Liss: You totes need this immediately.
Deeks: Yes, yes I do! Buy it for me!
Liss: Okay, but only if you buy me this.
Deeks: If I had 223 bucks I totally would. I could totally buy you something and rationalize it, but there is no way I could say to anyone I actually paid for that Krofft lunchbox. "Oh, no, someone gave me this as a gift, so it's cool."
Liss: You're so sensible. You're like a pair of Dockers.
Deeks: I hate you.
Liss: Never mind that. Do you know why Etsy is evil? Because it tries to convince me I need things like a red enamelware soup tureen. I only just managed to click away without buying it. That happens many times daily. If I were a millionaire, my house would be full of things like vintage red enamelware soup tureens, and I would spend my days making soup and the rest of my money flying you on my private jet to slurp soup with me for dinner.
Deeks: That is a beautiful tureen. If you were a millionaire, I'd just come over one day and never leave. I'd spend three years lazing in your pool while the cabana boy fed us canapés.
Liss: LOL. When I'm a millionaire, I'm totes getting a figure 8 pool and painting my face in the small circle and boobs and a big belly button in the big one. And then we're gonna swim in it all day and laugh and laugh: "WE'RE IN THE FAT POOL! WE'RE IN THE FAT POOL!"
Deeks: LOL! You're such a doofus.
In Which I Substitute an Email Conversation with Deeky for an Actual Post
Good Diplomacy Dismissed as "Clinton's a Bitch"
Yesterday, in the Congolese capital of Kinshasa, on a stop which is part of an 11-day, multi-state tour of Africa, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was asked by a Congolese student, "what does Mr. Clinton think, through the mouth of Mrs. Clinton" about a Congolese-Chinese trade deal, to which Secretary Clinton tersely responded: "Wait, you want me to tell you what my husband thinks? My husband is not the Secretary of State. I am. So you ask my opinion, I will tell you my opinion. I'm not going to be channeling my husband."
Later came reports that the question had been lost in translation, and the student approached Clinton after the event to explain he'd intended to ask what President Obama thought about the trade deal, not former President Clinton: "A senior Clinton aide said that Mrs. Clinton assured the student not to worry about it." (The State Department has not yet "reviewed recordings of the original question, in French, to learn whether the student clearly intended the question to refer to Obama, not former President Clinton.")
Cue the news reports about how Hillary can't escape Bill's long shadow, how she lost her temper, how her composed veneer "cracked", how she "bristled", how she "lost it", got snippy, snapped, was "visibly angry".
Nowhere in these reports will you read that Clinton's terse response was the appropriate diplomatic response to the question as posed to her.
The question, as asked, was a deeply misogynist one. It disrespected Clinton as the United States Secretary of State, and it disrespected her as a person, specifically because she's a woman. What does your husband think? You are merely the wife of an important man.
This is not an attitude that should be encouraged or even tolerated with a clenched-tooth smile. It is a dangerous, pernicious attitude that keeps women oppressed all over the world—including in Congo, where deeply sexist attitudes underlie an appalling rape epidemic, prompting Clinton to pledge to prioritize the prevention of sexual violence in the US peacekeeping efforts in Congo, noting the institutional corruption anti-rape advocates are up against in the country: "We have to speak out against the impunity of those in positions of authority who either commit these crimes or condone them. There are even some cases of these terrible crimes committed by members of the Congolese military." Assistant Secretary of State P.J. Crowley notes:
"The secretary of state is going to Goma Tuesday, to draw attention to the plight of women who are victims of rape as a weapon of war [in Congo]… If Africa, if Congo is going to advance, women have to play a more significant role. She was in the setting of a town hall, and the questioner was interested in what two men thought, not the secretary of state."Indeed. With that backdrop as a setting, Clinton's response to the question as asked was not only entirely appropriate, but excellent diplomacy on behalf on Congolese women.
Unless Americans believe our Secretary of State should be exporting the ideal of demurring to avoid hurting men's feelings, instead of exporting the ideal that institutional inequality is fundamentally unacceptable, there's no reason why her response should be remotely controversial. She should be praised for behaving like a woman who has an unyielding belief in equality; instead she is being scolded like a bad little girl by the national media.
Remember that next time someone wonders if feminism is really necessary in America anymore.
And, you know, it's bad enough that Clinton's unapologetic insistence on being respected as a person and a Secretary of State is being treated like something about which she ought to be embarrassed, but even worse is the utter disregard for why such a posture is important in a place with a rape epidemic. Our nation should be proud of our Secretary of State for that moment. Our nation should be pleased that we have a Secretary of State who stands up for what's right.
Instead, we mock her—and she will probably be forced to publicly apologize, for asserting her equality on an international stage.
[Also see BTD's Patriarchy.]
What The Hell?
Shaker yeomanpip, rear
What the hell is with fab little hunting jacket? What the hell is on your T-shirt?? What the hell is with the super-tough guy pose??? What the hell????
[See also: Deeky, Liss, evilsciencechick, katecontinued, ClumsyKisses, Mistress Sparkletoes, Liiiz, Reedme, Mama Shakes, Mustang Bobby, RedSonja, MomTFH, Portly Dyke, SteffaB, Icca, Christina, Orangelion03, Car, Siobhan, InfamousQBert, Maud, Rikibeth, MishaRN, CLD, Cheezwiz, MamaCarrie, Temeraire, somebodyoranother, goldengirl, Liss (again), and summerwing.]
Today's Edition of "Conniving and Sinister"
Strip One, Strip Two, Strip Three, Strip Four. In which Liss reimagines the long-running comic "Frank & Earnest," about two old straight white guys "telling it like it is," as a fat feminist white woman and a biracial queerbait (in his own words) telling it like it actually is from their perspective. Hilarity ensues.
Remembering Eunice Kennedy Shriver…
Eunice Kennedy Shriver, founder of the Special Olympics, has died.
She is survived by her husband, Sargent Shriver, five children and 19 grandchildren.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver's speech at the 1987 Special Olympics World Games in South Bend Indiana sums up her legacy beautifully.
"The right to play on any playing field? You have earned it. The right to study in any school? You have earned it. The right to hold a job? You have earned it. The right to be anyone's neighbor? You have earned it."
Because of her work…because she channeled her personal experience into positive action…because she chose to be an advocate rather than talk about being an advocate…because she lived her values…because of all of that, millions of people across the world now know that individuals with developmental disabilities have rights and have something to give back to society.
She didn't do it alone…she isn't the only activist…but hers was a strong and constant voice within the consistent chorus advocating on behalf of the developmentally disabled.
The Special Olympics was more than just an opportunity for people with developmental disabilities to participate in sport…it was and is a movement to bring the developmentally disabled into the mainstream.
Even though my brother has never participated in the Special Olympics he has benefited from the movement greatly.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver's work stands as an amazing example of what an activist can do and the positive change one person can make in the lives of millions.
May the Divine One comfort her family and friends as they mourn her loss and celebrate her life.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver was 88 years old.
Crossposted from AngryBlackBitch.com.
Question of the Day
What novel do you vote Worst Ending?
Since this is essentially the spoiler thread to end all spoiler threads, please start your answer by clearly stating the name of the book, so that anyone who doesn't want to know the ending can skip over your answer.
Amsterdam, by Ian McEwan. (No relation, heh.)
I won't even bother recounting what the ending actually is. As dreadful as it was predictable. I read it ages ago, and the thing I remember most is throwing the book across the room in disgust when I was done with it. (Which, come to think of it, I did with Atonement and On Chesil Beach, as well.)
I don't even know why I keep reading his books. Their endings are all crap, and he routinely submits his female characters to sexual assault. (No wonder he wins so many awards.) Wevs.
Today's Edition of "Conniving and Sinister"
Strip One. Strip Two, Strip Three. In which Liss reimagines the long-running comic "Frank & Earnest," about two old straight white guys "telling it like it is," as a fat feminist white woman and a biracial queerbait (in his own words) telling it like it actually is from their perspective. Hilarity ensues.
Heh
Dane Cook slut-shames Vanessa Hudgens at the Teen Choice Awards; gets booed.
Cook turned the air blue at the 2009 Teen Choice Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday by saying: "Vanessa Hudgens! - Girl you got to keep your clothes on!"Good.
But the teen audience showed their support for the High School Musical pin-up by roundly booing the comic who was presenting the Choice Hottie Awards to Robert Pattinson and Megan Fox.
And btw, dude: If you're voluntarily participating a teeny-bopper award show—in which Queen Teenybop herself performs with a stripper pole—to present the "Choice Hottie Awards," you have abandoned the high ground, and you don't have any place lecturing anyone about sexual morality.
Especially not a young woman about her own choices.
Asshole.
Daily Kitteh
One of my favorite pictures I've ever taken of the girls: Matilda and Olivia on the sofa, with Sophie's shadow on the wall behind them.
Actual Headline
MSNBC: Health reform idea: Put down the doughnut. Critics say consequences of individual choice missing from reform debate.
There is very little I can say about this that I didn't already say last week on the same subject. Suffice it to say, as a fat person, I can tell you that admonishing fatties to "put down the doughnut" is hardly a revolutionary idea, and the contention that "the touchy topic of individual responsibility has been all but ignored in the debate about how to reform the nation's health care system" is manifestly absurd.
In fact, the "All Your Problems Is Because Of Your Fats!" mentality ubiquitous among healthcare providers,* which results in millions of fat people being treated for obesity when there might be a more serious medical problem causing the obesity,** is the real untouchable subject when it comes to the debate about healthcare and fat.
Just this weekend, Iain was saying that he felt like a whole new person after getting treatment for his diabetes (and his mood and ability to concentrate are markedly, observably improved), and I said: "Just think how fortunate you ultimately were that you had the neuropathy. If you'd gone to a doctor with the symptoms of lethargy, anxiety, lack of concentration, and a general feeling of unwellness with no physical symptoms and a round belly, you probably would have been told to lose weight and put on antidepressants. Meanwhile, your diabetes would be killing you."
Shaker Azzy, as you may recall, was continually diagnosed as "fat" and "depressed," even though "I actually had cancer. Of the thyroid. Which had metastasized to my lymphatic system. OOPS!!"
Every thread we've ever had on illness, mental or physical, and healthcare has had fat Shakers testifying to being misdiagnosed or not heard or ignored or told their fat was the problem, even if their weight hadn't changed but their health had, by doctors who refused to see past fat. Every thread has had Shakers testify to putting off preventative care because of shaming about their weight.
How about the personal responsibility of bigoted, fat-hating healthcare providers to make sure they're treating what's actually wrong with their patients, and doing it with compassion instead of creating spaces that are so thick with contempt and hostility that fat people are discouraged from entering them?
Just sayin'.
[H/T to Shaker Siobhan.]
-------------------
* Though there are lots and lots of good healthcare providers, too, and I thank them for both their dedication and the kindness and consideration they show to fatties.
** Which is, of course, to say nothing of people who are fat because of a medical treatment, as weight gain is a side effect of many drugs.
I Get Letters
The Fat Princess mail is still—yes, still—coming in, including an angry emails from a dude whose email I published, telling me I missed the point of his thoughtful missive.
In your post, "More Fat Princess Mail", you quote me, and ridicule the fact that I said "It did seem to boost you into the blogosphere", and go on to talk about the more important issues you have covered. Now, while I do appreciate your sense of professionalism displayed by not sharing my name or email, I find this to be an asinine remark to throw my way. You yourself said "The original "Fat Princess" post is probably my most linked post of all time." in your blog post, "Saddest Thing Ever", so why does my statement deserve ridicule when you previously admitted that it was your most linked to article?Um, no. It was not. And, considering that lots of "my readers" email me on a fairly regular basis, I'm sure they already know that everyone who emails me is not "an insensitive man who is completely against all of [my] ideals," since they don't live on Planet My Perspective Dictates Reality.
Was it simply to show off to your readers that everyone that emails you is an insensitive man who is completely against all of your ideals.
As an aside, it's really amazing how many of my gamer correspondents, despite the large amounts of time they brag about spending on the internetz, don't seem to have the foggiest idea how blogs actually work. "Most linked" does not necessarily mean "most traffic." A link from a dozen gaming forums on the same day still frequently yields fewer hits than one link from, say, Feministing or Crooks and Liars.
None of which has anything to do with the fact that Shakesville was already a well-known blog long before my first post on Fat Princess last year, anyway. Being a dude who never heard of Shakesville before that doesn't change that fact, at least on Planet Earth. Although you wouldn't know it based on my emails from men who assert that feminism is pointless, stupid, irrelevant, etc., even as they totally diminish my work (and the work of the other contributors), or, worse yet, claiming responsibility for Shakesville's success, because they'd never heard of Shakesville before a random link in a gaming forum brought them here. Hmm, men deeming (primarily) women's work unimportant and/or claiming ownership of a woman's success? Now where have I heard that before? Oh, yes, that's right—filed under: A primary reason feminism exists. Ironic, no?
You ridiculed me, and missed the entire point of my email. You are obviously a lot younger than i thought to display said behavior, and it is apparent that you do not display the amount of professionalism that I had thought you would.Oh, dearie me. I just feel terrible about being called immature and unprofessional by someone who doesn't even have a basic understanding of how blogging works. Anyway...
My favorite long-ass rant from over the weekend, care of yet another Dude Who Sends This Stuff Using His Real Name, is below. Enjoy!
Hi. I stumbled across your blog whilst googling Fat Princess, and read your articles.The juxtaposition of those last three paragraphs may be the greatest thing I've ever read in my life. Perfection.
I don't see how you can think it promotes fat-hating JUST because there is a fat character in the game. I guess by that logic it means that every episode of Seinfeld featuring Newman is totally trying to get you to hate fat people. The only real explanation for feeling this way would be if you somehow found some hidden mode in the game where you brutally murder all the fat princesses but leave the other ones unscathed.
Now re-read the above paragraph but replace 'fat' with 'female' and Newman with Elaine.
You hadn't played the game at the time of writing and part of me thinks you just wrote that article for the hits. If you actually wrote it in anger then your anger is laughably misplaced. Sure the princess is sometimes chubby (not always) but even so the Male and Female combatants still fight and die to bring her back.
Demanding some kind of 'political perfection' is a terrible thing. Please take a step back and try to see the situation here without your biased eyes that search for any reason to cry about why everything's offensive.
Also, your letter about fat princess shouldn't be addressed to Sony as the developer is Titan Studios, an offshoot of Epic Games. Do your wikipedia-ing first next time.
and then I read your feminist pages....
I really enjoyed reading this page (http://dneiwert.blogspot.com/2006/10/theres-something-about-men.html), but your pages are written in such an accusatory tone of hatred that I can't take any potentially valid point you make seriously.
"[Males never] have his ass grabbed on a train by another commuter"
There are so many things I hate in this sentence. First off, I am a male. I have never grabbed a woman's ass outside of make out situations, and my male friends are all the chivalrous type. I have had my ass grabbed, slapped and commented about by females many times, even by the girls I think of as good people. I have 4 incidences I can think right off the top of my head.
"...or have his boss stare at his breasts instead of looking him in the eye."
People oggle each other. By people I mean males and I mean females. If my boss was zoning out on my crouch or my biceps I wouldn't think that she was somehow objectifying me at all, I would think that my arm happened to enter her gaze of zoning and I wouldnt be offended.
I hate how some anti-male females always resort to the same fucking concept: Males are all sex-crazed, testosterone fueled assholes who we would all be better off without.
Don't you understand that its these sorts of blanket statements and accusations that fuel the remaining inter-gender hatred?
I honestly believe, with my whole heart that it's feminists themselves that make women seem less than 'equal'. Feminists were featured on Fox news to talk about how awful Fat Princess is and all that appearance did was reinforce some people's thoughts that women are easily offended and never satisfied.
I really hope you are able to read this email with an open mind to my opinion and not instinctively get defensive and dismiss it as something written by another testosterone fueled jerk.
I have a ton of respect for alot of women outside of highschool, but most highschool girls are ab-so-fucking-lutely fucked in the head.
[Fat Princess: Parts One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven.]
How Teaspooning Works, An Example
Shaker silver drew my attention to a successful bit of teaspooning, with reference to this post I made earlier, about an unfortunate choice of sponsorship in Rhode Island.
That's how it works. A whole bunch of people realize they don't like what is happening, and if each of them speaks up, it's like bailing the ocean with a teaspoon: it's not always quick, but if you just keep at it, it'll happen.
In this case, it came quickly, which is nice, cause who doesn't like a little instant gratification to get their Monday off right?
o.oP
A symbol of power - collective power.
Edit to add: Shaker silver again with the mighty and shiny teaspoon, points out that it will be better reinforced with the company if we take a moment to let them know we appreciate their choice in the situation. Positive reinforcement of positive behaviour leads to positive choices in future.
Two Kinds of Women
According to Gerard Butler, there are two kinds of women: Those who are too dumb for him, and those who are too smart for him. Like some tormented Goldilocks, the poor sap can't seem to find a woman who's just right, despite having made a go of it with women all up and down the Wechsler Scale.
May I suggest, since you can't find a woman worthy of all your iron-jawed and muscley hawtness, Mr. Butler, that you just go fuck yourself, and spare all the too dumb and too smart women the inevitable heartbreak when you are forced to dump them for being just not good enough for you.
Monday Blogaround
This blogaround brought to you by Shaxco, publishers of Big Gay Blog Posts About Big Gay Ice Cream Trucks and Other Big Gay Things.
Recommended Reading:
Marcella: Teenagers Who Are Raped Leave School at Earlier Age
Sady: Today, In Unsubstantiated Rumors: Lady Gaga's Ladybits
Tracey: G4 Special Promotes Gaming Boys Club
Renee: Gay Man Released After Being Falsely Imprisoned For 21 Years For Molesting Children
Pam: Daniel Radcliffe Gives Major Donation to the Trevor Project
Dori: This Made Me Happy Enough to Cry
Roxie: A Review of Julie & Julia
Leave your links in comments...
Bread and Teaspoons Five
Good morning (unless it isn't where you are, in which case I wish you Good $TIME_PERIOD), and welcome to the fifth installment of Shakesville's networking post, Bread and Teaspoons*. Missed last week as it was a holiday here in Canadialand.
There are hundreds of us here, maybe thousands, all over the US and Canada, and out into the rest of the world. We work in all kinds of fields, doing all kinds of different things, and most of us tend to be online creatures: we roam the Toobz constantly, and in doing so, encounter many opportunities.
So this is a weekly post, Mondays, providing a spot for Shakers to network a little with one another, see if we can help each other out some.
Here's how it works: There should be three sorts of comments here.
1) You comment here with any details of work you're seeking: where, what, that sort of thing. You give an e-mail address at which you can be reached - feel free to set up a special e-mail for it, if you don't want to post your regular one for the world to spam - and if another Shaker has a lead, they can contact you directly to pass it along.
A work-seeking comment should include:
Please do NOT include information such as your full name or telephone number, as this is and will remain a public post, and once posted, there's no taking it back (because it'll be spidered by a search engine, not because we don't want you to).
It is explicitly alright to comment to this each week with similar info.
For example, I might post a comment saying:
I'm a professional translator of French, German and Russian, with nearly 17 years of experience. I'm looking for basically any translation job, academic, commercial, personal, genealogical, you name it, with one exception: I do not currently have certification, so if you need a certified translator (usually for legal docs: birth certificates, divorce decrees, wills), you need someone else.
I am also available as a writer or editor, for academic, journalistic, creative, marketing-oriented or any other type of written communication. Basically, if you'll pay me, I'll write or edit it.
You can contact me for business purposes through my business address, translatey.caitie@translateycaitie.com.**
2) The second type of comment would be task offering: if you've got a job you think might suit someone here, consider posting it as a comment. Use the same guidelines as above: give general information here, and specific information when you exchange e-mails. An offered task might look something like this:
I have a doctoral thesis which needs proofing and editing by Thursday, is anyone available? You can reach me at ABDShaker@shakesville.miskatonic.edu.
I'd like to be clear: only offer tasks which you have explicit permission to offer. If you come across something that isn't yours, but think some Shakers might want to know about it, either ask permission of the offerer, or offer it privately to someone whose comment says they might be interested (based on their skillset). For instance, you're on some other site, you see someone asking for, say, help in designing their new website. Don't come here and offer the job as a comment, unless you have that person's explicit permission. What you could do is go through the comments, and send an e-mail to anyone with the right skillset.
3) The third kind of comment I'd love to see is success stories! We’d love to know when this works out, and people actually find some employment through our efforts. If you feel like sharing, tell us how it worked out for you. :)
So, that's what we'd like to see.
What we do NOT want to see:
So there. Have at it, Shakers, for Bread and Teaspoons!
Important disclaimers: Shakesville makes no endorsement or claim as to the capabilities of anyone commenting to this post, and anyone considering hiring someone should be prepared to treat it like any other business situation: DO YOUR DUE DILIGENCE. We're not doing any screening of this, so you'll want to make sure you check references, use safe-payment procedures (e.g., ask for a deposit), all the things you'd do when working with any stranger on the Internet. While this is intended for Shakers in general, remember that there is no real obstacle to being able to comment here, and do the things you need to do to keep yourself safe.
* As might be evident, this is an intentional reference to Bread and Roses, a longtime slogan of the left. In this case, though, my hope is that if we achieve steady bread, we will use it to power our teaspoon use.
** Now, don't go writing to that one yet, because that's not my actual domain name (which I've not got running yet, but should soon), and I'm only using it as an example (though it happens to be true). The e-mail listed for me under Contributors works just fine for now, if you've got something for me.
The last several Bread and Teaspoons: One. Two. Three. Four.
Quote of the Day
"Only make fun of people in a better position than you, and don't make fun of anything people can't change."—Hal Sparks, of Talk Soup and Queer as Folk, on the two rules governing material for his stand-up act.
Huh. Imagine that.
[H/T to Shaker Siobhan.]
Beet Season: Caramelized Scallops With Red Beet and Caper Beurre Meunière
On Friday, my partner surprised me with some plump sea scallops. I love scallops but rarely cook them. Farmed scallops are not too bad a choice from a sustainability standpoint, but it is hard to find "dry-packed" ones that have not been soaked in salt solution to increase their weight. That's a consumer rip-off and prevents a good sear.
Scallops are very easy to do well, if you know how. The instructions for this recipe from the Washington Post work perfectly.
I'm a bit confused by the recipe's terminology, as I think of the sauce as a beurre noisette. Beurre noisette is just a broken butter sauce which involves cooking the butter until it browns and the fat and solids separate, at which point you add some lemon juice. When you add a little parsley and put the sauce on, say, fish that has been dredged in flour and sauteed, then the fish is à la meunière ("in the method of the miller's wife"). At least that's what it says in my marvelous reference Sauces, by James Peterson.
But perhaps I'm being too dogmatic, and "meunière sauce" is an actual thing now, just as it says in wikipedia. I think that's imprecise, though.
The dish is delicious no matter what you call it.
Seared sea scallops with red beet and caper beurre meunière. Notice how difficult it is to get appealing photos of food, especially when one has 20 seconds for the dish to get to the table. I needed a bright light at an angle--I see that now.
The following recipe was adapted from Jonathan Krinn, chef and owner of 2941 restaurant in Falls Church, VA, and tested by Marcia Kramer for The Washington Post.
I cut the recipe in half.
Ingredients:
For the scallops
16 (2 pounds) sea scallops, preferably dry-packed
Salt
Freshly ground white pepper
8 tablespoons grapeseed oil, or as much as needed
1/3 cup white wine
For the beet and caper beurre meuniere
1/2 stick (2 ounces) unsalted butter
1/4 cup roasted red beets *, diced
1 tablespoon minced shallots
1 1/2 teaspoons minced capers
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Salt
Freshly ground white pepper
Directions:
For the scallops: Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Put a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet and place the baking sheet in the warm oven.
Pat dry the scallops and season both sides with salt and pepper to taste.
In a medium pan over medium heat, heat 3 tablespoons of the grapeseed oil. Carefully place 6 of the scallops so that they do not touch one another and are evenly spaced apart. Cook without turning them or moving the pan for about 2 minutes until they have browned, then turn and cook until browned on the second side, about 2 minutes. Transfer the scallops from the pan to the wire rack in the oven.
Deglaze the pan used to cook the first batch of scallops with 3 tablespoons of the white wine, and, using a small bowl, reserve all the cooking juices for the final beurre meuniere sauce.
Clean the pan and return to medium heat. For the next batch of 6 scallops, repeat the process of cooking them, reserving the juices and warming the scallops in the oven.
Cook the last 4 scallops in the remaining 2 tablespoons of the grapeseed oil. After the last batch, the cooking juices can remain in the pan.
For the beet and caper beurre meuniere: In the same pan on medium heat, add the butter to the cooking juices from the last batch of scallops and cook until the butter turns light brown, about 30 seconds. Then add the rest of the reserved cooking juices as well as any drippings from the pan under the wire rack, about 1/4 cup. Add the roasted beets, shallot, capers and garlic and cook for 20 seconds. Add the lemon juice, parsley, salt and white pepper to taste.
To serve, transfer 4 scallops each to individual plates and spoon the beet caper beurre meuniere on top. Serve immediately.
To roast a beet:
*Note: To roast a beet: Lightly coat 1 red beet in olive oil, season with salt and pepper to taste, wrap it in aluminum foil and roast in a 400-degree oven until it is soft, about 40 minutes. Peel the beet and dice.
The watercolor at the top of this post is by Sally Jacobs.
More Beet Season: Chocolate beet cake
Scenes from Exurbia
We had the most beautiful sky last night. The setting sun was lighting western clouds from behind, and big, puffy southern clouds from the side, while dark, low-hanging storm clouds were moving in. Looking north, the clouds were layered on top of one another, looking like a heaven-bound mountain range.
Over twenty minutes, I got all of these shots across about a 10-mile stretch as the sun set.
A New Low in the Healthcare "Debate"
Iain and I saw this bullshit ad like nine million times this weekend:
Voiceover by someone who sounds to be an elderly white male: Seniors have sacrificed, surviving the Great Depression, landing at Normandy on D-Day, raising strong families, and protecting our freedom in a dangerous world. Now, in their most vulnerable period, seniors are being asked to sacrifice again. Congress plans to pay for healthcare reform by cutting five hundred billion dollars from Medicare. For seniors, this will mean long waits for care, cuts to MRIs, CAT scans, and other vital tests. Seniors may lose their own doctors. The government, not doctors, will decide if older patients are worth the cost. And the cruel joke here is that many of our politicians are designing a healthcare plan for the country that they don't want to apply to themselves—so Congress could get better healthcare than the rest of us. Tell Congress: Don't pay for healthcare reform on the backs of our seniors. They've sacrificed enough.Suffice it to say, the (mis)information in the ad is easily debunked bullshit, the actual facts about which can be found at FactCheck.org, e.g. here, here, here, here, here, here, etc. SouceWatch.org, meanwhile, reports that the allegedly non-partisan 60 Plus Association, who put out the ad, is a front group for the pharmaceutical industry, with ties to Republican direct mail guru Richard Viguerie, founder of Conservative Digest magazine.
Everything about this ad is bullshit, starting with the math (people who are merely "60+" didn't live through the Depression and fight WWII, so they're grouping two distinct generational cohorts into one) and suggesting that Congress could get better healthcare than the rest of us, as if they don't already get better healthcare than most of the country—something that the members of Congress actively trying to reform healthcare have been pointing out as an injustice for my entire adult life. Now conservatives are trying to complain that's a possibility? Zuh? Does not compute. Such mendacious horseshit.
And, aside from everything else, this despicable bit of fear-mongering, featuring almost nothing but white people (except, of course, for the black orderly pushing a nice white lady in her wheelchair), is one of the most racist political ads I've ever seen. That black president is going to take away good white people's hard-earned healthcare for welfare queens and illegals! It's absolutely disgusting.
