Fury of the Day – “Women Have Come A Long Way!”

by Liz Heather in

In the context of talking about how men and women are each treated in society, I heard someone say this the other day and I keep thinking about it. Every time I hear it said aloud, it stays with me for a few days. Mainly because after it’s said, everyone around that person usually agrees with the thought and then moves on.

Am I the only one who wants to scream "HOW?!" at these people? Is it just me who thinks this is an insane statement? There are hundreds of daily reminders that show me that women haven’t come very far at all and I feel like, if anything, we’re in a weirder place now. There are tons of specifics I could get into, but the main one on my mind right now is this illusion of equality that we all seem to think is in full effect (in the media, specifically). 

When I see a billboard of Nicki Minaj’s full ass hanging out next to a billboard of Kanye West in a buttoned up fucking TRENCHCOAT, am I supposed to think this is normal? We’re really working towards equality here? I’m not saying that it’s wrong of her to choose to present herself that way, I’m saying that it’s fucked up that I’m supposed to think it’s normal and not give it a second thought. The fact that he’s presented in a manner where he can be judged for his talent and she’s presented in a way for you to rank her fuckability – that’s fucking terrible to me. I’m not saying she’s awful, I’m saying this wild notion of “women coming so far” is complete fucking garbage to me when examples like this one completely surround our lives. Especially when we’re living in a time when we’re constantly being told that a woman’s worth depends almost completely on her exterior. Is that a dramatic statement to make? I really don’t think it is. If she had some pants on in that shot, would her album have still hit number one? I don’t fucking know, but it’s shitty that I have to wonder that.

Another thing I hate is that if you have an opinion on public figures who show a lot of skin, you get put into one of two categories.
1.    The prudes, who think showing any kind of skin is a sin. 
2.    The women who shout things like, “She looks fucking good! What’s the problem?”

I don’t want to be in either of those groups, I don’t belong in them! I love the way that I look and it doesn’t harm me that she’s showing anything off. I don’t care if she looks good or if she looks shitty, why do we have to be talking about how she looks at all? Shouldn’t we be more concerned about why objectifying yourself has become the new social norm? 

The fact that the majority of us have somehow been tricked into thinking that a woman in the public eye who shows off the majority of her body consistently is somehow “empowered” and “strong” blows my fucking mind. Yeah, of course, anybody can do whatever the fuck they want – but if that’s the logic here then where the hell are the strong, powerful men with their dicks hanging out? Why have I never seen Jay-Z’s chest?! Why aren’t those photos shoved down my throat? That’s not the culture, I get it. My point is that you can be strong and empowered and not photoshop a thigh gap onto your latest Instagram photo. You are not “helping women”. 

Another thing I hate? The argument of, “Sex sells.” Once I get going on these opinions and someone says that? Conversation over. And not because I want the conversation to be over, but because that’s the little “Well, whaddya gonna do about it?” answer that we’re all so comfortable with hearing. Yeah, it’s true. Yeah, this is the world we live in. I feel like there was a time when that statement made people more mad, but now? It’s so fucking commonplace there’s no emotional attachment to it anymore. As though we’ve somehow become beings who have fully accepted that women are only valuable based on how good they look and that’s just the way it is. 

Someone please tell me what justifies someone classifying women as having “come so far.” Is it because we’re allowed to vote now, is that when this argument started? ‘Cause that was almost a hundred fucking years ago and it wasn’t a “women’s issue” then, it was a human rights issue. People don’t approach black people and congratulate them on how far they’ve come because there’s an understanding that THAT WOULD BE RIDICULOUS. It’s an insanely condescending statement to make towards anyone and should infuriate everyone. 

We have not fucking come very far at all.

Peanut Butter, Strawberry & Banana Quesadillas

by Liz Heather in ,

I can't tell you how CRAZY GOOD THESE ARE.

I'm still not sure if this is an acceptable dish to be served at breakfast, but that's what I've been doing so you should, too. (Also, if you want to turn this into a dessert, then I suggest replacing the peanut butter with Nutella. Your mind will implode.)

Photo Credit: Ambitious Kitchen

Photo Credit: Ambitious Kitchen

Ingredients

Cooking spray

Natural creamy peanut butter

2 wholewheat tortillas

1 large ripe banana, sliced

3-4 strawberries, sliced

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Heat a medium skillet over medium high heat and spray the pan with cooking spray.
  2. Spread a thin layer of peanut butter on one side of each tortilla.
  3. Arrange both the banana and strawberry slices over one tortilla, sprinkle with a pinch of cinnamon, and top with the remaining tortilla, peanut butter side down. Press gently to help them stick together.
  4. When the skillet is hot, add the quesadilla, flipping once or twice, until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Cut each quesadilla into quarters with a pizza slicer. Serves 1-2.

I adapted the recipe slightly, but you can find the original one here.  

Royal Burger in Toronto

by Liz Heather in

All right, I know I can sound dramatic sometimes. I need you to forget all those times, though, 'cause I need to tell you about THE BEST POUTINE I'VE EVER HAD IN THE HISTORY OF TIME.

UH HUH.

I can't put into words what this did to my mouth. Every element was perfect if you're into the following:

  • Not skinny fries, but not bigass fries either - PERFECT FRIES
  • The darkest of dark gravy
  • SALTY gravy
  • QUEBECOIS CURDS, MOTHERFUCKER

I'm sorry. That was abrasive. But I'm serious here. This poutine shattered all past memories of every semi-good poutine I've ever had the pleasure of knowing.  

Where can you get this goddess? All right, when you're driving from Mississauga to Toronto on the Gardner, get off on Lakeshore and it's at Royal Burger on the right hand side near the lake. If you see the Pizza Pizza, you've gone too far, sorry. There's a small-ish white and red sign that says "Poutine", but you see the sign after you pass the entrance so the sign should really say, "You Have Already Passed Amazing Poutine. That Sucks."

Place is called Royal Burger. Here's their menu.

Menu

Yeah, it encourages extra gravy and cheese. Do you understand how nice that is? Is $5.99 steep for the best poutine of your life? No. But also, you definitely should share this with someone. It's a lot to eat by yourself, and that's coming from someone who has a real case of BIG-EYE. (Is that a commonly known term: "bigeye"? We use it in my family all the time. It means someone who's eyes are bigger than his/her stomach. I got mad bigeye. Which doesn't make any sense on account of my deadeyes.)

Look how happy she is!

Everyone should experience this poutine. I know the place is called Royal Burger, so maybe it should be about their burgers? I don't fucking know. I took a bite of one and couldn't really remember it so I guess that says something.

Okay, one last photo for the road. GO.

Fuck.

Dorothy Custer

by Liz Heather in ,

I'm not a fan of Jay Leno at all (when I was younger I LOVED his headlines bit, shoot me) and this video is probably too long for you to want to watch (8 minutes), but this lady seems fun as hell. Honestly I'm a fan of anyone over the age 65 and still smiling. Why do I see so many angry seniors?! Makes me so mad. A smile ain't gonna kill you.

Three Ingredient Peanut Butter Cups

by Liz Heather in ,

Remember that time I made really shitty ("good for you") peanut butter cups? Well, those were shit and these ones are CRAZY BETTER. Though, one thought? Make them in a mini-cupcake tin and not a regular cupcake tin. I know I declared that I'm anti-mini-servings, but these are so rich that even the mini version is ridiculous sweet (/amazing).

Photo Credit: Leeves & Berries

Photo Credit: Leeves & Berries

Ingredients

  • Bag of semi sweet chocolate chips
  • Creamy natural peanut butter
  • Sea salt
  • Mini parchment cupcake liners

Instructions

  1. Working with a double boiler, melt your chocolate until smooth. 
  2. Line your mini cupcake tin with the cupcake liners and using a spoon put a layer of chocolate in the bottom of each cup.
  3. Then take a spoon and drop in a small spoonful of peanut butter in the middle of each cup (try to cover the chocolate so you don't see it).
  4. Finally, spoon a layer of chocolate on top of the peanut butter doing your best to cover all the peanut butter with a layer of chocolate. 
  5. Sprinkle with a bit of sea salt. 
  6. Allow the peanut butter cups to set in the freezer for 15-30 minutes before serving. Keep chilled. 

Warning: these get melty as hell if you don't eat them right out of the freezer. And man, they're good. Decadent, but good.

The recipe above is slightly adapted from the original one I found on Leeves & Berries.