Baking With Intention (Thoughts on Poetry, Activism, & Alice Walker)

"Poetry is the Right Expression for Revolution."   
                  ~Alice Walker


Growing up in the south eating fresh vegetables out of the garden in the summer was preferable to trying to cook full hot meals and especially any sort of baking in the sometimes fierce humid summer days and nights.   So anytime my dear Grandmother chose to bake in the summer it had to be due to the reason it was a special occasion.   Even fixing food for the annual church homecoming picnic in early August was not cause enough to heat up the house in her opinion.   In her opinion bringing bright red juicy tomatoes picked fresh from the garden and sliced along with maybe a plate of sliced onions was enough.   I found it funny when she would lean over and whisper in my ear her disapproval of the people who stopped and picked up buckets of fried chicken from Bojangles or KFC.   She would say, "well good lord like it would have killed them to get up earlier one morning and fry up some chicken!"  This from the woman who insisted only in bringing sliced tomatoes and onions because she did not want to heat up the house by cooking anything.  
     Luckily for me and perhaps unfortunately for my poor Grandmother my birthday was on the first day of summer in June.   My sister's birthday was in August.   Granny usually wound up baking my birthday cake and 50% of the time being responsible for my "chosen," birthday meal.   Granny made the best strawberry shortcake in the world.   The cake was made in an iron skillet and there was no cake mix involved.   All from scratch.   In addition to this the strawberries were fresh from the wild strawberry field that grew on the back portion of our land, and since my birthday came right after strawberry season, Granny always made sure she froze enough to bake my birthday cake.   Also Granny made this amazing tomato roast beef with rice and of course amazing buttermilk biscuits so this was a usual choice for me for my special birthday dinner.   Luckily for Granny my sister usually preferred Mama's homemade chocolate cake for her birthday and hamburgers on the grill by my father; so Granny only had to suffer usually once during the summer humidity and heat.   This in my opinion is baking with intent.   Granny did not believe in mixes.   So making it easier on herself with cake mixes, biscuit mixes or canned biscuits were not an option.   Anytime my Granny baked it was baked with intent.   When she baked it was truly from her heart and she cut no corners.
     I remember once our pastor saying that it is easy to just stop and say a quick prayer that one says everyday or has memorized; but he once challenged that we "prayed with intent," meaning we knelt with purpose to really expose our hearts and minds to God, not just to recite a learned verse or trite everyday diatribe.   When I delved into Buddhism I would learn that meditation meant pondering on your intentions and actions in relationship to the world at large.   It seems natural to me that the older I grow the more I realize doing anything with intention has the possibility to change more hearts, make larger impacts, and even taste better.   I once wrote on the use of canned biscuits being a sort of "cop out."   I believe anything, even baking done without your heart's intent is just sub par or worth no more than a dime a dozen.
     I recently attended an evening with Alice Walker as the guest speaker at the Washington Performance Art Center in Olympia, Washington.   This was possible due to my recent enrollment in classes at Evergreen State College and in particular to the course I am taking from Professor Donald Foran titled, "How Poetry Saves the World."   Over the past first two weeks of class I have felt my heart and mind expand two fold on how I approach poetry and at large my writing in general.   Seeing it beyond just telling stories and compiling words I am seeing Poetry as well as literature and art in general as ways of expressing an activist's voice, shining light on truths and paving the pathways to revolution.
     Alice Walker said, "we are living in an age of enlightenment," which pushed me right up against the back of my seat.   It is the feeling I have felt boiling within my heart since late 2007.    Everything that is happening right now from financial and economic break downs to earthquakes and tsunamis are all apart of a big changing revolution from within mother nature to more personal places as within each individual's heart.   I have no doubt that many will chose to stay blinded about what is going on around the globe.   This is easier and safer.   This is baking with mixes.   Baking without care of taste or texture.
     I think back on the WTO riot in Seattle when I lived here.   I believe the "activism," turned more reactionary.   Somewhere along the way it lost its true heart or intention.   True Activism has to be with heart and intention and by the example set by Ghandi and Martin Luther King, I believe Activism with heart and intention is done thru peaceful demonstration, poetry, literature, good journalism, and art.   There are many ways beyond marching in streets to exhibit activism and pave the road to revolution.   Alice Walker said the other night that, "The reasons 'they,' do not want you to have a political vision in your heart is because you will see what they have stolen from you."    This is why people want to burn books, destroy art, and even kill the messenger.   "They," would prefer us all to bake cakes from the same boxed mixes.

For further information I suggest the following books & documentaries:   "Overcoming Speechlessness," by Alice Walker; "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid," by Jimmy Carter; "Fierce Light: When Spirit Meets Action," documentary by filmmaker Velcrow Ripper;" & "Hard Times Require Furious Dancing (New Poems)," by Alice Walker.

Meltdown

Grilled Cheese Sandwich, NY Pizza, & Nuclear Reactors

This whole weekend I have been obsessed with all the developments in Japan.   I have friends from Japan who have family near the catastrophe, so in part it was a removed concern.   But to be honest there is something so shocking and horrific that just draws us in.   A lot of people say it is the "train wreck" syndrome.   And maybe that is it for some; but I would be willing to bet it is a response more out of natural human fear that it could happen to us.   I think the TV with its continuous breaking news provides some sort of comfort.   It is like some sort of life line that tells the rest of us the world has not ended.   We all have this sense that it could happen to us.   Especially in the past decade the good ole USA was forced to realize that we were not immune to horrific disasters.   9/11 broke the fairy tale and then it has been a domino effect every few years with Katrina, Southern California Massive Wildfires, Housing Market Bubble burst, then the economic meltdown.   Maybe I am the only one that thinks this way but the last few years as I look at things all around the globe happening I cannot help but wonder how much more can this old earth take.  Which brings me to the meltdown factor.   The earthquake and tsunami terror in Japan was unspeakable to fathom. Yet, perhaps selfishly, I am focused on that nuclear reactor plant in Japan & not just the one in Japan but what about the ones in other places with well known shaky ground like perhaps say CALIFORNIA?!   Now I sit and I listen to "professionals," and scientist say how Japan was so advanced in their earthquake preparedness and how they built this Nuclear reactor plant with that technology.....and yet they all agree that they are surprised at how all those technically advanced safety measures have failed.   Yet when the news anchor volleys the question about just how safe we in the States are in regards to our Nuclear reactors and safety backup measures then they are quick to re-assure us that it would take much more than just a large earthquake to defeat our "advanced" safety measures.   Now I am confused; did they not just say that Japan was the most advanced nation in regards to their preparedness and technology securing the safety of their Nuclear reactor and how in fact they were surprised this crisis at the plant was unfolding given the "advanced" safety measures in place.    Well that does not really give me a lot of confidence that the US has a more secured Nuclear Safety plant technology especially when they say that Japan was the most advanced Nation in this regard.   So are "they" in fact saying that actually the US is more advanced, or just taking 2nd place by default since Japan's claim seems to not be holding up.  

To be honest none of it really gives me much confidence.   My suspicion level rose higher than the "alert," levels during the 9/11 crisis months that the United States really has strong plans in place for a lot of issues.   My suspicion level went through the roof when the levies broke in New Orleans during Katrina & then more recently the meltdown of the banks and financial institutes in 2009.

Last night at some point during the madness of being glued to CNN, BBC & then tuning into NPR online I realized I had to let go and stop my own mental meltdown.   That kind of stuff is out of our hands and all we can do is take responsibility in how were perceive it and approach our own survival plan if the ground begins quaking in our own back yard.   For me I realized I had to resort to humor.   I begin to read quotes by Erma Bombeck and my favorite diva Dolly.   I turned off the TV and news online and cooked.   I begin to laugh at myself as my mind started to wander into that area of "what if?"   What if we survived some horrific catastrophe but yet there was no electricity and grocery stores no longer existed or we could not get there to even loot them then how in the hell would I get my grilled cheese sandwich?  I also doubt I could order up my favorite oozy gooey NY pizza to be delivered.   I could not believe how superficial and far fetched my mind can wonder.   But I did have one more thought that was oddly comforting.  What if maybe like roaches and Cher that pizza delivery would also survive a Nuclear meltdown.   Ahhhh crisis averted!

Not Your Mama's Mac & Cheese!

Making Your Own Life More Creamier & Cheesier!


I made one of my favorite meals the other night.   It is, dare I say,  a rather ordinary if not iconic American meal.   It is also one of my Mom's weekly staples on the dinner table ever since I was a kid.   The meal is meatloaf with mac and cheese.    Now depending on what groceries my mom had depended on what the starch was that accompanied the meatloaf.   Usually it came down to a toss up between mac and cheese or her famous mashed taters and gravy.   Now my mom made good mac and cheese.   Sometimes it fell into the casserole category and sometimes it was just that good ole creamy ooey gooey kind.    Over the years I have used this meal making slight changes here and there.    You know you never can ever get it like mom used to make.   Down thru life you realize there are lots of big and little things you can't get exactly like mom or dad used to make or do.


Recently I fell victim to the economic crisis.   My job was eliminated due to the business closing.  Luckily I had been playing with the idea of returning to school to finish what I started ummm (clearing throat) almost 19 years...........uh, I mean several years ago! (wink wink)


The choice seemed kind of clear now given that all the other financial obstacles fell into some sort of semi-comfortable alignment.   


One night in a conversation with my Mom I realized by the hesitation in her voice and questions that she was not so sure a man of my age needed to really try and go to school at this point in his life.   


I realize my parent's lives being the baby boomers that they are to spite their young rebellious generation's reputation had really been more informed by their post war/post depression era parent's generation than perhaps they would like to admit.


I encountered this notion again upon a visit to the campus where I heard several times others referring to me as a "non-traditional" student.   It is a mental check in moment when you realize......."HOLY SHIT!.....I'm not in my twenties any more Toto!"   To spite the gray evidence peppered throughout my hair inside it is hard to really reconcile the number my age is with the age my mind still thinks it is.   


I begin to feel the waves of anxiety sweeping over my ocean of being overwhelmed.   Age wise I was going to be a minority.   Also in my social realm I was going to be a minority as well.   Though being "unemployed," seems to be the new job description for a lot of people the majority of those I know still continue down their own familiar path they have been traveling all along trying to find a close fit.


No matter what generation you are generally speaking Americans really are taught to follow one path: school, college, job, marriage, kids, house, etc.   Though that picture has been slowly changing the past twenty years it is still a recipe for living that most people try to follow.


It is not a bad recipe.   It sure is comforting.   There are moments when I just want to fly home and pull a chair up to mom's table and eat one of her meals.   Reality always sinks in and  I have had to accept that yes indeed I make mac and cheese differently from my mom as well as the meatloaf.   Same with my life path.   I am having to make a few adjustments in the recipe in order to perhaps get back on path.   Either way rather it is my mom's mac and cheese or mine the result is good sinful comfort food and rather I found a job I could stick to for 30 years tomorrow or instead go back to school then find a job that fits the path I see for myself the idea is still to pay the rent and put food on the table.   The secret to any of it is making it your own recipe for your life; no matter how you try it is not going to directly match that of your parent's nor your friends and I think that is a wonderful thing to celebrate.


The main difference between my Mom's mac and cheese and mine is the cheese.   She is a cheddar only kind of mac and cheese girl.   I use more cream and combine several cheeses that are not all cheddar.   My result is creamier and cheesier.   It is okay to have a creamier and cheesier mac and cheese as long as you can always go home and appreciate your mom's mac and cheese.   Your path's recipe may not be your mom's but don't forget the ingredients she shared and showed you along the way.   You many not take all of them with you and use them but remember it was those ingredients that gave you your first basic recipe.   

2010: Recipe for Change?

"Character is the ability to carry out a good resolution long after the excitement of the moment has passed."  ~Cavett Robert


I have long since given up the idea of creating a "resolution," with the ushering in of a new year.  I have no problem in setting goals; but over the years have realized that new year resolutions are usually created in the heat of the moment.   It is easy to make a "pact," with yourself when kazoos are blowing and balloons are descending.   It is such an exciting idea that you have this one moment each year when you can sort of wipe the slate clean and start things anew.   This whole past week I was once again reminded of how the spirit of the New Year fever sweeps over everyone~ young and old.   It is no stretch of the imagination that "weight loss," was the overwhelming cry of change I heard for people anticipating the new year.   Maybe it is a symptom of being jaded that I roll my eyes when I over hear someone pronouncing that they are joining a gym after the New Year is rung in.   My inside voice loudly shouts: "WHATEVER!"   Maybe others don't think in terms of failure versus success when they pronounce these resolutions.   This is the number one reason I no longer think in terms of making sweeping changes in my life at the changing of the new year.   I realize it is a major setup for failure for me.   It is easier on my psyche to attempt some small form of change each day rather than to declare a major shift in my life dependent on the clinking of glasses and loud cheers against a back drop of Auld Lang Syne.


Change is a word that has reached a fever pitch in the last few years.   With the election of the first African American President in America~ change was not only a campaign promise but also a visible palpable tangible word when President Barack Obama became commander in chief.   The tides and constant changing boundary lines of the definition of "change," has been a constant debate the last two years.


I think the most lasting change comes after we learn a lesson.  If this is true and I believe it is then 2010 holds the mother lode of ingredients.   Now whether we will implement the lessons we learn is the difference in just speaking of change or making change happen.  The best change becomes an enduring foundation upon which the construction endures no matter how many storms and sweeping earthquakes of change rock it.


The jury is still out on 2010.   Can we learn from it?   Will the "teachable moments," we lived through in 2010 become catalysts for change and evolution in 2011 and beyond?   Fifteen million unemployed, BP Oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, mid-term elections, and many more events rocked 2010.   2010 is not any more different than many of the years that have passed before it; it is just that it is the most current that is passing to make room for 2011.   If we remain in the past  obsessing on all that was wrong or right about 2010 then change will be lost; however if we just toss 2010 away without taking stock of all that happened then we risk forfeiting an opportunity for lasting change as well.


For me one of the most enjoyable rushes I get from cooking is seeing how you can add your own embellishments and build upon recipes.   Add a pinch of this or take away this seasoning, add an extra egg, cook for 5 minutes less, bake at 350 instead of 400.   Cooking is about change; building on that recipe that has been handed down through generations, each generation adding their own subtle or perhaps large change.


2010 held many ingredients.   Some of them were palatable and some of them unsavory.   The challenge for 2011 is to turn these ingredients into recipe for something positive & tasty.  

........And All That Stuffing

     It is easy for me and I suspect many Americans to romanticize this time of year.   Thanksgiving usually is the big kick off to all the colors, sounds, smells, bells, whistles & all the trappings of the holiday season.   As images of Haiti's continuing downward spiral now expedited by the Cholera epidemic it may take a special strain of a "PollyAnna" complex to see things in a more positive upbeat light.   Speaking for myself it seems almost pompous to sit in my warm home and regale about all my many blessings this year; especially when in our own country the growing number of people on public assistance and unemployment is still growing.   However I will endeavor to share even just a shred of something positive.

In the middle of this old world's chaos there is always one small shred of light through any darkness.   Whether it be the irrepressible spirit of those trapped Chilean miners or some small town family who invites those without family or those whom cannot afford food to their Thanksgiving table, the triumph of the human spirit on a global level or that little snippet of human kindness is all a piece of the bigger picture.  

If Thanksgiving was just about the bird itself then it would not carry much weight (pun intended); but thank God for all the potatoes, yams, casseroles, gravy, rolls, dressing, pie and stuffing.   I believe sometimes in life you have to look at all of life's "stuffing," (chaos) and find that small or large little savory rich detail that makes you smile, makes your heart warm, makes you realize how blessed you are.   I look at the sadness and tragedy in Haiti and feel very humbled.   I am thankful that I recognize that it could be any of us.   There are those who might say it could never be in the United States of America; but then I remember just a few years back when Katrina hit and it was very evident that even in the good ole USA there can be third world poverty, disease, destruction and despair.   As the old saying goes, "there but for the grace of God."   It isn't about the sum of all the bad things that happen in life I believe it is about finding the small miracles and stunning blessings that happen or exist in each event.  

One of my favorite Broadway musical show tunes is "All that Jazz," from Chicago.   One of the lines in the last verse goes: "Ohhhh I love my life and all that jazz."  It isn't just about the main event or star attraction its all the jazz or sides and gravy that count too.  Well it doesn't just happen at Thanksgiving; but I believe since it is the season it bares saying.... I love my life and all that stuffing.   I hope you find all the sumptuous sides and stuffing in your life and you find the humbleness that brings you the joy of being grateful.   Happy Thanksgiving~ Love The Southern Fried Diva!

Sweet Potato Pie (Trumping Post Mid-term Election Stress Syndrome)

     Each Season has its change.   Change can be calculated in subtleties and sometimes in broad brush strokes.  It is hard for me to chose a favorite season.  I am a summer baby being born square on the summer solstice so when Summer rolls around I embrace all the smells of fresh vegetables, cut grass and sun baked mid morning dew.   As a child Spring was such a big event because I became so amazed by these little crocuses that came up through late snows under mama's hydrangea bush.   As a kid Spring also signaled that summer break from school was within sniffing distance.   Winter was magic because of snow, ice, and howling winds.   But since we are in the middle of Autumn we'll stick to that season.   Some things I love about Autumn are the crisp cool air, the leaves, the sound of rustling leaves & then the holiday season that gets kicked off by the campy fun candy laden haunting night of Halloween.   I love the colors of deep reds, golds, and all the shades of brown.   Autumn is also the season of winding down.   Harvesting what you've sown all year and preparing for what winter's long if not unpredictable cold and sometimes barren months might bring.  

No matter what corporate America has done to Thanksgiving and Christmas commercially; to me they are important punctuation marks on the calendar.   Thanksgiving has its own special meaning with the smells of food, gathering of family and for me the Macy's day parade.   The Macy's day parade for me is the official sounding shot kicking off Christmas.   Christmas has been and always will be simply defined as magic.  It is the one time of the year my childhood comes flooding back in a hazy Hallmark Currier & Ives glow.

The idea of "seasons," is a metaphor for change in life.   My hometown of Hendersonville, North Carolina is known as the land of four seasons.   Every season has its own smells, beauty, darkness, lightness, drama and simple joys.   In 2008 a "season of change," was upon the land as Obama fever swept across the nation and world.   For some the change is not happening, for some it is happening but too slowly.   As of Tuesday November 2nd, 2010 the mid-term elections heralded yet another season of change for our country.   By Wednesday I felt an overwhelming flood of discouragement and in that moment I knew I had to change my own impending season of doom lurking above my soul and spirit.    So I went to the kitchen and bake I did.
The house filled with smells of my Granny Pop's sweet potato pie recipe in the oven.   My Diva-Licious Brownies the next day filled the house with wafts of chocolate and toffee.

It would be so easy this morning to sit down and write a blog full of negative feelings about the Tuesday election results.   I could be responding to all the crazy political spin in the air this morning on the  Sunday morning news show.   Let's face it the country has been reeling for several years now.   I will not bury my head in the sand like the proverbial Ostrich.   I recognize what is going on, I have to call it for what it is but I cannot let it dictate my spirit.   So I chose to Sweet Potato Pie it right now.

One of my favorite fun reads is The Sweet Potato Queens 1st Big Ass Novel by Jill Conner Browne which I will be breaking it out this week to give myself a chuckle and get myself in the mood to bake my signature Sweet Potato pies for the upcoming holiday events.    Whether you are a liberal or a conservative I urge ya to go check out or buy a copy of the The Sweet Potato Queens 1st Big Ass Novel and just let all this political bullshit and tough economical times leave your spirit.   It is okay to laugh, in fact I think it is essential to laugh. It does not cost anything to smile or laugh or both.   It just takes a moment of switching off that little "negative nelly," button in your brain and choosing to find even the smallest things in life pleasurable.   For me, today, it means turning off the TV full of negative news, turning on some favorite tunes and baking a sweet potato pie.   The smell will bring back precious memories for me of my Granny Pops baking this delicious treat for Thanksgiving.   Having a slice tonight with a cup of coffee will be a little slice of heaven of its own; but on Thanksgiving watching friends and family smile as I cut into the Sweet Potato Pie and watch them loosen their belt buckles in anticipation will out trump any bad election news and briefly chase away the economical dark cloud above our heads.   Life is too short my friends so have a slice of pie, read a fun silly book, step outside and smell the Autumn air.   Enjoy life~ bake Sweet Potato Pie!

Witch's Brew

America sure has one hell of a smelly steaming toxic cauldron a brewing!   This election has bubbled nothing but toil and trouble.   Some of it is classic Halloween camp, think of Christine O'Donnell's political ad claiming in that eerie serial killer voice, "I'm not a witch."   She was dressed in black with a smoky black background and speaking in that weird tone all that was lacking was a gnarled leaf-less tree with a screeching bat flying across a big ominous orange harvest moon.   The latest spending report according to CBS news puts this year's mid-term election costing upwards of 3 billions dollars..... that looks like $3,000,000,000!   Which to me looks like Count Dracula moving in for a little midnight snack!   Ironically I am not scared by who might be elected into office this year as much as I am scared that in such a shaky economy we sit idly by why 3 billion dollars gets sucked into some big black vortex.   The scariest about any of this is the empty words that both sides utter.   No one has a game plan except how to win a bull shit election.   No one has a recipe for getting things done.   Politicians on both sides of the aisle are sucking the life blood out of democracy.   If Sylvia Browne or Dionne Warwick's psychic friends connections could hold a séance and bring the spirits of our founding fathers forth for a round table congressional butt kicking it sure would be helpful right about now.   As the 2010 election comes to its climax on Tuesday I believe it will go down less like a tea party and more like a Tim Burton version of the Salem Witch Trials.   Unfortunately this year looks more like a trick than it does a treat.  Finding a shred of dignity and democracy this election year was like bobbing for poison apples.   All I'm saying is don't drink the Witch's brew this year!

American Pie: A Killer Filling!

     I love a slice of pie.   I believe my Granny Pop's homemade pies hold a special place in heaven.   A warm slice of her blackberry pie in the winter made from blackberries we picked together in the summer and frozen or put up in her unbeatable preserves was my favorite pie piping hot out of the oven.   Her rhubarb strawberry pie in the summer was my favorite pie to eat cold.   In fact I've not really ever met a slice of pie I didn't like or least could cover with ice cream and trudge on through.  However I believe a slice of the metaphorical American Pie has too much filling and quite honestly has no taste.
     The flood of political campaign ads for the mid-term elections this past year has reached an intolerable fever pitch.   On both sides of the political fence and right down the middle of the political landscape  I am ashamed of every political figure head we the people have supposedly put in office.   During a time of our country's shaky economical foundation in which millions remain unemployed and foreclosures across the land threaten to break the back of the American dream of home ownership these political ads are costing millions and millions of dollars.   I find it sickening that everyone of these ads spin out of control exaggerating facts and bemoaning the out of control spending of congress and the government at large however spending millions right in front of our faces for TV airtime, robo-calls, mailers, etc.   It is not only insane but stands as a slap across every hard working American's face that hopes they can pay the rent or mortgage and put food on the table.   All these millions and millions of dollars flushing down the proverbial toilet to put people in office who continue a cycle of saying much but delivering little.   Yes, it has been this way for a long time; but honey darlings the American Pie has been stuffed plum full of toxic energy and poisonous greed.   The pie burst open a long time ago and the filling has oozed out over our common sense.   The so called "tea partier's," have this big smug idealistic trumpet sounding that they are wanting change however they too have joined the masses in the mud spending millions.   When do we simply unite and stand in front of Congress and our government; Republicans, Democrats and every thing in between and say "Enough, we forbid you to spend any more money on elections, you raise that money and pay off the national debt!"
    I know it is easier said than done; but I am firing the warning shot today if anyone is listening.   We have already begun swallowing the poison slices of pie.   The so called middle class is being swept under the rug daily.   Wake up America, it's time to throw out the pie we've been mindlessly stuffing ourselves with and start from scratch baking a new one.   It is the season to demand WORK, not words from our elected officials.  If we want to get this recipe right we are going to have to go back to the blackberry patch and weather the sun, heat, snakes, and thorns to get to the ripest and juiciest fruit.   As the old cliche goes, "don't throw good money after bad," and as my Granny Pops always said, "you ain't gonna get a good pie with store bought berries, ya have to go pick 'em in order to do up a good pie!"   Start baking with fresh ingredients America, the store bought stuff is killing us.

Popcorn~ Just Add Hot Air

That good ole snack food standby popcorn is amazing if you think about it.   It is a relatively cheap snack that feed many with very little effort.   I mean if you break it down it is just a little kernel of corn with a lot of hot air which turns to a puffy white buttery goodness.  I think the analogy can be made to pop music.   Although we know that "pop" music is short for popular music, I tend to think of what has become popular music today more closely related to pop corn.   It is palatable hot air with maybe a kernel of musicality.  The lyrics and chord changes are predictable and usually the "talent," behind the song is not vocally strong.

I would like to take it a step deeper and coin a new phrase known as "Pop Politics."   Pop politics is a bunch of hot air surrounding skewed little kernels of fact that can be puffed into provocative sound bytes.   It fits our current culture to a tee though.   We as a society have a bad case of short attention span, we need our politics boiled down to quick buzz words and shorter details of the fact.   This "need," of ours to have our information handed to us on a silver platter as quick as a Google search has created the perfect environment for these pop politicians to pop up and thrive.

Pop Politicians such as Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, etc. are full of puffed up sound bytes delivered with sometimes corny theatrics rich in recycled rhetoric but short on vetted deeply researched facts.   They chose a "popular," stance and stick with it unyielding to any idea of going beyond the headline and studying all the facts on both sides.  Pop politicians worry more about their image than getting any real work or results.  They are talking heads with eyes set on their own ego led ambitions rather than protecting constitutional ethics or accomplishing any concrete good that takes into account many opinions other than their own nor embracing any fruitful debate.  They are uninformed half vetted talking heads who settle for easy popular sound bytes over any notion of going against the grain out of worry of scraping their own fragile yet glossy slick image.


Pop politicians embrace pop politico speak using loaded words to attach their character to like "maverick," or "rogue," although they never back up these claims with any real recognition of what those words mean nor offering an noticeable action to give these words any real meat.


Pop politics and their participants are just puffed up little kernels with lots of hot air to spare.

Wake Up & Smell the Holy War

Does anyone remember the Crusades from history?   Perhaps Texas has cut that from history text books as well!   Well briefly the Crusades were a military sanctioned war by Christian Europe against Middle East Muslims.   The crusades lasted from the 11^th thru the 13^th centuries.  Now in the 21^st century we have seen Jihad by Islamic radicals against non-Muslims and now I feel the tide is turning back the pages of history and we are getting ready to see another Crusade era.   The rhetoric surrounding the proposed mosque in NYC near Ground Zero, and the most recent media ploy by some two bit pastor in Florida claiming to burn the Qur’an on the anniversary of 9/11 is bringing about a hint of the Crusades to my ears.

Some may argue that we entered a holy war the minute we sat foot in Iraq.   It is true that anti-Islamic sentiments have been growing in volume since we declared war.   In return it has become easier for Americans to lump Islamic radicals in with Islam because it is a religion not understood in our largely Judeo-Christian society.  

There is no denying that everything changed on 9/11.  Americans definitely became more aware of Islam.   However aware we became the dialogue about the Middle East and Muslims since then surrounding Islam I think like most things in our society we allowed to become politicized reducing it all down to quick, easy sound bytes instead of full fledged informed conversations.

It is interesting that Christians conveniently forget about the Crusades the same way they tend to forget more recent history like The Salem Witch trials, slavery, the KKK, Fred Phelps in Kansas.   So called “witches,” were hung in Salem, Mass. By Christians out of situations we have since learned were ignorant misunderstandings.  Many Slave owners justified owning slaves thru selected text in the Bible.  More recently the KKK claims to burn crosses and terrorizes African Americans and people of Jewish faith in the name of God and even more beguiling is the pastor in Kansas that believes in hating soldiers and homosexuals.   So Christians have their radicals too.  

I won’t go into core beliefs held by both religious faiths that they both share; but it is sad that most that spread this kind of hatred are ignorant of some of the really beautiful tenets both Christians and Muslims share.   I have long maintained that ignorance is the biggest weapon of mass destruction known to man.   Ignorance begets misunderstanding, lies, and ultimately hate.

The past decade we have seen our precious American society go backwards in time.   Forgetting history and repeating it.   We have seen the all too eerie return to a war type mentality that closely resembles the horrific Vietnam War era.   In the latter years of this decade we have seen our own consumer based desires and Bush economics bring us back to a time that closely resembles the Great Depression.   

I believe that we chance a return back in our history time machine again to a time reminiscent of the Crusades if we continue to spread this anti-Islamic rhetoric.   Repeating history as we have seen in the past ten years is a costly and deadly course of direction.   Repeating history is a very harmful symptom of the disease of Ignorance.   The less we know the easier it gets to let those with their own greedy agendas to knock the foundation out from under a society and inject their own venom.   The New York City mosque debate & the nut job pastor in Florida calling for Americans to burn a Qur’an may seem like headlines that we take for granted will disappear in a few days but for me they are red flags that something more uglier is festering and boiling underneath and I’m afraid if we don’t recall our history we might just be gearing up for another holy war.

Divas of Daytime Belting Out "Its Raining Men"

All I can say is check it out..............it is a sticky sweet hunk filled video w/glorious vocals by the divas!

(Anyone feel like a rainstorm.........ummmmmmmkay!!!!   Don't forget the "umbrella" )

http://sn.soapnet.go.com/video/its-raining-men-the-divas

Grazing

Sometimes when the idea of a meal just doesn't come to fruition then I just graze.   The past few weeks I have had a lot of issues and situations going thru my mind and it has been difficult how to express some of these thoughts cohesively, so this blog entry is a grazing piece, just tasty bullet points.

• I watched the documentary on the "God Hates America," leader/founder Fred Phelps called "Fall from Grace," and there is so much to say; but it would only be anger fueled right now and in risk of giving any of his hate speak any further attention all I can say is that I truly deep down feel sadness and pity for him and his family and any followers or congregation members in his church.   I pray that one day they will find the Love of God and all their hate will melt away.
• Love and hate can both be action words.   Hate can speak blood, sweat and tears; but Love takes blood, sweat and tears.
• I feel sorrow for those who give their hearts, minds, and money over to the likes of Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck.
• Glenn Beck being in Washington, DC is a sad day for free speech and a sad reminder how easily ignorance begets ignorance.
• Reaction is usually ill informed fear
• I am thankful for Erma Bombeck and her legacy of domestic satire (i.e.  If Life is a Bowl of Cherries Then What am I doing in the Pits?;  Family:  The Tie that Binds.....and Gags!; The Grass is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank.)  It makes me smile esp. in personal times of domestic lulls.
• It is time for the Obama administration to grow up and start plowing thru all the mumbo jumbo out there.   I believe in him it is time for the administration to believe in themselves once again.

What topic might you, the reader want to see covered in my blog?

Until the next full en tree enjoy grazing my darlings.

Limp Lettuce

Apathy is just LAZY parading around in a fancier vocabulary word

~(Russell Jackson)

I was reminded the other day that one of the top ten food tragedies is biting into wilted lettuce.   I have been known (allegedly~ wink, wink) to love GOOD Southern fried food, buttermilk biscuits, blackberry cobbler, and butter; however I do love fresh veggies.   Overcooked veggies are another tragedy but nothing is as disappointing as the anticipation of biting into a good club sandwich or Caesar salad only to not feel that crisp cold crunch and instead find a limp slimy piece of lettuce.  

As I grow older the cold soul less indifference of apathy like limp lettuce is an infuriating discovery. 

I am thankful for technology, don't get me wrong; but as much as technology has helped society in its progression I feel that it has also had an unintended side effect that results in a good old fashioned case of the "Lazies."   As smart phones, texting, and I-pods help us tune out the world I see that so many are so tuned out that they cannot be bothered anymore to be a real functioning part of society.   

I see people so tuned into their texting that they have walked out in front of cars.   I have waited on people who think having a conversation while they order is okay and get frustrated when I can read their sign language supposedly directing me as to what they want.   The few times that I have commented that if they hung up or paused their conversation long enough to tell me their order they act as if I am the one with bad manners or worse yet they shrug their shoulders in indifference.

I think apathy is the most frustrating quality in a person, government, or society at large.   At least when there is an argument I feel that the person on the other side might actually have an opinion that he or she has thought about or shock, shock, horror of all horror CARES about.   

I think this new higher tech method of tuning out has helped society slip more comfortably into their apathetic lazy boy recliners and throw care to the satellite and gigabyte winds.   Again, technology, Per Se,  is not the evil here, there are a lot of variables.    

Let's face the fact that "caring," does take more work than a shrug of the shoulders or a roll of the eyes.   If we are talking politics here then "caring," means being involved enough to read, listen, and learn.   It means not just hearing one sound byte that tells us what we want to hear but sifting through several sides of the story to at least be somewhat able to hold a conversation and or debate on a subject.    If we are talking relationships it can be as complex as answering "I don't know," to a question about why the relationship isn't working to as easy as "I don't care," when asked what do you feel like for dinner.   (Don't get me started down that path!)

It is one thing to be easy going and carefree; but easy going and carefree doesn't equal apathetic or non-caring.  

Apathy is dangerous.   In a smaller setting such as one's personal relationships ironically the "I don't knows/I don't cares," can eventually erode the basic foundation of a relationship.   If you don't care or don't know about a lot of things then eventually the other person(s) feel you ultimately don't respect them enough to take the time to care or know.

In society Apathy grows opportunity for propaganda, disease, and even war.   I think this recent economic meltdown for example has become worse because all of our outlets of tuning out has kept us shielded and blind to the brewing storms and underlying causes that pummels our financial stability to this day.

I agree it is nice when life is calm and you can coast along.   I have no problem in adapting to a life that is drama free; however being able to evolve means sometimes getting involved.  Settling for a bowl full of limp lettuce to me means settling for a life of so-so.   I still say there is nothing better than taking a bite full of crisp crunch.   I think life needs crunch.

Canned Biscuits

It was not cafe society, it was Nescafe society~ Noel Coward

I have never been able to reconcile canned biscuits in any form.   Even my dear Southern Cook Diva Paula Deen has several dishes which utilizes canned biscuits and I've been there and the end verdict is that the ideas were time savers but not taste bud pleasers.   The recipes were not bad tasting but neither were they blow your mind good.   Biscuits are one of those foods where homemade is mandatory in my opinion.   There are other examples of food that I believe needs to be as organic to homemade as possible.   I believe friends come under the same category as pieces of your life that need to remain as organic and original as possible.

A few years ago during my second go around in the amazing Southern California oasis, San Diego I fell into a little click that was unexpected and turned out to be more drama than it was worth.   You know that pop that can biscuits make when you open them, well when ever I have gone the canned biscuit route there were two things I could count on; I always jumped when the can popped and I was always underwhelmed by their taste and wound up feeding them to the birds and squirrels in the park.   Well I get those feelings every time I think back on those friends.   Thankfully just like I never use or rarely am served canned biscuits I hardly ever think about those bleak days and fake friends.

I ran across the Noel Coward quote above a few days ago and I agreed completely with Mr. Coward.   Sometimes you find people are just not what they present themselves to be.   I could give a lot of juicy stories about this couple of years in my life; but that maybe another story or novel another time.   The main and quite hard lesson I had to learn is that you have to let go of those things or persons in your life that makes your journey full of drama, less genuine, or even just bland.  

When I left San Diego I let go of a lot of all the hurt and anger I had experienced during that acquaintanceship with that click.   The triangle had grown incestuous and  it seemed that even maintaining friendships with even the fringe people whom I had grown close to out of that group still came with strings and tainted energy from the core group I had pulled away from.   The hard part was letting go of those friendships.   I came to realize that although these people had wonderful qualities the fact was they couldn't cut their losses as well and remove themselves from the center of  that negative energy.   I found my last communication with some of them still talking smack and relating disappointments in the core group; but they still endeared themselves to them through dinner parties, clubbing, and miscellaneous other functions.  

I found myself feeling that anxious feeling I got when unrolling the canned biscuits anticipating the pop every time I talked to one of them.   The anticipation of hearing more gossip on the others or what one of them had said or did to this one, it was still one last string keeping me remotely attached.    Even at a non invested literal thousand mile distance I came to realize that even that remote string had to be cut for me to move on in my own life.  

It is easy to stay in something because it has just become the norm or it is easier than just letting go.   Letting go is such a powerful step.   The older you get and the more stuff life hands you the more you realize how precious time is and how little room you have for all the clutter and drama.   Instant coffee is easy but brewed tastes heavenly, so why bother with instant.   Canned biscuits don't taste horrible but they are a very poor substitution.  Friends and people in general in your life that pull energy away from you adding drama, negativity or just existing in your life is like a flavorless canned biscuit on a plate.  

Tossing Salad: Obama's Religion, A Mosque & Gay Marriage~ OH MY!

"I tossed so much salad that I forgot the fucking dressing~ I need a drink!"  
~ June Bug Guice

Summertime brings about the predictable magazine and food show clips with ideas on salads and bbq.    They are always titled something obligatory like "A New and Fresh Way to Spruce up your Summer Salads!"   Blah, blah, and blah, blah, blah, blah!  Not that salads & barbecues aren't a sensible and season appropriate food; but much like the media making much ado about nothing like Obama's confusing religious ties, a mosque in NYC and then don't forget forbidden and "fabric of society threatening," Gay marriage; there is just too much focus on unoriginal material and rhetorical "been there, done that," bullshit that we forget the important stuff.   (How do you like that segue way folks!   No, your Diva is not afraid to reach and grasp when she has to!)

I used to work in food service when paying my way through college and I was lucky (god, I can't believe I just said that) enough to land myself in a new retirement facility.   I learned and heard amazing stories from a gilded generation of elderly folk.   Most of all I was blessed to work with this crazy out of a sit-com cast of characters.   One of my favorites was this curmudgeonly chain smoking, quip slinging woman named June Bug.  The quote above come from her on a day of an event we were preparing for at the "home," and of course chaos and insanity ruled the day.   Even though she is gone I still hear her funny quips and crazy stories and I laugh.   There is no way to shed light on how funny this quote was because you all would have had to of course been there; yet picture in your mind Bette Davis (circa All About Eve) playing Flo (from the sit-com Alice) with a deep smoky boozy voice like Bea Arthur and you may be able to envision how over the top funny this one moment and this one little snippet could be.

Like that day (here comes another "smooth" segue way) I can't help but to envision myself taking on the role of June Bug Guice being delivered like Bette Davis playing Flo from Alice standing on the front steps of the White House and delivering that line over a loud speaker in front of thousands of reporters and live news cameras.  Although I would add an addendum:  "Stop this fucking insane ignorant white noise and get something fucking done already, HELLO our economy is sinking down an already shit clogged toilet!"   (How is that for a vivid statement!)

All of the right wingers, tea party zealots and media are tossing this huge shit storm of a salad with very benign thin veneered sustenance to take away the spotlight from the fact the economy is spiraling downward again, we are slowly (but trust me) losing interest on the BP spill creating a small window of opportunity to perhaps skip out of some responsibilities and clean up and ultimately tying up the President so that he has to worry about wading through all this iceberg lettuce to get to any real nutritional nugget of any count.

The Republicans and the right wingers all of a sudden realized they could not keep using the rhetoric about Obama screwing up the economy and throwing away zillions of dollars like wilted lettuce because they have no real solution except to say and vote "NO," on everything.   All of sudden is this rhetoric not only sounding like the wrong way to Americans without jobs and dependable income; but some are starting to wake up to the fact that "Oh yeah, some of these Republicans were there during the past Bush Whacker Jr. Presidency of 8 years which led to this huge meltdown."  

And I'm not just blasting the right wingers and mislead misnamed so called tea party numb skulls!   Here is some whoop ass for the left and middle as well.   Whining and putting out the fires is like digging through your salad to locate a croûton that still has crunch.   Send the fucking salad back and get a new one for god's sake!   You cannot run nor hide nor just rebut the opposition at this point.   Remember many Americans obviously voted for Bush Whacker Junior twice so our new found "moment of change and racial evolution," is very very fragile at best.   It is to easy for the masses to return to their dumbed down rhetoric from the likes of Palin that we are at a very slippery slope my darlings.  

And oh, as for the middle~ well sit on your asses as usual on this mid term election, it might be a good idea this time.

The fact that America which is founded on religious freedom is caring what religion he is and if he goes in public to pray (and how often) and so blatantly spewing hate about a mosque's right to build because it is a few blocks from a national tragedy & lest we forget about the battle scared equal rights of a segment of the population to marry because it offends someone's religious views on the sanctity of marriage is simply UN-AMERICAN.  

How would Sarah Palin or Meg Whitman feel if their state or nation had to vote on whether or not they could marry their spouses?    Again it is another piece of  freedom of religion we are all supposedly guaranteed in this country.   How can my religious views affect your religious views?   If I don't like your religious views does this mean I should draw up a Prop 8-esque initiative to be voted on to ban your view?  

This is at the very heart of why the pilgrims sought out the new world because at the time England was demanding one way of  religious thought and practice.   Those that vote on Prop 8 or any ban on Gay Marriage, those who care what religion Obama is, and those who spread hate about a Mosque to be built without thinking through their opposition call themselves Americans but ironically their actions and their words prove they ultimately disapprove of America's first founding ideas, they are proving to be ignorant of their path that could shake and undo the foundation of this great country.   They are proving to be Un-American.   Their salad is truly tossed and without dressing.  

Heart Kicking

A friend recently posted on Facebook that he just got his heart kicked again.   A reminder that heart break happens to us all.   One of the great levelers of the playing field for all is love with its peaks and inevitably its valleys.   This friend of mine is amazingly handsome, eyes so deep that you drown every time he even says hello.   Beyond all the physical attributes is a heart as big as all get out.   Generous with hugs and smiles he lights up the darkest corner in any space.   So it is always so hard for me to imagine anyone could hurt this beautiful creature; but like I say, Love makes victims out of all of us at one time or another.

Ironically Judy Garlands drops on my playlist singing Almost like Being in Love and I wonder when a hopeless romantic like me fell out of love with being in love?   I still discover the remains of the romantic in me from time to time; but unfortunately I discover them when I’ve allowed myself to start to have expectations and hope about how things are going in my own relationship and then the inevitable shoe drops and I become aware of the reality and boundary of this kind of romantic dreaming and scheming.

I understand now why all of my friends who were in long term relationships and marriages always told me that it takes “work.”  I guess those of us who are the hopeless romantics think things should be sort of a magic carpet ride at least 50% of the time.   I foolishly thought that all this heart break and being kicked in the heart kind of stuff would be a part of my history when I dated all those losers and found the Prince.   All of a sudden I would have rewritten happy endings to Funny Girl and The Way We Were with my shiny new mind blowing relationship.

The truth is it is pretty mind blowing.   Mind blowing that at the end of the day, when all is said and done and I’ve stepped out of my fairy tale bubble bath that it does, after all, take work.   The other mind blowing thing is that you are in this relationship and you still get your heart kicked around.    Wasn’t all that bullshit supposed to end the minute you cross over that dating stage into the “together forever,” stage?   Reality Check my darlings, at least for me, you can get your heart kicked even by the alleged "Mr. Right."    Friends I’ve known that have been together for twenty years gives me even more startling facts that indeed even after that amount of time they still get their hearts trampled on from time to time.   WTF?

Sometimes I worry that I must be building up all these walls because I notice things that used to ruffle me barely even register in my heart and tear ducts anymore.   But then something will come along and I find myself feeling kicked in the heart and I guess it is at that point that I can take heart that if I’m feeling it that strongly then I must not be heartless after all.

I am slowly learning that not everything has to live up to my fantasy and somehow balance that with still trying to maintain some sort of romantic hopefulness.  The great thing about love is that it comes in many forms and just like a generator when the storms of life have cut off the main power we can rely on the love of friends and family to back us up.  No matter how many times my heart has got the shit kicked out of it and seemingly shattered into unfix-able pieces it was love in some form that held the glue.  

 To my friend who is feeling a fresh round of heart kicking I guess this wasn’t necessarily a very uplifting comforting piece; but he can take heart that he isn’t alone and that the benefit of having so many friends is that he has that much love he can lean on and count on.  This ole Southern Fried Diva sure is sending him much love.   Hugs baby doll!

Takes A Licking and Keeps on Baking

Norman Rockwell helped capture and perhaps made iconic the place that food plays in the nostalgia of Americana.   This Independence Day in 2010 in particular finds me looking to a bit of comfort in things Americana like Norman Rockwell, visions of apple pie, kids running through the fountain of a city fire hydrant, or memories of me and my childhood dog wading through the ponds and creeks in the mountains back home.

Food itself always seems to be a source of comfort.   A common denominator we can all seem to agree on and come together over.   In times like these I found great comfort in the dinner party we had last night.   Good friends, Southern food, good stories, and lots of laughs.   Rockwell captured food as an American thread in this diverse patchwork quilt we call the United States.   Several Iconic Rockwell paintings come to mind:  the young boy and the cop at the lunch counter, the grandmother and grandfather serving Thanksgiving turkey, or the young boy bowing his head in grace with his grandparents over the dinner table.   Yes, maybe it seems like drippy sticky sweet images; but I cannot help to be comforted by these images.

The pictures bring back my own memories like me standing on chair in my granny's kitchen as she made cake letting me steal licks of the batter.  

I think it is these memories and nostalgic notions that are in fact our country's strongest bond.   If we lose our ability to look upon these images and memories and find comfort then I think the terrorist win.   As we move forward as a country we have to bring all the history with us.   How do we learn if we do not take a look at history and see our failures as well as our victories.   No nation exists without the good and the bad.   All nations, free or otherwise, have all had less than glorious moments; yet I dare say all nations also have traditions that bind even the most diverse factions together.  

The fourth of July means many things to many people in America.   Fireworks, flags proudly displayed, watermelon and picnics, remembering the brave that fell in war and saluting the brave that march forward.  In every fourth of July celebration today around the country I doubt there will be one event in which food is not the center of function.   We are a country that likes to believe that we keep on keeping on no matter what and  I believe we can and will.   For me I will hold the memory of my granny in her tiny kitchen sweltering in the humid Mountain summer stirring up her homemade short cake as the roar of a fan desperately turned to give a bit of relief and the smell of red ripe strawberries filled the air.

Doubt In The Cake

I have often heard it said that, "proof is in the pudding."  For me it is in the cake.  Allow me to digress a bit.   I started really cooking around the age of 8.   Of course my first few efforts were really attempts to mimic the foods that I would watch my Granny & Mama make.   I remember the first time I decided I was going to cook a full meal by myself, I had turned 8, it was summer & my parents were enjoying a Saturday morning sleep in, expecting the kids would be safely tucked away.   I woke up at 6 AM and made my bathroom visit all sleepy eyed and looking forward to jumping back into bed; but midstream an idea struck me to cook breakfast.   Now luckily this story is not a story of the house burning down; it is actually a story of utter shock that an 8 year old that could barely reach the stove did not burn down the house or himself and in turn fried eggs and bacon with some burn but not inedible.  The parents were too amazed I think to consider punishment and instead sat down and ate their breakfast.   Emboldened by my first success I recreated the same breakfast for many weekends to come until the eggs were not as crispy as the bacon and the bacon was no longer charred and so I decided it was time to branch out into making Granny's biscuits.   Baking would hang me up and cause anxiety for years to come.   It was not until I was older that baking a cake did not cause a case of the "quits," to hit.

My family, a true Southern family steeped in good ole backwoods Blue Ridge Mountain fatalism helped profound my sense of doubting myself in all things, not just baking.   My mom's favorite saying which still resonates in my head from time to time is, "well, don't get your hopes up."   Now I know that is just a mom trying to help her child not get their hopes so high that they get crushed when things don't come out exactly as the child wants it to.   But for many years that little saying kept me from starting projects or finishing projects.  

In those adult years when I decided to push through my anxieties and sometimes overwhelming crippling doubt I discovered just how pervasive and malignant doubt can be to the human spirit.   It brings a huge swell of pride and accomplishment every time someone compliments me on a cake, pie, or brownie.   For many years my doubt kept baking a big mysterious scary lion I could not tame.    Maybe it was the reruns of Julia Child's cooking show on PBS or my discovery of Ina Garten (a.k.a. The Barefoot Contessa) on the Food Channel; but both went a long way in dismantling my mountain of fear and doubt surrounding baking.  

Doubt in my life is not a conquered monster long gone.   It remains a malignant part of my complex make up that is from time to time a raging ravishing cancer reeking havoc on even my every day chores.   However,  I am  happy to report that a good portion of the time it becomes more and more a disease in remission with every little triumph and small hill I might traverse.   The one thing I realize is that doubt, with all its debilitation is as only powerful as one makes it.   There is always the possibility that your cake won't rise or your apple pie won't win the prize but the amazing power you create within yourself when you TRY will trump that old doubt monster in submission.   Ask anyone who is addicted to my Outrageous Diva Brownies or Pound cake and I say without blushing they are winners, proof that doubt has no place as an ingredient in any recipe.   Proof, for me, is in the cake!

I Gave At The Office

Pride season 2010 is here.   This weekend Seattle Pride is in full swing and I am sitting quietly on my own little version of "Wysteria Lane," just minutes outside of the hustle and bustle of the big city of the Northwest.  I am doing my usual Sunday mix of writing, reading, blogging, watching Sunday Morning News shows, doing laundry, and of course enjoying multiple cups of good bold rich coffee.   I've heard from friends far and wide ask me the same question which is "what are you attending this year at Pride?"   My answers are varied and depending on the friend are sometimes loony; but the sentiment and core of each answer is that I have Pride year round and this year I'm sitting out the parade, festival, bars, & usual Monday Morning gutter crawl towards home in the wee squinting shaky bourbon soaked morning.

I am far from saying I am retiring from future Pride weekend attendance; but this year I really felt like I have been there done that.   For God's sakes I have walked the Seattle Parade route itself in 6 inch heels, with the "full Betty," drag on five years in a row; I've "entertained," the "troops," in 5 San Diego Pride seasons as well and we won't regale all the shenanigans of my Palm Springs, Long Beach, San Francisco, Asheville, Orlando,DC, & Holland Pride festivals.   I will coyly plead the Vegas morality law which says that which has happened at each of those Prides will stay there.   I have given at the office in more ways, locations, and positions than one can imagine.

I will say that with the passing of my most recent birthday I reflected on the past 2 years of Pride festival attendances that they had begin to lose their luster for me.   I begin to think maybe it was an age thing.   The closer forty gets I see my priorities sharpen and my tastes for many things I once thought "fun," wane.  It is not  that I lack Pride.   I feel that it is a 24/7 365 day a year work in progress.   As I have grown older I have begun to really appreciate how my Pride has matured.   It goes beyond holding a sign in a parade or sticking a rainbow flag on your car.   I feel my actions in my everyday approach exemplify my growing respect for myself and as the old adage goes, actions speak louder than words.   

The Pride parties, parades, and festivals are great fun and I believe they are essential.   If you ever experience a Pride Weekend there is no way to deny that the old 10% rule of thumb is way off.   I think it is important to have a special weekend to parade like peacocks and show off your colors, your true colors.   If for any other reason to show the world that diversity is fun, crazy, zany, and embraceable.   It is palpable, it lives, breathes, and at its most significant core promotes a heartbeat sustained by the idea that there are so many colors in the rainbow and notes in a song.    Being different, embracing diversity, living through adversity are monumental reasons in which to celebrate.

This year I may be choosing to celebrate myself and my pride in a quiet place and state of mind; but deep down in my soul that iconic Sister Sledge anthem, We Are Family, roars strong in my soul and hums steadily in my veins.   So friends do not fret my Pride is not on life support, it is alive and well, It is  just matter of fact that this year I feel I've already given at the office, maybe I will see y'all next year.   Until then I send up a big ole hands in the air to Jesus dance wave, two snaps in a rainbow formation and an honorary, girrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrl!   Happy Pride!

Howdy! My Name is Blanche (Remembering Rue McClanahan)

I first remember encountering Rue McClanahan as Aunt Fran on Mama's Family in the early eighties.   I was addicted to Carol Burnett re-runs and thus became obsessed with Mama's Family when it spun off into its own prime time sit com series.   Not long after Rue's character, Aunt Fran died from choking to death on a chicken bone if I remember correctly, Rue McClanahan showed up on a new risky sit com The Golden Girls.   It was risky because the prime time market in television at this time was flooded with youth obsessed shows and yuppie infused thirty somethings. So, who would want to watch four women of a "certain age," talking about the "change," and dating, and gasp, gasp, horror, horror, their sex lives?   Further more would it be FUNNY!   Hell Yes it would prove to not only be funny but be, well......Golden.   For seven seasons we embraced these funny ladies and thanks to Lifetime, WE, Oxygen, and countless other cable networks, it seems The Golden Girls could also be called The Immortal Girls.    To further illustrate their popularity across all age demographics, it seems that The Golden Girls are quickly catching up to I Love Lucy in terms of how many times it has be re-ran in syndication.   Quite an amazing feat considering I Love Lucy had a thirty year head start.

Beneath all the popularity, awards, and golden reputation this show has it was always the characters that kept me a loyal fan and still has me coming back for more.   I own all the seasons on DVD and yet when I'm flipping the channels, I more often than not get hung up on an episode of The Golden Girls and find it hard to turn the channel no matter how many times I've seen that particular episode.  

Given my love of The Golden Girls it would be hard to say which character I loved more.   The past few years we have lost all but one of those funny ladies.   Estelle Getty (Sophia) was the first to go, then last year Bea Arthur (Dorothy) left us and just recently Rue made her final bow and exit as well.   So as much as a grieve for my girls that have gone on, they live on, thank God on some TV channel somewhere in the world daily; but also the beloved Betty White has, at the age of 88, hit her stride it seems, beyond enjoying a renaissance of sorts in her career she has become hip and known to a whole new generation which has reportedly given an astronomical jump in the number of cable stations buying up rights to the syndicated episodes of The Golden Girls!

Yet, one Golden Girl hit a home run in my heart from the very first episode and that was Blanche, so brilliantly played by Rue McClanahan.   Rue herself had remained busy after the series ended doing theater and TV movies and various guest spots on popular shows.   Rue had also begin to hit a comeback in the last two years as well.   Her memoir, My First Five Husbands, became a best seller, she received kudos and critical praise when she joined the Broadway cast of Wicked, and finally she re-entered the world of TV sit coms when she accepted the role of Peggy Ingraham in Del Shores' Logo Channel cult hit, Sordid Lives.   Playing along side Caroline Rhea, Ann Walker, Bonnie Bedilia, Beth Grant, Leslie Jordan, & Olivia Newton John Rue once again turned up the heat on how society might expect a seventy something year old grandma character to behave.   The series has been on hiatus awaiting some legal issues to be resolved; but Rue made an indelible and hilarious mark with her talent and comic timing in the first season.  

But getting back to Blanche, I feel like I have to sort of come clean and do a sort of "AA minute," here:  HI, my name is Kitty and I am Blanche.   My drag personae Kitty Davis was heavily influenced by Rue's Golden Girls' character Blanche Devereaux.   In fact before I finally became Kitty Davis, I was Blanche Davis and then Kitty Devereaux.   I saw Kitty as a culmination of many strong female heroines and characters but felt like Kitty was best summed up as a hybrid of Blanche Devereaux (Rue from Golden Girls) and Suzanne Sugarbakker (Delta Burke of Designing Women).   Blanche continued to follow my private life for all of my twenties and most of my thirties as many friends openly nicknamed me as Blanche given, (allegedly), my sexual adventures, again.........allegedly (wink wink)!

So I will always remember Rue's pitch perfect Southern drawl, sizzling saunter, and smoldering swagger.   Though I never met her I always felt close to her, lucky for us Blanche will live on thanks to cable and seven seasons of comic treasures and Rue, what else to say.......but thanks for being a friend.