life

In 2005, Cookie Monster shocked (or rocked, depending on your point of view) the nation with his revelation that "cookies are a sometimes food." The latest fictional character to jump on the nutritional bandwagon? None other than Strawberry Shortcake.

Yes, Strawberry Shortcake. As in, "Strawberry Shortcake with her jam and bread, you can make a strawberry pie with her head." (So sang my cousins, anyway.) The New York Times reveals that, among other 21st century changes, from now on Strawberry Shortcake will be "fruit-forward."

In fact, American Greetings has given the character a total makeover. No more freckles, red hair, and chubby cheeks. In fact, they've managed to completely excise any red from her wardrobe. Which is a little strange since, um, strawberries are RED. The new S.S. has lustrous pink hair, a barely visible smattering of freckles, a pink wardrobe, and a cell phone. What's become of her cat, Custard, is unclear.

The article also discusses the slimming of Angelina Ballerina for television, the potential gothify-ing of Tweety Bird, and—incredibly—skinny Care Bears.

I'm all in favor of promoting healthy eating among the young, but correct me if I'm wrong that parents have a WHOLE lot more influence on preschool children's eating habits than a bunch of cartoon characters (many of them animals). I mean, did any child honestly look at the old Strawberry Shortcake and think, "I want to look just like her?" I thought it was the Olsen twins we had to worry about.

On the other hand, maybe the reason no one wanted to look like the old Strawberry Shortcake was because she looked a saccharine-sweet dork. Don't get me wrong, I liked her well enough when I was in preschool. But that hat? Those bloomers?! Oh, honey...

(Via the Monkey Speaks.)

I'm behind on my blog-reading and won't be catching up any time soon. I've got an article for my SCBWI chapter's newsletter I've got to finish before I hop on a plane tomorrow! Here's my itinerary in books:

I've fallen behind in the Kidlitosphere lately, both reading and posting-wise. I chalk it up to the season, in large part; I've been trying really hard to be nice to myself and not stress out about things like, say, keeping up with the blog. Here are some things I've been enjoying that have nothing to do with the Internet:

• Vegan cooking - I'm enjoying Isa Chandra Moskowitz's cookbook Vegan with a Vengeance: Over 150 Delicious, Cheap, Animal-Free Recipes That Rock. So far, so good! We've been using her seitan recipe for some time now, and over the past few weeks we've also tried the scrambled tofu, biscuits with sausage gravy (one of my favorite foods ever, from my meat-eating days), and onion miso soup. I'm planning to make the chocolate raspberry cake for my dad's birthday. If you've ever thought about reducing your dairy/egg/meat intake, take a look. Vegan with a Vengeance is a far cry from scary nut-and-twig vegan recipes from days of yore.
• Watching Doctor Who - When I put the "complete first series" of Doctor Who on hold at the library, I was expecting an assortment of kitschy episodes from 40 years ago. Somehow I completely missed that the BBC revived the series in 2005, and HOO BABY is it good! It's well-written, with terrific acting and quite respectable special effects. If you were a fan of Star Trek: The Next Generation or The X-Files, you'll probably enjoy it. And maybe even fall a little bit in love with Christopher Eccleston's Ninth Doctor. Like maybe I did. Hypothetically speaking.
• Listening to New (To Me) Music - Iron & Wine and Calexico's joint effort In the Reins is seep-into-the-consciousness-and-take-up-residence music. It's so very mellow and pretty, it pretty much perfectly mirrors these snowy February mornings. I'll be using it as mood music for one of my writing projects I plan to return to once I finish this revision of another (slog, slog, slog). Some other new-to-me albums getting a lot of play: the New Pornographers' Challengers, the Finches' Human Like a House, and the Magnetic Fields' I.

And I'll be back soon with that post about unusual character names. Pinky swear.

I'm chagrined to admit how late I was to the party with Robert's Snow: For Cancer's Cure. For those who don't know, it's a charitable event founded by children's author and illustrator Grace Lin in honor of her now late husband Robert. Basically, a bunch of children's book illustrators donate their artistic services to decorate a snowflake. The snowflakes are then auctioned off, with all proceeds benefitting the Jimmy Fund for sarcoma research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

I'd heard of the event, but didn't properly check it out until the last day of the auction. (I credit Fuse 8's clever marketing campaign for getting me off my virtual tuchis.) Anyway, better late than never, right? I managed to drive up the price on some snowflakes with my bids, and actually placed the winning bid on the adorable snowflake painted by Randy Cecil (click image at left for the close-up). I have but two regrets: that I didn't jump into the bidding earlier, and that I didn't plug the event before it ended! Next year, next year.

The holiday giving season is far from over, however! If you're still considering your charitable donations (good all year 'round, of course), you may want to check out Changing the Present, a nonprofit that directs your funds - however great or small - to the socially conscious cause of your choice. Some examples include funding opportunities and medical treatments for people in developing nations.

And let's not forget everyone's favorite, furry (or feathery) sustainable development nonprofit, Heifer Project. Rather than outright feeding recipients, Heifer gives livestock to be bred for wool, milk, eggs, and so on. Offspring are shared in the community, spreading the wealth. They do tree planting as well.

If you're like me and think the ideal material gift for a loved one is a - you guessed it! - BOOK, check out these bloggish suggestions:

• Wizards Wireless discusses how to buy a book for a baby. Being at an age when babies seem to be cropping up in friends' families left and right, I'm grateful for the suggestions.
• MotherReader offers not one, not two, but THREE lists of ideas for pairing children's books with other items for an extra-special gift.

Some more tips for enjoying the holiday season:

• Musician Christine Kane's Functionally Challenged Family Holidays Official Self-Care Guide and Preparation Guide. It doesn't matter whether you're "functionally challenged" (though aren't we all?) to appreciate her wise advice. Via my friend C.
• 13 Tips for a Sustainable Holiday Season. In the flurry of holiday activity, take our Earth into consideration. Via my friend M.

Finally, take note: the Winter Solstice is but a week away. This means that in one week, the days will start getting longer again! I can't wait.