3 lessons I learned within the first month of school

1. nothing is ever truly clean.
2. vegetables will get cooked anyway, which is why you don't have to wash them.
3. never have high expectations for your food.

1. nothing is ever truly clean.
In my house, well any house shared with more than a handful of people, the kitchen is eternally messy. Even after spending an entire afternoon cleaning, it is entirely possible that the kitchen will be dirty by nightfall. Items identified as "clean," should always be taken with a grain of salt. Pots and pans are always sticky with a little residue of what was previously cooked in them, and spatulas are never clean unless you use a little elbow grease. The counter is always sticky or has a mysterious liquid on it, the stove nearly always has things burning on the burners. The bottom line: if utensils look a little questionable, always wash them before using!

2. vegetables will get cooked anyway, which is why you don't have to wash them.
This really just boils down to laziness. I like to assume that because when I cook my vegetables the pan is super hot and this just kills the germs.

3. never have high expectations for your food.
While you should always want your food to come out well, it can be extremely disappointing when the food actually sucks. My friend was planning on making a pulled pork and while he was waiting for it to cook he excitedly told me about it. Later when I asked him how it came out, he said, "Eh, it was okay." He had such a high expectation that even though it came out really well, for his first attempt ever at pulled pork, he was disappointed.

These so far are my cardinal rules of the kitchen. Learn them, live them, love them.