You are freaking kidding me! I wonder what the bigots who donated to his campaign have to say about where their money went. What a creep.

The Idaho Agenda

Former Idaho Senator Larry Craig is asking a federal court to decide if he had the right to use  campaign funds to pay attorney’s fees following his arrest in 2007.

According to an article posted by McClatchydc.com, “The Federal Election Commission says Craig improperly used more than $216,000 in campaign funds to pay attorneys after being charged with disorderly conduct for his behavior in a Minneapolis airport men’s room. Craig’s attorneys insist he was on official business and so could use his campaign treasury as other legally embattled lawmakers have done before him. The judicial resolution to this dispute could have a broad reach.”

Rumors regarding Craig’s sexuality persisted for years in Idaho, until he was “outed” on national radio by activist Mike Rogers in 2006, “I have done extensive research into this case, including trips to the Pacific Northwest to meet with men who have say they…

View original post 169 more words

Easy button, anyone?

I sure wish I had one.

Now I know I live a charmed life. I have first world problems. I have many blessings, it is true.

But sometimes, I wish things were easier. I know that difficult things have magical pay offs in the end and all that BS but I really wish that things weren’t all so contrary in my world.

It feels like no matter what choices I make nothing is ever easy.

I know my world would be lame if everything was always easy, I am not asking for that; but just a moment or two of grace.

Of utter perfection.

I want the spin to stop just for a minute.

Is that too much to ask?

 

33 AKA Oh, Adam.

Once upon a time there was a boy named Chris who, under the influence of a great amount of hallucinogenics,  spent a great long while trying to convince me of the significance of the number 3 and told me of the number 33 being even more magic….

Well, yesterday, I turned 33 and I thought of him.

I had intended to write a long superlative post on the many symbolic, mystical and trivial things related to the number 33….But I heard this song on the way home and realized I am 33…while remembering when I bought this album, I was 19 and pregnant…33 seemed soooooooooo old and 17 seemed so recent. Gees.

Now this song means ever so much more.

All my Friends by Adam Duritz (Counting Crows)

Thought i might get a rocket ride
When i was a child but it was a lie
That i told myself when i needed something good
At 17 had a better dream
Now i’m 33 and it isn’t me
But i’d think of something better if i could

All my friends and lovers leave me behind
I’m still looking for a girl
One way or another
I’m just hoping to find a way
To put my feet out in the world

Caught some grief from a falling leaf
As she tumbled down to the dirty ground
Said i shoulda put her back there if i could
But everyone needs a better day
And i’m trying to find me a better way
To get from the things i do to the things i should

All my friends and lovers leave me alone
To try and have a little fun
One way or another
I’m just wish i had known
To go out walking in the sun
Find out if you were the one

Do you wanna come a little closer?
Do you wanna dance with me?
Do you wanna hum a little harder now?
Can you see her waiting there?
Can you see her? cause i’m almost there
Can you see her waiting there for someone like me?

All you want is a beauty queen
Not a superstar
But everybody’s dream machine
All you want is a place to lay your head
You go to sleep dreaming how you would
Be a different kind if you thought you could
But you come awake the way you are instead

All my friends and lovers shine like the sun
I just turn and walk away
One way or another
I’m not coming undone
I’m just waiting for the day

Oh Valentine’s, thank you for the excuse to eat Carbs!

I have a reoccurring thought while inventing recipes….I often find myself daydreaming about doing naughty things, like icing cupcakes with vegemite instead of chocolate frosting and giving them to people I am not fond of…Does anyone else do that? hmmmm

Anywhoo….Girlchild and I wanted to make something yesterday to use some beautiful berries we got. I had originally planned to make a flourless chocolate cake and some creme fraiche to go with the berries. This plan was quickly changed when the Girlchild reaffirmed her NEED for nilla wafers….So we developed this…

CoffeeBeanBerryWafer Cake:

First, to make the creme fraiche you must start the day before and mix 1 cup heavy whipping cream with 2 tbsps of buttermilk. Put on your counter in a sealed jar and leave it there for atleast 12 hours, shaking occasionally. Don’t worry about leaving dairy out. That’s the point. You need the bacteria to freak out. The next day, put it in the fridge to chill.

For the crust, use 3/4 of an 11 oz box of Nilla Wafers, 1/2 cup of melted butter and 1/4 cup white sugar. Pulse in a food processor or smash in a ziploc. press into a springform pan (or whatever you have).

Take your fresh creme fraiche, add 2 tsp vanilla, 1/4 cup of white sugar and beat until slightly frothy…sprinkle one package of knox gelatin over it and IMMEDIATELY beat again, this time on high.

Spread over the crust:

Place berries on the filling and place in the fridge until you are done with the ganache.

To make the ganache: break 2 ounces of über dark chocolate into a bowl. Add one single serving package of starbucks via blonde coffee powder (or whatever powdered espresso you have.)

Bring 2 ounces of whipping cream to almost a boil…careful not to scorch it.

Pour over the chocolate and coffee, let sit a couple minutes and whip smooth.

Spoon a drizzle over the berries and enjoy.

YUM.

My fellow ‘out in the ether’ friends:

I am of no use writing this week as my immune system has decided to declare war on microbia in my ear, thus causing me great pain, discomfort, malaise and general overall bitchiness.

I shall return soon.

If you are really bored without my magical words, you could always google image “bullous myringitis” to see photos of the war inside my ear(s). Happy googling!

Are you f***ing kidding me?

Ok, I know that this is going to abound with moral relativism issues and non-cultural competence but this really bothers me on a personal level. Especially after yesterday’s butterflies from my arsehole post; but in this day and age, is this really necessary?

Accused witch burned alive after being tortured

I mean, yes, the area has been pounded by devastating earthquakes for the last week, but c’mon. Yes, I made a “Joe and the volcano” joke yesterday about throwing Meg Ryan in the volcano to make them stop, but it was a joke.

This is not. This GIRL was 20 years old. Accused by a 6 year old BOY and viciously tortured and killed by her own village.

Groupthink IS the only Devil in this world.

This is murder. Gender based murder.

Think a positive thought for this girl and those like her please.

And today I am grateful…

For learning experiences that challenge me and fulfill me.

For interactions with people different from me.

For opportunities to give and receive feedback.

For healthy and amazing kids.

For unbroken toes that allow me to walk in ridiculously hot, haute, uncomfortable shoes.

For short months.

For health.

For friends.

For the ability to tell friends I love them and am thinking of them while they go through scary things. (AR you have my thoughts and alllllll my hoobie joobie.)

For friends who tell me they love me and are thinking of me while I go through scary things.

For the ability to learn and grow and understand my childhood and persona.

For the privilege of grad school and student loans.

For stargazer lilies.

For tattooed men.

For tattooed women.

For Kisha, sunflowers and the grateful dead.

For human interaction.

For broken hearts and first loves.

For love.

For hate.

For the capacity to feel both.

For unending lists of things I am grateful for.

For life.

xoxo,

Jani

 

Hey Zeus, please don’t save me.

I often have a hard time keeping my own secular views separate from the views of people I interact with on a professional level. It is definitely something I work on, as often as I can consciously be aware of. Secular may even be too strong of a word, as I have a belief system myself. I just tend to find it does not align with the greater population’s. When one works among non-faith based organizations it is often ethically difficult for me to see how they bleed into faith based practices and not to intervene.

I understand the resilience piece of “religion.” It is very important to some people’s recovery and personal growth, their entire identity may be based in it. It’s also a definitive pro-social activity for most. It is a sense of community. Churches offer many things to many people. But to have it be the only option in some circles is frustrating.

I really find religion to be exactly as described by Marx and others. An opiate of a society. I am not an atheist. Truth be told, I believe in energy and the human need to name it. That is all. And aliens; sweet ancient baby alien space monkeys, named Jebus….

I digress.

Perhaps it is because of my own relationship or lack there of with organized religion that causes this disconnect. Guilt was the only religious icon my family of origin worshiped, and even that was in secret.  I have read into many religions and feel comfortable with my base knowledge of most. I feel that I am open minded and liberal about most things, but I have a real hang up about religion. Why is that?

I find myself judging most religions for being judgmental. I find myself wanting to offer alternatives to people that don’t want to do anything but church related activities…How do you temper that? I frustrate myself.

Cliché or not, spirituality I find inspiring, religion I find oppressive. Oy.

One thing I have realized over the years is that I find more patriarchal religions to be the most aggravating to me…perhaps it is my inner feminist that spurs my disdain. The thought is ever evolving….

Onward….

@BitchinKitchen Supperclub Slutty Spaghetti

I figured it had been a while since I had done a cooking post so I figured with everyone’s concern being elsewhere *ahem, Ravens winning the Superbowl, ahem* it was a good time. Plus, I felt like going outside my comfort zone and eating something I hadn’t eaten since I was 14….ANCHOVIES!

In case you didn’t know this about me, I hate fish…unless its raw and/or tuna. Go figure. So this was a reaaaaaaalllll stretch for me.

I love Nadia G. She is my future 3rd ex-wife. No worries, we stay friends. This is her recipe. I changed a couple things by adding a whole diced shallot, less olives, leaving the tomatoes whole while cooking and using wheat spaghetti ..OH! I also added everything before the tomatoes plus threw on some grated parmesan reggiano….other than that I did exactly as I was instructed 🙂

It’s delicious. And the name? “Spaghetti a la Puttanesca” literally translates as spaghetti as cooked by a whore. YESSSSSS! I love it.  There is a whole back story to this traditional dish, but I will make you find her telling it. It is described in two different episodes. Google is your friend, my friend.

Here is the recipe as described by her here:

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound spaghetti
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Pinch hot chile flakes
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 6 anchovy fillets, roughly mashed with a fork
• 2 cups ripe cherry tomatoes, halved
• 15 kalamata olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
• 1 heaping tablespoon capers, coarsely chopped
• Large pinch brown sugar
• Pinch sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS

Cook spaghetti in boiling salted water until it is slightly undercooked, about 1 minute away from being al dente, strain. Heat the olive oil in a large pan on medium heat. Add chile flakes and garlic, saute for 2 minutes, until garlic is fragrant and golden. Add the mashed anchovies and saute for 30 seconds. Then add the cherry tomatoes and saute for an additional 8 to 10 minutes, until the tomatoes begin to create a light sauce. Once the tomatoes have sauced up, mix the olives, capers, brown sugar, sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper into the sauce. Add the cooked spaghetti to the pan, reduce the heat to medium-low and use tongs to stir until the pasta absorbs the sauce, about 3 minutes.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

You’re welcome. 😉

TWIN FALLS! I am so proud of you!

The Idaho Agenda

A drag show in Twin Falls is always a big event. In a town that doesn’t have a gay bar, you can bet whenever the queens and kings take the stage it’s going to be before a large crowd.

What makes tomorrow night’s show truly historic, though, is that it marks the first ever official drag show to be held on the College of Southern Idaho campus. It’s also an “all ages” event, which means it’ll be “safe  for the whole family”…whatever your definition of those words are.

The show, hosted by CSI’s newly formed Spectrum club, will feature performers from Twin Falls, the Imperial Sovereign Gem Court of Idaho and from elsewhere around the region. IROC 102.1’s Dr. Nick Redbone will emcee the event.

According to an event facebook page, there will also be an amateur drag contest. So if  you’ve dreamed of getting your “face” on and…

View original post 293 more words

Do they have methadone for Facebook addiction?

I am on day 4 since I killed my Fakebook. The first day was the hardest. But even today, when I turned on my computer I immediately typed in http://www.fakebook.com rather somatically. I didn’t log in. But I was tempted.

I feel good about it. It’s not forever but it’s for a while. It was becoming too much of a floatie for me….I feel a bit as though I am drowning in my life and I would like to be able to find the side of the pool without a floatie.

In my opinion, if you use a floatie, you never really learn to swim.

So I pulled the needle out of my arm.

I even threw away my rig.

Sigh.

I have had several phone calls from people and that has been magic. It’s really so WEIRD, hearing what people are saying and being able to get their intention just through their voices! So novel. No misunderstandings of tone or sarcasm! No waiting for a response. No wondering if my android is being dumb cause my house is a dead zone.

Honestly, I really think this phone thing might catch on.

Whoever invented it is going to be the next Zuckerberg, evil genius.

I should have bought stock in “phone.”

I might even see about doing that when I hang out IRL with some people today.  Is it insider trading if I share my plan with others? Hmmm.

Maybe I will just tweet about it.

You know, after I kick your ass in “Words with Friends.”