React, oh React. You make my head hurt. You made me feel like I was stupid because I was not getting you. But now I do! You are actually wonderful. And fun to work with!
This week was the most challenging week so far. We are learning the front end library React. On Monday and Tuesday I was not understanding ANYTHING. My self esteem hit rock bottom. What does it do, what is the logic behind
all these files, components, props, state, imports, exports, ...?!
It certainly did not help that I was out sick on Monday and Tuesday. Which meant to watch the recorded videos from the lecture at home and doing the labs/exercises alone from home. When something is difficult to understand, it is tremendously helpful to have people around you who have the same questions so you can discuss, or have people around you that actually understand what is going on and explain it to you. Being at home and desperately trying to grasp the concept (unsuccessfully) was one of my most frustrating moments in a long time. I was put out of my misery on Wednesday, when I came to school. I talked to my classmates and most of them recommended one specific lab/exercise that helped them bring everything together and understand how React works. So I got my act together, repeated the lab step by step until I understood and voila! "This is starting to make sense now...!" WHAT A WONDERFUL MOMENT! Back on track!
I appreciate the learning environment of the school so much now!!!
Weekday Meals: The More Colors , The Better
The joy of cooking versus eating out - although home made foods are much simpler than full blown restaurant compositions the joy of making something from scratch makes it much more enjoyable
Weekend = Brunch
This cute place is called "Root and Bone" serving Southern Comfort Food
Deviled Eggs
Definitely the prettiest deviled eggs I've ever eaten. And the taste has been smartly crafted as well:
Sourness and sweetness from the pickled beets, freshness from the dill, and crispiness from the root chips
Gone in 25 seconds
Chicken and Waffles
It seems weird. It is an American thing. It tastes better than it sounds.
For Germans, "waffles" are an afternoon sweet cake like treat. Nothing that you would throw together with a hearty lunch!
I was suspicious of the dish and have been refusing to try it ever since I moved to NY, which is a full 2.5 years.
And now, this weekend, I finally decided to take the plunge. And was positively surprised! The buckwheat waffle tastes neutral, like a soft bread. Not disgusting at all. Lacks a little bit of flavor and texture (the fried chicken could have been crispier), but overall a nice solid dish.
Braised Eggplant Stuffed With Shrimp
Back to Nom Wah Tea Parlor in Chinatown. Trying a typical Chinese Dim Dum Dish. The Eggplant melts in your mouth and serves as a subtle stage for the equally mild taste of the fried shrimp paste. Not bad.
Crispy Shrimp Celery Roll
The crispiness comes from the fried tofu skin around the shrimp-celery paste. Lacks a bit of flavor, but combination of shrimp and celery is nice!
