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Every year, it gets harder and harder to find an awful looking, ugly tomato–the ones that are grown to taste good, not to look good.

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If you’re lucky enough to find one, don’t expect it to be bright red. Sometimes they’re more orange. And don’t bother to look for a perfect stem sticking out of its misshapen body, because there probably isn’t one.

If you’ve ever bent over and picked a tomato direct from the plant, you’ll know the minute you hold this ugly baby in the palm of your hand that it’s been sun-drenched and grown outside and maybe it hasn’t even been sprayed with “who knows what.”

So, the next time you pass the tomatoes in your supermarket, try to figure out why you don’t see those hideous looking tomatoes in the store anymore. Are we so enamored of beauty that our food has to look gorgeous, while real taste suffers?

Oh, well. Pretty is “in.”  So, I won’t even get started on our pretty, pretty red beef, or our pearly white eggs, or …

]]> http://francesellenspeaks.com/2011/08/11/tomato-tomahto/feed/ 0 http://francesellenspeaks.com/2011/04/22/flash-mobs/ http://francesellenspeaks.com/2011/04/22/flash-mobs/#comments Fri, 22 Apr 2011 04:05:05 +0000 Frances Ellen http://francesellenspeaks.com/?p=1137 I love watching Flash Mob videos. They make me smile. Try it. I bet you find yourself smiling.

I dare you not to sing along with this one.

This one’s just plain crazy and fun.

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This is my question. If Kalinda (Archie Panjabi) won an Emmy last season for Best Supporting Actress, why have the powers-that-be given her “half” the screen time this season? Her character was beginning to shape up into a complex, fascinating personality. Getting a glimpse of her private life had kept me interested.

The new character she is sharing time with, Blake (Scott Porter), as another private investigator for the firm has, thus far, been unexciting.

Another thing that has the hour dragging is this sudden interest in the kids–boring.

Enter cable TV and Internet.

Now we have “pundits.” People who give opinions in an authoritative manner through mass media. (That definition is straight from the dictionary) These pundits pose as learned individuals. But it seems to me what they really do is stir up a lot of hate. It’s all about the ratings, folks.

And when did we turn the corner of humanity and find that public humiliation was a fun form of television entertainment?

When did bullying become deadly?

I mean, for Pete’s sake, this awful girl named Vera used to sit in the desk behind mine and pull my ponytail.  She was a bully. So was Jesse. She always grabbed my scooter and wouldn’t give it back unless I begged. (which, for the record, I wouldn’t) What a bully she was!

Here’s a little something to ponder on cyber-bullying. And to think I was worried about Vera and Jessie.

When did we become reticent, if not scared, to engage in political talk with someone who held an opposing point of view?

Of course, there was no Internet or Reality TV or Pundits back then.

But right now, in this time and space, living in a country that is so filled with hatred is becoming burdensome and frightening.

Scupture by Zurab Tsereteli

Did you know a Russian sculptor created a 40-foot steel teardrop, a 175 ton monument, which stands in Bayonne, New Jersey commemorating the deaths of those who lost their lives on 9/11? It’s a gift from the people of Russia. Along with the teardrop is a wall, similar to the Vietnam Wall in Washington D C, listing the names of the victims.

Russia cried for us. Who knew?

To read more see the following links:

Wired New York

Snopes

The New Yorker

Bayonne Redevelopment Authority

When I was a small child and I had to poop, I told my mother I had to do a #2. That was really a poop, except my mother didn’t want me shouting poop in the middle of a store, so her code word for poop was #2.

Now I’ve been hearing the new-improved, shortened version of poop being used, which apparently is poo.

I don’t know about you, but I have poo-pooed an idea or a piece of advice from time to time, but I’ve never pooed on a toilet, as far as I know.

I relocated recently and now receive an itty-bitty weekly town newspaper. One of the regular columns is Cops Corner (a report of crimes committed during the previous week). The following is a woman’s account “word for word” of her encounter with an intruder.

Suspicious Incident. A woman advised that her house is for sale and she has been showing it to prospective buyers. An elderly man came to see the house. They shook hands as he was leaving and he kissed the top of her hand. She said he then hugged her and kissed her on the neck. The man attempted to kiss the woman on the lips, but she pushed him away and asked him to leave. The man told her he would like to make love to her. She never felt threatened but did tell him to leave several times. The man left without further contact. She is not pressing charges.

Is that a hoot, or what?! Here’s another one for your reading pleasure. Same week, same paper. A real crime spree!

Larceny – Motor Vehicle. A man informed a deputy that someone had broken and removed the passenger window of his truck. The victim showed the deputy the broken side window and said that after breaking the window, the unknown person placed it in the grass next to the vehicle. The man stated the GPS, satellite radio and his safety equipment were all still in the vehicle. The only things taken were (WAIT FOR IT!) a soda from his cooler and two AA batteries. There are no suspects.

It seemed to be quite a week for odd car break-ins. A 19-year-old woman stated that an unknown person broke into her Jeep, too. Stolen? three $1 bills and $2 in change.

Don’t you just love small town America? Meanwhile, the oil is gushing into the Gulf of Mexico like there’s no tomorrow.

It got me to thinking back to my first secretarial job. Back then the qualifications needed to land a job were a good typing score (on a typewriter) with a knowledge of shorthand, or the ability to transcribe from a dictaphone or ediphone.

If copies were ever needed, you used carbon paper. Suppose you needed fifty or sixty copies? Then you had to rev up the mimeograph machine, but first a stencil had to be typed. Lots of good fun there!  See Boomer with a View.

I remember the first time I used Email. The system was installed into every employees’ computer in the company. Voila! I could actually send a message to someone on the third floor from the first floor. Believe it or not, it was only a test run at our company. The CEO didn’t see any future in it. When the test period ended, Email disappeared from my workplace. Wonder where that guy is working today?

Anyway, I wrote this post on my new laptop. Welcome to the 21st century.

My hope is that it won’t take the same path that other extraordinary series have –  like Lost and Heroes. I loved the first two seasons of both these series, but then the story lines became so convoluted that it became exasperating trying to keep up with all the twists and turns. I finally gave up on both of them.

I’m hoping that FlashForward doesn’t drift slowly off the grid. It has enough plot complications already. But it answered a lot of questions in its season premiere, “Revolation Zero.” So, if you’re not watching, tune in.

rob will review agrees. The show is worth a look-see. Mysteries remain, but crucial information has also been revealed.

If this show doesn’t try to get too cerebral, we could be in for quite a ride.

Also, you might like to know. Heidi Klum’s exercise guru says that Heidi insists hard boiled eggs be available for that time of day when she needs to have a snack, something filling, but low in calories.

So, here you have it. This takes exactly 20 minutes.

Gently place eggs in pan. Cover with water. Eggs should fit tightly in the pan. You don’t want them rolling around while boiling.

Place pan on burner set on “high.”

The 20 minutes starts now. Set your timer.

Only lower the heat if your pot begins to spit or overflow, but keep the water boiling.

When the timer goes off, plunge the pan under cold running water and fill the pan immediately with ice cubes. The eggs must chill rapidly. Shut off the water and allow pan with cubes to sit for 10 minutes. Replenish ice cubes, if necessary.

Refrigerate eggs.

Now, for the crucial peeling. Crack the shell, not just a little. After you’ve started to crack it, roll it lightly along the counter. It will almost begin to peel itself. Finish peeling. Voila! Beautiful, shiny, smooth egg – ready to eat. Enjoy.