Type Casting?

Well, it's time once again for the fall musical at our little community theater here in town. Last year, as you may recall, I was a Kit Kat Girl in Cabaret. Much fun was had by me with the pole dancing and corset wearing. This year, the show is The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas and I am cast as Beatrice...that's right, a whore again.

I'm starting to get a complex! I mean, sure, it's fun to dress up in skimpy clothes once in a while, but am I destined only to play women of loose morals?

For serious, though, I am very excited about the show! I've had a few months off from life upon the wicked stage, and it will be fun to dive back in. I'll keep you posted with stories and photos from my new adventures as a woman of questionable virtue.



P.S. What other fun euphemisms for whore can we think of? Woman of the night? Practicer of the world's oldest profession?

Beauty, Brains . . . .

Did she get flustered under the pressure? I mean, we have all said really stupid things before in a presentation setting? Is she really just not that sharp? Both? Neither?

Iced Tea Classic Cocktail

This cocktail (from Salon's summer cocktail contest) sounds fantastic. I think we need to make this for sippin on Labor Day weekend.

Iced Tea Classic

Submitted by: Emily Whetstone, New York

Emily writes: "The inspiration for this cocktail is traditional iced tea with lemon. The prep is a bit complicated, but so worth it:

1 to 2 parts Earl Grey-infused vodka
2 parts lemon soda (Editor's note: We used Limonata)
a sprig of mint
a thinly sliced lemon
a splash of simple syrup (optional)

To make Earl Grey-infused vodka: For a 750 ml bottle, steep 4 tea bags for four to five hours (or until it's brewed-tea color; don't let it sit too long, or it will get bitter and tannic).

To construct cocktail: Fill a tall glass with ice. Pour one to two parts vodka (depending on how strong you like it [Editor's note: Uh ... we used two]) over ice. Add two parts lemon soda as a mixer. (Folks who like their iced tea sweet may want to add a splash of simple syrup [Editor's note: We didn't]). Add a sprig of crushed mint and one or two thinly sliced rounds of lemon as a garnish. It looks lovely.

How many is too many? Well, how many shots of vodka can you handle? These taste like real iced tea and go down easy, so watch out."

Salon taster comments: "Unbelievable," "almost too much of a good thing," "nice spice to it," "cool and lemony and tangy," "great for everyday sipping" and "the best."

Salon.com's Broadsheet had a piece the other day on baby-naming -- actually it was called "Baby Branding"

This paragraph caught my eye:
My inexpert opinion is that the current preoccupation with baby naming mirrors our cultural obsession with personal expression in a time when our individual sense of political power is on the wane. In an ideal world, having a baby expresses faith in the future -- a faith many parents so conscious of food additives and melting ice caps may not have. In naming a baby you get to engage in a massive act of pure parental projection -- perhaps for the last time.

I think it grabbed me because in my organizing work I think a lot about the cultural obsession with personal expression trumping political/collective action. If we could channel that obsession into action, think what we could do. But what would we name our babies if we did that instead? Perhaps that's why my activist friends pick nice good old fashioned names like Michael, Emma, Max, Charlie? Although from what I understand nice good old fashioned names are all the rage nowdays too.

Thoughts?

Going after the craft-y vote

Slate has a great article, complete with pictures of RepubliCrafts and DemoCrafts. The gun cozy and the Righteous Recycler's Bin are my favorites. I wish they did actually include the patterns/instructions for some of these fun projects. Can you think of other fun items to add to this list?

The Drew Family

What can I say, I'm addicted.

The Mames

Yum-o One Year Later

Here's a big hurray to Nancy, oh Nancy the amazing baketrix. See how delicious this cake looks (and how pretty)! Well, she baked that cake a year ago, one of the layers for the grand wedding extravaganza of Mame Darling and Mame's Darling. And you know what? The cake was so delicious - so moist and lovely, even one year later (it was in the freezer of course). What a lovely little gift to have for our anniversary.

Ramona and Suzaaku can attest to the delicious-ness of the cake.

Simpson-izing

I couldn't get mine to match as well as yours. There are my two best tries. A casual and a dressy version. Too bad ponytail wasn't one of the hair options. I just realized how interesting it is that yellow is the norm in the Simpson's world and the Asian characters have whiter skin.

Simpsonize Me!

Simpsonize yourself...