Cooking for One

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I know that when I first started cooking for myself in college, it was usually something like boxed rice a roni or mac n cheese + frozen vegetable + canned beans or tuna or salmon most of the time. Needless to say, I’ve come a long way.

And yes, it’s true that there isn’t much in the way of compelling recipes for one and that making a recipe that feeds 6-8 feed only one instead is not worth the effort. But that doesn’t have to mean you’re relegated to take out, delivery, and wasted food.

I’ve been cooking for myself for almost ten years now, and I promise, it gets better. Like any other skill – practice makes perfect.

Tick Tock

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I don’t have a maternal instinct. I hardly know how to talk to kids, let alone raise one. Besides that, I have a lot of things I want to do with my life, and children don’t factor into that.

In a lot of ways, having kids is still the default setting for women. But it shouldn’t be. The response to a woman saying she doesn’t want children shouldn’t be a wink and the word “yet.”

It just really gets under my skin. Having some straight, married woman tell me that I’ll probably decide I want children sometime in the next ten years.

Christmas Thoughts and Fearless Women

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Sometimes I think I could let myself off the hook more.

Maybe doing what I love can be enough.

Maybe I should stop worrying so much about whether what I’m doing is the most important thing I could possibly do, and worry more about if I feel alive.

I want to feel that joy and exuberance Julia Child felt when she graduated from cooking school, and again when her cookbook was published.

And if I was full of that joy, maybe I’d have the energy for something else, too.

OP-ED: #ShirtStorm

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I’ve been trying to stay out of the Matt Taylor #shirtstorm debates. (For those who remain blissfully unaware of the incident, here’s a recap.) It’s a complicated situation and I’m not entirely sure where my opinion lies. I also think the Internet latches onto stories and sensationalizes them unnecessarily. This article by The Atlantic‘s Conor […]

Thoughts on Street Harassment

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Last Friday night was perhaps the first time I’ve felt legitimately unsafe walking the streets of Austin since I moved here a little over a year ago. I wanted to attend a Halloween event at a queer-friendly bar downtown, and decided to take the bus instead of paying for parking. This meant there was a […]

Book Review: PRO: Reclaiming Abortion Rights

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If I got pregnant today, I would have an abortion. That’s not a popular thing for a woman to say in this country. But if it’s true for me, I’m sure it’s true for a lot of other women, too. In fact, I know it is. Because statistically, 1 in 3 women will have an […]

Book Review: The S&M Feminist

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A friend recently lent me The S&M Feminist, a collection of articles by sex-positive blogger and activist Clarisse Thorn.

I’m going to start off by saying, everyone should read this book. Seriously. Everyone. Read it if you are into S&M or identify as a feminist. Read it if you are sex-positive or polyamorous. Read it if you are a PUA or an activist. Read it if you are friends with anyone listed above.

Or, even if you don’t identify in any of those ways or know anyone who does, still read it. Because we don’t have enough frank and honest conversations about sex or feminism in our culture, and Thorn is incredibly articulate about both. You won’t be disappointed. (It’s also super easy to pick up and put down since the book is full of bite-size articles).

Review: Disney’s Maleficent

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**NOTE: This review contains SPOILERS** There’s been a lot of talk lately about whether Disney is turning a new leaf regarding its portrayals of female characters. Given the latest kerflufle with the #WeWantLeia Twitter hashtag, I remain skeptical. In fact, I refrained from seeing Disney’s Frozen because I saw mixed reviews on social media from […]

In Defense of “Ladies”

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This article recently popped up in my newsfeed on Facebook. I’ve had mixed feelings about it ever since. Believe me, I know “ladies” is problematic. I know I’m not a “lady,’ strictly speaking. Technically, I think “ladies” are those people who play nice with the patriarchy – who don’t stir up too much trouble, who keep […]