Paula Deen and More....

So much in the news lately that Miss Ginger has to take a break from the craft room and the kitchen to catch up and opine! 

First- the Paula Deen drama.  Here are a few things Miss G has to put out there. First, she hates the "n" word. It makes her wince. When she was younger, Miss G heard Daddy G use it often... she'd like to think he didn't use it specifically to express hate... she'd like to think he didn't mean any hate at all.  She heard Momma say it occasionally, but not very often.  And if any of us said it, we were corrected to use the word "negro", just as if we had used the word "ain't" instead of "isn't". As Miss G  grew older, and learned what the word meant, how hateful it was, and how powerfully it expressed that hate, she realized it was a totally inappropriate word, and never used it again.  So, like Paula Deen, Miss Ginger would be lying if she said that word had never in her  life crossed her lips. But, as Paula said: "It's been a very long time."

Is Paula a racist?  Miss Ginger has no idea. She don't know Paula personally. She has watched and enjoyed her show on many occasions, and she's never seen her make a racist comment, or even any racist insinuations. Does that mean she's not a racist? I can't say that, either. Miss Ginger can only say that she has never witnessed Paula demonstrating racist behavior. 

Did Paula treat the employee who is suing her with disrespect and injustice? Again, I have no idea, and even if I did, it wouldn't matter. Miss Ginger is not a judge, and won't be asked to serve on a jury in Paula's jurisdiction, so the point it moot. Only the judge and jury can determine if she mistreated anybody, and then, it is only their opinion.  

So, Miss Ginger's opinion? Karma is a bitch and will take care of the rest.  How far Karma takes it is yet to be seen!

Next up: Senator Wendy Davis, D- Fort Worth.  If you've been anywhere near twitter in the last 24 hours you know who she is... but her story is worth retelling, in case you missed it! 

Texas Asshole Governor Prick Perry called a special legislative session to try to push through a bill that would severely limit the rights of women's clinics in the state to perform abortions.  It would outlaw abortions after 20 weeks completely, and prior to that, only ambulatory surgery centers within 30 miles of a hospital could perform the procedure. Effectively, this would reduce the number of family planning clinics in the state from 37 to 5, and since there would be 2 in Houston, only women in the 4 largest cities in Texas would have access to care.  

So, Senator Davis decided to filibuster, to keep the dialogue open until it was too late to vote.  She was required to talk non-stop for the entire time she held the floor, with no breaks for water, food, or the potty, and was not allowed to sit, lean, or stray from the topic. She started a little after 11am, and needed to keep it going until midnight. 

She talked all day and into the night on Tuesday, until the repugnants realize they'd better stop her PDQ if they wanted to vote on their little bill.  They called foul when another Senator approach her from behind to place a back brace around her waist, saying she was not allowed to have ANY assistance.  When they tried to call the bill to a vote, all hell broke loose!  The pro-choice crowd had filled the observation chamber, the rotunda of the capitol, the lawn, and just about every other square inch of Austin. And they went BERZERK when the Lt. Governor tried to bring the bill to a vote!  They screamed and hollered so loudly that he could not maintain order in the chambers. It was classic! Miss Ginger watched the live video feed in amazement as the various members of the legislature posed "parliamentary inquiries" for two hours, trying to sort out whether Davis had indeed, violated the rules. Bedlam ensued in the chamber, and as the clock ticked toward midnight, the Lt. Governor screams over the crowd trying to regain order and force a vote. He did manage to begin a roll call vote, but it was not completed prior to midnight. At first he claimed it didn't matter since it was begun during the session, but after allegations of document changes, sexism, and other unsavory issues in behind-close-doors meetings,  he emerged to announce that even though (according to him) the vote was completed and the bill had a majority "yes" vote, it was not done in adequate time for him to sign it into law, so it failed.  Victory bedlam from the pro-choice crowd.  First thing today, Governor Asshat called another special session to try to get it through again. Jeez... the man will just not give up: he want's into the vagina of every woman in Texas! 

And finally, the SCOTUS today rendered the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional, effectively saying that states cannot refuse to recognize same-sex marriages from other states where it is legal, and that same-sex couples are entitled to federal benefits.  Shortly after the ruling, Michelle Backwoman talked into her Dixie cup to tell the world that fire and brimstone were headed their way. Later, when asked what she thought of Backwoman's diatribe, Nancy Pelosi answered with 2 of the most quoted words of the day: "who cares?!"  

So, after all this excitement, Miss Ginger is ready to strap on her sling backs and pound the pavement to help get Wendy Davis elected to be Texas' next governor.  And as for Miss G's aspirations for the eloquent Pelosi?

Queen Ginger Gets the Sadz.....

when she learns that the TV world's greatest Southern chef is living with type 2 diabetes!

Queen Ginger can't help but love Paula Deen!  She reminds the Queen SO MUCH of her dearly departed Momma G in so many ways!  Just not so much the blue eyeshadow part!

Momma G kept her hair naturally white, like Paula.  Momma G kept a coffee can of bacon grease on the kitchen counter.  Momma G knew you can't make divinity when it's raining.  And Momma G had type 2 diabetes.


And Momma G could cook up some of the best Southern dishes you ever laid a lip on!
















Queen G has blogged about diabetes before,  for that nasty disease has taken away too many people (and critters!) that she loved, and it's knocking' at her back door, as well!


The haters (and by haters I mean that asstit Anthony Boredom) have already started ragging on Paula, saying she should have revealed her diagnosis sooner, and that it's "in bad taste" for her to write cookbooks and host television programs heralding her delicious, if not someone unhealthy, cuisine while suffering from a disease likely caused by those foods!


Paula, in her own defense, claims that she never meant for anyone to eat her decadent specialties 365 days a year, which sounds fair, to this rather biased royal.  Growing up in the South, it's not like we had a pecan pie every weekend, or fried shrimp once a month to celebrate payday! Think about it, people: the traditions of the South are rural. In the "old days" in the most of the rural South, there wasn't a hell of a lot to do, so people celebrated just about anything they could justify, and cooked special meals whenever they had the opportunity to get together with others,which really wasn't that often! To this day, Southern cooks "fix" their best recipes for visitors, and calories be damned when there's company coming!


Additionally, there's no proof that the foods "caused" her diabetes.  While diet may play a part, and must be controlled to managed the disease, heredity and genetics could cause a person with the healthiest diet on earth to contract type 2 diabetes.


When Daddy G was first diagnosed with heart disease back in the 70's, it was hard for Momma G to part with her grease can, and her garlic salt, and her deep fryer- but she did it- not just for Daddy G, but for all of us.  She learned to use olive oil instead of bacon grease;  a "teflon pan" instead of an iron skillet; and the oven instead of a deep fryer.  It may have been too little, too late, but she educated herself with fervor to learn what was rapidly being revealed back then about heart disease, high blood pressure, cholesterol, and the like.


We still got fried shrimp on our birthdays, and maybe a pecan pie at Thanksgiving, but we also learned to enjoy grilled chicken, broiled fish, and boiled shrimp.  Just as, I'm sure, Paula's family does on a day to day basis!


So, go to hell, haters!!  Paula is good people, and she makes good food, the traditional way.  If that's a bad thing, Anthony Boredom, than you will have to prove it to me! Because I think Paula is a saint, and I hope someday, when her time on earth is done,  she and Momma G have a chance to whomp up a big ole batch of fried shrimp together! I can hear their laughter in the kitchen from here!