Summer Salad

There is something wonderful about a simple, chilled salad on a hot day. I have been tinkering around the kitchen and have, through reviewing some recipes and much  invention on my part, created a great cucumber salad for picnics, barbecues or anytime you want a taste of summer.

The delicate taste of chilled cucumber  is the prefect compliment to a little bite of onion and fresh ground pepper. And, because of the ingredients I ultimately chose, this is a completely fat free dish!

Summer Cucumber Salad
3 medium to large cucumbers
1/2 an onion, yellow or red will do
Splash of white vinegar  (honestly, just splash it on there...)
1/4 cup fat free sour cream
1/2 cup Miracle Whip Free
Fresh ground pepper to taste (I like to go a little heavy handed here)
Simply Organic's Grind to a Salt to taste (again, I love this and add it to everything...)

Start by peeling the cucumbers and roughly chopping them into bite size pieces. Chop the onion very fine (my lovely new immersion blend with the food processor attachment makes quick work of this, so I recommend getting one). Put in all in a bowl and splash some white vinegar on there. Let it sit for half an hour. Go do something else. Have a cocktail...

After your cocktail- I mean the half hour- is finished, pour off the excess liquid and transfer all of your veggies into a colander or mesh strainer. Sit this on top of the bowl you just used, and let it continue to drain for at least a half hour, although I like to give it a little longer. Again, go have a cocktail.

Take the strainer off the bowl, pour out the excess liquid, and throw everything back in (if you've been having cocktails be careful here, or it'll end up on the counter...). Now add your pepper and Grind to a Salt, and you can use as little or as much as you want. As there is such a great quantity, the light, freshness of the cucumber is unlikely to be overwhelmed and will highlighted by the added spice. Add your fat free sour cream and Miracle Whip Free, mix, and throw into fridge to chill until needed. At least and hour, or more, whatever.

Congratulate yourself with a snack, or another cocktail, I don't judge.

Enjoy!

Note: The measurements for the sour cream and light mayo is variable. I typically don't even measure, just spoon it on there. Even the quantities of cucumbers and onion can be played with, but I recommend a ration of about 3:1/2 in order to keep the flavors fresh and not overly onion-y.

Project Hera: On Hold

Darn, and just when I was really getting into it, too! I'm sorry to say that Project Hera has been postponed for at least a few weeks, but at least with good cause.

It turns out that Weasel needed the book more than I do. As we pack her and her spinning wheel off to college, she's really worried that she won't make friends, won't fit in, isn't attractive... all fears I can debunk in about half a second, but let's face it: hearing it and believing it are totally separate things.

As much as I want to just sit Weasel down and tell her that in college there are no popular kids, and the people who were losers in high school meet all the other losers from high school and suddenly no one is a loser anymore and you have friends who know and love you. Hey, I met Super Boy the first day of college, so anything is possible!

But Weasel needs to learn all of this for herself. And I want her to feel as confident and self-assured as possible, so my copy of Seven Days to Sex Appeal is now (temporarily) in her hands. What does she hope to gain from it? Well, that's her business, but I get the feeling that, like me sadly, she just needs a boost in her assertiveness, self-confidence and just become more aware of herself in general.

So go forth and learn Weasel, and who knows? Maybe you can teach me a thing or two!

Go, Grandpa, Go!

The human spirit is an incredible thing. It survives and thrives through unimaginable horror, and yet in life you often see glimpses of triumph in tragedy. If you think  I am getting a little melodramatic, take a look at this video.

That sweet old man dancing to Gloria Gaynor with his grown grand-kids survived the Holocaust, and not only did he survive, he had a family who, many years later, joined him in a trip across Europe to visit camps and memorials.

And they danced.

Some critics have called this video offensive and disrespectful to the memory of these places. I disagree. In fact, I think this is a heartfelt, beautiful tribute to the joy of life, the power of faith and love, and the unconquerable human spirit...

"You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed 

my sackcloth and clothed me with joy..."   

Psalms, 30:11

Project Hera: Day 2

On today's agenda: walking and standing. And I have to say,  I am not entirely sold on the lessons in Seven Days to Sex Appeal. Part of it is my own fault: the book aims to help women increase their sex appeal first, and their confidence second. These goals are often achieved by looking vulnerable, helpless, or very... available, for lack of a better word. I am trying to use this book to become more assertive and confident, so a lot of these tips and tricks are overly sexual for my needs.

But regardless, here's what I have learned. When it comes to walking, you have to swing your hips. Step with one foot, swing your hip to that side, and then lift your other heel. I think. I tried this a couple of times (in heels, be cause they really do make your butt look fantastic), but I felt awkward. And not just awkward because I was trying something new, but awkwardness because I felt that what I was doing was obvious. This wasn't just subtly upping sex appeal, this was blatant hey-look-at-me sexy.

Not workplace appropriate...

Stance and hand placement is just as important as being conscious of how you walk. For my purposes, maybe even more important.  By putting all of the weight on one foot and resting just the ball of your other foot nest to it (with a little knee bend), you can then hold your hands behind you on the small of your back. This will automatically improve your posture, through your shoulders back and subtly raise your chest. Your hips are also push forward, minimizing the belly and rounding the bum. Nice and cute, attractive but not super sexy.The pose I like best is perfect for work, assertive but feminine. You again put all of your weight on one foot, but this time you place the second to the side, slightly past your shoulder. You do the same thing with the arms, but this look is more serious than cute.

You can also place a hand on your hip to emphasize the curves of your body, but hand placement is key. If you put your thumb on your hip and fan your fingers over your butt, this is a super-hot-come-and-get-me signal. Not something I plan on trying and time soon. But when you reverse it, thumb on butt, fingers curling over the hip, it's appealing but not vulnerable or delicate. 

What did I take away from this chapter? High heels (especially comfy ones) make you feel confident and your butt look...well, perky. And the whole business of stance and hand placement is useful to remember. The caveat (as always)? There's a fine line between what you can pull off on a date and what's okay for work...

Moment of Joy

Lacking the energy to tackle a Project Hera lesson I am simply offering the world a cute puppy today.

This is probably a better use of my time anyhow...

Project Hera: Day 1

I have dubbed my experiment in assertiveness and gender signals "Project Hera." If haven't brushed up on your Greek mythology recently,  Hera was the wife of Zeus, the king of the gods, and had a reputation for both beauty and her temper. Unlike Aphrodite, the beautiful but vapid goddess of love, Hera was both beautiful and strong willed. Case in point: she had a history of turning her husbands many mistresses into farm animals to prove a point.

Not there's a lady to admire...

Anyway, today's adventures in sex appeal and confidence focused on something I am already very conscious of  and working hard to improve: my posture.

I slouched a lot as a kid because I was taller than most girls and I wanted to fit it, and now my bad habit, combined with a curvy figure, ends up making my look about 15 lbs heavier than I really am. So after reading the first chapter I put the lessons into practice... at the local Sam's Club.

Well, it could be worse...

What did I learn? Standing up straight, chin parallel to the floor with the pelvis forward (to make your bottom perky and tummy flat) is a lot harder than it sounds. I also felt very self conscious, as if curling my spine over myself makes me invisible somehow (hmmm... insightful, no?). It did, however, help me in some respects. Salespeople noticed me quicker than usual, and they were more willing to help me.

So today's results indicate that they way I carry myself might actually help to make favorable first impressions. It will take practice, however, until I am comfortable applying these techniques.

More adventures to come...

Note: there are also lessons in the first chapter on how different sitting positions can be sexy, assertive, feminines, etc... but it was way too complicated as far as I'm concerned. Maybe I'll revisit it later.

Because I am not sexy...

I have a confession to make: I am not hot. I am not particularly thin, my face is not particularly beautiful, and I don't know what to do with hair and clothing. Yes, I do have clinically diagnosed body dysmorphic disorder, but regardless, I am still convinced that, although I am told I am pretty, I do not see myself in that way and I do not think I attract positive attention.

It also doesn't help that I have low self-esteem or confidence.

In an effort to make me feel better about myself, Super Boy recommended  I buy this book, not so much as to be "sexier" but more assertive and confident in social situations, which, if you are a habitual reader, you know I am not.

So this is my seven day experiment: I will practice one of the lessons every few days and report my findings. If nothing else, this could be a fascinating read on the power of body language...