Horrors of commuter traffic, great music as a balm

I've been in stop-and-go traffic for most of the past hour and have gone no more than 5 or 6 miles. Thank god I never have to commute anywhere- I am so sorry for VA-MD-DC folks who have to. Wow! The boys are with me, and I am feeling grateful for crackers and good music. Who loves Thank God I'm a Country Boy by John Denver? Awesome song. I'm chair dancing like a fool.

Holy shopping

Oh.My.God. This will sound pretty shallow, but I just had a thrilling shopping experience. Really. It was beyond. I was being assisted by a fashionable blast of a man, Prince, and then met up with a stunning mother of three from Colombia. Have three strangers ever had more fun?! I've mentioned before, although in daily life it'd be hard for y'all to believe, that I love/adore/am smitten with beautiful clothes and shoes. It always feels so dissonant to me, this passion, because I am most of the time gardening and composting in sweatpants (stylish ones I tell myself), looking for deals (I love coupons), cooking like a maniac, mom'ing to the max and trying to figure out how to fix climate change, poverty and the lack of rights some women have.

But other times, it feels really good to do something just for you, to put on make-up and a nice dress, banish the ponytail for a day, wear heels. For me at least, it reminds me of the woman who's still in the comfort and spill-proof bedecked clothes, reminds me that age is so much more than a number, and that feeling pretty isn't anything to denigrate.

Margin Call, salmon burgers, Herman Cain

Don't y'all think Herman Cain's days are numbered? I mean really. Did you see his response on one of the news shows recently when asked if he'd sexually harassed women? Something to the effect of, "Not while I was head of the restaurant association." Well, how lucky for those women. Good lord, who is taking this man seriously anymore? And if this is how little the Right likes Romney, well he must have a thick skin and damn serious desire to win this thing to stay out there getting trumped by idiots left and right. When I'm not roiling with disgust about the complete lack of serious political discussion and action on true and real behalf of the American people, I'm mortified by how far we've fallen as real beacons of a democratic nation in which those at the bottom had a voice and real hope for upward mobility. Sure, some will still become wealthy, succeed despite odds, but most who struggle will continue to struggle for the foreseeable future as the Repubs slash and burn their way through social safety nets and the Dems don't do too terribly much to stop them. And don't even get me started on the ways in which we're pathetic non-leaders on dealing with climate change. On another note, Margin Call was terrific. It's in theaters now but we ordered on Video On Demand for $8 last night- nice. The cast was really great- Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons, Paul Bettany, Zachary Quinto- and it was a quick-paced, very entertaining film about Wall St.

In past posts, I've mentioned the ease of making salmon burgers, and it's true- they are a snap. But I actually will be making them today and wanted to give you a quick head's up about the recipe in case you head to the market today. (At our local Whole Foods, sockeye salmon is on sale for $9.99/pound.) For my favorite combo of flavors, you'll also need spinach (fresh or frozen) and crumbled feta. I have a meat grinder through which I pass the salmon but you can also finely chop yours with a chef's knife. In a large mixing bowl, put the ground/chopped salmon, mix in as much spinach (if fresh, steam it in the micro, skillet, or steamer insert in a pot; if frozen, thaw; squeeze dry and coarsely chop) as you like (at least 1/2 c), stir in at least 1/4 c crumbled feta, season with salt and pepper and form into burgers. Freeze or grill!