To Make Alfredo Sauce

* 2 tablespoons butter

* 3 cloves minced garlic

* 4 ounces cream cheese, softened

* 1 cup skim milk

* 1 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese

* Salt & pepper (I used a mix of white & black
pepper)

* Pinch of nutmeg

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook
30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add cream cheese; cook 1 minute until
mixture is smooth, stirring constantly with a whisk. Gradually add milk
and cook 3 minutes or until thick and bubbly, stirring constantly. Add
Parmesan cheese, stirring until cheese melts and sauce reaches desired
consistency, about 2 minutes. Add in a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
and season with salt and pepper to taste.

* I “extended” the sauce with a pinch of flour and a “splash”
(about 1/8 cup?) of half & half.
* Soak 2 cans of white crab meat in cold water while preparing
sauce, then drain before mixing with: cooked pasta*, alfredo sauce, and
fist-sized lump of fresh mozzarella, cut into small chunks. Should fill
a 9x9 pan nicely. I also lightly greased the pan with olive oil before
filling.
* I cooked an entire “box” of pasta and eyeballed how much went
into the baking dish…
* Top with breadcrumbs mixed with melted butter
* Bake at 350 until the breadcrumbs look toasty & the cheese is
melty!

This email came to us at work about a free seminar:

“SHARP (Sexual Harassment Assault and Rape Prevention):

It’s all about staying SAFE.

Effectively evaluate situations.

Understand how threatening encounters escalate. You will be able to
discover how to protect yourself from physical and verbal attacks. SHARP
teaches physical and non-physical techniques to counter sexual
harassment and how to prevent damage from assaults.

JOIN US in putting a STOP to Sexual Harassment by Building awareness and
confidence.”

What exactly are “non-physical techniques”? I mean… “how to protect
yourself from verbal attacks”? I can only imagine what that implies.

After all, if we as women are taking this class anyway because men are
implicitly jerks and our only recourse is to physically prepare to
defend ourselves once the inevitable attack takes place… how on earth
are we supposed to “protect” ourselves from verbal attacks with
“non-physical” techniques?! All that sounds like to me is Dress
Properly, Don’t Go Out Alone, Don’t Talk to Strangers, etc…

Ugh. I don’t want to take a self defense class. I want MEN to take a
MANNERS class. Not even manners. Just a DECENT HUMAN BEING class.

INTP writers are curious and analytical. They enjoy technical subjects
and seek to categorize information into an orderly system. With their
insatiable appetite for knowledge, they may prefer research to writing.
Objective and logical, they like to solve problems but tend to have
little interest in ideas that can’t be proven.

Writing Process of the INTP

INTP writers:

Often regard a writing project as an opportunity to learn something new.
They may start by gathering a wide variety of facts, then classifying
them according to an underlying principle. They enjoy writing about
abstract ideas and theories. One idea may quickly suggest another. You
may need to limit your topic during the planning stage to keep it from
becoming unwieldy.

Prefer to work independently in a quiet environment. They like the
flexibility of setting their own goals. They may spend long hours on a
project if the subject engages them, becoming deeply invested in the
outcome. Remember to keep the audience in mind to help ensure that your
writing is as interesting to them as it is to you.

Tend to be good at organizing ideas and weeding out logical
inconsistency. They have a natural propensity for clarifying the
complex. But they will likely need to make a conscious effort to include
the personal dimensions of a topic. During revision, look for places
where you can add examples or anecdotes, if appropriate, to illustrate
the facts. This engages the reader and brings theoretical principles to
life.

Are motivated by their search for knowledge. They are unconventional
thinkers with little regard for the common way of doing things. If
you’re an INTP, chances are, formulas like “Top 5 Reasons Your Blog
Should Have a Top 5 List” won’t appeal to you. Instead, you strive to
surpass the ordinary.

Potential Blind Spots of the INTP

INTPs may:

Gravitate towards complex, theoretical subjects and sometimes make
intuitive leaps that are unclear to their audience. To enhance
readability, illustrate connections even if they seem obvious to you.
Choose the simplest word that communicates an idea accurately. To ensure
that your message is clear, ask for feedback from someone you trust.

Enjoy seeking knowledge for its own sake. Once they’ve solved the
puzzle, however, INTPs can lose interest in writing about what they’ve
learned. You may find that it’s best to begin drafting even while you’re
conducting your research. Treat the writing itself as a problem to
solve. This may keep you energized until the project is complete.

Can become blocked if they can’t find opportunities to make their unique
ideas heard. If what you are writing about seems restrictive to you,
challenge yourself to find a way to work within the system while still
expressing your ingenuity. Instead of turning cynical, use your dry
sense of humor.

manhating-babyeater:

Men, are you worried for your own safety because misandry?

You need to accept that misandry happens in the real world and take some precautions.

Take a self defense class, they’re only a couple hundred dollars a month.

Don’t go out after dark unless you have a woman to chaperone you. Misandrists are less likely to attack if they see you are with another woman.

Don’t wear anything too douchey. If you’re wearing a fedora or a sexist t-shirt, etc. you’re pretty much asking to get attacked. Misandrists can’t control themselves when they see a man in a fedora, their instincts kick in and before they know it they have a dead male corpse in their hands. Just be a good boy and don’t tempt them, okay?

Don’t ever invite a woman into your home. Misandrists will interpret this as you consenting to physical violence.

Drinking increases your risk of being attacked by a misandrist. They target drunk men because their inhibitions are lowered.

Never leave your drink unattended. Misandrists are notorious for poisoning men at parties and bars.

If a misandrist does attack you, be quiet and just let her finish or you might anger her further and you are liable to get murdered instead of just mutilated. But also, be sure to put up a good fight because a lot of men say they don’t want to be attacked by misandrists but deep down, they really like it.

And remember, accusing a woman of abusive misandry is worse than being abused by a misandrist. So before you make accusations, make sure it wasn’t all just a silly misunderstanding.

THIS IS GOLDEN.

(via buxombibliophile)

People are always accusing me of being a good actress.

What they don’t understand is that I’m just a good faker.

I don’t have the skill to take a character and project it to an audience; I have the skill to take the one character I have created — The Bold and Funny and Talented and Charming and Clever Chantelle Constable — and use her as a shield to save the actually quite shy and only esoterically funny Chantelle from having to interact with the real world.

You see me as a drama queen, as flamboyant, as a “character.” You were supposed to. But that doesn’t mean it’s really me.

I’m shy. I’m good at putting on one very specific show and pretending not to be shy. I also have a slight (my husband would say strong) penchant for silliness.

A good actress this does not make.

Sure, there is an affinity for characters like Fanny Brice, which is why I was so happy to land the lead role in Funny Girl. But that was a “lifelong dream” and a lucky coincidence that I sang well enough to get the part. I’m not a good actress just because the role suited how I live my everyday life… Loud silliness hiding a burdensome insecurity.

I’m not an actress. I’m a phony. A very, very good phony. Please remember that.

I’ve never claimed to be a jazz singer — if I present myself as anything, it’s a vocalist who has recorded a selection of Great American Songbook standards. However, whenever people listen to my recent EP of afore mentioned G.A.S. standards, the ONLY remark I ever hear is, “Oh my, your voice sounds very classical.” Repeat ad nauseum, with “… very operatic.” Or, “you have a very… theatrical voice!” or my favorite question, “Have you ever been in a choir (and/or) taken voice lessons?”

Yes. Yes I have been in one choir or another since I was ten, and yes I began taking voice lessons at the age of twelve (although I haven’t had a single lesson for a few years now). I have studied classical voice, never with the intent of becoming a professional opera singer but for all practical purposes, with the material and technique I was studying I may as well have been ‘studying opera.’ However, I’ve also studied and practiced a more “popular” tone* and trust me, when I recorded this EP it was not my intent to sound operatic or classical at all… I only wanted to use my most naturally occurring voice, with healthy vocal technique, in a style that would best serve my song selection. I’d just played in a run of Funny Girl as Fanny Brice, so in fact my classical voice was as inaccessible as it’s ever been!

* I worked for several months with a teacher who helped me, as a soprano, to extend my lower register and chest voice.

So my question isn’t “am I jazzy enough” but rather, WHAT IS IT besides (gasp! shock! horror!) Proper Vocal Technique that people are hearing that makes them wrinkle their nose a bit and say, “You sound like an opera singer.” ?

PS - I get this when I sing with my folk and rock bands, too. Now, it’s intentional with the rock band — we’re going for an Evanescence-esque sound (not really, but that’s an easy comparison) but the folk band is just again, only me singing in my real, natural, and healthy voice.

The EP of showtunes/standards I’m referring to is available for streaming or free download athttp://chantelleconstable.bandcamp.com/

Prepare cheese & beef frozen ravioli according to directions, toss with butter and parsley

Sauté zucchini (bite size pieces) in butter with salt and pepper. Add cannellini beans and season with cumin, oregano, and thyme. Heat well, then mix with pasta.

Top with grated fresh mozzarella cheese, serve with garlic toast.