Tumerica

POTUS and General Dwight D. Eisenhower Warns About the Military-Industrial Complex

2011-11-22T07:21:00.001-08:00

What Will You Be for Halloween?

2011-10-31T09:38:00.001-07:00

Me as “Tiger Mom” at our local Halloween block party, Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011. Happy Halloweeeeeeeeen!

Desiderata: Many Truths in One Small Space

2011-10-12T11:12:00.000-07:00

In 1920, Indiana Lawyer, Max Ehrmann, penned this magnificent piece of spiritual prose that has inspired many over the decades. It rings true on many levels and I find myself quoting bits of it to my eight-year-old girl. Which parts speak to you?

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.

Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is perennial as the grass.

Take kindly to the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

—Max Ehrmann, c.1920

Ten Rules for Writing Nonfiction That Doesn’t Stink

2011-09-11T09:48:00.000-07:00

1. Know youraudience. Who are you writing to? Sixth graders? A kitty litterassociation? Microchip manufacturers? Each one requires a different writingstyle. Write to the wrong audience and you lose the right audience.

2. Havesympathy for your audience. Do unto your readers as you would have them dounto you. Don’t burden them with too many characters, too many anecdotes, toomuch jargon, too convoluted a path to the point—anything that would beburdensome. Make their load lighter. Help the reader along.

3. Be clear.Be as succinct as necessary with sentences and paragraphs in order to avoidconfusion and to be clear. Strunk and White had the best description of clarityin writing in their writers’ bible, TheElements of Style.

4. Useactive verbs whenever you can. Passive verbs are popular in scientific andtechnical writing because they disguise who is doing the action and becausethey are harder to argue with. “Venus can be observed in the early night sky.”Or “When the lever is pressed, the nozzle pops out.” For those reasons, passiveverbs are helpful. For all other uses—and that is the overwhelming majority—useactive verbs to avoid sounding namby pamby.

5. Avoidclichés. Yes, it’s cliché to say “Avoid clichés.” But read a cliché andyour mind immediately disengages a little. Read lots of them, and the writingbecomes banal and indigestible. Clichés are the opposite of fresh writing.Fresh writing requires more thought but is more powerful and memorable.

6. Adopt theKISS rule—Keep It Simple Stupid. The engineer who came up with the KISSrule used it to tell other engineers how to write instructions for those whowould use their machines. He wasn’t calling anyone stupid—he was saying “simplestupid,” as in “too easy to mess up.” Perhaps Einstein said it best,“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler.” The KISSrule harks back to Rule 2. If you sympathize with your readers, you will not writefluff or meander too long on the way to an important point.

7. Useanecdotes lightly. Thirty years ago, readers probably would have toleratedanecdote-heavy writing. But in this digital age of nonstop interruptions andentertainment at every juncture, readers will be checking Facebook on theirsmartphones as fast as you can say, “I knew a woman named Emily who had aGerman Shepherd.” Anecdotes are foreplay. But eventually a writer needs to getdown to the act itself. What is the writing about? Sprinkle anecdotes in lightly,in proportional to the actual content of the writing. Otherwise, you will annoyor even lose your audience.

8. Considerhow your writing sounds. If strings of nouns are hard to say (“Latinolesbian recreational resource referendum”) then break them up or rewrite. Thisharks back to Rule 2 (Have sympathy for your audience). Alliteration? Soundsfun, but keep it under control. Occasional forays into lyrical writing withrepetitive phrases or words, the way ministers deliver sermons, for instance?Okay, but again, keep it under control. Lyrical writing can be powerful, but islike spicy food. In the end, if writing sounds good, it is good.

9. Outline,outline, and lastly, outline. Outlines are the pathways that guide thereader along and keep them forging ahead. Non-readers don’t have to know that outlinesalso helps keep writers from getting lost. Outlines rock in many ways. Trywriting a long piece without an outline and your writing will become floppy andmay fall apart.

10. Don’t beafraid to summarize, for some redundancy is a good teaching tool. Redundancyin words and phrases should be cut (Rule 6, KISS), by all means, but redundancyby summarization helps the reader focus while emphasizing what’s important.

Addendum: Rule1 (Know Your Audience) and Rule 2 (Have Sympathy for Your Audience) areprimary. Every other rule of non-stinky writing falls directly or indirectlyunder those two biggies.

China Marches Forward with Gigantic Military Spending Increase for Third Year in a Row: Does That Sound Comforting to You?

2011-08-25T09:00:00.000-07:00

The entire globe is experiencing an economic meltdown, from the super-powers down to the little guys. Suddenly, China announces a double-digit increase in its military spending. Does this sound ominous to anyone besides me? To put it in perspective, China's military spending is still small compared to, um, the U.S. But still. China has been bold about moving rapidly ahead in its defense spending. Perhaps it is playing catch-up with the Western world. Perhaps it has big plans. Perhaps this increase is all part of their economic stimulus package.

Apparently, I am not alone in speculating about this determination on the part of the Chinese. Japan, India, Australia, and Vietnam have all expressed concerns about a more powerful China. Surely Taiwan is quaking in its boots at this development, too.

China to increase defense spending by 12.7 per cent in 2011

China refutes military spending report

China's defense budget to grow 14.9 % in 2009, Xinhua, China

China announces double-digit military spending boost, The Guardian, UK

China boosts military spending, Voice of America

How I Became Tumerica, The Changer: A True Story

2011-08-24T12:07:00.000-07:00

You are a little girl. You have a little curl, and yes, you are alternately horrid and affectionate, and all that rot. You are the indulged youngest of five in a noisy, Catholic, intellectual household, deep in the mountains of western North Carolina. Two of your sisters will go on to become professors, but you are a little bit wild and undisciplined, what might be called creative on a good day. You will go on to become, well, you do not know at that time--but you will have glamorous aspirations.

You will sail through school, having as much fun as possible, causing only occasional bouts of trouble, and milking the reputations of your good older siblings. You will go to college and realize, “Hey. Someone is paying for this. I better shape up.” You will make stellar grades and graduate at the top of your class with highest honors, blah, blah, blah. You will be certain you are destined to be a famous sex therapist and will plan your advanced degrees in psychology. You will read Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex, But Were Afraid to Ask in fifth grade, and will subscribe to Psychology Today in high school. You will take the psychology portion of the GRE and will surprise even yourself with your high score. You will fill out your application to graduate school at UC Berkeley and then you will come to a screeching halt. Wait.just.a.minute. You want to have fun before you get all serious and locked into your career track.

Being more adventurous than sensible, you will pack a couple of suitcases and fly to Tokyo, Japan, where you plan to stay for six months, but end up living for five years, flying home only when homesickness and enough yen will allow you. You will get sick from eating bad sushi and will almost die. When you recover, you will refuse to blame your new country and will keep right on eating sushi. You will explore all over Asia and in so doing, you will become disenchanted with psychology, which you will find to be oh-too-Western-centric. But you won’t know what grand scheme will take its place.

Along the way, you will go through your artist phase, and will go to art school in Tokyo, but will realize the ordinary people on the streets of Japan probably have more visual ability than you do. You will go through your musician phase where you will perform in several bands, singing, playing tambourine, and wearing out your ears and your vocal cords trying to be heard over the electric guitars and drum sets. You will also, and with much greater joy, sing in quiet, smoky bars, accompanied by acoustic guitar or piano and will learn much of the old Jazz standard repertoire of the 30s and 40s. You will even audition for Columbia Records Japan, but they will not like you because you are not kawaii (cute) enough and are past the age of 20—practically middle-aged in Japan.

You will eventually tire of your glamorous life in Tokyo and will plot your return to your fatty, funny, spontaneous home country. You will bring home an enormous wardrobe of freaky-cool clothes and will realize with dismay that most of that will not work in the jeans-and-tee-shirt culture of the USA. You will also break it off with your Japanese fiancé and be utterly befuddled about what you will do with your life now that you speak Japanese, know how to sing, but know practically no one in this Rip-Van-Winkle-ish country that has changed so much in the five years you have been away.

Trying to fit in, you will join a low-key community band (thus meeting your future husband—who can resist a cute guy who plays sax, anyway?), will work out at the local fitness club, and will spend a lot of time in the downtown library combing the stacks for clues as to what you might do with your life. You will end up working as a secretary, a game tester, a research assistant, a graphic designer (which you will abandon because, although it is fun, you can barely pay the bills with the proceeds). Over the years, not wanting to become too self-absorbed, you will volunteer as an AIDS Buddy and the manager of a homeless shelter. You will learn way more than you ever wanted to about poverty and addiction.

Then, you will finally, finally find work as the managing editor of a tiny science journal (in which you will write, edit, and do graphic design). You will love your job so much, you will walk to work the day after a major blizzard just for the joy of being there. You will continue to love this job with a desperate and proud passion until the day you are laid off, only to find the owner’s college-aged daughter taking your place.

But never mind that--voila! You are a writer now--the perfect profession for those who dabble in everything and who do not wish to make up their minds what profession they will settle on. As a writer, you could end up writing some compelling ad copy for a fitness shoe that promises to firm your butt simply by wearing it. You could write a 250-page tome that teaches gazillionaire financiers how to keep track of their transactions. You could end up writing a book review in which you have to admit that the much-loved guru who wrote the book spent the entire 300 pages rehashing his previously published ideas, cobbled together with lots of snazzy, new photographs. Having to call this out in public will keep you up at night and make you wonder why you became a writer after all. Clearly, writing comes in many flavas, and you will want to sample them all. And you will love your newly discovered profession. It will make you sing in many ways.

Lastly, you will lose track of how many blogs you have created, but will end up writing assiduously for two--a left-wing political blog (this one!) and a foodie blog (WhatEye8.com). You will keep up with the political blog because it will cathartically help you survive the madness that has overtaken the country for the previous two administrations, and the food blog because you will realize it both helps you find your elusive recipes, and because it seems to organically be growing into a cookbook. These blogs will give you great pleasure and almost no spending money.

You will even publish the occasional article about how to increase personal creativity, the occasional poem about lust, or the quotidian stuff of life, or even the power of boobs, and you will audaciously pen articles that offer to help other writers hone their craft.

And during all that time, you will find yourself being the wailing wall, the giver-of-advice, the shoulder for so many friends that you will be dubbed The Changer by one of your best girlfriends, who will assert that you attempt to improve and change and help everywhere you go. She will send you the silver totem of The Changer goddess (you will not even know there was such a thing), and you will realize your friend is exactly right.

Over the years, you will become, well, me. An only slightly frustrated non-sexual therapist writer-woman. A passionista. A changer.

Non-religious Nations Have Higher Quality of Life, Shows New Study

2011-06-06T15:41:00.000-07:00

Non-religious nations have higher quality of life

Definitely holds true for my second home, Japan. Safe, well-organized, peaceful, the Japanese are super-technologically savvy (far ahead of the US), have socialized medicine, and are generally, less, well, dysfunctional. That being said, I love American sense of humor far, far better (we can make fun of ourselves--whoo-hoo!) Also love our green spaces and free (rather than paid) parks and libraries. But yes, that non-religious nations have a better quality of life I find unsurprising. Not being religious frees up the mind from the idea that we are somehow not responsible for the bad stuff we do because of a higher calling. My mantra: today's religions are tomorrow's mythology. Fun to study, but wouldn't want to be subjected to it for real.

How Much Did You Pay for War This Year?

2011-05-20T16:01:00.000-07:00

Our humble family of three paid enough for war this year to have allowed us to buy a fancy hot tub and have it installed. Trust me, we want a hot tub way more than we want an AK-47.

Find out how much you paid for war this year at

Rethink Afghanistan

Osama bin Laden Dead: Do You Feel Any Safer?

2011-05-02T05:48:00.000-07:00

The terrorism patsy is dead. Maybe recently, maybe sometime in the past, but announced now, timed to do what, I'm not sure. Obama is definitely playing the game started by the Bush/Cheneys, to my disgust and disappointment (but not surprisingly). While I'm sure Obama is better on domestic issues, on international ones? He's towing the line on supremacy in the Middle-East, played heavy-handedly by the prior administration via 9/11.

Whenever Osama bin Laden died, what is the real reason for it being announced now? I'm not buying all this media frenzy, of course, but what is the rest of the story? I'm certainly not feeling any safer.

Best World Politics Blog 2011

2011-04-01T09:08:00.000-07:00

Tumerica blog wins award for one of the best world politics blogs. Thank you, TripBase.com, for the recognition!

www.Tripbase.com

Writing Samples

2011-03-22T11:11:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the articles I've written for a non-technical audience:

Informational Articles

· How Many Calories Are Burned with Yoga?

· About the Lemon Cleansing Diet

· Nine Creativity Blockers & How to Release Them

· Lose Weight & Feel Great: What a High-Protein Diet Can Do for You

· Summertime and the Living is Not So Easy for Rosacea Sufferers

· Signs and Symptoms of Vaginal Yeast Infections

· How to Help a Young Child Cope with a Tonsillectomy

· How to Love Your Curly Hair and Encourage Natural Ringlets

· How to Teach Preschool Children Where Babies Come From

· How to Get Rid of Cracked and Callused Feet

· How to Improve Liver Function

· Fat-burning Thai Foods

· From Collagen to Fibroblasts: The Changing Face of Dermal Fillers

· Does ExtenZe Work for Teenagers? (For a target audience of teen males)

· How to Get the Contraceptive Pill (For a target audience of teen females)

Marketing Writing

· Bubblicious Comes to Your Home with SodaStream Soda Fountain

· FiveFingers: Downside, Upside, and Objections Overruled

· Moisturizer for People Who Hate Moisturizers, or How to Turn Your Skin Peachy Smooth Overnight

· Firm Your Butt, Tone Your Thighs, Smooth That Cellulite—all with a Shoe?

Book Reviews

· How to Become a Fulltime Freelance Writer

· Design for Interaction

· Graphic Designer's Digital Printing and Prepress Handbook

· Rewrite Right!: Your Guide to Perfectly Polished Prose

· Designing a Digital Portfolio

Ode to Chocolate: To Be Read Aloud

2010-06-30T16:26:00.000-07:00

Read this out loud, slowly, to your paramour—and see what happens . . .

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ode to Chocolate

Brown creamy friend—
You contribute to
My well-being,
Soothing stimulant,
Smoothing recovery—
You race my heart
Unsludge my brain.
You are liquid pleasure,
Sweet-tongued
Inspiration to forgive—
Edible love.

Sorry, mates,
You are supplanted
By the bean of a plant
Rich, dark
Stimulant
Woven into
Luxurious
Gratification and
Oral love.

Truffles,
Eggshell delicate
Yielding to
Creamy inside—
A raison d’être.
Chocolate cheesecake
Chocolate mousse
Chocolate bar
Milk chocolate
Dark chocolate
Bittersweet—
I gratefully surrender to
Your ardor and
Sultriness.

Like lust,
Too much is consuming.
But some—
A light flirtation
With satisfaction and
Harmless
Instant love.

Passive
Passion
Erotic
Confection
Pliable
Melting
Luscious
Paramour
Melted
Amiable
Tender
Smitten
Departed
Love surrogate.
Yet, unlike carnal
Cravings,
Easily attainable
Again.
Sweet One.
Wonderful Chocolate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lose Weight & Feel Great: What a High-Protein Diet Can Do for You

2010-03-17T14:07:00.000-07:00

If the term, "high-protein diet" brings to mind images of Sylvester Stallone downing a dozen eggs and a steak for breakfast while training for his Rocky movies, then it's time to rethink high-protein. Once the domain only of professional body-builders and Olympians, high-protein has become more mainstream in the past few years. We all know protein is found in every cell in the body and is necessary for building tissue and thus for life. But what can a high-protein diet really do for you?

The ideal starting proportion of protein-carbohydrate-fat is 30-50-20. Some intensive training programs may recommend a higher proportion of protein for a short period of time, but long-term, extreme high-protein is not recommended, and can lead to health problems. Also, a high-protein diet is not synonymous with a low-carbohydrate diet. Research shows that low-carb diets may not be sustainable in the long-run and have even been linked to ketosis, kidney stones, high cholesterol, and loss of muscle mass. (See Resources for an excellent article that explains rationales for different diet ratios, at LoseWeightBuildMuscle.com.)

And clearly, not all protein, carbs, and fats are created equal. Think quality protein rather than quantity protein. Fatty red meats and full-fat dairy products cannot compare to lean meats, eggs, fish, beans, and nuts as far as excellent, healthy sources of protein. A successful high-protein diet will include healthy carbs, such as whole grains, vegetables, and fruit to make up 50% of your total daily intake, as recommended by the Department of Agriculture. And lastly, a quality high-protein diet will have health fats in it, such as olive oil, canola oil, and avocados.

Build Muscle and Lose Body Fat

So you have added high-protein to your diet, gotten into smart carbs and smart fats. Now what? Exercise, of course, according to Dr. Donald K. Layman, professor of nutrition at the University of Illinois, Urbana (see Resources):

"Layman and his team . . . [found that] those who consumed the high-protein diet lost more body weight and total fat and less lean muscle mass than did those on the high-carbohydrate diet, the report indicates. Further, the addition of exercise, particularly to the high-protein diet, allowed women to lose even more body fat and preserve lean mass."

Feel Satisfied and Eat Less

Want an all-natural appetite-suppressant? Try high-protein foods, such as low-fat dairy, lean meats, beans, eggs, or nuts. Protein-rich foods signal satisfaction sooner and chances are that you will eat less calories than if you were still craving something.

Build Strong Bones

Think downing lots of calcium supplements and calcium-rich foods alone will strengthen your bones? Think again—calcium, combined with high-protein and weight-bearing exercise—is the best way to strengthen bone structure. Protein also increases the absorption of calcium.

Improve Your Blood with Protein

Increased protein intake, when combined with exercise, can improve blood pressure, blood lipids, and blood glucose. And, in fact, high-protein diets are sometimes recommended for Type 2 diabetics.

Speed up Your Metabolism

Your body burns off a larger percentage of calories when the meal you eat is high-protein—up to 25%. Protein actually works to increase metabolism.

Better Hair, Skin, and Nails: The High-protein Beauty Triumvirate

There is a reason why you see supplements in many stores that promise more beautiful hair, skin, and nails. Look closely at the ingredients. Usually, these beauty pills contain mostly protein, in the form of collagen (a protein that makes up much of hair, skin, and nails), as well as a few other micronutrients, such as biotin, and MSM. Amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, are also often included in beauty supplements.

On the reverse side, problems with hair, skin, and nails can be indicative of a lack of protein in the diet, such as slow-growing nails. If you have hair loss, especially after pregnancy, extra protein can help counter it. Beyond mere aging, insufficient protein can contribute to loss of elasticity in skin.

To look—and feel—your best, be sure to get enough protein in your diet.

Resources

Tumerica Slacks off on Politics, but Cooks in Other Venues

2010-02-11T12:09:00.000-08:00

Click the EpiTunes box above to hear my latest track, "You Go to My Head," recorded Feb. 9, 2009, with the musical ministrations of Dillon Paige. I've been singing a bit, getting my long-neglected chops back in shape, and cooking, too. In May, two of my recipes are set to appear in The White House Kitchen Garden Cookbook—plus a photo of my six-year-old and me, if all goes well. So things are grooving, even if I've been completely slack about political commentary.

Tumerica Dances for New Year's Eve

2010-01-11T13:35:00.000-08:00

Tumerica Changes Tactics for 2010, Resolutions and All

2010-01-11T13:27:00.000-08:00

After YEARS of posting my heart out on this blog--mostly to channel my rage at the horrors of the Bush administration--well, I've decided to take a new swerve. I'm going to post on personal and other topics, most of which will probably not be political (although you never know).

For 2010, my resolutions are already underway.

To revamp and redo the home office. Check. Or mostly check, anyway--still have some cobwebs to straighten out.
Revamp and redo Jaclyn (our six-year-old)'s bedroom. Hubs did some sorting, but we're still hunting for a loft bed to replace the icky futon bed in there (it's so college dorm room).
Learn how to use QuickBooks and get our home business in good shape, accounting-wise--haven't done this yet. Ugh!
Learn AutoCAD and be able to earn money for our home business doing landscape drafting. Signed up for a course--it starts this week.
Exercise more assiduously. Check. I've started running again. I need to do daily yoga practice, no matter where I am, and go to classes when possible. Also started biking again--with the whole family, now that Jaclyn has a tandem bike trailer that attaches to hubby's bike. Cool, huh?
Learn more about cooking. Better sushi. More confident roasted meats and fish. More vegetarian dishes. More breads.

Tumerica Sings, "Santa Baby" for You

2009-12-10T07:31:00.000-08:00

My new stage name is Coco Merritt, and yes, I've started singing again--after a 20-year break. I figured Christmas is a fine time to jump back in (and with plenty of encouragement from my friend and mentor, pianist Dillon Paige). Here I am singing Santa Baby. If you go quickly, my tune might still be at the top of the What's New column on EpiTunes:

Or, if it's gone from there, the permalink to the tune is here.

Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays--however you celebrate, may this season bring joy and sweetness to you and your family.

Are Human Beings Inherently Agressive or Empathetic—or Both?

2009-12-01T13:18:00.000-08:00

My Monkey Guru wrote this:

Isn't "genetic instruction" the absolute, very basic, real way that God intended it?

Are we genetically "programmed" to help each other?

Aggression is obvious in small children, but so is empathy.

Are these learned characteristics or basic DNA instructions?

People who know more about it than I do (that would be everyone in this field) say this:

This conclusion that we are engineered to be helpful to others is reached by Frans de Waal in another book published in October, “The Age of Empathy.” Dr. de Waal, a primatologist, has long studied the cooperative side of primate behavior and believes that aggression, which he has also studied, is often overrated as a human motivation.

“We’re preprogrammed to reach out,” Dr. de Waal writes.

“Empathy is an automated response over which we have limited control.”

The only people emotionally immune to another’s situation, he notes, are psychopaths.

Indeed, it is in our biological nature, not our political institutions, that we should put our trust, in his view.

Our empathy is innate and cannot be changed or long suppressed. “In fact,” Dr. de Waal writes, “I’d argue that biology constitutes our greatest hope.

One can only shudder at the thought that the humaneness of our societies would depend on the whims of politics, culture or religion.”

This might help explain why we find ourselves helping people when it is apparent that doing so has no apparent benefit at all to ourselves for doing it.

Maybe human beings are intended to help each other out - feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, keep babies from dying of medical neglect.... all that liberal philosophy crap.... wouldn't that be a laugh?

Here’s my reply:

Both traits continue in modern humans because both are helpful to our evolutionary fitness, I think. Aggression helps expand territory, and for males, to be dominant enough to pick a genetically advantageous mate (and for females, aggression can provide the best treats and more power within the group). Empathy (and sex, too) fuels group cohesion and supports the larger social unit, which is necessary for both more powerful defense and offense. Survival of the fittest individual and the fittest group. Paradoxical on a micro level but sensible on a larger scale, over time and across rugged and varying environments.

Half tongue in cheek and half in earnest, I believe most scientists are genetically programmed to be unable or unwilling to accept two opposing forces can be true simultaneously. They’ve gotta be thinking: paradox equals bad science. As a poet, I’m fascinated by paradox. Paradox is the annoying gadfly (there’s that word again) that won’t stop buzzing around.

Why can’t it be okay that we’re meant to help each other and compete with each other? What could be more genetically adapted than that?

Now, what do you think? Cast your vote in the poll at right (top of the page).

Don't You Dare Buy Ready-made Stuffing!

2009-11-17T13:25:00.000-08:00

Homemade Stuffing for the Holidays

If You Can Sing "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme," You Can Make Stuffing from Scratch. Stuffing. Ahhhh. Maybe my favorite part of my favorite holiday. Growing up with four siblings, stuffing disappeared the fastest and was the most worth fighting over when it came to leftovers (if there were any). Who doesn't love stuffing? When I lived in Japan, where no one had a big enough oven to roast a turkey, even if they knew what one was or could afford to procure one—what I missed the most about American food was, not surprisingly, turkey with stuffing and cranberry sauce. Simple, yes, if you live in the states. Exotic and impossible if you life overseas. Now that I am back home, I serve my family a turkey-stuffing-cranberry meal about once a month—I cannot get enough of it.

Growing up in a large household, my parents wisely took some shortcuts when it came to cooking. And stuffing was one of them. I never had honest-to-goodness homemade stuffing until I was all grown up and discovered how to make it myself. What a thrill to realize how easy it is. And the rewards are GREAT—when you serve it, be sure to mention you made it from scratch. You will hear oohs and ahhs. No store-bought stuffing mix can compare in any dimension. You too can do this—have confidence. Stuffing is so simple to prepare, you will wonder why you never thought of doing it yourself before now.

One last note: I dined at a friend's house for a holiday party recenlty. He was so excited to have made stuffing from scratch, but it was the most gosh-awful stuff you ever tasted. He had just tossed in the celery and tossed in the other ingredients--with NO sautéeing, no herbs, no butter, and no chicken stock. The stuff he called stuffing was dreadful, pasty bread bits with hard chunks of celery. Don't let this happen to you.

Basically, stuffing is comprised of two steps: “Creating the Croutons” and “Sautéing the Savories.” And you hardly need a recipe. Once you know how to do it, you can whip stuffing up easily with no props. Are you ready? YOU CAN DO THIS!

Creating the Croutons
Take a loaf of bread that you find delicious—ones loaded with nuts and whole grains are wonderful for stuffing. Sourdough works great too. Anything but white bread (too fluffy—needs to be a bit sturdier). I'm a fanatic—I make loaves of "stuffing" bread to use (chock full of fresh herbs). But pick a bread you already like. Day-old bread is fine too. You will need about eight cups worth of croutons. If the loaf of bread is large, you may not need the whole loaf.

Cut sliced bread into strips and then again crosswise into ½ inch (1 cm) cubes. Place the croutons on a baking sheet without overlapping, if possible. Toast lightly in a 350 degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Scoop all the croutons into a large bowl.

Sautéing the Savories
Chop up one large onion (sweet ones like Walla-walla or Vidalia are especially yummy for this) and about 6~8 stalks of celery (slice each stalk lengthwise first and then crosswise to make smaller pieces). Sauté the onions and celery in 6~8 tablespoons butter (use butter unabashedly, but start with the lesser amount and see if it needs more later, depending on the quantity of croutons you have), along with the following herbs (fresh if you can get them, and chopped coarsely): Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme. Does that sound familiar? It's part of the refrain from a Simon and Garfunkle song, Scarborough Fair. Yup. It's the herbal code for stuffing (and poultry seasoning). If you have a choice of parsley, use Italian flat leaf instead of the curly kind—but fresh is always preferable to dried. How much of each herb to use? Fresh, maybe 3 tablespoons each. Dried, maybe 1 tablespoon each. It's important to sauté the herbs so that the fragrance and flavor get infused. Add in about 1/2 cup of dried cranberries if you have them (makes it irresistible—sautéing plumps them). Once the onions are slightly translucent and no longer crunchy, remove from the stove.

Stir this sautéed herb mixture into the croutons. Add about 1 cup of chicken broth—slowly—so that you can gauge when to stop adding. (Keep jars of all-natural chicken stock concentrate in the fridge for uses such as these. I recommend “Better Than Bouillon” brand, by Superior Touch. You can get it at Trader Joe’s or other high-end grocers. Cubed bouillon is too salty and has too much artificial stuff, along with MSG. Chicken stock that comes in cans and cartons is good but too pricey.) This is the trickiest part—if you add too much broth, the stuffing becomes mushy. Too little and it's chokingly dry. Just right is slightly moist, with mouth “give.” Just right is not too crumbly and holds up on the plate. Add salt to taste (I especially recommend Vege-sal vegetable salt). And more melted butter, if needed. Toss lightly and serve as is or use about half to stuff bird. Keeps well for several days.

Notes:

— You can add variations for fun: toasted chopped nuts (pine nuts are fabulous, macadamias are decadent, chestnuts if you can get them, almonds if they are slivered thinly), chopped dried fruit such as apricots (go easy on the fruit and cut it small), other herbs such as marjoram or tarragon, etc.

— Some folks love cornbread stuffing. To make it, add chopped pork sausage to the sauté and use crumbled homemade cornbread (not that sweet kind like they serve at Boston Market—eyuck!) instead of wheat bread.

— Be sure not to use Pyrex when toasting your croutons in the oven. Like a doofus, I used a Pyrex pan as an overflow and voila! It exploded. I'm not the first person to have this experience, lest you laugh at me. I did a quick search and found an entire page on ConsumerAffairs.com dedicated to people who've had exploding Pyrex experiences. Just use a standard baking pan and you will be fine.

World Hunger Summit Leaders Dine on Cockroach Ragout and Yakitori of Rat, with Jellyfish Sashimi on Kudzu Leaves

2009-11-16T08:53:00.000-08:00

File this under major irony of 2009, but today, the world leaders who represent all the countries concerned with the global food crisis, will be enjoying a gastronomic extravaganza at the World Summit on Food Security, which is focusing on the food crisis.

Did any of the diners ponder their own hypocrisy for a nanosecond as their ivory chopsticks ascended to their well-fed jowls? Jowls that might be quivering with such delicacies as milk-fed lamb, sea urchin gonads (known as "uni" in Japan), as well as the usual sturgeon roe and sparkling wine from the Champagne region of France (ho hum)?

One wonders what an appropriate dinner menu for such an illustrious gathering might be. Anyone care to add to this list? The rules are that it must be:

Abundant
Inexpensive
Easily attained
Not harmful to the environment to raise/grow

Here's my suggested menu:

Mosquito fritter appetizer
Garden snail popcorn
Jellyfish sashimi on kudzu leaves
Pinto beans puree with a soybean reduction sauce
Cockroach ragout
Yakitori of rat
Crabgrass and dandelion salad with crabapple vinegar dressing
Rhubarb gelato with essence of compost syrup

Will Your Next Car Cost Less Than Your Next Computer?

2009-11-07T08:15:00.001-08:00

Shhhh. Super-secret deal. No big to-do yet from the car manufacturer. But naturally, there are both the Internet and gossips, so here goes.

Volkswagen Introduces the World's Most Economical Car

Check this out:

Speeds up to 72 MPH

Fuel efficiency up to 258 MPG

One seat--one person only

For Chinese market

$600 per car

GT Racing car equivalent impact protection

Non-alternative energy--uses standard gasoline

Authentic-looking Fake Blood--Best Recipe on the Internet!

2009-10-31T08:54:00.000-07:00

Forget those other recipes that have corn syrup. This is the REAL DEAL. It looks so creepy that while I am making it, I get grossed out. Will not harm anyone, although it will spoil after a few days. Enjoy!

Authentic-looking Fake Blood

Two quarts water
Two tablespoons unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup red food coloring
Few drops of yellow food coloring
1/4 cup chocolate syrup

Dissolve the gelatin in cold water. Add in some hot water to thoroughly mix it. Add in the rest of the water needed to make two quarts. Stir in the other ingredients and let set for a couple of hours before bottling, serving, etc. Use quickly as it will go bad after a few days.

My Junior-Senior Prom Date is Running for Congress!

2009-10-28T21:17:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's true. I was a young gal once. I went to the Junior-Senior prom once (in 1979). I had a date--someone I never before or since went out with. He was a wonderful date--gentlemanly, solicitious--laughed at all my jokes. He was also our class president and well-loved by all. A real mensch. He ran for and succeeded as mayor of a small town near where we grew up--Hendersonville, North Carolina. Recently, he quit his post as mayor to, uh-huh, run for the US Congress. Too cool. Greg Newman for President, anyone? He's a good guy--I can vouch for that (despite his being a Republican).

P.S. I made my dress. It cost about $20 and I got the materials at the local Piece Goods Shop. Prom dresses were so subdued back then compared to now (sequined mini-skirts, anyone?).

Biodiesel? Ethanol? Hemp Seed Oil? Oh My—a Primer on Alternative Fuels

2009-10-04T08:04:00.000-07:00

Myth: You have to have a special converter or a special engine to run alternative fuels.

Truth: If you have a regular engine, you can run 15% ethanol (E-15) right now, with no conversion. If you want to use 85% ethanol (E-85), you would need to have your engine converted or own a car that is a Flexible Fuel Vehicle (FFV).

If you have a diesel (compression-ignition) engine, you can run biodiesel right now. That is, the biodiesel you can find sold in gas stations across the U.S., the fuel that has already been refined. (Biodiesel has had the glycerin removed and is therefore ready to pump.)

What's the difference between ethanol and biodiesel?

Ethanol is an alcohol rather than an oil, where the primary substance that comprises it is a grain, usually corn, sometimes wheat or barley. Ethanol can come from many sources, but in the U.S., right now, it's mostly corn.

Biodiesel is an oil-based fuel where the primary substance that comprises it is soybeans. Like ethanol, biodiesel can be made from other sources: recovered used cooking oil (which must be strained and processed to remove the glycerin), hemp seed oil (right on!), and other oils.

Both ethanol and biodiesel are made from renewable resources, help decrease dependence on foreign oil, and are, for the most part, environmentally sound (with some exceptions for corn-based ethanol).

What are the Pros and Cons of Ethanol?

The beef against ethanol is that growing corn is a horticulturally intensive process that requires plenty of chemical interventions. But, ethanol can be made from other grains as well. Also, a lot of controversy about ethanol stems from what is known as a low energy-use balance. In other words, it still takes a good bit of energy to produce the grains to be used in ethanol. With more research, this energy-use balance is expected to improve.

The great part about ethanol is that we can grow it ourselves and become independent of the Middle East and other politically tricky regions of the world. Also think positive farm income. The other great thing is that we can use it now in a standard vehicle, which most of us already own. Again, 15% ethanol (E-15) without conversion. 85% (E-85) with conversion is a rule of thumb. To learn if your car model is a Flexible Fuel Vehicle (FFV) that can accept E-85, check here.

Iowa is getting in gear to be our primary source of ethanol in this country. Canada is excited about ethanol too. I love the idea of growing our own fuel and thumbing our noses at the oil barons (Bye, bye, Bush. Bye bye, Cheney) whom I hope will soon go the way of their dinosaur brethren whose body oils have dominated the 20th century and are helping destroy the Earth they once populated. Ethanol made from corn may not be the perfect solution. But it seems like a worthy stop-gap measure and with more research, perhaps some better substance than corn can be used for ethanol. Don't give up on it yet!

What are the Pros and Cons of Biodiesel?

Biodiesel is righteous. You can use it now in a diesel engine without doing anything at all. It's currently made mostly from soybeans, which, as you know from fourth grade science class, are a blessing to our environment. Soybeans fix nitrogen in the soil. They actually leave the soil in better shape than before they were grown. Soybeans do not require much chemical intervention and they yield beautifully in terms of labor vs. return. Soybean-based biodiesel also has a great energy-use balance. Soybeans could save the world, I am convinced (I lived in Japan for five years and ate a lot of soybeans) in terms of both fuel and food.

"Biodiesel is simple to use, biodegradable, nontoxic, and essentially free of sulfur and aromatics." In other words, it's great on the environment and it isn't stinky. "It is less toxic than table salt and biodegrades as fast as sugar."

As to price, biodiesel usually costs a bit more than regular grade petroleum. The biodiesel pump near my house sells it for about $.25 more per gallon, which doesn't seem like a lot for a clean0burning fuel. If I had a diesel engine, I'd be pumping there right now. Can you imagine your tailpipe smelling like french fries? Yeah!

Now, you might have heard of someone filtering their own used veggie oil and using it in their diesel engine--but this is a no-no. Commercially available biodiesel is refined and treated to make it usable in a diesel engine.

The only con I can think of to using biodiesel is that most of us don't own diesel engine vehicles (hopefully that will change), and that using biodiesel will piss off the oil mega-industrial giants such as Exxon Mobile, which, by the way, made $39.5 BILLION U.S. in profit in 2006. (You read that right. Almost $40 Billion.) If you work for them, you might not like biodiesel. Other than that, I cannot think of why not to use biodiesel.

To find a biodiesel pump near you, see Biodiesel.org. There are three biodiesel fueling stations in Ventura county, and three in Santa Barbara county, for instance. If you favorite gas station doesn't have it yet, ask the manager to get biodiesel. They can have it replace a diesel fuel pump without any special retrofitting.

To learn more about biodiesel:

Biodiesel: The Basics

Biodiesel Community

Canada Renewable Fuels Association

How Would You Like Your Next Car to Run on Air?

2009-09-15T07:55:00.000-07:00

Compressed air. That's what fuels this teensy mini at left, as well as the larger "taxi" pictured below. And zero emissions—no stinky tailpipes on this futuristic car. Plus, it goes for only about $12,700. What's the catch? Well, there are two: "The Air Car," as it's called, will be available only in India at first; and the car parts are held together with glue. Sounds like a sticky deal, but hey, the technology is worth looking into.

Designed by a Formula One race car engineer, The Air Car uses forced air to propel its pistons (instead of internal combustion, which uses a mixture of gasoline and oxygen to make the mini-explosions that propel pistons). Yes, compressing air does require energy. But how much energy? And how does the energy usage compare to an internal combustion car?

The car manufacturer, Moteur Developpment International (MDI), a Belgian firm, claims the cost to fill the air-fuel tank will be about $2.00 to $2.50. Yes, less than the cost of one gallon's worth of gasoline would fill 'er up. And one fill up will propel the car 125 miles. $2.50 for 125 miles. Sign me up! Need to look into the glue construction, though, that's a bit weird to me. Naturally, US automakers are appalled by the possibility and swear never to allow such a vehicle through their gates. BUT, if The Air Car is a smashing success (sorry!) overseas, won't demand domestically force automakers to reconsider? And perhaps the Japanese, the Germans, or other irresistibly powerful auto-making countries will craft the technology into something better suited to an American market (no glue, puhleeze!).

Stay tuned because this is more than a lot of hot air. And by the way, this is NOT a hoax. The Air Car does exist and is ready to roll—check this out:

How a compressed-air engine works

The manufacturer, MDI

Air car versus electric car

Air car ready for mass production

Where Were You When you Started to Doubt the Official 9/11 Story?

2009-09-11T03:42:00.000-07:00

Note: On another sunny Tuesday morning in September, eight years ago today . . .

For other September 11, posts, check here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Normally, I don't get my news from television. I'm not saying that proudly—as though I'm too good to absorb the din and clamor of the opiate of the masses, predigested spin-doctored effluvia that's seasoned heavily with propaganda. Nope, I'm saying that because I have a secret—the images of daily news are too horrific for me. What I see flashes straight through to my soul, bypassing the usual editorial board obstacle course that reason and logic have constructed over the decades. I mostly get my news from online, especially Google News (“untouched by human hands”), Truthout, and from my favorite blogs, Huffington Post, or OpEdNews . I'm also fond of Newsweek (I simply filter out some of their Conservative leanings).

But when September 11 hit with a giant smash on the psyche of the world, I became a televisio-drombie-zoid. I hardly slept or ate for days. I simply stared vacantly at the screen, surfed channels, and cried. The images of those little bodies casting themselves out of the towers into certain death, well, they are seared into me indelibly.

Out of all the troubling events of that day—the ones that actually got broadcast, anyway—the one that haunted me for the longest was the image of then Chief of Staff Andrew Card leaning over Bush's shoulder (as Bush sat in a Florida elementary school, reading "My Pet Goat," no less) and whispering in the presidential ear. The expression on Bush's face—that's what killed me. Card was informing Bush that the second World Trade Center tower had just fallen to "terrorist" attack. Bush looked, well, like you had just told him he was going to have veal cordon bleu for supper instead of filet mignon. A little bummed, a little concerned—but that was all.

Over and over I replayed that moment in my head. How could any human being—one who is ostensibly not in any way connected to the atrocities—hear that news for the first time and not be shocked and upset and, well, made to dash boldly from the room and rush to take care of his country during a crisis of unprecedented proportions? In fact, after Bush "heard the news" for the first time, he sat there—for 15 minutes. He picked up reading the story to the children. He paused for a photo op with the teacher. He carried on, business as usual.

No way could I digest that information—that casual, cavalier demeanor of Bush's in any way other than to believe that he knew. The more I thought about how Bush knew about the events of 9/11, the sicker I felt. Months went by before I thought of or even had the courage to do some research online—after all, I was recovering, mourning, in my own way, the loss of innocence and the belief of the United States as the "Good Guys." And how would I do my research, anyway? What would I look under, um, "suspicious lack of amazement on Bush's face when told about attacks"? But I did start to scrounge around. Scared though I was, I had to know more. Well, it didn't take much scrounging to undercover more insidious and more horrific information—fact, speculation—all of it. Conspiracy theories of many ilks. The ones that made most sense pointed toward, not passively "allowing the attacks to happen," but worse. Far worse. An inside job. Deliberate planning. Controlled demolition. The creation of a New Reality.

I'm still researching, I'm still learning and wondering, but the most convincing and erudite treatise I have found so far is this: Joseph P. Firmage's Interesting Facts and Theories on 9/11 essay, in which he analyzes the mountainous debris of evidence and pulls out 42 "facts of significance," intersecting them across three possible theories about what happened. The most overwhelmingly cogent theory is the one that, sadly, points to Bush administration officials as having "architected and caused them [the attacks] to happen." Firmage is a heavy—scientist, CEO, writer, visionary of our times—a great thinker. Not the kind of person to be swayed by flighty theories that are espoused by fringe crazies. His scientific pedigree is rock solid. His essay is available online, free, in PDF format at the Journal of 911 Studies. Please read it. Please let me know how you feel. Please tell me I am not alone.

Going Green, One Lawn Mower at a Time

2009-08-30T04:28:00.000-07:00

[Photo above: Me mowing our lawn this morning--and enjoying it for the first time ever.]

Does mowing your lawn with a gasoline-powered lawn mower drive you crazy? The noise. The exhaust fumes. Having to lug noxious chemicals around. Scaring the family dog. Well, there is a cure in site. If you can afford the extra up-front cost, a battery-powered cordless or a plug-in lawn mower might work for you.

Given the choice, we opted for a battery-powered beauty from Neuton Power (NeutonPower.com), the Neuton CE–5, retailing for $399.00. The Neuton's sleek green body and super-cool lizard logo-tires make it the most stylish grass-mower in the neighborhood. But spending your entire time trimming your lawn in relative peace, enjoying the smell of cut grass only--is priceless.

If you live in Ventura County or Los Angeles County, you are in luck--these two counties have air-quality control agencies that run programs to provide huge discounts when you trade in your old gas-guzzling, stinky lawn mower and opt for a quiet, stink-free mower. Ventura County's trade-in program lets you pick either the Black & Decker corded or cordless lawn mowers or the Neuton CE-5 or the CE-6 (a larger mower). We ended up paying only $89 for our lawn mower, with free shipping--and we got rid of the old machine that was simply taking up space (your trade-in mower does not have to be in working order). The Neuton mowers were more highly rated and by far the most stylish, so it was an easy choice.

Thanks, Stan Cohen at the VCAPCD for making the process so easy, and thanks, Ventura County, for doing a beautiful thing to promote clean air, one green lawn mower at a time!

New PERKALOT ULTRA CREME--gets you looking as young as you feel!

2009-07-16T16:36:00.000-07:00

Below is a work of fiction I wrote—a spoof of spam e-mail that promises untold rejuvenations for areas we’d probably rather not think about. But to be perfectly honest, I wish this stuff existed. Enjoy.

Tired of droopy, saggy Grandmother boobs? Envy the perky, youthful breasts of teenage girls--and even your own--when you were young? Want those lovely rounded orbs back? How about TONITE???

Well, you can have them. I know what you are going to say. My boobs have been droopy for years. I've had to wear a bra just to keep from stepping on them ever since I turned 40. I know--me too! And I was fed up. FED UP, I tell you. The other day, I tried on a bikini in a department store, and you know what happened? My saggy, pathetic dugs just slipped right through the top. Yup. They slid out from under the bikini top, leaving me with a strap OVER my pathetic boobs. LADIES, you do not want to go there. Especially if the rest of you still looks good--you've still got good legs, right? Isn't it about time you had breasts to match?

Yeah, right, I would have said, that's impossible--without spending thousands of dollars--that you don't have--and undergoing a serious and invasive breastlift operation--one that would leave you perkier but with PERMANENT SCARRING.

Well, that's just old school, because you--YES, YOU--can be perkier TONITE! You heard me right--TONITE! Got a hot date tonite? Even a lukewarm date that you'd like to impress? Heck, just want to look more like your old self when you hit the waves on that beach vacation this summer? Well you CAN--this can happen to YOU.

Oh, I had tried everything. When I hit my 30s, my breasts sagged a little, but after years of breastfeeding--they started to sag A LOT. I mean, nothing to hold them in except for a Wonderbra--and that didn't help once the bra was off. I was so sensitive about it that I refused to be seen without some kind of bra--or shelf bra--on at all times--even when I slept!

BUT NO MORE. Nope. I don't even wear a bra anymore--don't need to--and I am 43 years old--a mother--and my breasts have been around the block. But you'd never know it by looking at them. And I have NOT HAD ANY OPERATION. No. All I have done is one simple thing--used new and improved PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME for one week. Just ONE WEEK, and my granny boobs are now BABE BOOBS.

If you don't believe your eyes, just try PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME for one week. Just one week. Rub it on each morning and each evening before going to bed. PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME goes to work right away--you can actually feel it tingling. That's the capsicum oil--the same substance in chili peppers that makes them hot. Well, PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME will make YOU HOT TOO! Only in a sexy-hot way. PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME contains 14 essential oils and emollients. This special crème also has a patented peptide and collagen formula that works beneath the surface to rebuild--and keep rebuilding--breast tissue.

After a couple of days using PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME--just feel your breasts. Go ahead. Have your partner feel them too. Or better yet, keep it a secret and just smile smile smile at all the admiring glances turned your way. Believe me, youth is wasted on the young. The REALLY sexy women are those who are in their 30s and 40s--and older--who have somehow--magically--managed to keep their youth and vitality.

So try PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME. If you do not receive at least one compliment--at least one wolf whistle--or one pick-up attempt in the week following your first use--WE WILL REFUND EVERY PENNY of your purchase price--INCLUDING SHIPPING. So what have you got to lose--but sagginess? Just kiss those droopy tatas "Ta-ta"! Say "Hello" to the new, perkier you with PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME.

Remember: Your purchase is backed by our 100% money-back wolf-whistle guarantee! If you do not get at least one wolf whistle or compliment in the week following your first use of PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME, we will refund your entire purchase price--including shipping and handling charges. Simply return any remaining crème to the above address--no questions asked--we are THAT CONFIDENT that you will love PERKALOT ULTRA CRÈME and you will love the NEW YOU!

RIP Michael Jackson, Age 50

2009-06-25T14:56:00.000-07:00

This just in: Michael Jackson has been reported dead--by TMZ, and now other media sources, although most news outlets are still reporting that he was hospitalized due to cardiac failure.

Jackson had been in poor health lately. (Who ever gets real details about him? He's always shrouded in secrecy). But his upcoming tour sold out within hours of tickets going on sale, so he still had a lot of fan support.

So strange. Not that I was a fan of Michael Jackson's, but he's been so much a part of the cultural zeitgeist for my entire life, it seems weird for him not to be around any more. Only 50 years old--and he lived for a while just north of Santa Barbara, in Santa Ynez. A colleague of my husband's was hired to design the landscape at his Neverland estate. She later resigned because she said he was too crazy.

Crazy. Sad. However you see it, RIP, Michael. Hope you are in a happier place now.

Tumerica's Tightwad Tips for Stretching Your Budget

2009-06-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

Food & Kitchen

Institute a "beans-and-rice" night once a week. Buy dried beans and rice in bulk. You can vary the beans with spices, fresh garlic, greens, tomatoes, onions, carrots, celery, ham, bacon, etc.
To reuse leftovers for suppers, change the format—roast chicken one night becomes chicken tacos or enchiladas or soup the next night. Otherwise, use leftovers as is for lunches instead of eating out.
Instead of buying dishwasher dishwashing liquid (which costs about $6.50 per month--no small expense), use a tiny amount of the liquid dish soap you normally use for hand-washing dishes. The key is TINY amount. For one load, approximately two teaspoons is about right for my dishwasher--you may need to experiment. This should keep the sudsing to a minimal level. You'll know it's the right amount if after the cycle is offer, all suds are gone. Your dishes will be sparkling and your expense will be minimal.
Buying in bulk goes without saying, but if you don't live near a membership warehouse, you can buy at great prices from BulkFoods.com.

Grooming & Beauty

Instead of buying leave-in conditioner, use a small amount of the conditioner you already have and work it into your wet hair, mostly on the ends. This works exactly the same as leave-in conditioner. Just don't use too much to avoid an oily look.
Instead of buying pricey department store cosmetics, check to see if your favorite brands are available for cheap on eBay (mine include M.A.C. and Jane Iredale and are easy to find on eBay).
Also, check EyesLipsFace.com for a cheap make-up fix. Right now they are liquidating stock and selling almost everything for $1.00 each. This is not Wet 'n Wild, this is good quality make-up at giveaway pricing.
Don't throw away used-up tubes of lipstick. Use a needle to scoop the remaining amount out of the tube and into an empty, closable container. Put the container with the salvaged lipstick chunks in the microwave for 30 seconds or so in order to melt the chunks down into a smooth consistency. When it cools, it will harden back and be easily portable.

Bad Place to Visit, Wouldn't Want to Live There

2009-06-15T15:29:00.000-07:00

My colleague, Robert Lindsay, a progressive journalist in Oakhurst, California, sent me a writing prompt—something like, "Tag, you're it. Write on the topic of 'Bad Place to Visit, Wouldn't Want to Live There.' " Easy. I know a lousy spot to visit when I experience one.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two weeks after I arrived in Japan for the first time—with every intention of working there to sponsor my youth-driven wanderlust—I left the Tokyo I had fallen in love with to go visit in Osaka with a Japanese college girlfriend of mine. She begged and pleaded for me to come stay with her and her new husband. During college, I had happily helped her with her tricky English-language essays whenever she asked—for two years. Heck, I thought it was fun and no big deal. She, however, saw it as a social obligation. So, to work off her karma, she had to "take care of me" while I was in her native country. I would much rather have stayed in Tokyo—the lights, the funkiness, the sheer, alien chic of it all—and, with a city the size of New York—a fun place for foreigners to hang out. Sure, I was a "henna gaijin" (strange foreigner) there, same as everywhere in Japan, but because Tokyo had plenty of other henna gaijin running around, and because Tokyoites are so sophisticated, it was wildly exciting rather than annoying when they'd surreptitiously stare. I felt like a rock star. Even the kids found me amazing. A slim young woman in my early 20s—sexy, fresh, brazen—quite different from "the nail that sticks out will be beaten down" Japanese mentality, as applied to Japanese young woman in the 1980s (I've heard it's much more risque there now).

Reluctantly, I took the shinkansen, the bullet train to Osaka, about three hundred miles away. The ride took about three hours. (It's not called a bullet train for nothing.) I arrived in a gray, industrial, polluted metropolis. I traveled to my friend Noriko's gray, industrial-looking neighborhood, and rode the elevator in her gray, industrial-looking apartment building in a complex of gray apartment buildings, ad infinitum. Gray, gray, gray. To escape what I imagined was just a bleak neighborhood, I took frequent walks. Choking with exhaust fumes and industrial spumes and smog, I'd gasp for breath, while passing, bleak, bleaker, and bleakest neighborhoods, just like Noriko's. She tried her damnedest to entertain me—and I felt for her, I really did. She and her husband took me to the big tourist attraction—Osaka Castle, which was indeed marvelous. But other than that, Osaka has got to be the gosh-awful ugliest place I have ever been on earth. Manila may have piles of rotting garbage in the streets, and the lights may flicker and go out from time to time, but it also has its beautiful sights and its green, lush areas. Osaka has, well, industry. And housing—all in shades of gray. Inescapable gray that seems never to end.

On top of that, a week after I got to town, I became deathly ill, probaly from some fsushi I ate. I wanted to be one of those adventurous visitors who tries everything the locals try--when in Rome, and all that. Instead, I almost died of food-borne poisoning. Ten days I suffered in a skanky hospital. (The hospital smelled like poop and pee the whole time. The paint was peeling over my bed. Everything was rusty or dirty. The staff and other patients were nice, though. One lady even bought me a Japanese phrase book that I still have. I finally got to go back to—you guessed it—gray, industrial life again. I could not wait to leave Osaka, and eventually made my way back to Tokyo , where I spent much of the next, mostly enjoyable, five years.

So, I have to say, if you can avoid a trip to Osaka, please do. See if you can turn it instead to a
trip to nearby Kobe or Kyoto—two marvelous cities. Kyoto, being one of the great wonders of the world, and a must-see while on planet Earth. But Osaka, well, even the local cuisine is rancid. Osaka sushi has to be one of the worst culinary experiences I've ever suffered through (the other was yard-bird with yams on a small island in the Philippines—but that's another story). The fish is marinated in vinegar, cooked, and then cut into little rectangles. It's a food only a child growing up eating it could love. And I do love sushi in general. Just say, "Mo, kekko desu" (no, thank you) to Osaka sushi, and to Osaka.

Single-payer Health Insurance Demystified

2009-06-13T08:15:00.000-07:00

My amazing, French friend, Suzanne White, writes this essay to help Americans conceptualize single-payer health insurance. As usual, she cuts right to the heart of the matter--we tend to shy away from that which we don't understand.

Here single-payer health insurance is in simple terms. I get it now. I like it. And I think it's the only fair way to go. Some mighty big organizations--the AMA, pharmaceuticals, not to name any names--are gonna bust their butts to fight this plan--just the way the car companies once fought public transportation. But let's make sure companies do not control our lives. Please.

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SINGLE PAYER HEALTH INSURANCE

IT HAS COME TO MY ATTENTON that many Americans do not understand what SINGLE PAYER HEALTH INSURANCE is.

Not understanding something can cause one to fear it.

I notice some Americans faces go blank when I mention Single Payer. But rather than ask what it means or trying to find out, they resist the very idea and sputter defensive words like "socialism" and "government control". That's too bad. The US government is not trying to inflict something on the American people by adopting single payer. It's only trying to help them get full coverage for a modest premium.

I will try to explain here how it works for me in France. Please read ahead. See how it works and then draw your conclusions about whether or not you want something like this in the U.S.

Single Payer Health Insurance is (with variations) a system wherein the govt owns a health insurance company. Not the ONLY health insurance company. There are many private carriers as well.

In France, just about everybody chooses the national company because the premiums are based on their incomes. Employers pay a % of our income (publishers, film productions,dance companies as well as businesses) so that everybody is covered. We pay premiums ( a % of what we make) to the govt company every month or, maybe every trimester. But health insurance does not come out of our taxes. Premiums are, in fact, tax deductible.

So everyone pays something different based on his or her family situation (many kids or handicapped etc. would probably pay less) and income. But... everyone is equally covered.

The care one receives is not based on the amount he or she pays in. But rather care is based on how ill one is. There are 19 or 20 major diseases (cancer, diabetes, MS etc) which guarantee 100% coverage for everything to do with that illness so long as you have it. Otherwise, in most cases, there is what Americans call a co-pay. The govt company may pay 80% of the 20 Euro doctor visit. But we pay the extra 20% out of pocket.

The basic difference in feeling when you live in a place with Single Payer is that you don't live in fear of yourself or your children or your family members falling ill. If they get sick, they get care. The sicker they are, the more they get cared for.

Logically, when there is a govt health insurance company whose job it is to keep people healthy, the govt spends lots on encouraging preventive health care. Commercials on TV and ads in the Métro and buses give advice and the phone numbers of free clinics to stop smoking and curb alcohol abuse etc.

Naturally too, when a government owns a health insurance company, it wants to save money. How does it save money? By keeping the people healthy. Disallow genetically modified foods. Fewer pesticides and fewer chemicals in the prepared foods and indeed fewer prepared foods. Ads about exercise and ads about careful driving etc abound. The govt also control prices on medicines. Nowhere is medicine cheaper than in France. The pharmaceutical companies don't like this practice. But it's obliged to accept it. One cannot advertise prescription medication on TV. Only alternatives or homeopathic (comfort) medicines which can be bought over the counter are allowed to be advertised.

Lastly, private insurance companies compete with the govt company. Their first job is to absorb the rich people who don't want to join the national company because paying a % of their income would be too dear. So rich people often buy private coverage. Secondly, private insurers serve as co-payers. If you have both public and a small private additional policy, the latter will pay the co-pay and sometimes dental and eye care too. ( The govt plan pays only a minimum for dental and eye care) .

What Obama meant when he said he wanted a govt company to compete with private insurers in order to keep the private insurers honest, he meant that if the myriad private insurers in the U.S. had to compete with a govt health plan which covers everything for a % of income, the private companies would have to offer more coverage for less money. That's what he means when he says single payer keeps private companies "honest".

Compare it to the BBC competing with Private TV in England. The BBC is free and without commercials and, as we know, has wonderful programs for all sectors of society. The BBC's excellence keeps the private TV stations on their toes. They too have to make great documentaries, offer hilarious sitcoms and dramas and give great news coverage too - or else the Brits will prefer the BBC.

It's a sound policy and it works.

Is it in debt? Yes. Constantly. But I ask you, would you prefer your government to be in debt from spending too much on TV or health care? Or would you prefer the government be in debt from overspending on wars and bank bailouts?

By Suzanne White

Firm Your Butt, Tone Your Thighs, Smooth That Cellulite—all with a Shoe?

2009-06-05T07:28:00.000-07:00

Remarkable new technologies in footwear design—and some not–so–new—promise to transform your physique in a number of ways. But are these shoe shape–changers all they are cracked up to be? Or are they simply a shot of cool in your shoe collection? Here’s a short list to help you decide.

Old Shoe Renaissance

Earth Shoes—from Clunky to Chic
Remember Earth Shoes? I had a pair—as a girl—in the 70s. I was so proud of them, despite their clunky, over–built foot bed. I wore them until they cracked in the middle. Did they improve my posture and reshape my butt? Dunno. I was a kid, so probably had good posture and butt shape then anyway. More likely it was the jolie laide factor—the beautiful–ugly thing that made them so appealing to me. Like a squat, drooling English bulldog that makes you just want to tweaks its widdle floppy cheeks, that's how I loved my Earth Shoes. Over the past few years, Earth Shoes—originally designed by a Danish yoga master—have undergone a hip replacement and are now more cute than Herman Munsterish. (A little over $100.)

Birkenstocks—Always in Style
Birkenstocks may have been around forever, but remarkably, they are not just for granola–heads and academics any more. These days, anyone might be seen wearing the shoes affectionately known as Birkeys: surfer dudettes, trustafarians, and grannies included. When I lived in Japan, I special–ordered a pair of the clog–style straight from Germany. 20 years later, I still wear that pair (when the soles wear out, you can have them replaced). Do they tone my feet and act as a "personal trainer"? Not sure. My feet do like them—the lifted arch, the toe–spreading—and they are adorable. Like Earth Shoes, Birkenstocks are enjoying a renaissance, with fun versions like the one pictured. In the $50 to $180 range, Birkeys maintain a fervent following. Once you've worn them, you get hooked—it's hard to explain how a fashionista like me would pass on the more stylish flats and go straight to the Birkeys for a quick trip to pick up my kid at preschool, but this is the case, and it’s not just nostalgia.

The Drop of a New Shoe
If we're open to the jolie laide factor in footwear—as long as there is some promise of a physiological benefit, then here come a mind–altering assortment of odd shoes to reform your derrière, tone your cellulite, smooth your abs, and make you walk like an Egyptian, no, a Masai. Not kidding about this—at least that's some of the hype.

FiveFingers
These really ought to be called FiveToes, because they fit live snug gloves around the toes of each foot. Designed for a minimalist feel, especially for those who prefer to go barefoot, but still want protection and a grippy sole. The maker of FiveFingers footwear, Vibram, claims its famous toe–shoe “acts like a second skin to offer a gecko–like grip over a variety of terrain.” Increased strength, balance, better posture, like the other far–out footwear denizens, the list of purported body improvements for wearing FiveFingers is long. Style–wise, they come in cute or plain colors and in either all–open, mary jane, or boot styles (for $80 to $100). Although Vibram does not recommend it, some runners have enthusiastically taken to wearing FiveFingers while training and in races. The company does recommend their shoe for windsurfing, mountain climbing, kayaking, and other low–impact recreation.

FitFlops
Advertised as “UK's hottest new shoe,” and “The FitFlop, with the gym built in." (Someone gets paid to write these slogans? Sheesh—I want that job.) Reputed to tone your thighs, calves, and glutes, and may even help you lose weight. (Do they work? I could ask my sister—she wears them, but she's always been about a size 4, so maybe that’s not a fair question.) Sort of a clunky, athletic–inspired marriage of sneaker and flip–flop, these puppies are a reasonably priced $50 to $60, although they are currently back–ordered, and not easy to find.

Masai Barefoot Technology (MBT)
With the list of benefits the pricey MBT footwear promises, it's tempting to think they are too good to be true. With a uniquely designed lifted, curvy heel that forces your foot to roll forward, MBTs are by far the clunkiest body–improvement shoes out there—and the most costly, at around $250 a pop. Naturally, they are beloved by an increasingly long list of celebs. Despite having the sex appeal of a set of grandpa's false teeth soaking in a glass of water, MBTs are catching on. The idea behind the technology is to simulate the effect that the Masai people (who are known to have fabulous posture) experience as they roll forward while walking on sandy soil, ironically, barefooted.

Yoga Sandals
Toe separators cause an opening and straightening of your toes when you wear the Beech Yoga Sandal—which is supposed to be a good thing. These uncomfortable–at–first–but–you–grow–to–love–them modified flip–flops, are reputed to increase "foot flexibility, balance, and body alignment" and the "gentle spacing of the toes aligns the feet with the ankle, the knee, the hip and posture" I simply thought they looked cool, so I bought a pair for my hubby for about $35. He wears them everywhere but the beach—who'd want to get beach tar on these? Yes, they look weird, but cool–weird.

One Man’s Feast is Another Man’s...

2009-05-30T09:43:00.000-07:00

Have you ever eaten anything really strange? What was it and how did you feel about eating it? Let me know.

Here’s a ditty about some of my strange and stranger dining experiences—plus thoughts on why we humans eat the things we do. It ain’t always just about taste.

Tumerica.

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Americans ate heartily of horseflesh,

a mere century ago.

The English still eat with impunity

Christmas Pudding (the more lard the merrier)—

That is years old.

They lack disdain for internal organs,

Like some Native American tribes,

The Japanese, and Central Americans as well

(Menudo: Tomato-intestine soup).

Terrapin soup, though

Not appetizing to me

is an aphrodisiac to the Japanese,

Who also treasure the slightly-to-deadly

Toxic puffer fish flesh—

Raw or otherwise.

An ardent Afghanistani admirer

Once made me goat stew.

And was it dog or not,

I dared not ask at the cafeteria in Manila.

Chinese are perfectly pleased

To eat most anything

That once moved—or still does.

The Japanese are fanatics of freshness, too.

Gui-odori, “eat-dance”

Means eating something that's still living.

A charming kimono-clad lady once

Served me a still-struggling

Skewered sashimi of who-knows-what fish.

The Japanese also have a penchant

For the contents of crab crania.

It comes in little jars like jam—

all the better department stores carry it.

What’s inexplicable

Outside one’s culture,

is the association that makes food pleasing—

vigor, prestige, memories of childhood.

Is Hawaiian poi innately appealing?

Or fermented soybeans (natto)

With the gooey texture of okra

And the smell of high school locker room?

These may be foods only a mother could love,

Or the former child of same

who grew up with them.

Let’s admit at least this . . .

One man’s feast is another man’s, well,

Would you mind passing the potatoes?

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Do You Hide Your Mental Light Under a Basket or Do You Let It Shine?

2009-05-12T09:11:00.000-07:00

My brilliant friend sent me a funny video of a smart kid who wins a spelling bee being treated by news hosts as a freakazoid. My friend admitted to being both a brilliant kid--like that boy--and having to hide his brilliance.

I thought about it and realized I was always a mental show-off—I was in spelling bees and math competitions, and proud of it. Plus, I knew that no matter how smart I thought I was or anyone said I was, my sister who is two years older, is smarter still. It helps to be around those who are better, faster, and stronger than we are. Our five-year-old, as an only-child, doesn’t have that humility reinforcement and is convinced she’s a genius. Instead, she comes across as a bit of an annoying know-it-all. Luckily, she’s in a hip-funky-artsy school, so at least gets her creative jollies out.

But one wonders what would have happened to folks like us if we’d been more encouraged to use our smarts at an early age.

Here's the smart kid as freak clip.

That Today Now! show is a spoof from The Onion, the fake news company. I’ve loved The Onion’s books for years, now, but can’t leave them lying around where our kid might get a hold of them (“Mommy, what is a chicken-shit asteroid?”)

The Onion

A similar fake news source that’s popular is on HuffPost, called 23/6. The Onion and 23/6 both work by exposing uncomfortable truths, tarted up as humor. Exposure is a good thing.

Have you ever felt like you had to hide your intelligence? To be liked, to fit in?

Wanda Sykes Slays the Old Demons and Ribs the New Ones at White House Correspondents' Dinner

2009-05-11T15:21:00.000-07:00

If you haven't seen this yet, hold everything, check it out, and then resume normal life with a smirk on your face. She's brilliant. Scary good.

Swine Flu Nondemic: How to Make Money Using Media Scare Tactics

2009-05-04T13:48:00.000-07:00

In 1976, two humans actually contracted Swine Flu. But in the resulting media froth surrounding the flu, and the resulting panic to get vaccinated against it, 25 people died. Hundreds more suffered from horrible diseases caused by the vaccine and many became paraplegic as a result of taking the vaccine. That is, the cure was many orders of magnitude worse than the ailment.

In this iteration of the Swine Flu, so far, 25 people have died, most in Mexico, with little or no information about the condition of the victims before they contracted the illness (were they elderly? infirm? etc.). One person has died in the U.S., and the victim was not a U.S. citizen. Almost everyone who is diagnosed with Swine Flu experiences mild symptoms and then recovers.

The new strain of Swine Flu has never been seen before in pigs and you cannot contract it from eating pork. But amazingly enough, it seems to respond well to an anti-influenza medication called, Tamiflu, and the stock in companies that supply Tamiflu has flown up in value recently--surprise, surprise. By the way, this Tamiflu stuff is dangerous, only delays symptoms of the Swine Flu for a day or two (does not cure or alleviate symptoms), and is banned in Japan for use in children (14 children have died from taking Tamiflu). And lastly, this potentially lethal, Swine Flu-delaying med costs $100 a pop.

Flu Tracker

WHO Pandemic Alert & Response

According to Dr. Joseph Mercola, author of The Great Bird Flu Hoax:

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You may not know this, but all H1N1 flu's are descendants of the 1918 pandemic strain. The reason why the flu shot may or may not work, however, from year to year, is due to mutations. Therefore, there's no vaccine available for this current hybrid flu strain, and naturally, this is feeding the fear that millions of people will die before a vaccine can be made.

However, let me remind you of one very important fact here.

Just a couple of months ago, scientists concluded that the 1918 flu pandemic that killed between 50-100 million people worldwide in a matter of 18 months -- which all these worst case scenarios are built upon -- was NOT due to the flu itself!⁴

Instead, they discovered the real culprit was strep infections.

People with influenza often get what is known as a "superinfection" with a bacterial agent. In 1918 it appears to have been Streptococcus pneumoniae.

Since strep is much easier to treat than the flu using modern medicine, a new pandemic would likely be much less dire than it was in the early 20th century, the researchers concluded.

Others, such as evolutionary biologist Paul Ewald,⁵ claim that a pandemic of this sort simply cannot happen, because in order for it to occur, the world has to change. Not the virus itself, but the world.

In a previous interview for Esquire magazine, in which he discusses the possibility of a bird flu pandemic, he states:

"They think that if a virus mutates, it's an evolutionary event. Well, the virus is mutating because that is what viruses and other pathogens do. But evolution is not just random mutation. It is random mutation coupled with natural selection; it is a battle for competitive advantage among different strains generated by random mutation.

For bird flu to evolve into a human pandemic, the strain that finds a home in humanity has to be a strain that is both highly virulent and highly transmissible. Deadliness has to translate somehow into popularity; H5N1 has to find a way to kill or immobilize its human hosts, and still find other hosts to infect. Usually that doesn't happen."

Ewald goes on to explain that evolution in general is all about trade-offs, and in the evolution of infections the trade-off is between virulence and transmissibility.

What this means is that in order for a "bird flu" or "swine flu" to turn into a human pandemic, it has to find an environment that favors both deadly virulence and ease of transmission.

People living in squalor on the Western Front at the end of World War I generated such an environment, from which the epidemic of 1918 could arise.

Likewise, crowded chicken farms, slaughterhouses, and jam-packed markets of eastern Asia provide another such environment, and that environment gave rise to the bird flu -- a pathogen that both kills and spreads, in birds, but not in humans.

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Meanwhile, naturally, one needs to look at the sources of the media feeds. Who benefits from the fomenting of mass hysteria surrounding Swine Flu? Who benefits from a rush to buy Tamiflu?

My Grand-Mère

2009-04-27T06:29:00.000-07:00

Today, I received a rejection letter from an esteemed literary journal, explaining why they chose not to publish this poem. Well, rejection or not, I love this poem. It reminds me of my beloved grandmother (who passed away in the 1980s) so much that when I re-read it, I can feel her presence. In her honor, then . . .

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Each day at three

my Grand-Mère

served cookies and iced tea

to two or three of us,

milk-gulping, dirty-ankled grandkids.

We’d eagerly run down the bumpy dirt road

in sneakers and shorts,

leaping over the mud puddle

always in the dip

and around the black heart cherry tree

she had planted,

around the petal-pink effusive peonies

also brought to life

by Grand-Mère hands.

We’d dash by the

candy-apple red rose bush

that grew up over the stone chimney

of the red house--

Grand-Mère and Daddy Ed’s

summer cottage in the whisper-cool

North Carolina mountains.

We’d make the final leap

up the hand-set rock steps

not paying attention to

the baby’s breath and the forsythia

whose oval waxy green leaves

we traded as play-currency.

We’d pause at the screen door to don our manners,

and knock politely,

certain she’d be waiting for us.

Grand-Mère would greet us at the door.

Small, womanly French-Catholic

with blue-rimmed black eyes

and a curly white halo of hair,

proud like her.

She would plant a light peck

on each cheek, French-style.

She could hardly remember our names

much less our birthdays,

But when she welcomed us in

we were her honored guests.

The cards would be set up

on the white-washed

rustic kitchen table.

We’d play Crazy 8 and Old Maid and

Gin Rummy and

Las Vegas-style Solitaire

while she told stories

of her trip to France

when but a stylish young lady,

of her stern (and wealthy)

Papa who would leave when he said he would

whether his girls were in the car or not.

How she worked for a while

when it was not proper

for a well-raised woman to do so.

How she was the first woman to swim

the Tampa Bay

that she later learned was

teeming with sharks.

Grand-Mère made the best

fresh vegetable soup

With tomatoes from the garden,

peeled and tossed with okra

and a pinch of sugar

like the Creoles.

She made sliced tomato

sandwiches with

salt and pepper

on fluffy white bread.

She taught us how to make sandwiches

(“Spread the mayonnaise

all the way to the edge”)

and how to crochet

and to suck the nectar

from a honeysuckle blossom.

She’d exhort us to

sit up straight and take

only one cookie at a time.

She painted tales of adventure and color,

never mentioning how she raised

six dark-haired children without any help.

Grande Mere and her

Catholic-guilty

baby-bearing belly.

We learned in family whispers

how her husband drank and forgot

and drained the car dealership away.

How she put her twins in an orphanage

one time when there

wasn’t enough to feed them,

My own Uncle Jack and Aunt Jill,

from riches to rags.

My father, the shortest child,

still complains of the rickets he had

when food was scarce.

But on those summer afternoons

she spoke of wanting to be a chef

Of etiquette and mien

Of how to make a bed properly,

and the latest silly joke

from her buddy Nette Nichols

of New Orleans, Louisiana,

while green beans and squash

would bubble on the stove.

She taught us French words

like robe de chambre,

petit, and merci

while we’d try out being grown-ups.

Her husband did come back,

and never drank again.

We called him Daddy Ed

And he’d chuckle quietly

in the background

tottering around in his Izod sweaters

and thin wool pants.

He called himself a Florida cracker

and used to chant,

“When I was a little girl,

I lived all by myself,

and every single thing I got,

I put up on a shelf.”

We forgave him

for still fighting the Civil War

and cursing dem Yankees.

He wasn’t Grand Mère,

whom we’d come to see

but he’d make sure

there were peaches and ice cream

when we visited.

And Grand Mère served

tea and cookies and

cards and tomatoes

And knew how to make things grow.

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Happy Easter and What Do You Believe in Anyway?

2009-04-10T12:40:00.000-07:00

My friend, Dal, the golfer/philosophizer sent an essay from a writer who scourged the Islamic faith, making it sound as though Islamism is not a religion and that it's a total-mind-warp-cult with impossibly incontrovertible calls to violence.

Here's the anti-Islamic religion essay, if you are interested.

Honestly, I cannot say whether I think the writer’s right or not based on facts. I don’t have enough knowledge of Islamic beliefs. I’d rather not believe it’s true, and I suspect she’s lumping all Islamic believers in one basket—extremists and moderates alike—then basing her assumptions on the beliefs of the extremists without admitting it. Also, several, if not many of the damning tenets of Islamic faith she listed could be argued to be true of other religions, like Judaism or Christianity. How does one draw the line? If what she claims is really true, then what? Everyone else on the planet declare jihad against all Islamic peoples? I find such extremism as hers scary. But again, I don’t know enough facts to argue with much more than faith, flavored by intuition and dosed with conjecture. Perhaps a bit like the religious of any belief system.

Recently Newsweek published a cover article, Learning to Live with Radical Islam, by Fareed Zakaria, putting the American knee-jerk condemnation-via-ignorance of all things Islam in it's rightful place.

On religion, I’m leaning toward Buddhism, which, thank the gods, is a non-religion. A philosophy. And how about Sufism, with it’s mysticism? A new friend of mine admitted he is an “ignostic.” I had to look it up and am still not sure what it is. We plan to raise our five-year-old as a compassionate agnostic who practices yoga religiously. But she can certainly choose as she likes.

Compassion and do unto others and love. That’s what I believe in. How about you?

Happy Easter, anyway.

[Photo above: our Easter egg collection this year. Splendid, don't you think. I slept through the decorating party last night. Recovering from a head cold. Ugh.]

One Small Step for Iowa: One Giant Step for Amerikind

2009-04-04T13:25:00.000-07:00

Corn and great basketball teams. Caucuses and severe winters. And now, the right for all legal-aged couples who are not related to each other to get married, if they so desire.

My sister, who lives in Iowa, reports there are more than 1,000 privileges that married people get that she and her partner could not get—until now. Until April 24, to be exact, when she and her partner, who have been together for at least a decade, will have their union sanctioned by the state. Luckily, my sister's employer is savvy enough to have provided domestic partner health care, which has to be one of the biggies on the list of 1,000 married couple privileges.

Iowa is now only the third state to make this move. The Iowa Supreme Court hammered the nail in the coffin of the haters this past Friday with a ruling that overturned the gay-marriage ban. Now listen up, California Supreme Court. If ever there were a state that needs gay marriage it is California. I feel certain the people would prefer gay marriage as a whole, and that the Prop 8 ruling that barely squeaked by last November was the result of a well-funded extremely determined effort on the part of the haters to tell whatever outrageous lies they could to get the electorate confwoosed enough to doubt that gay marriage could be a healthy part of our lives. Pathetic, huh? Hopefully heartland state Iowa will make Californians feel like a provincial backwater by comparison and get on with the sensible act of ridding the state of this ridiculously unconstitutional ruling.

Gay marriage is good for everyone. Security for same-sex partners, economy-boosting for the state, what's not to love? Thank you, Iowa, for boldly setting a good precedent. Maybe cool trends will start coming from the Midwest instead of the West from now on?

Michelle Obama vs. Carla Bruni Sarkosy: The Fashion Face-off

2009-04-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

They are both utterly gorgeous and chic to the bone. Only I would say, Ms. Obama edges out Ms. Bruni-Sarkosy in this instance only because Ms. Bruni-Sarkosy chose a subdued color and style for this meeting. If anything, you could say this is not the best look for Ms. Bruni-Sarkosy. She has looked fabulous in nearly everything else she has worn. I admire that she was so . . . restrained. Restrained is cool. But for sheer glory and punch, Ms. Obama looked both regal and fun. The long jacket is cool, but when she takes it OFF to reveal the FABULOUS opposite color scheme matching sheath underneath, I think I swooned. A brilliant ensemble, don't you think?

What I don't understand, though, is why Ms. Obama wore such a drop-dead amazingly wonderful outfit this time, and wore a dead-dull outfit when she met HRH Queen Elizabeth II? Oh, well--if nothing else, it's a delight for the fashion-conscious like me to keep our eyes on Ms. Obama. All she really has to do is take off her jacket and reveal those fabulous arms. She's an amazing woman in many ways.

For the G20: Bank Corruption Advice from Thomas Jefferson

2009-04-01T17:27:00.000-07:00

My wonderfully prescient and perhaps brilliant French writer and astrologer friend, Suzanne White, writes this:
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On the eve of the G20 conference, let us reflect on the quote below and hope that the leaders in London will be doing likewise.

"I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, if by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered."

—Thomas Jefferson (Letter to the Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin, year 1802

Home-grown Viagra Alternative Has UK Riled Up

2009-04-01T05:17:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, the only aphrodisiacs were the ones that were reputed—by either extreme cost and rareness (rhino horn, sea turtle, whale penis, etc.), or by sheer pleasure of indulgence (chocolate, oysters, candlelit dinners at expensive restaurants, etc.) rather than actual. Oh, wait—there was one—Spanish Fly—that was apparently effective, but the over-indulgence of same could lead to death.

Fast-forward to the 21st century and you have the pharmaceuticals erecting their tents of fortitude in the aphrodisiac market (if you thought this article would avoid the chance at silly puns, you were wrong!). Viagra, Cialis, Levitra and other prescription gravity-defiers came to fruition—and all reputedly work well to counteract impotence. Meanwhile, non-prescription aphrodisiacs have also made a resurgence (with such clever brand names as Rise 2, ProVigrax, PassionRX, and Zenerx). And other, more simple herbal assistants, such as yohimbe, passion flower, and horny goat weed (I am not making this up) have burst forth on the back shelves of health food stores world-wide.

Now, the latest craze is—are you ready for this—a grow-your-own aphrodisiac. One that is neither rare nor pricey. And discovered in no less of an exciting hotbed of wanton lust than the United Kingdom. Michael Ford, an amateur gardener whose main occupation is as a furniture restorer, had been experimenting for years with plants for making teas. He recently tried an infusion of the common garden plant, winter-flowering heather (Erica Carnea are the genus and species), and voila, as he reported, "The effect was almost immediate. I had to stay in my potting shed for an hour or so before I could decently walk down the street." Lest you think this is mere hype, botanists and chemists are reputed to have verified Ford's results (one can imagine they too remained in their labs for extended periods before they could walk down their scientific halls decently). The UK has seen an immense swell in the demand for the previously common flowering bush, and in fact, men have been seen cock-fighting over the few remaining heathers in stock at garden centres around the country—at least that is the report from Independent UK.

Since then, reports have come out questioning the timing of the "discovery" and its coincidence with April Fool's Day. The British have been known to unapologetically publish pranks like this.
The Independent UK was the one who published the information, so on the surface it looks legit. Other bloggers have since written about this and speculated that it is likely a joke. One blogger reported that calls to the research institution that was reported to have verified the testing were not returned. Want to know more? Just do a search by "grow-your-own-Viagra" and let us know what you find out.)

The Source of This Info

The Independent UK

Where Can I Buy Some?

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Get Krugman on Your Team Already, Obama!

2009-03-28T17:57:00.001-07:00

Why on Earth Obama chose Timothy Geithner to be his financial czar/Secretary of the Treasury is beyond belief. The man has no experience. Just because he's young (my age!) doesn't mean he has fresh thinking, like Obama does. Geithner could not see a mountain-sized stinking pile of economic poop before falling in it.

Usually, Obama graciously surrounds himself with the best and brightest. But in choosing Geithner over, say, Dr. Paul Krugman, my personal hero, Progressive economist, brilliant, kick-ass writer, prophet (he foresaw the current economic disaster back in 2005), and unwithering critic of anything that stinks economically, is beyond belief.

Now that the Daschle-style mistake of appointing Geithner has been made, and if "Heckuva job, Geithie," is going to keep his day job, couldn't Obama at least have the wisdom to add Krugman to his team? Krugman should have been the first-round draft pick of any non-Conservative seeking to surround himself with the economic wisdom that exists in the country. Fix it, Obama, FIX IT!

20 Year Anniversary of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill

2009-03-24T13:16:00.000-07:00

"Gail, Please! Stick your hand in it!" by Investigative Journalist, Greg Palast

The petite Eskimo-Chugach woman gave me that you-dumb-ass-white-boy look.

"Gail, Gail. STICK YOUR DAMN HAND IN IT!"

She stuck it in, under the gravel of the beach at Sleepy Bay, her village's fishing ground. Gail's hand came up dripping with black, sickening goo. It could make you vomit. Oil from the Exxon Valdez.

It was already two years after the spill and Exxon had crowed that Mother Nature had happily cleaned up their stinking oil mess for them. It was a lie. But the media wouldn't question the bald-faced bullshit. And who the hell was going to investigate Exxon's claim way out in some godforsaken Native village in the Prince William Sound?

So I convinced the Natives to fly the lazy-ass reporters out to Sleepy Bay on rented float planes to see the oil that Exxon said wasn't there.

The reporters looked, but didn't see it, because it was three inches under their feet, under the shingle rock of the icy beach. Gail pulled out her hand and now the whole place smelled like a gas station. The network crews wanted to puke.

And now, with their eyes open, they saw the oil, the vile feces- colored smear across the glaciated ridge faces, the poisonous "bathtub ring" that ran for miles and miles at the high tide level. And it's still there. Less for sure. But twenty years later, IT'S STILL THERE, GODDAMNIT. And I want YOU, dear reader, to stick your hand in it. I want YOU, President Obama, to stick your hand in it before you blithely fulfill your Palin-esque campaign promise for a little more offshore drilling.

Tuesday marks the 20th Anniversary of the Exxon Valdez grounding and the smearing of 1,200 miles of Alaska's coastline with its oil.

It also marks the 20th Anniversary of a lie. Lots of lies: catalogued in a four-volume investigation of the disaster; four volumes you'll never see. I wrote that report, with my team of investigators working with the Natives preparing fraud and racketeering charges against Exxon. You'll never see the report because Exxon lawyers threatened the Natives, "Mention the f-word [fraud] and you'll never get a dime" of compensation to clean up the villages. The Natives agreed to drop the fraud charge - and Exxon stiffed them on the money. You're surprised, right?

Doubtless, for the 20th Anniversary of the Great Spill, the media will schlep out that old story that the tanker ran aground because its captain was drunk at the wheel. Bullshit. Yes, the captain was "three sheets to the wind" - but sleeping it off below-decks. The ship was in the hands of the third mate who was driving blind. That is, the Exxon Valdez' Raycas radar system was turned off; turned off because it was busted and had been busted since its maiden voyage. Exxon didn't want to spend the cash to fix it. So the man at the helm, electronically blindfolded, drove it up onto the reef.

So why the story of the drunken skipper? Because it lets Exxon off the hook: Calling it a case of "drunk driving" turns the disaster into a case of human error, not corporate penny-pinching.

Indeed, the "human error" tale was the hook used by the Bush-stacked Supreme Court to slash the punitive damages awarded against Exxon by 90%, from $5 billion, to half a billion for 30,000 Natives and fishermen. Chief Justice John Roberts erased almost all of the payment due with the la-dee-dah comment, "What more can a corporation do?"

Well, here's what they could have done: Besides fix the radar, Exxon could have set out equipment to contain the spill. Containing a spill is actually quite simple. Stick a rubber skirt around the oil slick and suck it back up. The law requires it and Exxon promised it.

So, when the tanker hit, where was the rubber skirt and where was the sucker? Answer: The rubber skirt, called "boom" - was a fiction. Exxon promised to have it sitting right there near the Native village at Bligh Reef. The oil company fulfilled that promised the cheap way: they lied.

And the lie was engineered at the very top. After the spill, we got our hands on a series of memos describing a secret meeting of chief executives of Exxon and its oil company partners, including ARCO, a unit of British Petroleum. In a meeting of these oil chieftains held in April 1988, ten months before the spill, Exxon rejected a plea from T.L. Polasek, the Vice-President of its Alaska shipping operations, to provide the oil spill containment equipment required by law. Polasek warned the CEOs it was "not possible" to contain a spill in the mid- Sound without the emergency set-up.

Exxon angrily vetoed ARCO's suggestion that the oil companies supply the rubber skirts and other materiel that would have prevented the spill from spreading, virtually eliminating the spill's damage.

Regulations state that no tanker may leave the Alaska port of Valdez without the "sucker" equipment, called a "containment barge," at the ready. Exxon signed off on the barge's readiness. But, that night twenty years ago, the barge was in dry-dock with its pumps locked up under arctic ice. By the time it arrived at the tanker, half a day after the spill, the oil was well along its thousand-mile killing path.

Natives watched as the now-unstoppable oil overwhelmed their islands. Eyak Native elder Henry Makarka saw an otter rip out its own eyes burning from oil residue. Henry, pointing down a waterside dead-zone, told me, in a mix of Alutiiq and English, "If I had a machine gun, I'd shoot every one of those white sons-of-bitches."

Exxon promised - promised - to pay the Natives and other fisherman for all their losses. The Chief of the Natives at Nanwalek lost his boat to bankruptcy. His village, like other villages, Native and non- Native, decayed into alcoholism. The Mayor of fishing port Cordova killed himself, citing Exxon in his suicide note.

On the island village of Chenega, Gail Evanoff's uncle Paul Kompkoff was hungry. Until the spill, he had lived on seal meat, razor clams and salmon Chenegans would catch, and on deer they hunted. The clams and salmon were declared deadly and the deer, not able to read the government warning signs, ate the poisoned vegetation and died.

The President of Exxon, Lee Raymond, helicoptered into Chenega for a photo op. He promised to compensate the Natives and all fishermen for their losses, and Exxon would thoroughly clean the beaches.

Uncle Paul told the Exxon chief of his hunger. The oil company, sensing PR disaster, shipped in seal meat to the isolated village. The cans were marked, "NOT FIT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION." Uncle Paul said, "Zoo food."

Paul didn't want a seal in a can. He wanted a boat to go fishing, to bring the village back to life.

Two years after the spill, Otto Harrison, General Manager of Exxon USA, told Evanoff and me to forget about a fishing boat for Uncle Paul. Exxon was immortal and Natives were not. The company would litigate for 20 years.

They did. Only now, two decades on, Exxon has finally begun its payout of the court award - but only ten cents on the dollar. And Uncle Paul's boat? No matter. Paul's dead. So are a third of the fishermen owed the money.

Lee Raymond, President of Exxon at the time of the spill - and its President when the company made the secret decision to do without oil spill equipment, retired in April 2006. The company awarded him a $400 million retirement bonus, more than double the bonuses received by all AIG executives combined.

Gail's oily hand never made it to national television. The networks were distracted with another oil story.

After sailing back to Chenega from Sleepy Bay, I sat with Uncle Paul, watching the smart bombs explode over Baghdad. Gulf War I had begun.

Uncle Paul was silent a long time. The generals on CNN pointed to the burning oil fields near Basra. Paul said, "I guess we're all some kind of Native now."

Taxpayer Bailout Money Fattens AIG Bank Accounts

2009-03-16T08:57:00.000-07:00

$450 million of American taxpayer money is slated to go to bonuses rewarding executives of the failed, American International Group. AIG took no higher moral stance than any other bailed-out company in refusing to award merit-based year-end bonuses to those who contributed to their companies' downfall.

"It's in their business contracts," said National Economic Council President, Larry Summers (of "Women aren't smart enough to succeed at math and science" Harvard Pres. infamy). "Government can't do anything to stop them," he exclaimed, while rolling over and revealing his pale yellow underbelly.

Now Obama administration officials are worried about a backlash, yada, yada, yada. Well, damned right, they should be worried about a backlash. Financial industry executive bonuses are designated as merit-based. No merit equals no bonus, right? Doen't FAILED COMPANY = No bonus? Doesn't U.S. Taxpayers Have to Bail out Your Sorry Butts = No bonus? Is there justice to be had? In out country's history, such reprobates would have been put in wooden stocks and spat upon. In the 21st century, while the country is falling into abject economic disaster, they receive piles of said victims' money.

What Are You Doing to Weather the Current Financial Storm?

2009-03-01T08:21:00.000-08:00

We’ve stopped all non-essential buying. I’ve been selling merchandise on eBay (extra money—whoo-hoo!). We moved our five-year-old from a private school ($500 a month!) to a good-quality public school (free, albeit with lots of mandatory fund-raisers). We eat vegetarian once or twice a week, with one of those nights being a beans-and-rice night (with homemade cornbread, it’s not so bad). And we are actually completely eating up our leftovers (we used to view them with condescension—now we look at them as eating opportunities). My husband takes leftovers for his lunch every day, instead of eating out (we have yummier-than-average leftovers, since I am a fanatic foodie), and we eat out as a family only once per week, and that is lunch, which is cheaper than supper.

We make trips to the local library once or twice a month to borrow books rather than buying them (who needs the clutter anyway?), and have found it fun to go online, check the catalog of books available, and put a desired book on hold. When the library gets it, you get an e-mail. All you have to do is swoop in and pick it up. Renewals on-line make it all easy, too. Libraries ROCK!

Lastly, we own a small shack in the mountains of NC (across the country from where we live), and we have been gloriously forgiving of the current tenants, who pay the rent intermittently at best, because we know the "bird in the hand" adage to be true (their rent money helps us pay our property taxes in California—we are grateful for that). Whew. These have been changes that we have consciously made (so far, painlessly).

Now, what are you and your family been doing to cut back financially? Has it been successful?

Name That Ice Cream Contest Winners

2009-02-28T15:31:00.000-08:00

Ben & Jerry's ice cream company has created the "Yes Pecan!" ice cream flavor for Barack Obama. Due to the new flavor's popularity, they asked for suggestions from the public for flavors to commemorate his predecessor, George W. Bush . . .

Here are some of their flavor-ite responses:

—Grape Depression
—Abu Grape
—Cluster Fudge
—Nut'n Accomplished
—Iraqi Road
—Chock 'n Awe
—WireTapioca
—Impeach Cobbler
—Impeach Mint
—Heck of a Job, Brownie!
—Chunky Monkey in Chief
—George Bush Doesn't Care About Dark Chocolate
—WMDelicious
—Guantanmallow
—Neocon Politan
—RockyRoad to Fascism
—The Reese's-cession
—Cookie D'oh!
—Housing Crunch
—Nougalar Proliferation
—Death by Chocolate... and Torture
—Freedom Vanilla Ice Cream
—Chocolate Chip On My Shoulder
—"You're Shi**ing In My Mouth And Calling It A" Sundae
—Credit Crunch
—Mission Pecanplished
—Good Riddance You Lousy Motherf**ker... Swirl
—Country Pumpkin
—Chocolate Chimp
—Bloody Sundae
—Caramel Preemptive Stripe
—I broke the law and am responsible for the deaths of thousands
...with nuts

ABTFO: End of Iraq War Now Has a Date

2009-02-27T10:11:00.000-08:00

President Obama announced a definitive end to the Iraqi combat troops--19 months out. The catch? Residual troop presence--non-combat troops--will still be a whopping 50,000. Am I thrilled? Yes. To have any progress at all and a clear deadline is a good thing. Is it exactly what I was hoping? More immediate withdrawal, small troop presence? Nope. I'll take what I can get, though.

Don't forget the Cost of War (CostofWar.com). $600 Billion U.S. so far. $341 Million a day. Not that on August 31, 2010, U.S. cost will be zero. But the difference between 50K troops and 160K troops is a major reduction in cost. And, at hem, human life cost, which cannot be quantified.

Here's what it looks like in part:

American Military Casualties—4,252 (from AntiWar.com)

American Military Injured—31,089 (from AntiWar.com)

Iraqi Civilian Casualties—90,000 to 99,000 (estimate from IraqBodyCount.org)

Another Beautiful Thing From Obama (ABFTO): his promise to end the war against Iraq kept. Imperfectly, but kept.

Tumerica Dishes on the Oscar Night Dresses 2009

2009-02-25T07:20:00.000-08:00

Best Dressed and Worst: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Every year, I do a snarky, opinion-filled piece commenting on the Oscar night dresses (and sometimes tuxedos). It's such fun and usually gets me way more hits than my, at hem, political commentary--understandably so. If you can't say something nice, come sit by me and all that. Don't forget to register your differences of opinion below.

Most Delicious
Amy Adams
Spectacular dress, regal and breath-taking. Loved everything about her look. The vibrant, unabashed red, the porcelain goddess skin. Fabulous. The necklace is to-die-for and I love how contrasty it is with the red--why not? And would you look at the cut of this dress? Scrumptious. Amy--you were marvelous in Enchanted. My five-year-old and I adored you. Could there be a more beautiful woman on the planet than Amy Adams was Oscar night?

Most Brazenly Beautiful
Viola Davis
It takes a goddess to pull off a bold gold lame look with falls and falls of drape and to do it with aplomb and delight. Davis has done it and then some. Her skin looks yummy with this color and she suits the attitude perfectly. I love her in this look.

Best Princess on Earth

Anne Hathaway

Anne Hathaway knows how to pick a dress. She's got the regal bearing and the pale ethereal looks but could easily gild the lily and go overboard with the princess thing. Instead, every year, she chooses the perfect look. Remember last year in bright red? Wow! And this number? The color is understated, but the texture, styling, intricacy are not. Perfect elegance. Anne Hathaway wins also for consistently best look.

Most Beautiful Woman in Least Interesting Dress

Angelina Jolie
Truly, there is probably not a more beautiful woman on the planet. And frankly, if I looked like that, I would not feel the need to flaunt anything at all. Jolie's serene look of confidence and happiness takes her a long way. That's why she can get away with wearing the most boring dress at the Oscars and still look wonderful. It ain't the dress. It's who's inside it. Did not love her bright green ornaments, although I did admire the verve that went into choosing them.

The Dress I Most Want to Borrow

Marian Cotillard

If someone had described this dress to me--midnight indigo sequined bodice and black tulle skirt--I would have thought ick. But au contraire, this dress is heavenly, dreamy. Cotillard looks spectacular. And mind if I take the dress out for a spin sometime--and maybe borrow the limo while I have it?

The Only One Who Loves Her Look Is Me (and My Five-Year-Old)

Tilda Swinton

Tilda Swinton makes my head swoon. If I were ever to be gay, I would love her. I love her sense of style, I love the way she walks, her voice, her scary wickedness in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. She can do no wrong in my book. Now, Swinton takes a lot of flack for her taste in Oscar looks. Most folks don't get her. I get her and I could just eat her up. My daughter and I loved this crazy look--one that would not look right on anyone else but is the essence of Swinton. Bravo for going your own way. It is a good way.

What Was She Thinking?

Natalie Portman

Now I am a huge fan of Natalie Portman's. I watch anything she is in, knowing I am in good hands. I think Portman is the Meryl Streep of her generation--and with good reason. But sadly, Portman is not as gifted in the getting dressed department. While this is a lovely dress--my little girl went ga-ga over it--the color is mismatched with Portman's yellow undertone skin. She would have looked smashing in the same dress in a shade of Irish green. Something Spring or Autumnal. But cool, bubblegum pink is not the right color for a yellow-undertone person. I know--that's me, too. I can't wear this color. She should have loaned this dress to Jessica Biel, who would have been fab in it. Sorry, hon, your talent makes up for any lack.

Miss Perfect Does It Again

Sarah Jessica Parker

Parker has more style in her pinkie toe than most of us have in our wildest dreams. And this look is no exception. Frothy, voluptuous, spectacular in every way. She's the diva with the mostest, style-wise. Everyone was blown away by this look, though I couldn't help wondering, snarkily, how many gel pads had to fit in there to get that kinda cleavage. Whatever it took, the look was worth it. Bravo, Parker, you belle of the ball, you!

Kid Who Thinks Too Much of Herself

Miley Cyrus

Sorry, Cyrus, but this is an event for big kids. Or at least those with acting chops, not just celebrities of any ilk. Sure, that's a beautiful dress, though, I have to admit, it's a bit over the top even if it were on someone who is actually statuesque and who does not have a head the size of a pumpkin. But couldn't you at least dress in, well, something more apropos for your age? No, I don't mean a prom dress, but something less froufy, showy, and 40-something diva-ish than this? Who are you fooling anyway? Maybe your daddy liked the dress, but his achy-breaky taste is suspect.

ABTFO: High-Speed Rail Corridor Designations

2009-02-18T12:57:00.001-08:00

[Click the map to see it larger. ]

This is the proposed siting for the new high-speed rail sought by the Obama administration as part of the Stimulus Package. Not everyone benefits (Las Vegas is bummed they aren't slated for a link to LA, and the whole west is out of luck), but for many millions of us, this arrangement would be brilliant. I live over on the west coast link, which would allow speedy access from San Diego all the way up to the Bay Area and Sacramento. This would be huge!

ABTFO: Lots of Funding for High-speed Rail in the US

2009-02-17T13:17:00.000-08:00

Somehow, long about the time the late Henry Ford was about to redraw the future of the world with his horseless carriages and assembly lines, Ford company patsies were dispatched to decimatd the American rail system. Up until then, the American rail system had been the envy of the world. I'm not making this up. Ford's minions systematically attacked anything to do with trains and railways—to force his competition out of the arena, ensuring the dominance of the solo-powered vehicle. Ford succeeded, and the world moved gleeful toward its doom.

Now, President Obama makes peace by righting some of the wrongs of the past, bill by bill. Tucked into the Stimulus Package is a chunk o' money for high-speed rail--$8 billion now, and perhaps another $1 billion a year for the next five years included in the 2010 budget, to be outlined next week.

Now that rail has lots of money to spend, you'd think that would make our railway future look bright. In fact, the biggest first obstacle is the freight lines that control traffic, especially in the northeast. Surely, this can be overcome.

Once upon a time, FDR helped the railroads; now Obama carries on the legacy, kicked up a few notches.

Another Beautiful Thing From Obama (ABTFO).

[Photo above of a high-speed train in Taiwan]

The Esqueness of Kafkaesque: What's Your Esque?

2009-02-16T14:50:00.000-08:00

My friend, Dal, former golf-pro and now full-time thinker sent me a link to a long, verbose, dense book review of a book about Kafka--not sure if it was about Kafka or the misused word, kafkaeque, or a social treatise about how modern life has become kafkaesque. I couldn't bring myself to comment with any degree of seriousness. And I admit to never having used the word kafkaesque in my life--have you? Here was my reply:

And there are the literarily-timid like me, who would never deign to use the word Kafkaesque for fear of using it badly. And don’t think it’s just Murphy’s Lawesque of me to spout such pessimism, who, with my slightly Reubenesque figure and my Titianesque hair, stuck in this Danteesque inferno of self-doubt, Freudesque egotistical whisperings, that push my mind into a Proustesque hyper-fascination with details, sometimes inspired by anti-bureaucratic leanings, railing against Pavlovesque knee-jerk responses to media-supplied truths, however Thoreauesque my thoughts might be when outdoors, sadly, they disintegrate into Woody Allenesque thoughts when indoors. Think I’ll go eat some chocolate to make myself feel better about this lack of true originality. Or would that be too Cathyesque to do so?

Despondex: Hope for Those Suffering from ECD

2009-02-13T07:49:00.000-08:00

Annoyed by someone around you who has Excessive Cheerfulness Disorder (ECD)? Now, you can recommend they get help.

Another Beautiful Thing from Obama (ABTFO): Homeless Woman Given Home

2009-02-11T12:07:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, she was homeless. Today she has a home. Yesterday, she was unknown. Now her name is on the lips of people across the country. Henrietta Hughes. Has a nice ring to it. Ms. Hughes asked President Obama (also has a nice ring to it) for help with her homelessness at a town hall meeting in Florida where Obama was drumming up support for his stimulus package. She and her son, who was a computer programmer, lost their home when the son got laid off. They have been living in their small car and hanging out in parks for "a long time."

Just so happened that the wife of the Florida State Representative, Ms. Chene Thompson, heard Ms. Hughes call for help and offered a solution: her own first home.

See Ms. Hughes pleas here. This made me cry. And another happy ending.

Holy Toledo! This Recession is a Zebra of a Whole ‘Nother Stripe!

2009-02-09T09:53:00.001-08:00

The green line is the current job loss situation in the US measured over the last year. The other two lines are prior recessions here, from which the country quickly recovered. The current recession looks like a complete alien compared to the other two mere blips. This chart came from Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's blog, called, The Gavel.

Bless Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

2009-02-04T12:21:00.000-08:00

Poor Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg has been admitted to the hospitalized today after a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. She's been a Supreme Court Justice for 15 years, and as an appointee by then President Bill Clinton, was only the second female Justice and the first Jewish one. She has come down on the side of Labor, and equal rights for women and men repeatedly throughout her career. Forbes listed has her as one of the top 100 most powerful women in the world for the last two years.

Blessings to Justice Ginsburg and here's hoping she makes a smooth recovery.

Sad to speculate, but if she is unable to continue in the highest court, here's hoping President Obama will appoint someone whose political stance is equal to hers. And naturally, I also hope such an appointee would be a woman.

What Is Your Happiness?

2009-02-03T12:47:00.001-08:00

My friend, Dal Raiford, who was a stellar golf professional, now retired and donning the mantle of thinker and question-asker, who is also utterly unafraid to delve into the thorniest issues, brought up the subject of happiness. Now, I, like a lot of other people, do have opinions about happiness. But, in a deeper sense, I am not sure what “happiness” is really. I suspect happiness has to be in-the-moment or not at all. I don’t think you can look at a larger frame of time and go, “Oh, I was happy then.” Were you really? For the entire period—every bit of it? And was that happiness dependent on circumstances or other people? Then it likely wasn’t really happiness—or was it?

Probably the happiness of Zen Buddhists or of Eckhart Tolle is the most we humans can achieve: detachment from expectations of the future or delusions from the past and perfect presence in the moment, responsive to and utterly aware, right now. Are we happy right now?

I think I’ve felt those moments of right-now happiness the most when I have been outside rather than inside. And they occur often when I am dancing (it’s hard to be grumpy while dancing—just try it!). I also have many happy moments while eating. And those happy moments occur a lot when I am with others, although they also occur alone. A perfect event for happiness would involve food and dancing outdoors among people, but with opportunities to be alone.

But that's just silly speculation. Of course, happy moments could be anywhere under any conditions.

Here's what Dal later said, "I suggest: Happiness exists only as memory. In any moment we may feel joy, which I consider a higher state than feeling happy. In my mind, recalling those moments is real happiness. Is that a semantics challenge?"

Under what conditions do you find yourself being most happy? What does happiness feel like to you?

The Happiness Project at Slate.com

Groundhog Always See His Shadow in Sunny SoCal

2009-02-03T10:05:00.000-08:00

Sorry, folks who are mired in the frozen Northeast. Sorry, folks who are becoming ice cubes in the bitter Mid-West. Sorry, Alaskans and Canadians. We lucky denizens of Southern California have been knee deep in blossoms for at least a week or two. Spring usually starts in early February, but this year it was a tad early. With almost every day sunny, how do you know it's Spring? When the deciduous trees in your neighborhood (both of them) blossom. Simple. Do you hate us yet?

Lilly Ledbetter: Another Beautiful Thing from Obama

2009-01-29T11:12:00.000-08:00

President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair-pay Act today--to help ensure women receive the same pay as men for the same work, by allowing extra time for a woman to sue her employer for wage discrimination. Oh, happy day!

Ellen Bravo, of the Miami Herald, claims women in the U.S. made 76 cents for every dollar earned by men doing the same job in 2003. Other gender gap estimates put it at 75.5 cents per dollar (US Census Bureau) or as high as 83.8 center per dollar (US Department of Labor). That there has been any difference in wages in this country for women and men performing the same job is shameful, much less a difference somewhere between 20 and 25%. This extreme inequity should have been made explicitly illegal a long time ago.

Lilly Ledbetter, the woman for whom the new law is named, worked for Goodyear Tires for 19 years as a supervisor. She did not find out about the huge wage discrepancy for the men who held the same level at her company until she was close to retirement. Her case made it to the Supreme Court, which promptly threw it out, saying she should have filed when the she first started working for Goodyear (long before she knew about the discrimination). Decisions like that displace the thorny issue of fairness and embed in a distraction like timing. I thought the Supreme Court’s raison d’être was thorny issues, not smokescreens.

Today, there is some justice and cause for women in this country to smile. Another beautiful thing from Obama’s administration. I'm going to be counting them and look forward to many more.

First Iceland, and then the U.S.?

2009-01-26T07:05:00.000-08:00

The government of Iceland fell. Went kerplop. Disintegrated into so much slush and rubble. Melted away. Died.

Three months ago, Iceland's currency, the krona, collapsed, along with some of their major banks and their stock market. (Hey--that last part sounds familiar.) Some of its banks were then nationalized, and the country limped along.

Then, thousands of protesters assembled, demanding that Prime Minister Geir Haarde resign (which he refused to do, but he did announce he would not run for re-election due to health issues). But then, his Commerce Minister resigned, slamming on the brakes of the administration's giant snowmobile.

Meanwhile, the IMF promised $827 million to pump into the frozen Icelandic economy right away, after inflation had reached 12 percent. Then, $1.2 billion more is expected in installments from the IMF, as well as the burgeoning snowball of aid from its neighbors, Norway, Finland, Sweden, and Denmark, contributing another $2.5 billion.

Still scrambling for money, Iceland has turned to Russia, with a request for $5.5 billion. Iceland, one of the founding members of NATO, and Russia make strange bedfellows, although Iceland has sworn the deal, if it goes through, will not include Russian access to its strategically helpful airbase.

Next stop? Potential national bankruptcy. Yes, an entire country can go bankrupt, just like you or I or a business can. This all depends on if Iceland can recover with the aid of all the billions being pumped into its economy from outside.

How did the meltdown (sorry, couldn't resist) happen? Much like in other countries suffering from melting economies right now--banking system privatization, greed, and debt to foreign countries.

While I don't have the international financial chops to be able to predict how an economic meltdown in Iceland can presage similar meltdowns in other countries, reading about Iceland gives me the cold shivers.

Isn't This a Beautiful Sight?

2009-01-21T14:20:00.001-08:00

A Little Something Superficial But Fun: Michelle Obama's Inauguration Outfit:

2009-01-20T11:25:00.000-08:00

Amid all the splendor and joy that was today's inauguration, as a fashion-conscious gal, I couldn't help but be curious about what Michelle Obama would be wearing. Please indulge me the luxury and fun of talking about something completely superficial for a change from the usual punditry and angst.

Didn't the First Lady look spectacular? Like a goddess. I gasped when I saw the outfit (designed by the Cuban-born Isabel Toledo). Chartreuse metallic brocade tea-length coat over a matching empire-waist, beribboned sheath dress and matching cashmere cardigan. And the sparkly brooch at the top of the sheath dress? Magnificent. The final, ultimate cool touch was the light green leather gloves (by J. Crew). She looked splendid, don't you think?

Bye-bye Bad Bush, Hello Obama!

2009-01-17T09:16:00.000-08:00

Countdown to Obama!

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Say Good-bye to the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Policy for Gays in the US Military

2009-01-15T06:59:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time, there was a new president. He felt unsure of his powers. He worried about getting mired in a problem that might become too big for him. He did not like the no gays in the military thing and knew in his heart of hearts that it was unfair. But did he dare make a stink about it? Nope. He caved. Well, a little. He and his team came up with a compromise. It became known as the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. If you were an officer in any of the U.S. armed services, you were not allowed to ask another service member about sexual orientation. If you were gay, you were silenced. If it became known you were gay, you'd get the steel-toed boot. Ugh.

Thus, by a roundabout way, gay service men and women were allowed entree. It was a big improvement over the longstanding ban on gays in the military, but it was a fuzzy policy at best. That president was Bill Clinton, and the year was 1993.

Fast forward to today. New president coming in, one who is blessedly realistic about the many flavas of identity in the real world. This president aims to get it right and on the campaign trail, promised to overturn the policy. When asked recently, Obama's press secretary, Robert Gibbs, made an unequivocal answer of "Yes" to the question, "Will the Obama administration get rid of the 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy?"

Gay Rights Leader & Bishop, Gene Robinson, to Recite Inauguration Prayer

2009-01-12T11:10:00.000-08:00

After much ado about Obama's stinky pick of anti-gay pastor Rick Warren to conduct the Inauguration invocation, Obama did the yin-yang thing. He chose a renowned gay bishop, Gene Robinson, to perform the Inauguration opening prayer.

My first thought was, oh, Obama is throwing crumbs to the LGBT community. But on second thought, you know what? I'll take the crumbs, however they may come. At least Obama made the effort. Put on a little lipstick before heading out the door. I'll take it. In fact, I feel downright jubilant about it. So I wanted to find out more about Bishop Robinson. Here's a quickie run-down:

His parents were poor tenant farmers in Kentucky
He was severely ill and partially paralyzed at birth, but overcame his disabilities
He was married to a woman and then ordained an Episcopal priest shortly thereafter
He has two daughters, with whom he is close
He and his wife divorced, but remain good friends
He has been with his current partner, Mark Andrew (whom he later married), for 20 years
He became a bishop in 2003 and his diocese is in New Hampshire
He is the first openly gay, non-celibate bishop in any denomination in the U.S.
Has been in treatment for alcoholism
His story was featured in a Sundance documentary, For the Bible Tells Me So
And now, he has been chosen to give the Inaugural prayer for the 44th POTUS. Yeah!

I wish Bishop Robinson well and look forward to hearing his prayer.

Renowned Sculptor, Robert Graham, Beloved Husband of Anjelica Huston, Dies

2009-01-08T08:17:00.001-08:00

Robert Graham, Mexican born sculptor, whose work graces public spaces from Central Park, Detroit, Missouri, to Washington, D.C., was memorialized in L.A. yesterday. Graham was married to actor, Anjelica Huston, where they lived happily together at Venice Beach, California.

When Graham's death, at age 70, was announced last week, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he and his wife, Maria Shriver, were "deeply saddened." Attendees at the funeral included family friends, Sharon Stone, Harrison Ford, and Jack Nicholson.

[Above left: Graham's sculpture of Frankin Delano Roosevelt at the FDR Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Below: Charlie "Bird" Parker sculpture at the American Jazz Museum in Kansas City, Missouri]

Artist Robert Graham's Website

Eight U.S. Citizens and One Foreign National Kicked off Plane. Their Crime? Looking Muslim.

2009-01-02T05:00:00.000-08:00

Update: AirTran apologized, 01/03. Just when things look litigious, they belatedly cough up an "I'm sorry."

Three kids, ages seven, four, and two. An anesthesiologist. A lawyer. Mothers. Nine people total were forcibly removed from an AirTran flight from Washington, D.C. to Orlando, Florida yesterday. What did they do to deserve such treatment? Talk about bombs? That's one taboo subject that will get anyone the boot from an airplane. Threaten the pilot or flight crew? Heck, no. This family did the same thing you and I have done over the course of our many hours of flight time on airplanes. They discussed which seats were safer. And they appeared to be Muslim.

I can tell you honestly, my husband and I have had the same kind of conversation numerous times. Well, if you sit in the rear, you are more likely to survive a catastrophe. No, if you sit close to the jets, you'll do better. And on, and on. Who hasn't speculated about these things? Normal conversation and part of the patter of flying. We all have our jitters. Talking about it helps. Well, not if you look Muslim. Then, it gets you and your entire family--children and all--kicked off a plane.

AirTran was unapologetic when confronted with their blatant racial and cultural prejudice. The most they would admit to was a "misunderstanding." For that misunderstanding, 102 passengers were delayed two hours, nine people were victimized, and three little kids learned about the real nature of prejudice--sorry lessons for all. Lastly, AirTran refused to rebook the family after the FBI cleared them of any security breech.

If I could, I would send an "I'm Sorry" card to the family, and tell them not everyone is like those foolish and ignorant people whose bigotry they experienced. AirTran owes them an apology and I hope the attorney in the family wins a major victory in a civil lawsuit.

Good-bye, 2008 and Bring on the Happy Baby of 2009

2008-12-31T07:21:00.000-08:00

Good-bye, Republican administration that administrated Hell across the world, from Iraq to polar bears

Good-bye greedy Wall Street companies that milked Main Street like a cash cow

Good-bye despair

Hello, Hope

May 2009 bring us much to be grateful for

Wishing you and yours a peaceful and healthy 2009

[Photo: My daughter, Jaclyn, when she was six months old]

Merry Chrismas from Tumerica and Her Family

2008-12-24T10:26:00.000-08:00

Artwork by my five-year-old daughter.

A Cappella Christmas Cheer

2008-12-22T13:27:00.000-08:00

This will cheer you up if nothing else will . . . the famous a cappella group, Straight No Chaser, singing a mashed-up 12 Days of Christmas. Brilliant! And safe for work.

Our 2008 Christmas Tree: Harbinger of our Financial Outlook

2008-12-17T13:14:00.000-08:00

As my hubby brought in and stood our new Christmas tree in the living room, it dawned on me—our tree, as in so many years past, perfectly symbolizes our financial outlook. This year, it's slightly crooked, has some holes in it, is ungrounded, and definitely humble. On the other hand, it's a lush, healthy green, and it optimistically smells like a pine forest and is covered with the most brilliant and fun, mostly handmade ornaments. Could be worse, really.

Now where is YOUR tree this year?

This Shoe is for Bush

2008-12-17T10:32:00.000-08:00

When mere words cannot express . . .

Christmas Party Fancy Apparel

2008-12-15T11:15:00.000-08:00

Ta-da! Here I am at a Christmas party this last Friday in my fabulous 1950s vintage dress (thanks to eBay, it cost a whopping $18.50), and my $50 sparkly shoes. The black, beaded handbag is also vintage, and cost around $20--also on eBay. When you troll eBay for bargain party clothing, don't forget to check for vintage--you can get a LOT for your money and get a look no one else will have. (I usually buy one holiday dress each Christmas, and wear it to every party I go to. This one is a keeper, though.)

"This Is a Goodbye Kiss, You Dog!"

2008-12-14T16:56:00.001-08:00

Who among us has not wanted to do the same thing? Lob a gratifying dirty shoe at the President of the United States of America? Surprisingly, Bush turns out to be a good dodge (or maybe not surprisingly--he has loads of dodging experience, doesn't he?). Still, mighty embarrassing for the POTUS to get snubbed by the leaders of foreign nations one month, and shoe-whacked the next. Even if you've seen this before, it's fun to watch it again.

Rest in Peace, Betty Page

2008-12-12T09:50:00.000-08:00

The gorgeous goddess of pin–up has passed away today at age 85. Her look inspired millions and she became a cult legend, starting in the 1950s. Page was a pioneer of her time, and was photographed in her prime by thousands of amateur photobugs, taking 10s of thousands of black-and-white photos of her. Said painter Olivia de Berardinis, who painted portraits of Page,

There was a passion play unfolding in her mind. What some see as a bad-girl image was in fact a certain sensual freedom and play-acting - it was part of the fun of being a woman.

Bless you, Betty. We will miss you.

The Opposite of Manglish: Asian Text as Art Background That Might Bite

2008-12-10T07:28:00.000-08:00

L ooking for a beautiful, exotic graphic of Chinese text to adorn the cover of your science journal? A stalwart and universally respected journal, with a cover that proclaims the fortitude of your publication that features China prominently? Well, look no further than an advertising handbill for a strip club that extols the virtues of "Hot Housewives in action!" Here's how it all went down:

Editors had hoped to find an elegant Chinese poem to grace the cover of a special issue, focusing on China, of the MaxPlanckForschung journal, but instead of poetry they ran a text effectively proclaiming "Hot Housewives in action!" on the front of the third-quarter edition. Their "enchanting and coquettish performance" was highly recommended.

When I lived in Japan, the reverse happened all over the place. Cool stretches of English language text adorned everything from billboards to undergarments, a la Engrish.com. I had a pair of workout shorts that exclaimed "Octopus Army," as well as a rice cooker that declared, "All Ways. A life wrapped in tenderness will make your heart noble." (Actually, the last one makes some sort of poetic sense, but still.) It was all about the visual effect. The neato factor. No one—other than the foreign community in Japan—was going around actually reading these graphical bits. They were decor.

Now, in a world that is looking with increasing reverence to the East for its cues on what's cool, Westerners see more and more token snippets of Japanese or Chinese adorning our goods. Until recently, you could walk in any Trader Joe's grocery store and buy a package of Japanese rice crackers with a giant character for the word "woman" on the front. I even went so far as to point out that the package contained nothing to do with women and that surely the word for woman was unrelated to snack crackers, but the clerk I spoke with only gave a shrug as if to say, "We don't care. It's Asian. As long as it sells." In other words, we are culturally superior and therefore need not worry ourselves with sensitivity or respect. Much less homework.

After the Max Planck Institute debacle, though, I hope this cultural myopia will finally go away. At least get text checked by a native before sending a product off to a wide audience, or as Confucius say, "Egg on face will be your own."

Bye-Bye OJ: One Less Murderer on the Streets

2008-12-05T10:42:00.000-08:00

Rewind to 1995. I was working in a fancy-schmancy resort. It was the day of The Verdict on the Trial of the Century. The day the jurors in the highly publicized O.J. Simpson murder trial promised—after much delay and mistrial antics and outrageous difficulty putting together an "impartial" jury—to return a verdict. In marched the jurors. In my office we all dropped what we were doing and gathered around the radio . . .

Not guilty.

Huh?

Not guilty.

Waitjustaminutefercryingoutloud! Everyone in the country probably saw that aerial chase scene in which the white Ford Bronco sped down the highway. Everyone, from the families of the murdered Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman, to the average Jane and Joe on the street KNEW intuitively that O.J. had done the double-murder. Evidence and logic and any other sort of reasoning (plenty of DNA evidence) backed up the intuitive sense. And why would an innocent person flee with such bravado, anyway?

So O.J. walked, maybe because the jurors just wanted to get the heck home. Later, a civil case was filed in which the verdict was guilty, but without criminal penalties to back it up and with O.J.'s supposed inability to repay, the families who were victimized by him haven't received much if anything by way of retribution.

“one day he is going to make another big mistake”

All that time, I thought, O.J. is so crazy and so ballsy that one day he is going to make another big mistake and find himself in jail for real this time. He's thinking of himself as above the law. He got away with murder, why couldn't he get away with, well, anything he pleased? (This manic-rampant-egotism worked for George W. Bush, too). When Simpson was arrested for armed robbery recently, I cheered. Maybe this time, this time justice might be done—sideways, but a punishment nonetheless.

Something in his brazen flaunting of law and blustering bumbling If I Did It tell-all book efforts made me think he wanted to be caught—actually sought out some Karmic-payback. Now, Mr. Vile Double-murderer has been sentenced to 31 years in jail. Although he's eligible for parole in nine years, I feel at least some semblance of justice has been done. And there is always the possibility that when Simpson is put behind bars, his fellow inmates will mete out their version of karma and I, as a mother, knowing there is one less murdering monster on the streets, will be glad.