Pressure

Hello!

Well, I think you could say that I’ve been on quite a lot of pressure the last few months. Finishing my thesis has been very time consuming and stressful, but next to that, the stress of figuring out what I want with my life has been putting even more pressure on me.

After obtaining my Bachelors degree of the University of Applied Science in Animal Husbandry I doubted whether or not to proceed to the University to obtain my Masters degree. The prospect of work seemed so good at the time, having money, getting to live on my own and just start a real grown up life. Now, after almost finishing my Masters degree two years later, I’m really anxious of the prospect of starting a real job.

I’m that crazy person that really enjoys going to school since I was little. I hated being ill and missing school and even now, at the age of 23, I still do not really want to stop going to school. Maybe it is the unknown in the work world, or maybe the fact that there is not really a plan set out, but I find it really sad that my study time is coming to an end.

Back to choosing a career, Animal Sciences does not really give you a clear function description of the job you are going to get after graduating. It is not like veterinary medicine, where you know you are going to be a vet. I can be an advisor, a researcher, a sales representative, hell yeah, I can be an astronaut. Oke, that last thing maybe is a little farfetched, but what I want to make clear is that you can be anything you want. But that is the problem, I don’t know what I want. I know I like teaching people new things, guiding people, but I also start to like research more and more. I don’t like a lot of responsibility and having people getting angry at me.

Having had a couple of job interviews now, for different positions, within different companies, I now know that the type of company is almost equally important as the position itself. However, I’m still looking and figuring out what I want.

Do you find it hard to find that thing that is right for YOU? Who am I?

Love,

Roos

Fresh pasta

Hello!

I love to cook and especially the Italian kitchen has my interest. So today, I have a little recipe on how to make fresh pasta for you: step by step (I do not claim to be an amazing cook, but this is just how I do it :) ).

What you will need for one person:

• 90 to 100 grams pasta flour ('oo' flour or just regular flour will do)
• 1 egg
• Mixing bowl
• Fork
• Salt
• Pasta sauce of your choice

Step 1: Weigh in about 90 grams of special pasta flour (you can use just regular flour, but I've noticed that using special pasta 'oo' flour gives a smoother dough).



Step 2: Make of little hole in the center of the flour, and crack in one egg.



Step 3: Gradually start incorporating the flour in the egg with a fork.



Step 4: It will look like a complete mess at this point, but no worries (be happy :) ). No, seriously it will be okay. Just dump everything on the counter and gently start kneeding the dough until it forms a smooth ball that resembles something like playdough.




Step 5: Cover the ball of dough with plastic wrap and leave it to rest at room temperature for around 20 to 30 minutes. Then split the dough in two pieces, covering the second piece again with plastic wrap and take the other piece to use in the pasta machine (or rolling pin/ wine bottle).



Step 6: After rolling out all of the pasta dough up to the thinnest setting, the dough can be shaped in anything you like! I choose to cut it in short rectangles. After cutting, the pasta needs to dry for about 20 minutes.



Step 7: Than the pasta can be cooked in boiling salted water for around 3 to 4 minutes (just taste as you go along ;) ). Drain and serve with the pasta sauce of your choice! I used my homemade bolognese sauce this time (if you'd like a recipe for that, let me know!).



Love,

Roos

Pizza!

Hello!

O my, I love my pizza. There is pizza at the menu at least once a week for me. Most of the time that is just a simple frozen pizza, and sometimes I take the time and effort to make it from scratch. But that is for a later time.

Today I want to talk to you about pimping your frozen pizza. I really like the vegetable pizza’s of our local supermarket, which is very cheap (€1.25), but it is quite small and it is not always decreasing my appetite enough.

So here is my recipe for pimping up your frozen pizza:

• Frozen pizza of your choice (I used the vegetable pizza of the AH)
• Chicken breast
• Gorgonzola cheese
• Smoked paprika
• Salt and Pepper
• Little olive oil
• Anything else you have laying around (leftover paprika, mushrooms etc.)

Heat your oven as said in the description on the frozen pizza box.

Slice the chicken breast in cubes and place it in a zip lock bag (or any type of plastic bag/ container) and add a little oil so that all the chicken is coated. Then add some smoked paprika, salt and pepper and mix all of this together. Leave it in the fridge for at least half an hour. Fry the chicken in a non stick pan until cooked and then place it on top of your frozen pizza. 

Add your other ingredients, finishing with some cheese (gorgonzola, mozzarella or whatever you fancy!).

Bake the pizza in the oven and then: Bon appetite!

Love,

Roos

Living without a smartphone

Hello!

Yes, they still exist somewhere in the wild: people who do not own or have not owned a smartphone. And yes, I'm one of those crazy people.

Almost 5 years ago I bought a brand new phone, which was very hip and trendy at the time: a Samsung Star (first edition) in beautiful pink :). And to be honest, I still love that cheaky little thing.

- It has amazing battery life (I charge it once a week)
- It has amazing calling quality (maybe a bit too good, as everyone can also enjoy my converstations)
- It has a touchscreen, I mean: WOW!

Having no whatsapp is sometimes difficult, but hey, everyone has facebook and I can message you on that (as I do own a tablet, but don't bring that everywhere with me, unlike my phone).



But things have not been looking good for my little pink phone, responsiveness of the screen is getting bad and some phone calls are getting cracky and noisy. I don't want to admit it, but it is getting closer to the point of me having to pick up a new phone, which might incidentally be a smartphone.

So what's you're opion? Is a smartphone an addition to our modern life or would you wish for the good old times of phones beiing just that: phones :p?

Love,

Roos

Student room 101 – By Roos

Hello!

It’s summer time again and for some of you it means celebrating graduating high school and starting a new study at university. An exciting time! For me it means working hard at the university to get my thesis done and get my Masters degree (I hope).

With starting a new study it might also mean moving out and getting your own little place. In The Netherlands this is not always the case, which was also the case for me when I started my Bachelor at a University of Applied Science. I didn’t move out and lived at home for those four years, travelling back and ford every day.

For my Masters, it was time to move out as Wageningen University is about 3 hours away from my home. As I was turning 21, I really felt it was time to move out and find my own place, but it took some getting used to, to be honest J. Finding and decorating the room was a lot of fun, so today I want to share some tips and tricks with you to do this like a true budget student.

Finding a room

This is something that can be quite hard, believe me: I know! When I was thinking of going for my Masters and not even sure if I wanted to go, I had to register at the student housing organisation, as you acquire points for the time you are registered. So on the first of January 2012, 12 o'clock, I was behind my computer trying to put my name in. Rooms are scarce in Wageningen, espcially at the beginning of the academic year. 

I ended up in Ede instead op Wageningen, as I really wanted to make sure I had a room before August. To my surprise, there were plenty of rooms in Ede, they were cheaper and I got a way bigger room (21 m2 compared to 13m2).

My room, the first day I arrived (not my chair by the way)

So, don't weigh too much on the location (except if you really want to be where the parties are, even though I had friends visiting from Wageningen every now and then, despite the little journey).

  

Second hand stores

It really depends on the store itself if they have good stuff or not, but you can find some decent second hand furniture nowadays. I found my couch, my bedside lamp and some cooking stuff at different second hand stores. The couch was even on sale for 50%, good bargain! 

Further, find out if the city you are going to study in has a second hand website of Facebook page. For Wageningen there is a special Facebook page,Wageningen Student Plaza, where students put there furniture for sale as they are leaving the city and can't or do not want to bring back all that stuff home. I did not know about this, but if you see refrigerators being sold for 25 Euros, it is a good place to have a sniff around I guess. 

Friends and Family

Let everyone you know known that you are moving out and in need of furniture, pots and pans, washing machine etc. In my case I got the old wardrobe of my little sister, the old changing table of my little brother to use as a TV table, a mattress and bedside table of my aunt and uncle and some pots from my grandparents. My father sponsered my moving out by buying me a microwave and my mom gave me her huge TV. All in all this saved me a lot of money and all these separate things have a nice little story. 

DIY

As the windows in my room were quite large, getting to have my curtains made in store would be very expensive. So, I busted out the old sewing machine of my grandmother and bought some very bright and colorful fabric at IKEA. Having said that, I have to admit that apart from making hammocks for my little ratties, I didn't have that much experience sewing. In the end, I was quite proud of myself and I also save some money.

My hard work paid off (however not completely straight)

It’s not that difficult at all, as it is all in a straight line (or as much as possible)and by using a type of band that allows you to put in the curtain folds by putting hooks in it (Dutch: plooiband), rather than having to sew them in yourself.

Painting

As you can see in the picture, when I arrived in my new ‘amazing’ student room to be, there was this awful brownish greyish colour on the walls. Also to cut cost, I bought a big tub of white paint and painted everything, including the ceiling, with one tub for under 20 Euros. As everything is white, I can add colour through little throw pillows and other little decorations.

After a good paint job (thanks to my moms boyfriend J)

IKEA

Well, you might have heard of this store called IKEA and that it has cheap ass furniture? It also happens to be the place I like to spend a lot of my sparetime and having like a therapy session after some stressful days. I also happen to share this crazy and happy disorder with my mom. So you can imagine where a lot of my new bought stuff comes from. But also here, the budget queen was loose and I bought a cheap bed frame and a cheap little coffee table. Also a little step stool (as I'm tiny, this comes in really handy), some pillows, a book shelf and a lovely soft sheep skin.

After some days of hard work (some bits missing)

That were my little tips and tricks for decorating your student room on a budget. Hope you liked it!

Are you leaving home to go to university or are you staying at home? Let me know J!

Love,

Roos

My first Hello to you!

Being weird in shops :)

Hello and welcome to my brand new blog: “Later als ik groot ben”. I’m really excited to share my thoughts and ways with you guys. But wait, before we go any further, I need to warn you. I’m a really boring person. My best Friday night (or Saturday night for that matter) is on the couch, watching a good movie, one of my old time favorite TV series (Gilmore girls, Scrubs) or videos of one of the many YouTubers I’m subscribed to. So, if you’re looking for that student with the normal amazing partying student life, this might not be the place for you. But, if you like good comfort food, animals and cozy nights at home, you might be interested.

Shopping day in Utrecht, always a good idea!

I’m getting way ahead of myself and didn’t even introduce myself properly! As you might have seen, my name is Roos. That’s just a nickname I got since high school and one way or another really stuck with me. What else do you need to know about me:

•  I’m (currently) a student at Wageningen University in The Netherlands
•  My little brother sometimes calls me a hobbit, no pun intended, just a reference to the fact that I’m short :)
• Reading, reading and more reading; guess you can call me a true bookworm
• Merry Christmas! Yes, I’m kind of into Christmas (a lot)
• Hmm, anything else interesting to say…… Well yes, I’m almost graduating (or that is the plan) and I’m facing all new challenges from finding a job,to figuring out where I want to live and much much more

Homemade pizza, yum! :)

As I don’t know how the coming months (or even years) will be, I will bore you with the goings on every now and then. One thing for sure, for me it is a scary and also exciting time. Furthermore, there’ll probably be a lot of (cheap) recipes (the student mindset), some DIY and just some wanderings of what happens inside my head 24/7.

Love,

Roos