#MusicMonday: Rae Spoon

An indie folk-singer with a haunting voice and quiet ode to Kraftwerk. I love contradiction.

Speaking of...he also does an annual cover of Beyonce.



References to Morrissey and Kraftwork, folk sensibilities and Beyonce covers? I think Adam and I need to see him in concert ASAP.

Your Friday Awesome: Don't Be A Spock

My husband and one of our friends may have just started the newest internet meme. Only good can come from super smart, super tall, ballerinas who research space radiation. In this case, bathroom signage that has now been featured on BoingBoing, Gizmodo, SuperPunch, and even the Wall Street Journal to name a few. Trekkies love ergonomics evidently. That or sassy HR people.

Its also nice for Uhura to finally get her due.

#MusicMonday: Erasure!

I'm working on a post about feminism and relationships for the fantastic Small Strokes which has me thinking a lot about my wedding. And what do I think of when I think about our wedding? Erasure, of course.

Right, if I haven't mentioned it before, we got married when everyone in the state of California could, but certain people were fighting to change that. Our musical selection became a small protest of that effort by including a whole lot of music that would not be out of place in a Castro dance club - or ironically, the Mormon dances of my husband's youth.

No pants, waist-cinchers and red patent heels. Take that, Gaga.

Your Friday Awesome: Food Blogs (Nom Nom)

Joy the Baker: clean plates = happy friends

I have a handful of cookbooks, but I very rarely use them. Because here's the thing: I like cooking - particularly baking - but its not the the process that is always the awesome part. The awesome part is feeding people the food I make. I really like feeding people. But, I don't want to spend forever in the kitchen (though I take pride in my increasing knife skills), so I very rarely use a recipe that wasn't given to me by my my mom or sister, or something I threw together with what was in the fridge (note, that last option does not end well with baking).

Unfortunately, most cook books think seventeen ingredients that you can only get from fancy, pricey specialty stores is totally appropriate for a mid week dinner. Strangely, the exception to this is my old-school Betty Crocker binder. Most of the recipes can be thrown together in twenty minutes with easily found ingredients. And people love everything that has come out of it because, despite what the New York Times tells you, when people want a chocolate chip cookie that is what they want - a simple chocolate chip cookie.

However, while Betty's got the cookies down, I'm not a big roast kind of gal so I've turned to the interwebs for inspiration, and let me tell you, these folks know how it is done. Here are the awesome food blogs I've found:

Cheap Healthy Good is fantastic because (as their name implies) they provide simple, tasty, inexpensive recipies, but very detailed break downs of nutritional information. However, my favorite part is Links of the Week which give you an update from the social conscious food world with a smidge of feminism.

Our Best Bites also has an extensive list of quick, simple and delicious recipes. But they also have an awesome treasure trove of tips on the basics of cooking and food preparation, like how to pick the best cooking oil for the job and how to cut a mango, which came in handy for this next one.

Poor Girl Eats Well: And so easy

Poor Girl Eats Well totally wins the Super Easy Recipe contest hands down. With a limited budget she makes really awesome and super duper easy recipes. So easy that I read her post on Mahi Mahi with Mango Salsa on Monday and made it on Wednesday (with cod) and didn't have to reference the recipe. Oh, and it was delicious.

Joy the Baker: mmmm....butter...

Sometimes you just need butter. Butter makes people happy, especially when mixed with lots of sugar and baked into something that makes the house smell awesome. I have a bit of a crush on Joy the Baker. Not only will she tell you when she drops a cake or she over-whipped her egg whites, or how to substitute buttermilk if you don't have any in the refrigerator (which is handy for someone that bakes on a whim), she also titles posts with things like Bikinis Are Stupid. I'm working up the courage to make this. It's weird, but tempting.

Bittersweet's Chocolate Mountain

And while were on a baking theme, I've yet to try anything from Bittersweet, but it might just be the funniest baking blog yet, mixing jaded sassiness and pop culture trainwreck references in with (sometimes) boxed cake mix. My favorites? Red Velvet Break Up Mug Cake and Heart of Darkness Truffles.

There is only one problem with using your laptop as a cookbook: it tends to get really dirty.

PS: I've also got two friends with food(y) blogs. You can check them out here and here if you want to see how they make more complicated things looks easy.

Update: In the Epic Battle of YouTube vs. Teh Gays...

GAYS WIN!

There is an update to my post about boys with beach balls, Katy Perry's ejaculating bra, and YouTube's adult content double standard up at Mother Jones.

Unfortunately, Yezak never got a clear answer from YouTube about why the warning went up. But the good news is it has been taken down and people love watching boys in shorty shorts.

#MusicMonday: God Help the Girl

I might get kicked out of the Bay Area for this, but I probably couldn't name a Belle & Sebastian song if I tried. In fact, its pretty hilarious that I've got a Music Monday trend considering I haven't actually plugged my iPod into a computer in three years.

But, you know we all have to have goals. And like me, Mighty Girl is working on expanding her musical horizons which is where I was introduced to God Help the Girl, which is evidently a project of Stuart Murdoch's that may eventually become a movie. Anywho, I think this song is hilarious and catchy:

I sit for hours just waiting for his phone call
I'll leave the chocolate hidden in the fridge
I'll play his messages
Analyze his intonation
Please stop me there, I'm even boring myself

PS: Is it just me or do we think the plain dress with the brown belt thing will be chalked up with the skinny jeans and leggingsaspants trends as fashion missteps of the teens? I'm guessing yes, even if I'm guilty of it myself.

Your Friday Awesome: ComicCon vs. Westboro Baptist Church

Science fiction takes on science fiction. The happy and inclusive one wins.

Buddy Christ sides with the geeks.

Happy Comic Con.