Cooking, schmooking
The other day I was at the gym and caught a few minutes of Rachel Ray. Although it seems a bit contrary to watch cooking shows while I'm trying to sweat out the food I just inhaled, I do really like Rachel. She's funny and sassy, and even does a few home-improvement deals as well. But the problem is, I start believing her. She had someone on who was showing how you could re-cover your couch pillows with a table runner and a embellish them with items found at a garage sale. After the 5 minute segment in which the person completely finished her pillow project, I said to myself, "Hey, I could do that." Now, I'd like to think I'm a thrifty person with a keen eye for home fashions, but I know in my heart of hearts that no table runner of mine will a pillow sham be. And that, my friends, is why TV really is the true opiate for the masses. It leaves you thinking you really can do crafty things easily and look cute doing them. After I got off of the treadmill and my laughter at myself died down*, it dawned on me that instead of figuring out how to do what they teach you on a show like that, someone should make a better, more realistic show.
After all, how impressive is it that Martha Stewart can make a meal from scratch on a 42 minute show? I mean, really. All her ingredients are premixed, she never has to look for her oven mitts, and there is not a single crying, poopy or arguing child within 30 miles of her precious souffle? She probably has assistants who make sure her oven is preheated, for goodness sakes. And speaking of heat, she's probably not so concerned about the electric bill that she is cutting back on using her AC while her oven heats up to 475 degrees.
There should be a cooking show with a sense of real life to it. Like a show where someone does laundry while cooking dinner and bathing a kid who just dumped the coffee grounds he found in the garbage can into his hair. I for one would watch that, because I might learn something about how to accomplish those things without burning the chicken, for example. Or how about a show in which someone who decides to try out a new recipe at 6:30 pm (who knows why?) on a night when her kids are over-tired and really hungry. I'd like to know how to manage a situation like that. Or a show about desserts featuring the mom who, at 10:30 pm, remembered it was her turn to bring snacks to school the next day. (The plot thickens when it turns out to be a night her husband is at work at the station, and she hasn't gone to the grocery store for 2 weeks and the theme of the class is dirt. Oh, and it'd be nice if the snack was healthy, the teacher said.) (That might have happened to someone whose blog you read, but maybe not.)
That's the problem with modern media, the people who are in control of what we see aren't down with the people. I should have them over for dinner and explain the situation, but I don't have a frozen lasagne on hand... Not only that, my pillows have never been re-covered. Or even washed, come to think of it...
*With the exception of my friends emily and jmb, it is silly to think anyone could make anything except a mess out of a table runner and an old couch pillow. Those two, however, could probably make a whole couch out of a table runner and it'd be even cuter than Rachel's silly idea. But that is for another post entitled, "Why life isn't fair: I am not talented". Stay tuned.
After all, how impressive is it that Martha Stewart can make a meal from scratch on a 42 minute show? I mean, really. All her ingredients are premixed, she never has to look for her oven mitts, and there is not a single crying, poopy or arguing child within 30 miles of her precious souffle? She probably has assistants who make sure her oven is preheated, for goodness sakes. And speaking of heat, she's probably not so concerned about the electric bill that she is cutting back on using her AC while her oven heats up to 475 degrees.
There should be a cooking show with a sense of real life to it. Like a show where someone does laundry while cooking dinner and bathing a kid who just dumped the coffee grounds he found in the garbage can into his hair. I for one would watch that, because I might learn something about how to accomplish those things without burning the chicken, for example. Or how about a show in which someone who decides to try out a new recipe at 6:30 pm (who knows why?) on a night when her kids are over-tired and really hungry. I'd like to know how to manage a situation like that. Or a show about desserts featuring the mom who, at 10:30 pm, remembered it was her turn to bring snacks to school the next day. (The plot thickens when it turns out to be a night her husband is at work at the station, and she hasn't gone to the grocery store for 2 weeks and the theme of the class is dirt. Oh, and it'd be nice if the snack was healthy, the teacher said.) (That might have happened to someone whose blog you read, but maybe not.)
That's the problem with modern media, the people who are in control of what we see aren't down with the people. I should have them over for dinner and explain the situation, but I don't have a frozen lasagne on hand... Not only that, my pillows have never been re-covered. Or even washed, come to think of it...
*With the exception of my friends emily and jmb, it is silly to think anyone could make anything except a mess out of a table runner and an old couch pillow. Those two, however, could probably make a whole couch out of a table runner and it'd be even cuter than Rachel's silly idea. But that is for another post entitled, "Why life isn't fair: I am not talented". Stay tuned.
posted by Left Coast Sister at 10:52 PM
6 Comments:
i know i write this pretty much every time i comment
but
i love you.
i truly do...
:)
ps
i so want to be a guest on that show...
Keeping it real that is what it is ALL about. R. Ray sez in all the mags that she won't have kids because she just doesn't have the time.
So, you are fighting the good fight...no, too violent...cooking the right meal...yes. My secret is this...digital photos document things, but only the things in the frame...not the pile of rotting compost on the counter, not the dirty dishes stacked to the heavens, not the screaming in the background. You may call it crafty, I call it the glory of the internet and selective editing... but it is fun to do
Awesome post. My life, exactly.
You totally crack me up! How about a show that comes up with healthy, quick, and easy dinners in less than one hour... EVERY NIGHT!!! :) Thanks for making me laugh!
Yet another great post from the left coast sister! I have to agree with what everyone else already said here, and reading this almost makes me want to go to the gym so I too would be inspired to write a great witty post!
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