty cool.  The knives were balanced differently for each task I had to do and they were very very sharp.  I was able to cut through my tasks for prepping the salad stand like it was nothing!

                Today was weird because we had to start weighing the salad we were giving out and making sure that we weren’t under or over portioning people’s foods.  It made things a lot more difficult because I kept using the weigh bowl for house salads and I would have to retar the scale and wipe out the bowl completely… it stunk because I used a lot of towels throughout the day. 

week 4

This is the final stretch of our project and I am excited for it to come to a close so I can start experimenting with cooking at my house and lunch and such things.  I am also sad to realize that I haven’t been able to do many different things but I realized that I am getting the best possible training. Experience.  The time I am using to prepare the food, cook things on the spot and under pressure, keeping an eye out for multiple things like soup with melting cheese on it and fries dropped in the fryer and the amount of onion rings I am putting on the salmon salad, all are things training me for when I am off on my own cooking and preparing a full 3 course meal.  I am excited to really secure my abilities as a cook.

week 3

Thursday and Friday of this week were pretty regular and I am not sure if it was a good idea or not to do the four and a half week project.  I wanted to get more involved as we progressed through this project but it seems like we are all specializing in prep and creating dishes.  Non of us have been able to experience the grille yet and It is sort of upsetting.  I was again on fry duty but I started in the back and learned to make the new soup, Gazpacho.  It was interesting to do because I had to do some additions to the final product to make it better tasting judged by the chef present.  It is tedious work to add a pinch of salt to over two gallons of soup. 

week 3

Yesterday was a little redundant and I was worried about it happening but, I did the same thing I did Monday.  Something that was really cool about today is that I was in charge of salads.  The salad person I normally work with was unable to make it due to a doctor’s appointment and I was next in line for most knowledgeable person on the section.  I of course was watched very closely and aided when the rush came through but I only forgot to get chicken portions when prepping the stand and didn’t make any mistakes, even with the new soup and menu that was new that day. I felt pretty cool being able to direct a chef to help me with my stand for the day.  

week 3

The third week was a lot better.  All of the drama was over about management wanting us in the front of the house and our actual project and sponsor pertaining to the back of the house and learning how to cook.  The Monday was great.  I was able to blanch the fries and prep the bacon along with make some croutons and end the day off making stuffed meatballs.  I keep getting constant complements with the croutons and I cannot wait to make them at home sometime.  My knife skills are getting noticeably better and the chefs are starting to work with me to get into chopping and mincing things very quickly. The one thing that was unfortunate was that I got burned by the fry basket but luckily it was just because it was wet with the grease and I was able to wipe it off before it started to become anything serious. 

Kaitlyn Cerne

On Friday, Meg and I prepared for the boys lacrosse playoff game. There were many things that we needed to take out to the field in order to keep everyone safe and be prepared for any type of injury. Meg told me that the most important rule about being an athletic trainer is to always be prepared. Whether someone looses a contact and needs eye drops or falls and tears a ligament, we must always prepare and bring even the littlest of things. Meg and I were unable to go to the game though because her son had a baseball game and she wanted to go to that instead. Until we had to leave, I worked on making my flash cards even more elaborate. For example, on the front side of the name of a muscle. Then on the back side, I printed off pictures form the internet of the muscle and its position in the body and its location compared to other muscles around it. I did this for all of the muscles as well as all of the bones. In addition to this, Meg and I downloaded apps on our phones of anatomy and physiology quizzes. One game was really cool and helpful because it provided quizzes and games on the information that I am learning about. I then began making flashcards for all of the systems in the body and leaning what each system does as well as the organs within that system.

Kaitlyn Cerne

On Wednesday, Meg and I continued to take inventory until everything in the athletic room as well as the storage room was accounted for. We then began to order new supplies that were running low and needed for next year. I was unable to go with her to her office at Precision Orthopedics because the doctors were not comfortable with a student accompanying them. I understand where they are coming form because I did have to go though many tests, such as a quiz and TB test, in order to get into the Medical Observation Senior Project at University Hospitals. The hospital was very strict regarding patient information and HIPPA rules. Instead, Meg and I reviewed all of the muscles in the body and I took a quiz on both muscles and bones during the half time of the girls lacrosse game. One of the girls was feeling a sharp pain in her back during the game. Meg and I helped her by showing her some back stretches that she could do at half time.  Meg and I also began to go over the different systems of the body. For homework, I made flash cards of everything that Meg has taught me to help study for my final test.    

Post 11

Today was the day to make Salmon Burgers again.  For Salmon burgers, we take the salmon scraps that were cut off the salmon for dinner and dice it up.  Next I add some lemon zest, capers, and a few more ingredients.  From here it is simple enough, I just take out six ounces of salmon and make it into a patty.  After completing the Salmon burgers I moved onto cleaning up the cooler. One of the prep cooks had spilled some sauce in the cooler and naturally I had to clean it up.  It did not take long, and it is something that everyone has to do occasionally in the business so i went on and cleaned it up.  After doing this, I had to weigh out some noodles.  While working the prep room I learned that this is one of the most important areas in a restaurant.  Without a prep team, the chefs would be scrambling to get things done.  the prep cooks get just about everything ready for the chefs before the restaurant even opens! They are a huge help to the chefs and they really know how to cook.

Post 10

On Monday we sat down with Mr. Doody at the start of work.  He had a talk with us about cost management in a restaurant.  When putting an investment into one, he is looking for a 30% income from the initial cost in order to say he is succeeding.  He shared with us that Cedar Creek Grille is doing fine and is on the ball however still needs some work on food management as it is still a new restaurant.  After this talk, I went to the back and again made food.  This time I prepared crab cakes.  It is simple to make, some panko bread crumbs, crab meat, and red peppers.  Then we mix in some sauce.  After it is mixed, I shaped the mix into cakes then put bread crumbs on them.  After finishing the crab cakes, i moved on to Cole Slaw which again is a simple and easy thing to make.  I first cut some cabbage, add chopped carrots and onions, then add the dressing.  It has been getting easier to work in the back as I finally understand what a fish tub is, I know where most of the ingredients are, and I have come to memorize what we need for certain recipes.

Post 9

While working today in the back, I sliced bacon and then cooked it.  Of course everyone had to get a piece of bacon when it was done.  next I had to take out the artichoke hearts out.  This is not a fun task if you do not know what to do, and I did not know what I was doing.  First you cut the artichokes in half, then shove a spoon in the heart and hope you don't take out too much. Eventually I got the hang of it. After this, I had to make deviled eggs which is simple enough.  First scoop out the yolk of about 50 eggs, then add mayonnaise, wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, some thyme, and franks red hot.  once mixed up I had completed all my tasks for the day.  This day was more about learning how to prepare artichokes and deviled eggs.

The Chair Affair

Furniture mid-class

About once a week, Metheny Weir hosts a workshop that teaches a small group the basic techniques of Annie Sloan.

Last night one was held, and it wan an unusual one. Typically, the store closes at 3pm, but not Friday night. Instead, we were open until 9:30 hosting a special "Girls' Night Chair Affair" won at an auction.

Starting at 6pm, a group of five older woman strolled in, decked out in overalls, sweats and ruined t-shirts. They toted in bags of cupcakes, macaroons, cheese, beer and tons of wine. Oh, and of course, furniture to paint.

I bet anyone passing by the shop on the sidewalk would be able to tell that there was a party happening inside due to all the noise. The woman laughed, chattered and drank in between coats of paint.

And you know what? Despite the fact that the painting process was not the focus of their three hour class, their pieces actually turned out okay. Originally brown, dirty, chipped or just plain ugly, all the woman picked bright Annie Sloan paint to brighten the rather dull chairs and tables. Usually what happens in these classes is that the woman are so focused on getting it painted oh so perfectly, that it actually turns out a little iffy. Things look best when they are done a little more loosely and without perfection in mind.

Learning from our Mistakes

So yesterday before going to visit the Uptown studio, we made a few little mistakes when signing people in for the 8:30 and 9:30 classes.  I signed a new couple into the computer under an already existing account that they must have made years ago when the studio was in an office building by Beachwood Place mall.  And then another woman was running about 15 minutes late to a class, and we let her go in without paying beforehand and without filling out the entire new student waiver.  Our sponsor was a little disappointed and took us off the computer for the rest of the project. Whoops! At least our project is almost over.  So that was a lesson for the three of us to ask questions when we are confused and under pressure.

CY at Uptown !!

Yesterday Joni, Jordan and I took a trip to see Cleveland Yoga's brand new space in the up-and-coming neighborhood of University Circle.  This second location is situated in a great area with a lot of activity surrounding it.  The space itself has an urban, city vibe.  It's on the second floor and the studio has these two horizontal windows that look out over the street.  The size of the studio itself is about the same as the two studios in Beachwood combined and it can hold over 100 people at full capacity.  Since the location is so new, CY only offers about four classes a day, usually two in the morning and two in the evening.  They are hoping to pick up more as interest increases.

Week 4 Day 3

For the past two days, we have been working on our video. We are making a video about hunting and our experiences. The video is looking great. We have some nice photos from our hunters education course and from inside the blind. I actually got some photos of a wild turkey, even if we didn't shoot it. We have video of us finding our way to a good spot in the woods and us setting up the blind. There are shots of us shooting the crossbow, so you can see that we actually learned. Finally, our music selection is spot on so when you have the opportunity to watch it, you are more than welcome to sing along.

Working on the Presentation

Most of today was spent focusing on our final presentation. We have decided to do a sort of video documentary, rather than a power point, that chronicles our progress through the the turkey hunting world and gives a step by step guide on how we learned to hunt. Grant's experience working with the focus has proven very helpful for our video. It's amazing watching something that I was sure would take days just fly by in a matter of hours. Zackariah's seemingly infinite knowledge of country music has also been very valuable to our project; I was sure the presentation was missing something until I heard the acoustic guitar and lonesome lyrics accompanying the footage we took. All in all I'd say I'm extremely impressed with what we managed to accomplish with this presentation, it's almost done and it's already much better than I ever thought it would be. Anyone who manages to squeeze their way into our project presentation room is in for a real treat.

Week 4 Day 1

With the hunting season closed, we set upon our new task of researching the environment, habitat, and habitats of wild turkeys. We started out by visiting our local Cleveland Heights Public Library to pick up some books. We got The Field & Stream Bowhunting Handbook and the Field & Stream Turkey Hunting Handbook. We are using these books to write our final report. With the information in these books, we can write about what we could have done better. We also picked up some books about the art of hunting and the use of bows. We picked up one final book by Teddy Roosevelt. In it he describes  his recollections of hunting trips. There is a section where he recalls hunting turkey in Texas. We started doing research using these books and preparing what we would write in the report.