11:44 AM Being honest about Life and Soul

Over the last several weeks I have watched the drama over the "Ground Zero Mosque" grow to a ferver that is quite scary.  One could argue that the issue is solely about respect for those who lost their lives in the 9/11 attacks, but when you put the facts together about the location of the building and what the building will actually be used for, a person can see that the building will neither be a "Mosque", nor on "Ground Zero."  And so I am confused and angered over how much absolute hate has spewed over the building of a community center which strives to ease relations between Muslims and Non-Muslims.

Over the weekend, another Islamic Community Center has come under fire.  I first heard about the opposition to the Mufreesboro community center late last week on NPR.  People in the community have become emboldened by the opposition to the community center in NYC and so they think they have the duty to stop this center's expansion. I ask, what does this have to do with feelings over 9/11?  Absolutely nothing.  The attack on this center is strictly based upon prejudice against the Islamic faith.  The followers of Islam are being punished for events in which they had no part.  For attitudes they preach against.  Not only are they being falsely accused, but they are being denied their constitutional rights.  And, as of this weekend, they are being terrorized by fire and gun shots.

Last night, a prominent pastor in my own city weighed in on his opinion of Muslims.  And it was Ugly.  The generalizations and vitriol and even denial of his own faith's history were truly astounding.  Last night they made me angry.  Today, they make me cry.  Today, they make me afraid.

When pockets of anger and hate have action behind them, who is next?  Mob rule says that the law doesn't really matter.  "What is right," is all that matters.  In this instance of upset over spirituality and morality, who is to say what is, "right?"  This is precisely why we have the Constitution.  The laws of our land spelling out our freedoms are the only thing we have that can save us all from lynching each other.  How scary is that to think that in our own country, people could be shot or burned or worse for their beliefs?  It wasn't so long ago that it was happening to Jews and African Americans.  Will we allow the same thing to happen to Muslims?  There once was a time when even Catholics were looked on with mis-trust.  President John F. Kennedy was put through the ringer over being catholic.  Many people would not vote for him because of that.  Can you imagine an America who didn't have JFK as a past President?  I can't.

Many of my fellow Americans live in the comfort of being a member of the Christian faith.  I was raised a Christian and nearly all of my family is Christian.  Some of my family are heavily involved in their church homes.  I am so proud of them.  I love them for their faith.  I love them for their honesty.  I love them for the care they take for their communities.  They are the kinds of Christians that I wish everyone could be.  And I have to say that I am lucky enough to have some close friends whom I respect and love for their faith as much as my family.  But a lot of America is not Christian. 

There are so many different faiths out there and Americans exercise their right to choose where they belong spiritually.  Unfortunately, there are those of non-Christian faiths who are afraid to be honest about their lives.  They live and work alongside you.  They are your friends, your mentors, you children.  And they are afraid.  Some are afraid of your look of disappointment.  Some are afraid of being mowed down with a laundry basket full of tracts.  Some are afraid of being physically harmed.  Some are afraid of losing their jobs. Some are afraid of losing their families.  All for their faith being different.  Does this sound like a certain culture we are fighting to free from oppression?  Does this make you sad, angry, feel as though something must change?  It makes me all of the above.  And it tells me that the time to stop the hate is now.  And I can no longer stand by and simply be angry over the wrongs being committed if I am not honest with the entire world about my beliefs.  So that stops now.

Most people who know me well have an inkling of my beliefs.  There are online communities and thus people all over the world who are semi-anonymous to me who know absolutely what I believe in, but I don't openly speak about my beliefs to most people - even my family.  I don't like disappointing my family and, frankly, I never thought it was anybody else's business.  But dedicating my life to fighting religious intolerance sort of makes it everyone's business, so here goes:

I am a Pagan.  I have been a semi-practicing Brighid follower for 4 years now.  I've been interested in the mythology and lore of various pagan cultures for as long as I can remember, but as I became an adult and experienced life in all its pleasures and disappointments, I came to a point where I was finally able to understand where I belonged and who I really wanted to be.  And while I don't always understand, or even like, some of the people in my Pagan community, I realize that I am not alone, this is pretty standard with all faiths.  We all have our "crazy" elements.  And so all I can do is keep my nose clean and present myself to the world in a respectful manner in hopes that some day I won't feel like I have to hide who I am to be taken seriously.  Some day I won't wish I had stayed closeted so that I'm not harassed over my beliefs.  And so that when I stand in opposition to those who spew hate and vileness against others who are "different," I am respected enough for people to listen to me when I talk.

And so now I ask you, everyone who is reading this, to be honest about your beliefs.  To stop Allowing these hateful people to take away our dignity.  This includes those of you who are Christian and are appalled by this display of threats.  Don't let the American Terrorists turn this nation into a nation of hate.  Stand up.  Stand against intolerance and ignorance and hate and Terrorism!

10:54 AM Politics that make me angry

I don't like to include politics on this blog.  I usually reserve that for my Facebook or my personal journal.  But I heard something disturbing on the Diane Rehm show this morning that made me a little sick and as I was posting to Facebook, my thoughts just ran too long, so I'm posting it here.  I do not intend on making this blog political.  I just can't Not say something about it.

Diane Rehm quoted portions of  this statement by David Frum this morning.  I hope you will all read it.  It is not very long.  I have never followed Frum's career, so I don't know if he is speaking truthfully, or if he's looking to lay unwarranted blame, but his statement makes me Very angry.  I don't care what party you belong to, when you are making decisions about MY LIFE (as healthcare is about my life) You'd Better Be Voting With Your Consciense and NOT a Talking Head!  If this statement has any truth to it, those who voted because of "the marbles" need to be made to answer to  every person in America who would have lost healthcare this year due to pre-existing conditions, or lifetime limits, or whatever the Insurance companies would have come up with next if the bill hadn't been passed.  I can't fault a person voting with their conscience.  If a person truly believed that the healthcare bill is horrible and they couldn't vote for it, then that's how they have to vote, and I have to respect that.  But let's be clear, Talk Radio is not the lawmaking representative of Any Single American.  The body of elected officials are.  If an elected official can allow Talk Radio to bully them, then they do not deserve to represent America.  Or at least that's not the kind of Democracy I want to be a part of.  I want my elected officials to listen to what I have to say, not some entertainer, and let's be clear, Talk Radio hosts are in fact entertainers.  There are very few "just the facts" radio hosts left anymore.

What's really sad is that Fromm lost his job today because of his statement.  Seems his conservative employer doesn't like it when he steps outside the ranks to share his opinion.  I thought it was the Democratic party who was supposed to be slaying people for dissent.  News flash:  It's all over, people.  It doesn't matter what party you belong to, politics is so polarized everyone is behaving badly.  And since we've not been keeping each other in check, we've allowed the pot to simmer over into real violence.  What the hell are these people thinking sending death threats to Congress?  When these people are caught, they should be tried as terrorists.  Because that is exactly what they are.

We've been fighting terrorism across the world and have increased security to keep it from coming here to destroy us, but we've neglected to notice that we're raising up our very own terrorists right her on our own soil.  Freedom of Speech and Freedom to Demonstrate are wonderful things that come along with living in this great country.  But violent and threatening acts are not part and parcel of either of those rights.  Violent and threatening acts are punishable by law.  I hope these terrorists are caught soon and are treated as an example.  This kind of behavior is not acceptable.  In this country, we have means to work our our differences.  We do not lower ourselves to civil war.  On Facebook recently Pugs of the radio show Pugs and Company said, "The right really needs to control their fringe elements..."  I agree, except I'd extend that to say that we all really need to control our fringe elements.  The way I see it, we all have our crazy extremists who could blow up at any time.  Just because the liberal fringe element is not active right now does not mean they have hung up their hats.  

Now that the healthcare debate is over and the bill is signed, I urge all of America to stop reacting, start thinking logically,  and try working together.  We have a lot of things we need to work on in order to come out of this economy ok.  I hear the Mortgage and Immigration issues are next on the table.  None of us will serve the country well if we take an entire year to disagree on either of those issues only to just vote party lines because we feel like voting party lines.  There is real work to do, let's please be diplomatic.

11:25 PM Hello Spring Showers!

A funny thing happens when people are caught inside a grocery store as the bottom falls out of the sky.  Some people hover around the doorway thinking, "this is Texas, it'll slow in a minute or two."  Others will make the mad dash to their cars, scurrying like mice caught in the kitchen when the light comes on.  And then there's the folks who came prepared.  They saunter out of the store with their jackets and umbrellas... and all the time in the world.

I happened to be one of the ones unprepared.  The rain bega almost exactly as I was checking out at the register.  The moment I heard the downpour a little voice inside my head said, "oh Fuck!"  I couldn't even remember which aisle I parked on!  So I sat outside the door under the awning with a few others who couldn't make up their minds whether to wait or make the dash-and one lady whose lovely husband went to get the car for her.  Eventually, I decided I couldn't wait any longer.

It's been a while since I've been caught in a cold Spring rain without at least a rain jacket.  This time I was also in sandals.  I ran as hard as I could with my little cart and I still ended up soaked.  I even slipped out of my sandals a couple of times on the way.  Soaked and dishevelled the groceries were placed in the car.  And then I sat myself in my seat and watched the others making the same decision I did. 

One by one they flew by trying to reach their vehicles.  Each with their own style.  There were those making the frantic dash the same as I did, zig-zagging through puddles with their eyes only on the prize-shelter.  There were also those who had resigned themselves to being soaked, so what was the hurry?  But my favorite of the evening was the balding older man who had wrapped a plastic grocery bag around his head.  He was one of the ones taking his time.  Because as long as his head wasn't getting wet, the world was going to be ok.

You wanna know what the really funny thing is?  I had Both a rain jacket and a giant umbrella in my car.  I just got cocky about what the clouds would do.  Lesson learned.  In a state famous for the statement, "if you don't like the weather, just wait a few minutes," meteorological arrogance will get you kicked in the ass.  Thanks, Texas.  I'll likely not forget that for a long while.

9:14 PM Household pictures

Efah being silly in the grocery bag. I'm telling you, the paper bag has always been the favorite toy in this household.

This is the one picture I got from Nimue where she isn't dodging my camera. I had to be quick. She dislikes the flash. And she's a smart cookie.

Sweet Taquita Banana. She's like a pretzel.

And Roz and Maizy are enjoying some couch lounging time. They are Both in my spot, but they're just so precious there together, I left them alone.

Lord Dunbar relaxing in his kingdom. Not from his Tower of Power, but from his favorite chair with his favorite afgan.

And the pretty pretty princess Nabisco. Mere moments from this photograph Efah hopped in my lap and plopped down right on top of her. She got really mad. He didn't care.

10:28 AM Holiday shopping for my pets

If you're like me and you love your pets like they are family, you are prone to spending quite a bit of your Christmas budget on the little guys before even realizing what you've done. This year I have made a pact to keep the costs down. At least I'm going to try really hard!

My first obstacle is getting a gift for my aging dog, Maizy.


Maizy is a 13 1/2 year old Catahoula Leopard Dog with arthritis. She is in great health, but her arthritic joints deteriorate a little each year. About a year and a half ago I purchased a very large orthopedic bed for her from Petsmart. She loves this bed because it is huge and she can sprawl out any which way she likes while still sharing the bed with whatever cat decides to bed down nearby. However, within a few months, she began to be uncomfortable on the bed because the foam was breaking down and sagging in the middle. That really doesn't offer much support. So I had decided I was going to just buck up and buy one of those high dollar support mattresses from Dr. Foster & Smith. And then I came across something different.

The Snoozzy OrthoAir Dog Bed.

Image courtesy of dogbedsandcrates.com

This bed looks like it meets all of my requirements and then some for a bed:

1. Supportive
2. Washable
3. Scratchproof

And as a bonus, it is easy to travel with as well as it is accident proof! Maizy has also begun to have little accidents in her sleep, so being accident proof is just about as fabulous as it gets for me. And even better, this bed is much cheaper than even the orthopedic bed I already bought her which is none of the above.

So now I know what Miss Maizy Loo is getting for Christmas. But what to get for the cats?

This idea comes via the Modern Cat website, which was then used to suggest cat gifts on Martha Stewart's website. Meet the Cat Eye Bed.

Image courtesy of dogbedsandcrates.com

I am constantly on the look out for new perches, scratching posts, and beds that the cats in my household will enjoy. They tend to cycle through each one whenever their mood strikes for a change. And since everyone of them will go after my furniture when not stimulated to scratch elsewhere, I am forever trying to keep up! This little bed looks like a lot of fun. And you know what? The price isn't bad either. Sure, it's not as cheap as the modulars I got from Target, but this will actually hold the body weight of one or more of my cats. And in general good scratching areas are always somewhere in the $60 range and above. So the function and price both are just right.

I see my Taquita Banana enjoying this bed most of all with Nabisco in at a close second.

The torti girls

And Roz enjoys scratching beneath her as opposed to scratching on a pillar. She would likely enjoy lounging on the top of the bed.

Sweet Rozaline

My other favored option for pet presents is Etsy. I've never shopped for homemade gifts before, but I've been told that there's some good quality crafts out there for both people and animals. And it sure would be nice to support someone directly as opposed to a corporation.

2:12 PM Rice Cooker Udon Noodle Soup

This is my recipe for rice cooker udon noodle soup. Since I make this soup at my office where there is no sink to wash dirty dishes, I have managed to put this recipe together with very little utensils and measuring devices. This kind of soup is well adapted to changes. You can add just about whatever you want to it, although the base of the soup should stay comprised of Bonito and some sort of seaweed as that is the classic Dashi stock used in many Japanese soup recipes.

This is the small rice cooker I use in my office. I have used it to make regular Ramen as well as to steam veggies and dumplings for my lunch. Thanks to this little rice cooker, I don't have to rely on the microwave.


The first step is to measure out some water for the stock. I use one of those large latte mugs for my soups because they are big enough to hold the noodles and soup contents. They also have a handy dandy little handle which saves your hands from burning when you transport the soup from the cooking area. Fill the mug up to about a 1/2 inch from the top.


Pour the water from the mug in the rice cooker bowl. At this time, you will want to turn the rice cooker on. Go ahead and switch it on to cook as opposed to leaving it on warm.

After you have gotten the water settled, it's time to put in the stock ingredients. For classic Dashi stock, Bonito flakes and Kombu seaweed is boiled together. But then the Dashi is drained so that the Bonito and Kombu are filtered out. I use Wakame seaweed instead of Kombu and leave the Bonito in the soup. It's a personal preference because I want to eat the seaweed and I don't mind eating the Bonito. You can use the traditional Dashi recipe if you're making this at home and want the clean broth.


I measure the ingredients in my hand since I don't have any measuring tools. You can adjust the measurements to taste. Keep in mind that the Bonito will compact, and even some will dissolve, when wet. Additionally, the Wakame will expand quite a lot when re-hydrated.



I use one medium to large sized Shitake mushroom for the broth. I like the depth that it adds to the Dashi. After wiping the mushroom with a little damp cloth, remove the stem. Removing the stem is easy, just hold the cap gently in one hand and the stem firmly in the other, and twist the stem off of the cap. Sometimes you'll have to pull while twisting to make it happen.


Then slice up the mushroom like so.


You can slice the mushroom thinner and leave the pieces long, or you can cube them like I have below. I eat my noodle soup with chopsticks, so I prefer thicker mushrooms.


Then put the mushrooms in the water along with the Dashi ingredients.


I've used a couple of different kinds of noodles for this soup. I've used regular Ramen noodles; I've used soft Udon noodles which are packaged similarly to Ramen; I've used a smaller flat asian noodle that comes in a little nest (I don't read Chinese so I have no idea what these noodles are); and finally I've used these flat Udon noodles. My favorite noodles were the soft Udon noodles, but those come individually packaged at $1/package. So there's extra plastic waste plus the waste of the unused flavor pack. For this blog, I used the flat Udon noodles pictured below. I do like them, however I just found a store nearby which sells the round Udon noodles packaged similarly to these. I will be trying those next time because those soft Udon noodles I liked so much were also round. I like the round ones because they are more dough-ey than the flat noodles.

For this package, I had to measure my own noodles. All the previous noodles had their own portioning methods, this one didn't. So I remembered that the Soba noodles I've purchased before in a similar package had three portions in it. Thus I divided this package into thirds and placed the noodles in the bowl to cook alongside the Dashi ingredients. You don't have to cook the Dashi first, it can all cook together to save time.


The Cons of using this kind of noodle is that they don't fit in the bowl all at once. However, as the noodles cook, they will droop and end up completely submerged. You don't have to cover the soup for it to cook, so not only can you just walk away from the soup until it is done, but that makes one less item you have to take home to wash.


You'll want the soup mixture to cook until it comes to this slight boil. The soup is ready when the noodles are cooked to the desired consistency.


Once everything is done, pour the whole soup into your mug and Enjoy! Sometimes I'll also add a topping of Furikake or a dash of soy just to make things a little different, but it is not needed.

8:51 PM Lamb Penne Bake

I love casseroles about as much as I love soups. And when either of those includes pasta I'm about as happy as it gets! So this week when I needed a cheap meal I could cook for the week that wasn't bean soup, I turned to a classic pasta bake. There's about a million pasta bakes that this could be based on. This is my take based on my love for adding veggies to spaghetti and my obsession with subbing lamb for beef.

Ingredients:

Olive Oil
Onion
Zucchini
Garlic
Salt & Pepper
Red Pepper flakes
splash of merlot
Ground Lamb
Whole Wheat Penne
Tony Chacherie's/Emeril's Essence
Garlic salt
Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce
Mozzerella
Italian seasoning

Method:

Start out in a skillet with olive oil. Slice onions thinly and stir into skillet coating with the olive oil. Salt onions so that the onions sweat.


Now add the zucchini to the skillet. Salt, pepper and add the red pepper flakes. Stir and saute until they just begin to carmelize.


Now I LOVE garlic, so I put in 4 cloves. You can certainly decrease that to taste. Chop the garlic and add to the skillet. The trick here is to not burn the garlic. Many recipes tell you to add the garlic to the onions as they are sweating. The problem is that garlic burns easily and once garlic burns, it is bitter. So I add my garlic nearer the end. In this case, once I noticed the onion an zucchini carmelizing, I stirred well and added the garlic to the top of the veggies. I did not stir. I just let the garlic hang out on top and kind of steam. Then when it was time to stir because the mixture had carmelized more, that's when the garlic started saute'ing.


This is what the carmelization should look like. Once everything looks like this, it's time to transfer the veggies to the glass pan, so we can use the skillet for the lamb. Once the veggies are in the glass pan, splash a little red wine in and stir. And I really do mean just a splash. Ordinarily you would put the wine into the skillet and use it to deglaze the pan, but I'm using cast iron. I don't want to deglaze my pan. So I added it as a touch after the transfer.


After you've transferred the veggies, you are ready to cook the lamb. Don't wash the skillet, use whatever is left in the skillet to flavor the meat. Add more oil and then the lamb. Salt, Pepper, garlic salt, and Tony Chacherie's is added. Then the lamb is browned.


While the lamb is browning, bring a pot of salted water to boil. Cook pasta until Al Dente.


This is how the lamb looks as it is browning. You can stop here, but I prefer to cook until some pieces have a crust.


See how browned these pieces are? This is a personal preference. Play with the dish and cook to your taste.


Once the lamb is browned to your satisfaction, mix penne and lamb with the zucchini, onions and garlic in a glass baking dish.


Now it's time to add the spaghetti sauce. I cheated and used jarred. But next time I want to use homemade.


Grate the fresh mozzerella and mix into the dish like so.


Then grate more mozzerella onto the top and load into an oven preheated to 350 degrees. Then bake until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted.


This is what the bake looks like once all the cheese is melted. I would have finished the dish off in the broiler to get a good brown on the cheese, however, the pasta pieces sticking out were beginning to over cook, so I went ahead and took it out.


I was hoping this would set up and allow me to cut out my serving like a lasagna. But I don't think I put in enough cheese for it to do that. On one hand, that means my portions don't present solidly when served, but on the other, tons of cheese means tons of extra fat. And more expense since cheese isn't exactly cheap.




As is, my serving just kind of glopped out on my plate. But Man was it good! It didn't need any extra cheese. The only thing I think I would change is I would add some sliced portabella mushrooms to the mix and I would probably add a little more cheese to the top so the pasta is covered. Then I could either leave it in longer or finish it off in the broiler for browning the cheese topping. This is one of those dishes, like lasagna, that will get better as it sits. It was lovely right out of the oven, but as I sat and took my time with it, the flavors seemed to get more prominent near the end of the meal. I think it will be absolutely Heavenly by tomorrow!

To accompany my dish, I had this Castle Rock Merlot. This particular Castle Rock was perfect with the meal. It was subtle and yet hit all the right notes to compliment the tomato sauce and spice. And in fact, it was also the wine I splashed into the dish once the veggies went into the glass dish so it was utilized on both sides of the meal.


This dish is quite a simple one to make, however, it did take quite a bit of time seeing as how I insisted on using the same skillet for the lamb and veggies. Had I used two separate skillets, my time would have been reduced quite a bit. I am not a fan of dishwashing, though, so I much prefer to use as few dishes as possible!

Pasta bakes, like casseroles, make great leftovers. They also freeze well. This is one of those dishes that you could cook in bulk over the weekend and freeze in small portions for when you just need a TV dinner because you don't feel like cooking.