The environment isn't funny! Well, the news coverage kind of is..

This is exciting: I am published again! (I've been working on a lot of things, but I finally got to write another blog post). Today, I came into work and one of my co-workers suggested that I research this. I love when people ask me to research, especially on broadcast news programs.

You see, I see that the media doesn't always cover really important topics thoroughly. They may brush over it and have a voice over. I mean, the President gave a big speech about the environment last week -- that doesn't happen every day, that at least deserves a soundbite after the anchor talks about it for 15 to 25 seconds. (15 - 25 seconds is the usual length of a voice over during a nightly newscast).

Below is a quick preview of my new blog post for FAIR on President Obama's speech.

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Who would have thought the future of the environment was some kind of joke? It turns out comedians actually seem to care more about climate change than the people who produce real news programs do. 

Think Progress came out with an infographic yesterday (7/1/13) showing that the Sunday chat shows didn't so much as mention President Barack Obama's June 25 speech outlining a new climate change policy at Georgetown University. But a few late-night comedy shows and the Daily Show, a fake newscast on Comedy Central, found some time to cover the news. 

But let's give the networks a fair shake, shall we? A better comparison with a fake nightly news show is a real nightly newscast. So we looked at ABC, CBS and NBC's 30-minute nightly newscasts to see how they covered the president’s speech.

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Click here to read more! 

Weekend Sightseeing (Part Two): Sunday Funday

I know what you're thinking: No, Clement and I did not go bar hopping on Sunday. Instead we did a bunch of other cool things.

The Intrepid! 

I have visited the USS Intrepid about three or four times since I was little, but it was great to go on a warm day with Clement. The Intrepid is this beautiful aircraft carrier that is now a museum.

Usually, my parents drag me out of bed early so we beat the lines, but Clement and I didn't do that. Sunday is my one day off, so I wanted to sleep in! We showed up at the museum an hour after it opened and only waited a few minutes to buy tickets. I think it is usually pretty busy on the weekends, but it's best to go before lunch to avoid large crowds. We also purchased student tickets, which are slightly discounted ($20). They're still a bit pricey but -- hey -- you're going on an aircraft carrier. It's worth it on a college budget.

The Growler submarine.

If there aren't a lot of people ahead of you, you should go on the submarine. I've never been on it because, well, I'm not sure how to put this lightly but my Dad is a giant. So, no submarines until now. I couldn't believe how many people fit in the Growler submarine -- there were so many tightly packed beds. The crew must have been huge!

Then, we went to the hanger (inside the ship) and talked to a volunteer about some of the historical morale badges and patches the men wore. It turns out, there was actually a basketball league on the ship. The teams were broken up according to different jobs and they would play in the hanger. Most of the men were 19-24 years old and playing a sport brought up morale. 

Here are some of the morale badges. 

When we were in the hanger, we saw a bunch of tours going on. Next time I go, I will probably take a tour because there is so much information that I've missed over the years - like the morale patches. It will cost more, but if I went with a big group of people it might be worth it.

Clement and I played some of the games in the hanger (turns out, I'm really bad at keeping a ship afloat) and then we went to the best part of the ship -- THE FLIGHT DECK. There are so many cool helicopters and fighter planes at the museum. (The Enterprise space shuttle is also there, but the exhibit reopens in a few weeks).  The deck also has a great view of the city. 

After visiting the flight deck, Clement and I left the museum. We were hungry and wanted to eat on the water, and we spotted this little restaurant next the the ship. The host sat us, telling us that only cash is accepted. We started looking at the menu... it was $10-12 dollars for a burger without fries... it's not like I could have cocktails but they were the same price... Then we saw something shocking --- paying for water. Clement and I looked at each other. "Want to leave?" "Yes. I am not paying for water."

Good thing we left, because we went to the BBQ Block Party! One of the reporters at FOX 5 did a story on this even the day before, how could I forget about this?! Clement and I ran to the subway and went to Madison Square Park, just a short walk from Union Square. Once again, if I was with my parents they would take me to this event first thing in the morning but Clement and I went half way through the day. I wish we went earlier because there were SO MANY LINES. The park was hopping, and honestly this was probably the highlight of our weekend.

These are Baker's Ribs. They were cooked
Louisiana style. I don't know what that means
but it was great!

There were so many tents set up with beautiful BBQ, and the pitmasters were from all over the country. Each plate was $9, which is a really good price for a dump of food in NYC. We meandered around, trying to find short lines, and we found a side street with two tents with shorter lines that were moving fast. Clement and I got into the lines. I went to HillCountry, which is a restaurant in NYC, for beef brisket and pickles, and Clement went to Baker's ribs from Texas, for ribs and coleslaw. We sat on the curb and started to devour the meat. It was amazing.

The BBQ disappeared so fast that I didn't take a picture. The ribs were perfect competition ribs. I watch a lot of BBQ shows on Food Network and supposedly competition ribs should not just "fall off the bone," you should slightly tug them and then they easily come off. With a good rub and some sauce. I have been dreaming about ribs like this for years - just don't tell my Dad because I love his ribs too. (He cooks BBQ ribs a lot but these were a completely different experience). The coleslaw was also great because it was vinegary and crisp. The brisket was great too, good bark and the pickles were very tasty.

After eating, Clement and I sat in the park for a little and just relaxed. Then we went to a cool store Michelle likes called Fishes Eddy which has corky and vintage dinnerware. The store has city skyline pattern dinnerware with famous buildings. I love it!

We went to Union Square afterwards and then took the subway back to the apartment. For dinner, we went to a restaurant near the apartment, which was a nice way to end our weekend. I have to figure out what we'll do next because we covered in one weekend. Luckily, there are endless possibilities in NYC.

Beauteous [easy] Meals

The tupperware's lid is slightly elevated
so it has more space for larger sandwiches.  

Living in New York City can be really expensive. Eating lunch at a restaurant every day will burn a hole in your wallet, which is why I try to bring lunch everyday. It is cost effective and gives me an excuse to eat healthier.

Last year, my roommate found this cool sandwich tupperware which I use constantly now. The tupperware is really secure, the top part hasn't opened even though I put it in a huge backpack and a clunky purse. (If its made it through committing, it will make it through anything...) I got some of my ideas for sandwiches from Pinterest; here are some meals that I've made over the past week!

This lunch [to the left] was left over chicken salad (same recipe as my May 27 post) on top of lettuce and some asparagus. There are carrots and black berries in the smaller part of the tupperware. The smaller part is good to put fruit in. 

My lunch today was left over rice from Chinese take out, grilled chicken and asparagus. I put slices of cheddar cheese on top of the chicken so it would melt after being microwaved for a minute. Then I mixed up the chicken cheesy goodness with the rice! 

Meal before microwave.

Meal after microwave.

Below an avocado, cheddar cheese and onion sandwich. I made this as a quick snack after work, so I didn't get to use the tupperware. Just throw the sandwich into a pan and let it warm up and toast like a grilled cheese. You'll also need a little salt and pepper for the avocado. 

Avocado and cheesy goodness... 

Here is my final meal. It was my lunch last week when I wasn't at work. I cooked up asparagus, cut some cheddar which just goes well with everything - including warm vegetables, and made a parfait of sorts. There is vanilla yogurt, mango cut into cubes, black berries and almonds. 

Beautiful meal next my city view.

First City Recipe: Chicken Salad

Here's a quick recipe: [can make in 30 minutes] 
You need: chicken, butter, salt, pepper, mayo, italian seasonings, dill seasonings, spicy dijon mustard
(Add nuts, grapes or cranberries if you like! check out Pinterest for more recipes) 
Directions: 

1. cut chicken into thin strips, season with salt and paper and cook in a pan or skilled with butter
2. shred the chicken strips by hand into a big bowl
3. put two or more (depending on how much you enjoy mayo) big spoons of mayo into the bowl
4. mix together mayo and chicken
5. dice finely onion (amount of onion varies according to how much you love onion.)
6. put in 2-3 shakes of italian seasonings and 5-6 shakes of dill seasonings.
7. squeeze a little less than a spoon fill of spicy dijon mustard into the mix. 
8. mix everything until fully incorporated, taste, and add seasonings accordingly. 

The finish product. Yes, that is a face.
I enjoy playing with my food. 

I served it with a small salad, almonds, carrots (yes, yellow carrots exist), and an avocado.