In the news...

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I am still dumbfounded by the horrifying, insulting, completely lacking in any scientific knowledge or understanding, misogynistic, crude and all other descriptions of that ilk comments made by idiot Missouri representative, and U.S. Senate hopeful for the love, Todd Akin. If you know not of which I speak, read this article. There are so many things wrong with his comments regarding a woman's body being able to block pregnancy after being "legitimately" raped that I do not even know where to start. I think about his statements and am struck dumb anew. A) This guy is on the House of Reps Science Committee. WTF?! Has he ever taken a biology class? Sex ed? Really? A woman's body can, no tries to, block a pregnancy when raped? That is despicable, inaccurate and grossly judgmental in suggesting that if she does become pregnant, the rape must have been not really a rape.

B) He says he misspoke. You think? How in god's name would one ever think to use the adjective "legitimate" when discussing rape? If he were ever raped, do you think any morsel of his being would consider it "legitimate"? Please, what a ridiculous, rhetorical question. He says he meant to say "forcible" rape. What other kind of rape is there? Jesus, man, come on.

C) Is he married? I can't seem to find basic biographical info on this guy. However, in researching this cretin, I did find that back in '06, he declared, ON THE FLOOR OF THE HOUSE, that gay marriage destroys civilization. This guy is just chock full of love and empathy.

D) His reply to the many calls for him to drop out of the Senate race is that he's not a quitter. That has absolutely nothing to do with his being an asshole. Maybe he's not a quitter, but questions about his ability to finish a race are not why swaths of his own Republican peers are calling for him to drop out. Granted, they're probably urging his exit not because they're SO offended by his statements but more likely (or to be fair, equally) because they realize what a loser this guy is and are worried about losing the seat to McCaskill.

E) GO CLAIRE MCCASKILL. ~~~~~ On a more positive (but it came from something awful) note, did you see that the USDA shut down a beef plant (can you even believe it's called that?) after receiving footage of grossly inhumane treatment of cows heading for slaughter? Reading about this makes me sick to my stomach and is just another bit of supporting evidence regarding why I am SO committed to buying and eating meat ONLY if I know where it comes from, how it was raised and how it was slaughtered. This is just sickening, but kudos to the USDA's action. You might thrill to also know that the company in trouble was, several years ago- not sure if they still are- one of the three main suppliers of beef to the School Lunch Program. The only way we're going to change the food system in the U.S. is to get mad and take action. Hop to it!!

Plum butter, boys

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I finally got around to making the plum butter I was going on about last weekend when waxing rhapsodic about Italian prune plums. Naturally, the day I intended to make them, they weren't quite ripe enough, but alas. This is a simple, flavorful spread that is both beautiful and intensely plummy, as you'd hope it would be. Though the skins are left behind in the food mill phase, they cook with the plum flesh long enough to stain it a dark, rich magenta. Gorgeous, and hard to photo once canned; this pic doesn't do the hue justice. I'll try again later when I've spread some on toast. Today has felt very long, friends. T left for NY early this morning, and as Ol is not in camp or anything right now, and Jack goes just a few hours in the morning, I'm wearing the Mom hat a lot! Walks, experiments with a disposable camera, painting, making a tray with their handprints on it, generalized mayhem, a bath for Percy which always results in more mayhem, and in the midst of chopping the plums, I cut the bejesus out of my pinkie finger. T has been nuts over knife-sharpening lately, and this was a quick and deep slice into the old digit.

I wasn't sure if it would require stitches so called the boys out of quiet time after just 20 minutes because a tightly-wrapped band-aid seemed like a prudent first start, and I needed them to bring me one (I was applying extreme pressure at the moment AND did not in any way feel like dealing with the hospital). It then seemed wise to teach Jack how to make a phone call should he and Ol ever be home alone with me or T and one of us got hurt. So, we made a phone list and hung it in a place he can access easily and practiced calling my mom and my cell phone. Check that off the list of things to teach!

Aren't they cute in this pic?