Category: Personal

  • How to Make French Bread from Scratch!

    Over the past year, I’ve completely redirected myself away from writing fiction and teaching English toward a more technical future. I’ve been refreshing my HTML and CSS skills, and I’ve been learning new skills and languages, like JavaScript and Python. Soon, I’ll be tackling iOS. Here in Portland, there is an amazing organization called Treehouse,…

  • It’s About Love, Actually

    The internet recently exploded in debate over the film Love Actually….again. Since it is one of my favorite films of all time and since I watch it every year as a holiday tradition, I know the film quite well. I have watched it at least once a year (with one exception) since I walked out…

  • On Cosby, Rape Culture, and Accountability: Change Is My Responsibility

    Excellent article. Please read in full. It tackles the problem of being immersed so deeply in rape culture, one doesn’t realize one is perpetuating it at first.

  • The Power Of Speaking Out Is Cumulative

    To quote Brandeis, sunlight is the best of disinfectants.  Rape happens in the dark and serial rapists depend on dark corners, both metaphorical and literal, to do that they do and get away with it.  The obvious answer is to throw a lot of light.  But many people are uncomfortable with how that actually works.…

  • NYC BD #45!

    This has been a great trip so far! I’m in between being in the crowd outside The Today Show (my mother’s favorite) and going out to see the Statue of Liberty. It’s been great fun so far. Yesterday we saw The Rockettes, and today we’re seeing a Tom Stoppard play, with Ewan McGregor and Maggie…

  • Winter Squash & Fresh Sage Biscuits

    This recipe is so very delicious. I’ve made it 4 times in the past three weeks, each time with a different squash. Although my biscuits aren’t nearly as attractive as the creator’s biscuits, they are scrumptious. Like most of my recipes, I alter them from another recipe. This one was altered from Kitchen Vignette’s Delicata…

  • Sweet Savory Autumn Bread

    It’s barely autumn, but I’m loving it already! I spent all afternoon in the kitchen making soup and bread with all the goodies of Autumn. This picture is of my first ever Savory Sweet Autumn Bread! I adapted this recipe from Eat-Live-Run’s Apple Braid, incorporating butternut squash and some savory spices as well. First I…

  • It’s Not Enough, But It’s a Great Start

    Excellent article. Whereas I can see McEwan’s point that we’re shifting from victim blaming to bystander blaming, I do think that promoting bystander intervention is a positive step to put an end to rape culture and thereby an end to the prevalence of sexual assault. Certainly the rapist is the only one ultimately responsible for…

  • Read the Actual Words for a Change

    I’ve gotten several messages and emails lamenting the death of O. M. Grey or to express a sadness that I’m quitting writing…only I’m not quitting writing. I got so many messages, in fact, I doubted my own memory of what I wrote just two days ago, so I went back to “Caught in the Cogs”…

  • Ukiah Corner Gallery Art Show

    For the entire month of July, my visual art and books will be on display in the front window at the Ukiah Corner Gallery. I’m ever so excited about this! It’s the first time in my life that my visual art has been on display in public. There will be a reception for this month’s…