Who is Mr. Adams?

Email: curtis.adams@valleyviewschools.net

Picture: Wouldn't you like to see. LOL

Born: Memphis, TN, USA

Raised/Lived: Hernando, MS and Jonesboro, AR, Batesville, AR, and Niort, Perigueux, Bordeaux, Brive, Tours, Châteautroux, and Angouleme in France.

Graduated High School from: Nettleton High School

Graduated College From: Arkansas State University Jonesboro

Degree: Communications Radio/TV Advertising/Program Management and Sales. Minor: Business Marketing

Teacher Certification: Mid-Level 4-8 Math/Science/Literacy/Social Studies

Years, grades, and subjects taught: 16 years total so far, 5th grade math and science 1 year, 1 year 7th grade Math, 1 year 7th grade Science, 13 year 6th Grade Science.

Languages spoken: English, French (I learned French when I lived over there.), understand some Spanish if spoken slowly.

Feel free to ask me a question anytime you see me. I like curious people. ;-) And you can suggest things to add here.

 This is my 14th year at Valley View, and I have taught science the whole time. I love science, learning and Valley View, and I am not just saying it because I work here either. The people here are awesome to teach, work with, and to be their teacher.

I was a tutor in high school and college for all kinds of math, English, writing and specialized classes.  If you count that as experience then add 18 years to my experience. I still work as a tutor for those that need it and ask for it.

 I love to cook and create things. You may get to see how well I cook. I love to write, and I am writing a fantasy fiction book to one day publish.

Hobbies and Interests

Hobbies: Amateur biking, playing volleyball, petanque (like bocci ball), cooking and inventing recipes, eating, non-summer camping and hiking, photography, computers, video games, movie and TV watching , singing, fantasy fiction book writer, science teacher (LOL), D&D game master and player, home improvements, travel and a few other minor ones.

Do I like teaching and teaching science? At Valley View, yes to both answers. I love teaching here. This school is great and science is amazing.

Interests: Video games computer and PS3/4, cooking, cartoons (yes I like them just like the people who make them), fantasy and science fiction, reading, writing (books, stories, scripts, and the like), building things with my hands, new and modern technology especially gadgets and electronics, photography both still and video, improv/sketch comedy creation and watching, still picture editing and video editing, fantasy map creation, small and/or large TV or Movie entertainment Production, pétanque (an outdoor game yard style game popular in southern France), anything French and  learning/ experiencing foreign cultures in general, food tasting adventures (new foods and foreign), traveling, riddles and stories with holes in them mysteries, board/card games, Dungeons & Dragons (love that it is a shared story telling game that fits its players), spending time with friends having fun or on real life adventurers, anything science related (especially projects I can do), kitchen gadgets, amusement parks, water parks, Pokémon Go,  bargain shopping, cool gadgets of all kinds, drones though I would like to learn more, learning of others adventurers, plays and activities especially when I know the people in them, laser tag, and some others I can't think of right now. Sorry guys, I'm not into sports. I have too many other things I enjoy. The only sports I watch are ones I know the players or volleyball. 

Skills: Jack of a great many trades and a master as some. ;-) Ha you'll just have to find out as you get to know me.

Likes: Talking and being listened to ;-), good conversations, good food and new food experiences, people who like science and math or at least pretend to, my family and extended family, polite courteous people who treat me and others with love and respect, curious people, hard workers, charitable people, having fun, learning, reading good books especially with people, large vocabularies, challenges, compliments, adventurers, good questions, America USA, good clean jokes, juice, amusement parks, and water parks, cooking for others, bargain shopping, useful free stuff, eating, watching others enjoy my cooking, hugs, happy hellos, big smiles, adventures and adventurers, feeling unlimited cool and cold weather, water parks, and lots of other things.

Dislikes: Cucumbers, mushrooms (that I haven't cooked), really spicy hot food (I like to taste what I am eating), bullies, cursing and insults, the use of drugs in my presence (this includes alcohol and cigarettes), super hot weather, extreme laziness, total couch potatoes (TV watchers and video games alike) (semi couch potatoes are okay), feeling limited or oppressed, disrespect, dirty or overly insulting jokes, R-rated movies, caffeine, doing dishes, unfriendly people, non adventurers, hearing people call other people nerds or being called a nerd myself (I am more of a geek: some one who knows a lot about certain things), and Drama (I loathe drama). Don't dis my likes and standards. Let me be me and accept who I am. 

Recipes

Adams’s Pan Fried Garlic Mushrooms

Ingredients

One small box fresh white mushrooms (not portabella) Cut thin ( as thin as you can get em. The thinner they are the crispier they will be.)

3 Tablespoons of salted butter or margarine or less if you are watching your weight

The following are to taste:

Garlic powder

Onion powder

Black pepper

Salt

Directions

Wash and Cut the mushrooms thin, very thin and place then in a large or medium frying pan over medium to medium high heat(if in a hurry and watching and stirring),  sauté (mix and flip food in pan so that they all touch the pan at some point) the mushrooms until they lose most of their water and start to turn brown (toasted some), add the butter, and sauté more until more toasty, then dust the mushrooms with garlic powder and onion powder to your taste. That might take some trial and error to get your flavor strength just right. I use the garlic and onion powders and not the salts because it is too salty of you do. Then dust the mushrooms with black pepper if you like and add salt to taste(it may note take much). Understand that the butter has salt in it. Cook until most of the mushrooms are crispy. Not to long or more than medium heat you don't want to burn the spice. Just dust them a little before you take them out of the pan. Serve hot.

Adams French Green Beans

Ingredients

2 cans of Green beans drained and one refilled with water

1/2 to 1 tbsp of onion flakes

1/2 tsp of dry granulated garlic or 1 tsp of fresh garlic 

1-2 bouillon cubes with the flavor to match your meal (chicken, beef, pork if you can get it etc.) I like pork, but it is hard to find. I go to asian or international stores.

1-2 tbsp of butter per can of beans. You are going to fry these beans a bit.

Black pepper to taste (a hint is all you want)

Herbs of Provence or Italian seasoning 

Onion powder

Garlic powder (not garlic salt, too much salt)

Instructions

Get a large frying pan. Pour in the green beans, the butter, onion flakes, garlic, and bouillon cubes and fry on medium medium high heat until it boils/fries and the bouillon cubes have dissolved. Cook the water down until half is gone then use the Herbs de Provence (or Italian Seasoning) to dust the beans lightly at first then taste and keep dusking until it is a strong as you like it. Just be careful not to add too much. As for the onion and garlic powder, I will dust that on the beans if the onion or garlic flavor is not strong enough. Start off small and taste and smell to get it right for you. Black pepper is added for a hint of that flavor. When you have finished seasoning mix, stir, and cook until the beans are soft. If your water all boils way add a little until the beans are soft. In the end, you will have little water left and great green beans that don't taste like green beans.

Adams's Easy Icees

1-3 popcicles frozen of the same flavor or mixed that come in the plastic sleeves

1/4 to 1/2 cup of water or lemon lime soda

1/4 to 1/2 cup of sugar

Optional 

1-2 tbsp of lemon juice for a sour kick

a blender

Cut open the frozen popsicles and squeeze them into the blender add the water(or soda) the sugar, and lemon juice (optional) blend until smooth. Tips: all more liquid if it doesn't want to mix right and more sugar if not sweet enough or crushed ice if too sweet and blends some more.

Adams's Homemade Sonic Limeades

Lemon Lime soda

Crushed or nugget ice or none

Concentrated Lime drink mix (it is where the frozen concentrated orange juice is in stores)

a Fresh Lime (optional)

Pour 1 to two cups of soda in a glass or cup, at 2-4 tbsps of lime concentrate to the soda or more it you want it stronger. Add ice stir a few times and enjoy.

Tips: Try adding frozen and thawed strawberries or maraschino cherries and some of its juice or some of a can of fruit's syrup to the drink to change the flavor.

Adams Vanilla Filling crêpes

Vanilla Filling

1 –5.1 oz. of jello vanilla pudding Large box

1 ½ cups of heavy cream

1/2 cup of milk

In a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat all the ingredients until you have soft peaks 3-4 minutes.

Crêpes

This is one recipe worth.

1 cup of flour

1-2 eggs

½ cup of melted butter

½ tsp of salt

2-3 tbsp of sugar

1 tsp of vanilla (or no vanilla if making savory ones)

1-4 cups of milk and you can substitute some water. You are trying to get the batter thin just thinner than egg nog.

For the first few crêpes you need to spray the pan, eventually you will be able to spray them every once in a while depending on your nonstick pan. On a very flat pan or crepe pan pour most of a ladle of batter on the pan and roll it around to coat the bottom. Watch for the edges to get brown, the lift the pan and loosen the crêpe by wobbling its sides up and down and shaking it back and forth. You may have to loosen it with a spatula around the edges then flip yes flip the crêpes in the air or you can try to grab the edges and flip it by hand. Hot. Cook on the other side for a minute or two and flip to see that it is slightly brown in places. If it bubbles up then just press it down a bit. Remove to a plate, and start the next one. Don’t wait to long until the next crêpe of the pan will get to hot.