2025 is almost here. We still have some of the same problems we had in 2020! Same people causing discord. Same bullsh*t.
Wild Cooking Woman 12/31/24
Ringing in the New Year by Remembering the Past
We lost many people in 2024, including some that made us very sad:
- former President Jimmy Carter
- Quincy Jones, award-winning musician, producer and songwriter
- Greg Gumbel, veteran sportscaster
- Alfa Anderson, lead singer for Chic
- Willie Mays, baseball player
- Nikki Giovanni, poet
- Barbara Taylor Bradford, author
- Lou Donaldson, saxophonist
- Frankie Beverly, singer, and leader of Maze
- Mimi Hines, Broadway star
- Fernando Valenzuela, baseball star
- James Earl Jones, actor and EGOT winner
- Dikembe Mutombo, basketball star
- Mitzi Gaynor, actor and singer
- Lou Gossett Jr., actor
- Maggie Smith, EGOT-winning actor
- John Amos, actor
- Richard Simmons, exercise guru
- Michaela DePrince, ballerina
- Dr. Ruth Westheimer, sex therapist
- Dabney Coleman, actor
- Jack Jones,singer
- Teri Garr, actor
- Richard Lewis, comedian
- Carl Weathers, actor
- Judith Jamison, dancer
- Toby Keith, country musician
- Dexter Scott King, youngest son of Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Chita Rivera, award-winning actor
- Charles Dolan, HBO founder
- Kris Kristofferson, musician
- Tito Jackson. member of Jackson 5
- O J Simpson, football star and felon
Did You Know…
The 5 Reasons Black Don’t Crack
In 2024, the words “I can’t breathe” came up in a criminal case in Massachusetts, where, according to the New York Post, a white male teen admitted to trying to drown a Black teen in a Cape Cod pond in June 2023. The teen, the Post’s Jared Downing reports, pled guilty to charges of attempted murder and assault with a dangerous weapon. Some things never change. (more)
On December 27, 2024, a single ticket sold in Cottonwood, CA matched all six Mega Million numbers, winning a life-changing $1.27 billion jackpot. California doesn’t tax lottery winnings.
Almost every retailer is having an “after Christmas” or “end of the year” sale?
AARP, the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering Americans 50 and older to choose how they live as they age, announced that Dr. Myechia Minter-Jordan will serve as its next CEO. The previous CEO, JoAnn Jenkins, served for 10 years.
Abraham Lincoln’s Favorite Cake – Vanilla Almond Pound Cake
For the Cake:
- 3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup milk
- 1 1/4 cups (about 7 ounces) toasted blanched almonds, finely chopped
- 6 egg whites
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup candied cherries, finely chopped (Optional)
For the Fluffy White Frosting:
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- pinch of salt
- 1/3 cup water
- 1 egg white
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions:
- Grease the bottom only of a 10-inch tubed pan. Line with waxed paper cut to fit the bottom; grease the waxed paper. Set aside.
- Make the cake: Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. Cream butter with extracts. Add 1 cup sugar gradually, creaming until fluffy. Beating only until smooth after each addition, alternately add dry ingredients in fourths and milk in thirds to the creamed mixture. Stir in almonds.
- Beat egg whites until frothy; add 1 cup sugar gradually, beating well. Continue beating until stiff peaks are formed. Gently fold meringue into batter just until blended. Turn batter into prepared pan and spread evenly.
- Bake at 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) for about 1 hour, or until the toothpick test comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and cool for 15 minutes in the pan on a wire rack. Remove from the pan and cool completely.
- Make the Fluffy White Frosting: Combine all frosting ingredients except extract in the top of a double boiler. Set over boiling water and beat with a hand rotary or electric beater for about 8 minutes, or until soft peaks are formed when the beater is lifted upright.
- Remove from water and add extract; beat 1 minute.
- Frost completely cooled cake with Fluffy White Frosting. Decorate with candied cherries.
Recipe adapted from the 1974 “American Family Cookbook” —New Revised Edition.
Tomorrow is Christmas Eve. Already. Yesterday was winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, and the “start” of winter. This year the holidays feel different.
Kintsugi 12/23/24
Thoughts and opinions
No surprise that vaginas change with age. How? Let us count the ways.
Thinking about traveling in 2025? Is your passport up to date? Do you have at least 6 months left before it expires? If not, you may need to renew before hitting the road. A new program launched by the State Department may save you time and allow you to renew your passport online.
Global fertility rates have dropped and continue to do so. Billionaires are busy encouraging women to have more children while they build bunkers, elaborate compounds, and invest in space technology.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a lawsuit against Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Zelle’s operator, Early Warning Services, alleging they failed to adequately protect consumers from fraud on the Zelle payment network. Why am I not surprised that the big banks allegedly failed to protect consumers?
Lagniappe
I love to cook. Sometimes, I forget to wear an apron, and oil from a spatter or spill gets on my clothes. Should I discard that favorite shirt? Nah. Here is a way to remove those pesky, hard-to-remove stains.
Someone asked me how old my dog is. I don’t know, exactly, since she was a rescue. Then I found this article which helps you convert dog years to human years. I’m still guessing, but she seems to be about 5-6 years old in calendar years.
Did you know that ProPublica has a tool to help you appeal denied health insurance claims? ProPublica’s Claim File Helper lets you customize a letter requesting the notes and documents your insurer used when deciding to deny you coverage. Get your claim file before submitting an appeal.