Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Mis Representation (part II)

Here are a few more tidbits to pique your interest in the "Mis Representation" post below:
(all from the interview)

-Teenagers spend 10 hours a day using/interacting with some form of media!
-The US population is 51% female, but women in media are found at a MUCH lower percentage, and are usually given minor roles - as props.
-Even in cartoons, females (whether in human or animal form) are often given the "Barbie" proportions.
-Women who are self-objectifiers have lower cognitive functioning and lower ambitions! and are even less likely to vote because they don't believe that their voice matters!

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Mis Representation

I am thrilled, excited, grateful, relieved to hear someone FINALLY address this issue. A woman's WORTH IS NOT BASED ON THEIR BEAUTY, SENSUALITY, SEX APPEAL. And it is an ABSOLUTE LIE the media spoon-feeds us that women are powerful when they exploit their bodies. In fact, we become powerLESS when we become objectified. And I would say virtually ALL shows and movies propogate the lie. I can't watch much anymore without being incredibly offended by the way women are portrayed and the message it sends to other women & girls as well as men & boys.
(Thankfully, most of the Food Network shows are unoffensive.)

So that's my soapbox. Here's what I'm referring to in the first sentence above. PLEASE, PLEASE LISTEN TO THIS!
http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/kuer/news.newsmain/article/184/0/1853413/RadioWest.(M-F..11AM..and..7PM)/91911.Through.the.Lens.-.Miss.Representation

*KUER, an offiliate station of NPR, did an interview with Jennifer Siebel Newsom about her documentary, "Mis Representation". Here's a quote from the above link: "Siebel Newsom's documentary explores how women are portrayed in the media and the very real consequences this has on leadership in our society. Siebel Newsom says her film is meant to be what she calls a 'change agent for our culture.' It's a change she says will empower women and help America's productivity, creativity and bottom line."
There are also related links at the above link for ways to get involved. Please do so! I think this is REALLY important.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Hypermiler Hypermiling

Ever heard of this?? I hadn't. Until...yesterday? I think. It was on NPR (of course). Interesting stuff about how to get the most gas out of your car. Or maybe I should say how to KEEP the most gas in your car / how to take the LEAST gas out of your car. Here's a handy link for more info, tips, and tricks:
http://www.publicradio.org/columns/marketplace/business-news-briefs/2011/09/increase_your_gas_mileage_a_guide_to_hypermiling.html

Stuff like, don't wait till the last second to break for a red light, try to keep your RPM's under 2, anticipate hills by accelerating BEFORE the hill so your car doesn't have to accelerate up the hill and work harder, remove excess weight from your car (I guess I should take that vacuum out of my trunk...), etc. Lots more tips at the site.

Some people take it to an extreme, which can be dangerous. So don't do that. And sometimes it'll irritate other drivers, but if it saves you hundreds of dollars every year in gas, it might be worth it. I know I'm definitely going to try some of their suggestions.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Tzatziki w/ Quinoa & Beans

Tzatziki is a Greek yogurt sauce with cucumbers. I never buy cucumbers, but some neighbors brought me some from their garden. So I had to use cucumbers somehow. I also had some Greek yogurt in the fridge (can't remember why) and some feta cheese (not a tzatziki ingredient, but still Greek). So I made tzatziki. But then what?

What ... what ... what ...

The thing is, tzatziki usually goes on gyros or something similar with sliced lamb. But I don't buy meat, so what's a semi-vegetarian girl to do with tzatziki?? Rice? Nah. *think think think* Quinoa! (Another ingredient I hardly ever use, but I try to keep it on hand.) And although quinoa is pretty packed with protein, I didn't want to just eat basically rice with yogurt for dinner. So when you don't eat meat, a great substitute is beans. I thought cannellini beans would go well. And even though this was a what-I-had-on-hand, no-measurements kind of dinner, I'll try to gestimate what the measurements were in case anyone wants to recreate it.

Oh, and it was really good (which is why I'm posting it).

TZATZIKI W/ QUINOA & BEANS
Serves 2

1 cucumber
1 roma tomato (also not a tzatziki ingredient, but it paired well)
1 container Greek yogurt (about 5 oz.)
1 container feta cheese (about 4 oz.)
1-2 tsp white vinegar
2? tsp dill
1-2 tsp chopped garlic (I use the jarred minced garlic)
1/2 tsp salt
1 c. quinoa
2 c. water
salt
garlic powder
1 (15-oz.) can cannellini (white) beans - NOT the same as Great Northern beans

-Make tzatziki first so its flavors can marry while quinoa cooks. In a bowl, grate cucumber with skin on. Dice tomato and add to bowl. It'll be fairly liquidy from the cucumbers, but the feta will help with that. Also to bowl, add yogurt, feta, vinegar, dill, garlic, and salt. Taste to see if it needs more vinegar, dill, garlic, or salt. Set aside. Make quinoa acc. to pkg directions. I.E.: In a med saucepot, add quinoa, water, and a dash or two of salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, COVERED until all water is absorbed (about 10-15 min). Meanwhile, in a small saucepot, warm the beans over med-low, covered. Once quinoa is cooked, add a little more salt and a dash or two of garlic powder; fluff/stir with a fork. To assemble: quinoa first, topped with some warm beans, topped with cool tzatziki! This was seriously yummy.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Baby Shower

My friend is having her first girl after 3 boys! So me and two other ladies in the ward are throwing her a baby shower :). The theme is based off of this picture found here (Celebrations at Home - more pictures if you click on the link).
So light pink and birdies. I made these invites:
Pretty proud/exited about how they turned out. First I created it in word, then saved it as a PDF. But blogger doesn't let you upload pdf's, so I searched high and low for a way to upload it as a jpg or convert it to a jpg. The "upload" type websites I tried didn't work for some reason. And most of the "convert" websites have you download a free version, but then when you convert it, they stamp your jpg image w/ their company's huge, obnoxious watermark. THIS website, however, did not do that: Convert Image to PDF, which is the one I used for the above jpg. Hooray! (Oh and I grayed out some of the details for privacy on here. That wasn't something the website did.)
-p.s. Apparently this other website ZAMZAR worked, too. I just didn't realize it till I checked my email and saw that I had a bunch of emails from them (from all the times I tried to do it, but thought it wasn't working ;). So there you go. Two websites that worked well.

I am now in the process of making my first tissue paper pom poms. They look so easy, but they're a little tricky, I must say.

I've also decided (probably a little unwise, but I like cooking) to make 4 pink desserts: PINK velvet bread pudding, pink meringues, cupcakes w/ pink frosting, and (cross your fingers) some marshmallow pops first dipped in homemade salted caramel and then dipped in pink candy melts (to cover up the tan color of the caramel - so caramel for flavor, pink for color). We'll see how it all goes.

I'll take pictures and post about it all... soon? Maybe when it's all done and I can breath again.