Jennifer

This is Jennifer. She is 13 and came in for an operation on her upper thigh. She has this amazing smile that makes my heart melt every time.

This week I have had her on the days that her bandage needed to be changed. We gathered all our supplies and went to the ICU. We would go there so we could have more privacy, not for her bandage change, but for her concert that was about to start. As I would start to peel off the layers that are stuck to her thigh, she would choose the first song and belt it out. The first time she sang a myriad of Liberian gospel songs but yesterday she decided that it was Christmas Carol Day. So we sang Jingle Bells, We wish you a Merry Christmas, and many others all while I was changing her quite painful dressing.

Jennifer went home right before lunch and when she left she asked me "When I come back to get my plaster (bandage) changed, you come to sing with me?". I said I would try, and she gave me a huge smile and was on her way.

Soup Extract

It really depends on the taste of the soup extract but I have found the following good uses for this ‘almost never used or seen’ product which still comes in a variety of bottles and brands:

1. add equal amounts of water to soup extract and it can be used for soy sauce (or at least this brand taste really similar to soy sauce when we water it down)


2. excellent taste & color enhancer for Cajun style Dirty Rice


3. use for vegetarian French Onion Soup (use in place of flavoring from beef broth) it will be up to you to determine how much to use, this helps with the flavor and color but adds a lot of salt, so experiment for the right balance for you


4. great in gravies and sauces

What exactly is soup extract? My bottle says ‘water, vegetable extracts, salt’ in that order AND from the Internet, we find that most vegetable or soup extracts are used in a medical context for benefits physically.

Extracts from fruits and vegetables that contain fiber, vitamins, minerals, and other natural substances with antioxidant, lipid-lowering, and antiproliferative properties. Used in chemoprevention therapy, these extracts may prevent the development or recurrence of cancer ~ National Cancer Institute

…Just one of the many I have found, but there doesn’t really seem to be much info on soup extract in cooking terms.

Talking at the speed of light

Yesterday after a very busy day shift, me and 3 other women from the ship walked down the road to the outside of the gate and a taxi was waiting for us. We had called Alfred to come and pick us up in his taxi and take us to an orphanage. Before we even got into the car we had talked about our strategy for not getting ripped off. Last week Alfred said one price for the cab ride then suddenly changed his mind once the ride was over. So once we were almost to the taxi the sky opened up and rainy season began.

We got into the car and said we would pay $6 to take us to the orphanage. He counters with "It is raining, you need to pay me more, I want $7." Of course the 4 of us roar at his ridiculousness. And Jenn brings out her secret weapon... "the ditz card". She says in her very best ditzy voice, "Well, it's not my fault it is raining." Alfred agrees at her captain obvious moment and then says once again $7. Then I say that we are working in his country on his people for free and that is not right to rip us off. Then Sarah says "Didn't I see you on the dock at the eye tent getting your eyes checked?" Then it was over, we all started yelling and he then gave us a fair rate and we then focused on the fact we were suffocating in a hot taxi with all the windows rolled up.

Once we got to the orphanage we walked down a mud path and opened the gate to the court yard and I had a major "This is Africa" moment. There were about 8 little boys butt naked playing soccer in the rain and puddles. We shut the gate and let the boys collect their clothes.

The reason we went to the orphanage is because we are doing a Bible study with 9 of the teenage girls. Once choir practice was over the girls came in and we started our way around the circle. Each person was to read Saint John chapter 2 and say what they liked and we were all supposed to bring one question. These girls are amazing. They really read their assigned chapter and deeply thought about what it means and came with great question. As I was sitting there, I could feel my eyes starting to sting. There is no other place I would have rather been. I have always loved high school girls and to be apart of this study is just incredible.

When something would come up that is a bit controversial they would all start talking at the speed of light with a lot of drama, it was very entertaining. These girls are like sisters, most of them have lived together in the same house since they were little babies.

Please be praying for our group. Please pray that Jenn, Becky, Sarah, and I all get the time off from work each week so we can be consistent. Also pray for all of us that we would be sensitive to God's leading.

Culinary Challenge pt1

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The contestants were set and ready to go at 1:00pm for the judges tasting...

The judges were Lalitha (South Africa), Christian (Germany), Nicholas (Kenya), Anne (England), Tyrone (United States) and representing the voice of the kids, Grace (United States).

As Peter hosted (quite like the chairmen on the American Iron Chef series) Introducing each team and having them describe their dish and a little bit about how they came to their choices in recipe, preparation, and use of ingredients.

This is the order they came out to present their meals: First we had Team Tatyana (with sidekick Christine), Second we had the good Doctors Mark & Peggy, and Third Josh & Peter (affectionately known as 'The Boys').

I think most of us could agree whether we individually liked a dish, food item, or overall presentation or not these contestants did a great job at cooking some good meals that are probably 'do-able' at the 'whole crew' level (400+).

Here is how the 6 judge panel scored and my own personal thoughts:

Mark and Peggy (came out on top after Peter 'The BossMan' made the tie breaking decision) With a Lamb, Rice, Humus, and Pita meal that was very creative and tasty. Mind you I couldn't eat lamb near as much as I could eat the Curry Chicken or Seafood Pasta the other contestants cooked up BUT the rice was nicely seasoned, the lamb was edible (and that in itself is hard to do) but the sauce probably could have been 'kicked up a notch'...I am still leery of whether the pita bread will get done for 400+ people, but the humus was 'spot-on' I would say.

Tatyana (& sidekick Christine) came in second AFTER the tie was broken...but that was because The BossMan knew there was no way he could pull 'The Boys' back up to the #1 spot since they came in Third (because The BossMan really wanted to put the The Boys back on top after reminding him of food 'like back home').Their meal ~ Curry Chicken, Rice, Pasta & Cabbage salad, and Green Bean Vegetables. I loved the curry chicken and it was cooked right, not overdone but not chewy like when it barely gets done. Alas I didn't really think the pineapple helped (but that's a personal preference) and the Almonds needed a little toasting. But the white rice was fine because I would have just pushed it into the curry sauce anyway...maybe a spice and/or herb or two could have picked up the taste on the pasta and cabbage salad, but I personally thought it may work. The thing about this meal is I think you could eat it more consecutive times than either of the other two...and so did the voice for the kids, Grace.

Josh & Peter 'The Boys' came in Third with a Seafood Pasta Salad & Roasted Asparagus with garlic sauteed in butter. A valiant effort, really! I know what the shrimp (they were really to small to be called prawns, those are the bigger ones) tastes like and to make this pasta salad taste even halfway decent you were doing good, and they were. Their meal is totally do-able and the shortest of the three to prepare but I had to also take in to consideration the black garlic in my overcooked asparagus. Less cooking time on the vegetables and more sauce on the pasta...Oh, that would be a winner. But they provided an entertainment and comedy value to the whole dining experience for the 'tasting' & judging that I would like them to reproduce for us in the dining room during a full meal. But I guess that would be asking too much wouldn't it? --->[but yes, I will probably still be stealing this idea and putting it on the menu, it would work especially well on a fire drill day when half to a whole hour of time is taken away from our dinner preparation...time is of the essence cooking for so many]

The BossMan and I will be anxious to see how the winners fair at translating their meals to feed everyone at dinner time!

If you missed pt1 of the Culinary Challenge...well, you missed a great time! After collecting perspectives from the 'audience' we think this could be a hit event and would be willing to do it again, but then of course this one isn't finished yet!

Saturday May 10th ~ Doctors Mark & Peggy will debut their meal for the whole crew.

Sunday May 11th ~ Tatyana (& sidekick?) will debut their meal for the whole crew.

At that time make sure and come back and visit the blog to vote BECAUSE THIS TIME ITS YOUR TURN TO PICK WHO WINS!

PLEASE REMEMBER TO BOOKMARK OR FAVORITE THIS WEBSITE SO YOU CAN VISIT THE AFM MENU AFTER THE SWITCH TO NAVIGATOR

Elwa Beach

I love the beach. It makes me happy. I went today. I am happy.

The Ducor Hotel

Today my friends (Lisa and Katie) and I went to the old Ducor Hotel. It used to be a five-star hotel back before the war. After the war people squatted in the ruins of the hotel. Now it is empty, but they are starting renovations soon, so they say.

This hotel is anything but a five-star hotel, but I have seen pictures of it in its prime and it was definitely nice. Now there is a shell of a building and pool, but the view from the top is amazing. Monrovia looks so much prettier from the top of the Hotel on the hill than it does down on Broad Street.

Hamburgers, real ones...

There coming tonight!

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Wheelbarrow Entrepreneurs in Monrovia

Going to the market is definitely an experience...but the wheelbarrow business is here to stay!

I have been told that you can actually rent a wheelbarrow to put your goods on to sell for a day AND I just assumed each person owned their own.  In addition to that, I have heard recently that they even had a union you can join?!?

I leave you with a few pictures and a link to the photos in case you would like to see them all!

Click to see all the pictures HERE!

The Culinary Challenge Has Begun!

Dear Crew,

The Culinary Challenge has officially begun! The three teams/participants entered are:

- Tatyana Silva

- Mark and Peggy Shrime

- Josh Becker and Peter Fullerton

These contestants, using ingredients available onboard, will create a full meal (main entrée, side dish, and vegetable) and submit it for tasting and judgment on Saturday, April 26th in the Dining Room at 13:00 (1pm).

The judging panel will be decided this week but all crew is invited to come to join in the fun!

The judges will decide the top two entrants who will then move on to assisting the cooking teams in preparing their meal for the entire crew. This will happen back to back on Saturday, May 10th, and Sunday, May 11th (this is the Saturday and Sunday of the 4 day ships holiday). You, as a crew, will then be able to judge for your favorite of the two meals to determine the ultimate champion by voting on the AFM Menu blog that is accessible from the Intranet Main Page. You will have until Monday night to vote. The winner will be announced Tuesday morning at the 07:45 Community Prayer and Communication Meeting.

Please feel free to email or call me if you have any questions.

Blessings,

Peter

Potatoes, what it takes...

Freddie brings up usually at least 100 kilos (220 pounds) of potato for 400 plus people.

Hand-picked over by several galley staff. Rinsed. Then the potatoes are machine washed. Yes that's right, machine washed. (no not the potato peeler, we do have an automatic one of those which we may discuss in another post)

Then picked over again. Rotten spots cut off, eyes gouged out, panned up in steamer pans, and then baked. It takes at least an hour maybe more to bake them all. The steamer pans are used so the air circulates more fully when baking the potatoes.

Can you guess which kind of machine we use to clean hundreds of kilos/pounds of potato in one afternoon in order to make a lovely dinner? (leave an answer by commenting)

Sweetness

I have fallen head over heels in love with this sweet 6-year-old boy, Garpueh. When he first came to the ship he barely said a word. I was his nurse for 4 shifts and spent as much time as I could with him. We colored while he was still on bed rest then progressed to playing on the floor with blocks. From the first day, I met Garpueh I felt like he needed a little extra love. It is so fun to see him get more talkative and playful as he recovers from his surgery.

He is on B ward where is Auntie who heard about Mercy Ships, has brought him through the whole process from screening to surgery. She faithfully sleeps under his bed on a mattress and even helps feed one of the patients who could not feed herself.

Both of Garpueh's feet were burnt in a fire when he was a baby. He had a contracture release with a skin graft done. Now Garpueh is scooting around the wards on his pint-size little crutches.

Today I was working on A-Ward and the door opened and little Garpueh came crutching in and he said: " I miss you so I come and sit with you." So Garpueh sat on one of the beds near the nursing station and he colored and I charted. He is just so darn cute I have to give him a ton of kisses.

Some Assembly Required...(hint, hint, Katy)

This Sunday we will have another go at Semi-Vegetarian Night.

What's a semi?  It's when you can eat the whole meal without actually choosing meat because it's an option to go with the rest of the meal. So you can still have a wonderful dinner without relenting to your carnivorous side. (but still, have that option).

Last Semi-Vegetarian Night we had a little confusion. Yes, the potatoes were baked in the oven, but no, I did not mean for them to be peeled. But sometimes it's too late when a mistake is realized, and apparently, I didn't use the English term 'jacket potatoes' otherwise they may have understood me quicker. But no worries...

The real confusion came at assembly.

Apparently, some people came thru the line oblivious to the fact that you should ASSEMBLE, that's right 'build' your potato up with toppings making a wonderful mountain of a meal, loaded baked potato style!!! And after seeing several other people's plates resembling a loaded baked potato realized what they were missing. But it was too late.

So this Sunday we will be having the Mashed Potato Bar with toppings (sorry no martini glass supplied), and side dishes of mixed vegetables and lentils cooked by our very own on-site vegetarian Michal. So just remember...

Some Assembly Required.

Sprinklers work in galley coolers...

Guilty.

** A crew member that allegedly hit the alarm with the corner of a schafing dish/hotel pan while entering the walk-in cooler is currently in custody being charged with 'creating more work that necessary' in the galley **

...accidents happen. Here's the story: