Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
Blood Diamonds Project
Artist Statement:
In order to satisfy the naïve desires of materialistic consumers, the habitants of diamond rich soils suffer forced and brutal slavery. Not only is the land raped of it's riches, but forced human labor purges the land of it's peace and freedom, leaving behind barren, dirty, and empty homelands and lives of those made to mine these conflict diamonds. From this, come beautiful and perfect diamonds to be worn on the bodies of completely unaffected humans. A blinded and blinding “perfect” beauty. Through the use of the lost wax casting method, a brooch symbolizes these empty, barren lands and lives of those who suffer from the mining. A rough, uneven, and imperfect exterior to represent the land and lives negatively affected, and a smoother interior to represent the idea of perfection that comes from the conflict diamonds mined is a symbolic representation of this issue.
Images to come:)
In order to satisfy the naïve desires of materialistic consumers, the habitants of diamond rich soils suffer forced and brutal slavery. Not only is the land raped of it's riches, but forced human labor purges the land of it's peace and freedom, leaving behind barren, dirty, and empty homelands and lives of those made to mine these conflict diamonds. From this, come beautiful and perfect diamonds to be worn on the bodies of completely unaffected humans. A blinded and blinding “perfect” beauty. Through the use of the lost wax casting method, a brooch symbolizes these empty, barren lands and lives of those who suffer from the mining. A rough, uneven, and imperfect exterior to represent the land and lives negatively affected, and a smoother interior to represent the idea of perfection that comes from the conflict diamonds mined is a symbolic representation of this issue.
Images to come:)
NY Times: Now, to Find a Parking Spot, Drivers Look on Their Phones
Published: May 7, 2011
San Francisco has found a solution to the outrageous traffic congestion due to drivers having to drive around for so long looking for an available parking spot — something that as we all know is entirely frustrating to the person looking for the spot and for those waiting behind the people who continue to look for a parking spot. A phone application for "spot-seekers" that displays information about areas with available spaces is a new solution to this issue! The system, introduced last month, relies on wireless sensors embedded in streets and city garages that can tell within seconds if a spot has opened up. HOW COOL!!! Hopefully this doesn't distract drivers even more, though, causing accidents, etc. as they continuously look at their phone to find a parking location. I guess it's the same thing as using a GPS, but a little more like dangerous texting. Still, I think it's awesome! Yay for not driving around forever hoping you'll find a spot right around the corner, but knowing you probably won't! :) I'm waiting to see how successful it turns out to be, and whether or not it will spread to other cities and states!
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/08/technology/08parking.html?ref=technology
San Francisco has found a solution to the outrageous traffic congestion due to drivers having to drive around for so long looking for an available parking spot — something that as we all know is entirely frustrating to the person looking for the spot and for those waiting behind the people who continue to look for a parking spot. A phone application for "spot-seekers" that displays information about areas with available spaces is a new solution to this issue! The system, introduced last month, relies on wireless sensors embedded in streets and city garages that can tell within seconds if a spot has opened up. HOW COOL!!! Hopefully this doesn't distract drivers even more, though, causing accidents, etc. as they continuously look at their phone to find a parking location. I guess it's the same thing as using a GPS, but a little more like dangerous texting. Still, I think it's awesome! Yay for not driving around forever hoping you'll find a spot right around the corner, but knowing you probably won't! :) I'm waiting to see how successful it turns out to be, and whether or not it will spread to other cities and states!
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/08/technology/08parking.html?ref=technology
NY Times: Global Warming Reduces Expected Yields of Harvests in Some Countries, Study Says
Published: May 5, 2011
"Global warming is already cutting substantially into potential crop yields in some countries — to such an extent that it may be a factor in the food price increases that have caused worldwide stress in recent years, researchers suggest in a new study... At today’s grain prices, that calculation implies that climate change is costing consumers, food companies and livestock producers about $60 billion a year."
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/06/science/earth/06warming.html?ref=science
"Global warming is already cutting substantially into potential crop yields in some countries — to such an extent that it may be a factor in the food price increases that have caused worldwide stress in recent years, researchers suggest in a new study... At today’s grain prices, that calculation implies that climate change is costing consumers, food companies and livestock producers about $60 billion a year."
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/06/science/earth/06warming.html?ref=science
NY Times Recipe! Soupe au Pistou!
Perhaps Provence’s answer to minestrone, this seasonal vegetable soup — enriched with a simplified basil pesto (no pine nuts) — was inspired by the white beans, canned tomatoes and soup pasta languishing in my pantry, as well as the basil in my garden and the early summer vegetables at the local farmers’ market. The ingredient list is long, but the labor involved in making this soup is minimal. It tastes best if you make it through step 2 a day ahead.
For the soup:
1 1/2 cups white beans, soaked for six hours in 6 cups water and drained
2 quarts water
1 large onion, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, minced or pressed
A bouquet garni made with a few sprigs each thyme and parsley, a Parmesan rind and a bay leaf
Salt to taste
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 leeks, white and light green part only, cleaned and sliced
1 pound tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped, or 1 14-ounce can, with liquid
2 cups shredded savoy or green cabbage
2 large carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 medium-size zucchini, scrubbed and diced
2 medium-size turnips, peeled and diced
1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and broken into 1-inch pieces (about 2 cups), blanched for five minutes and set aside
1/2 cup soup pasta, such as macaroni or small shells
Freshly ground pepper
For the pistou:
2 large garlic cloves, halved, green shoots removed
Salt to taste
2 cups, tightly packed, fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan for sprinkling
1. Drain the white beans and combine with 2 quarts water in a large, heavy soup pot or Dutch oven. Bring to a boil. Skim off any foam, then add half the onion, half the garlic and the bouquet garni. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer 45 minutes. Add salt to taste.
2. Heat the olive oil in a heavy skillet, and add the remaining chopped onion and a generous pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, until tender, about five minutes. Add the leeks and remaining garlic. Stir together for a few minutes, and add the tomatoes. Cook, stirring, until the tomatoes have cooked down slightly and the mixture is fragrant, five to 10 minutes. Stir this mixture into the soup pot, add all of the remaining vegetables except the green beans, and bring back to a simmer. Cover and simmer over low heat for 45 minutes to an hour. Taste and adjust the seasonings.
3. While the soup is simmering, blanch the green beans for five minutes in salted boiling water. Transfer to a bowl of ice-cold water. Drain and set aside.
4. To make the pistou, mash the garlic with a generous pinch of salt in a mortar and pestle. Remove it and set aside. Grind the basil to a paste in the mortar, a handful at a time, then add the garlic back in and mix together well. Work in the olive oil a tablespoon at a time, then stir in the cheese.
5. Add the pasta to the simmering soup about 10 minutes before serving, and cook until cooked al dente. Add pepper, taste and adjust salt. Stir the blanched green beans into the soup and heat through. Serve, adding a spoonful of pesto to each bowl for guests to stir in. Pass additional Parmesan for sprinkling.
Serves: Six to eight.
Advance preparation: The soup can be made through step 2 up to two days ahead, and definitely benefits from being made a day ahead. Refrigerate overnight, then bring back to a simmer and proceed with the recipe. The blanched green beans will keep for two or three days in a covered bowl in the refrigerator.
Yummm! I'm definitely going to try this! I love light dishes, and as a poor college student, I choose to spend all my grocery money on fruits, vegetables, and herbs (oh, and milk:) So this is definitely my kind of dish -- something I really could make when I need to clean out my fridge! But, it's usually never full enough to need cleaning out! I LOVE to cook, almost as much as a I love to eat!
NY Times: Japan Reaffirms Nuclear Energy Use
Published: May 8, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/09/world/asia/09japan.html?src=recg
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/09/world/asia/09japan.html?src=recg
NY Times: Justice Dept. to Continue Policy Against Same-Sex Marriage
Published: May 8, 2011
"Gay rights advocates have asked the administration to postpone all deportations for same-sex married couples until the courts decide whether the marriage act is constitutional. Under immigration law, an American citizen can petition for legal residency for a spouse, if the spouse is not the same sex."
HOW IS THIS NOT CONSTITUTIONAL!?! If two gay people get legally married in a state that same-sex marriage is legal, how in the world can somebody try to say that it is not constitutional under immigration law? Legal under one law but not the other - how does that make any kind of sense? Our government needs to get their act together. As to same-sex marriage in general, I think people should be able to marry whoever they want, regardless of sex. Nobody should ever have a barrier stopping them from being with who they love and want to be with.
"Gay rights advocates have asked the administration to postpone all deportations for same-sex married couples until the courts decide whether the marriage act is constitutional. Under immigration law, an American citizen can petition for legal residency for a spouse, if the spouse is not the same sex."
HOW IS THIS NOT CONSTITUTIONAL!?! If two gay people get legally married in a state that same-sex marriage is legal, how in the world can somebody try to say that it is not constitutional under immigration law? Legal under one law but not the other - how does that make any kind of sense? Our government needs to get their act together. As to same-sex marriage in general, I think people should be able to marry whoever they want, regardless of sex. Nobody should ever have a barrier stopping them from being with who they love and want to be with.
NY Times: New Federal Crackdown Confounds States That Allow Medical Marijuana
Published: May 7, 2011
"Marijuana remains illegal under federal law, but that has not stopped a fuzzy industry of marijuana farms and dispensaries from rising to serve the 15 states that allow the drug to be used for medical purposes. Under President Obama, the federal government had seemed to make a point of paying little attention — until now."
The Washington State Department of Health’s Web site says that dispensaries are illegal, as well as buying and selling marijuana. It says, however, that people who qualify for medical marijuana are allowed to grow their own. I think if marijuana is legal in one way or another, everybody else is obviously going to take advantage of the situation and find ways around the law. I think it's hard to put laws and regulations on "sort of" legalizing something that had always previously been completely illegal and so "hush-hush."
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/08/us/08marijuana.html?ref=health
"Marijuana remains illegal under federal law, but that has not stopped a fuzzy industry of marijuana farms and dispensaries from rising to serve the 15 states that allow the drug to be used for medical purposes. Under President Obama, the federal government had seemed to make a point of paying little attention — until now."
The Washington State Department of Health’s Web site says that dispensaries are illegal, as well as buying and selling marijuana. It says, however, that people who qualify for medical marijuana are allowed to grow their own. I think if marijuana is legal in one way or another, everybody else is obviously going to take advantage of the situation and find ways around the law. I think it's hard to put laws and regulations on "sort of" legalizing something that had always previously been completely illegal and so "hush-hush."
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/08/us/08marijuana.html?ref=health
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)