Cynthia McKinney on the economic crisis.
Monthly Archives: October 2008
Things I would like to do away with
A List:
1)Mrs. or Miss. Can’t we all be Ms.? For that matter, if I am filling out a form for say credit or even a fucking magazine subscription, why does my gender matter. Can’t we skip that whole box of questions and move on?
2)Uncomfortable underwear. Now I like my pretty girly undies, but there is no reason that pretty girly undies cant also be comfy. Same thing for bras. Why do I have to choose between wearable or pretty. And can we make some underwire that doesn’t jack up under my armpits and hurt? Like half an inch shorter with better sewing reinforcement would work to do that.
3)The gawd awful idea that school for children should start at the crack of ass. Kid gets on the bus at 6:30 am to be at school by 7:30. He’s exhausted (we had a mini meltdown this afternoon cause I told him he is going back to a 9pm bed time. You would think that I told him video games have been canceled FOREVER). Why can’t kids start school at the more reasonable 9am?
4)The idea that where you buy your groceries from makes you more morally righteous than everyone else. I’m talking to you- Whole Foods shoppers. It’s a fricken grocery chain started by a libertarian for fucks sake. Just because you overspend on produce does not make you the King of all that is Ethical! Just like people shopping at Walmart are not the scourge of the earth.
5) The lollipop head female ideal that has invaded Hollywood. Go watch some early Friends and check out the women that the guys dated. Still Hollywood pretty, but not severely, concentration camp style, undernourished. Some girls are slim by nature (Kyra Knightly) you can spot them because they don’t look like they need a neck brace. This is not true for most of the women in Hollywood or the world for that matter.
6) The stupid stereotyping done by “educated” liberals and conservatives alike that black kids don’t read or have books in their homes. If I have to hear one more jackass say that black kids are left to linger in the street while good kids like them read a book, I will punch someone in the face. A) It’s not true and B) How stocked is your public library with books where a black kid is the protagonist? Perhaps these kids that you don’t think read have already gone through every book available to them that has a character they can relate too.
7) Conversations that include phrasing like “Is Obama REALLY a black man, he’s only half” “Is Palin REALLY a feminist” “IS a transwoman/man REALLY a woman/man”. YES they are. You can quibble all you like with Obama’s condescending attitude towards poor black men or Palin’s anti-feminist views on abortion or birth control or transpeople’s different experiences from those of the majority of their gender. But people get to identify who they are themselves and you all are gonna have to suck it up and deal.
What do you want to do away with?
Pride of ownership
My father’s side of the family, the wealthy side of the family, made all their money in land. There was land gifted to them by some monarch or another when they first touched American soil back in the 1600s. Then there were various patches strewn about the west as the country expanded. My grandparents made their money investing in Bay Area real state long before it got crazy. Someone once told me that they bought their first house in Orinda for $5000 and eventually sold it for $500,000. They may just be family legend though.
Since I grew up with my dirt poor mother though, home ownership was something other people did. There was never going to be a time when Mom could have saved enough money for a down payment. We could barely pay the rent as it was. So the fact that my mom’s sister, and my favorite aunt, owns her own house is something I have always been proud of. It’s so foreign to me, the idea that you could paint walls whatever color or refinish kitchens to your liking without having a landlord breathing down your neck. Even the idea that NO ONE else in the world gets a key to your home without permission from you is foreign to me. And having credit passable enough to get a mortgage is inconcievable. You mean there are people in my family who actually make enough money to pay the bills every single month? Seriously?
When I get really stressed out and depressed. I draw houses. Actually I draw floor plans. And I’m pretty good. I always start out big, grand, with every amenity you can think of. And then I see how much of that grandness I can retain while shaving off square footage. This is what I get to do instead of owning a home.
So in this wreck of an economy, my little brother has been saving his money forever o buy a house. He makes very good money. He has good credit. He has a down payment, a stable job history, etc. I am almost as invested in him buying a house as I would be if it was my own house, just to know someone so close to me is capable of grabbing something so valuable and elusive. But Seattle is a tough market.
Bro makes an above average wage in just about any job market.
RQ Cooks- Roasted corn and squash soup + Finds a possible solution to homelessness
Ruth wandered off to band practice the other night while I was cooking dinner. When her bandmates asked how the whole having people take over your bedroom and small apartment thing went she said “Oh Elizabeth is at home right now making roasted corn and squash soup.” Now they want to know if they can have someone invade their home and make them food.
I am thinking the kid and I shall become traveling chefs. In exchange for a comfy bed and the cost of ingredients- you too can have me come make you food. I can cook for anyone- vegans, celiacs, every weird food allergy known to humankind, plus meat. Yummy yummy meat. Right now I’m trying to find a recipe for boneless leg of lamb that doesn’t require an oven and gets rid of the slight armpit taste that lamb sometimes has.
Anyone got a bed to spare?
But in the meantime- Roasted corn and squash soup.
This is spicy. Really really spicy. If you want less spice use less chipotle peppers and for god’s sake seed them first. I didn’t.
5 cups good veggie broth
5 cups winter squash or pumpkin (I used frozen winter squash which cut down on cooking time and eliminated the need to blend the soup- I highly recommend this trick)
half a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (if cooking wheat free make sure you check the label)
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon grated ginger
2 or 3 cups unsweetened soy milk
5 cups roasted corn (about 5 ears) or a large bag of frozen corn. We had some lovely leftover corn that had been roasted on the barbque so it was all smokey. I supplemented with frozen corn roasted in the toaster oven.
salt and pepper to taste
sour cream (tofutti sour supreme is fine for the vegans) or a good farmers cheese to garnish
In large stock pot, heat some olive oil and cook onions till transparent, add garlic and ginger. Cook for another minute till fragrant
Add stock, squash and diced chipotles. Cook for 20 minutes (if frozen) or until squash is tender (if fresh). If using fresh squash or pumpkin, use hand blander or blend soup in batches till smooth.
Add soymilk and corn & salt & pepper to taste. Bring back to boil. Let cook till the flavors are happily married and serve with a generous dollop of sour cream or cheese.