Celebrating National Watermelon Month on Food Porn Friday

PHOTO BY KANA OKADA – Watermelon Salad With Mint and Crispy Prosciutto

Kickin’ back and keepin’ it cool as we celebrate throughout the month of July National Watermelon Month. To commemorate the juicy deliciousness of this incredible fruit, here are a couple of cool, refreshing recipes from the kitchen of Real Simple. Try this Watermelon Salad With Mint and Crispy Prosciutto.

INGREDIENTS

4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto
3 pounds watermelon (including rind)
6 radishes, quartered
4 scallions, sliced
1/4 cup fresh mint, torn
1/4 cup salted peanuts, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
kosher salt and pepper

Click here to get directions.

PHOTO BY JAMES BAIGRIE – Watermelon and Basil Iced Tea

To complement your salad, wash it down with a refreshing glass of Watermelon and Basil Iced Tea.

INGREDIENTS

8cups boiling water
8 tea bags
1/8 medium-size watermelon, cut into small triangles
1 small bunch fresh basil sprigs
sugar, to taste (if desired)

Click here to get directions on how to prepare this cool beverage. And to think watermelon could be this exotic!

Shame on You!

While criticism, whether warranted or not has been a part of humanity since the beginning of time, intimidation and intentionally humiliating someone is something different and far more destructive. It is so appalling how the internet has become a place where a disdainful and alarming form of bullying has become a daily norm. Shaming, according to the Cambridge Dictionary is the act of publicly criticizing and drawing attention to someone, especially on the internet. Targets are publicly humiliated using technology like social media (i.e. body shaming, baby shaming, pet shaming, etc).

Words, whether verbally expressed or written can wage a war, assassinate someone’s character, promote education, bring awareness to a cause, or create peace. I am a supporter of the First Amendment, but I am not a proponent of cruelty, abuse and dehumanization, whether exercised publically or not. Shaming or deliberately spreading lies about a person, people or an organization can lead to hate messages and death threats being used to intimidate that person or their family.

When the offenders have deliberately ‘Shamed’ someone publically, especially on a social platform, it spreads like a wild fire. If they are called on the carpet, some retract their statements and apologize (although many think these apologies aren’t genuine or sincere), and others don’t. I truly believe that these bully-headed individuals have to have some inkling of a heart under those thick layers of insults. If the tables were turned, how would they feel?

I know I’ve previously written about this subject before, but it still seems to become more problematic and systemic than ever. Grant it, we all have opinions, some extreme and some aptly mild. But even though we have the freedom of speech, let’s practice ‘thinking’ before we speak whether verbally, digitally or written via a publication. Now mind you, we aren’t talking about reporting or responding to relevant, genuine news, we are talking about twisting, turning and torturing people just because you can. Here’s my thought for the day: Don’t dish out dirt if you can’t take getting slung with mud!

The Poetry Energizer: Windmill Rising

Energy. We are a nation of overindulging consumers. In our ongoing search for energy-efficiency, however, there are many simple things each one of us can do to conserve energy. One of the most affordable forms of electricity today is wind energy. Windmills have been around for centuries and with recent improvements in turbine technology, consumers can take advantage of affordable costs for wind energy.

I love the artistic, architectural uniqueness and functionality of a windmill. These mammoth wind-driven towers are well known in any landscape it resides. In honor of the windmill, I would like to pay tribute to these incredible structures with my poem, Windmill Rising.

Windmill Rising

Here I stand, an artistic pillar
in a picturesque prairie amid wild flowers
a stealth tower lavished by tall grass and wheat
overseeing the brackish waters of an estuary

like the nose of an airplane, I valiantly emerge
from the ground my post is hollow, towering or smock
rotating energy through sails, blades or vanes
converting a sweep of the wind, I dare stand

like the roundhouse kick of a black-belt ninja
generating electricity, extracting groundwater
wind pumps, turbines, gristmills, the power wheel
I am wind-driven, mighty I pump, stoically I stand.

© Kym Gordon Moore

Summer Vacation

There is a kid in all of us, and sometimes as adults, we tend to forget the freedom and joy it is to just be silly and do some fun kid stuff. Kids will be kids and as summer continues, youngsters are enjoying their vacations in spite of the sweltering heat. Believe it or not, back-to-school is just a few weeks away, so hopefully, you and your family will hit the road and experience the joy and adventure of doing fun things that kids would do, before summer runs out!

Summer Vacation

School is out for the summer
so many fun things to see and do
maybe I can visit national monuments
or see many animals at the zoo

I could go wild at amusement parks
swing on tire swings and splash in the lake
take a cruise on a huge ship in the ocean
or visit the beach for an old-fashioned clam bake

Perhaps I can go white water rafting
go camping and fishing too
I’m so excited about all of the fun things
so much to see and a lot to do.

So before I go back to school
my summer adventure will not be a bore
as I tell my friends about the fun things I did
filled with summer memories that I will always adore.

© Kym Gordon Moore

Today is World Emoji Day

Image Source: worldemojiday.com

Today is World Emoji Day! Join in the celebration on social media by using the hashtag #WorldEmojiDay. Have an Emoji-licious day of fun!

The Berries Are Coming on Food Porn Friday

Image Credit; Gimme Some Oven

What’s your favorite Berry (and no we aren’t talking about Chuck Berry)? July is National Berry Month and we are celebrating the colorful, edible, delicious and nutritional properties of a plethora of berries in our produce section. Whether it’s blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, cranberries, raspberries, huckleberries, gooseberries, lingonberries, marionberries or dewberries, get to pickin’ and start to lickin’.

Let’s face it, the summer is hot and we want to eat something that is cool to our palate, but berry-licious at the same time! Today, we are featuring this Berry Fruit Salad from the kitchen of Gimme Some Oven. This colorful salad is quick and easy to prepare, and tastes berry, berry good!

So, while most berries are in season during the summer, get creative and come up with some spectacular dishes that are healthy and delicious. Saluting the berry on #FoodPornFriday!

Scratch My Head

OK, I know that I can be a little slow sometimes trying to understand how people communicate these days, but there is a gnawing question that I really need someone to explain to me.

What is so lame about calling someone and leaving a message on their voicemail should you want them to call you back? I ask this question because I came across a comment one day on Facebook where someone posted how stupid it is to leave a message on a voicemail. They commented that no one in their right mind leaves a voice message anymore. They went on to say that a person should automatically know that if someone calls you and you see their phone number show up as a missed call, then that means they want you to call them back!

What the what? So, exactly what is the voice messaging system for if you don’t want to leave a message for the person you are calling, so the recipient can call you back? When I phoned a couple of people in my family whose number showed up as a missed call, but they didn’t leave a message, I thought something had happened. They proceeded to tell me that they accidentally called my number and didn’t want anything.

Typically, proper phone etiquette warrants an individual to cordially leave a message if you want someone to return your call or if there is something you need to inform them of. Somehow, I guess I missed the new phone etiquette rules and need someone to please help me with this ‘Scratch My Head‘ dilemma. Seriously, this is something I honestly cannot wrap any form of logic around.