Barbies and bras

So Mattel has a new Kristi Yamaguchi Barbie, but it looks nothing like her. She looks like a white girl with a mole. Just like the Anna May Wong Barbie, they can't seem to get the eyes right. Why is it so hard for them? Also, why do they insist on making Asian people with a pale skin color, when lots of Asians are tan or darker? Well, at least they're actually selling the Olympics doll this time. They never sold the Chloe Kim Barbie even though that one actually looked Asian and looked like her namesake. Who designed that doll, and why the fuck can't they do all the other Asian dolls? Sigh.

Meanwhile I learned that bra sizing is different in the US vs UK. This is why some websites tell you to measure your ribcage for your bandsize, but some websites say to measure the ribcage plus add 4-5 inches to get band size. It makes a huge difference to know which system you're using; otherwise you mess up calculating your cup size. No wonder I had so much trouble figuring out my bra size! Ironically I found this out on a webpage about underwire sizing. I typically hate underwires and avoid buying those bras because they always pinch and squeeze me. But according to Erin's website, it's probably because the underwires are for a round breast shape, when I'm actually a "wide oval" breast shape. I'm going to try to see if these underwires fit me better.

I have some Jockey Realfit bras that I've removed the underwire from; maybe I can put some of Erin's France underwires in them to make them follow my curves better. I'll see when I get my delivery. I'm not  good enough at sewing to make an entire bra from scratch. I've made do with wireless bras, but typically I have to go up in "sister sizes" because they make the bands too freaking short. I've found that the 34 or 36 bands do not actually measure their stated size; the manufacturers claim that it's because the bra elastics are supposed to stretch to that 34 or 36 inches. Why make it so complicated? Just make them the fucking size that you label them!

More Cooking

So the House finally approved the foreign aid bills they've been stalling for so long. I don't approve of more funds for Israel's war, but it also has aid for Gaza, so that's a wash I guess. Hopefully Biden will keep pressuring Netanyahu to stop killing civilians. And maybe the Israelis can protest too until the government changes. I'm discouraged though that some California university canceled their valedictorian's graduation speech just because she's pro-Palestinian. Fucking "safety concerns" to hide their censorship.

Meanwhile, in Texas, early voting starts tomorrow for the May municipal elections. But I heard that there are additional elections later due to the property tax law they passed. Such a nuisance; why couldn't they combine the elections?

Anyway I successfully cooked some fried tofu with tomatoes today. Until I found the recipe I totally forgot that my mom used to make this all the time when I was kid. Didn't realize how much I missed it. That'll save me some money to go meatless more often, and the Asian grocery always sells fried tofu, making it even easier.

The Long Game

I saw the golf movie The Long Game starring Jay Hernandez of Magnum P.I. It's about some Mexican-American students in 1950s Del Rio, Texas who form a golf team and compete in a tournament while overcoming prejudice from white country clubs. Jay plays JB Pena, the school superintendent and head coach of the team. He also is a war veteran who is aware that his military service doesn't translate into respect. Dennis Quaid and Cheech Marin also have small roles in the film. I liked it overall, though I did find the ending weird, because JB had to go to jail for a thing, but then suddenly the issue didn't matter anymore. Maybe that part was fictional. But I wish Hollywood would make more small films like this, instead of all the horror films and the blockbuster franchises. Little stories like this are interesting and help to un-whitewash history.

Meanwhile, I forgot to comment before on the news about The CW ordering a Sherlock & Daughter show. Amelia is apparently American and the premise seems mysterious/ambiguous about whether Holmes really is her father. I'll see if it's any good, but I wonder if Watson will feature at all. Also CBS has cast Morris Chestnut as Watson in their medical procedural. I hope neither show gets too lost in tangled Moriarty conspiracies.

Sherlock Melodrama

I saw a fantastic farce called Sherlock Holmes the Melodrama at the Pocket Sandwich Theatre. It's a dinner-theatre in Carrollton that encourages audience participation--including singing, cheering, booing, and popcorn-throwing. The show is very funny and outlandish, featuring Watson delivering dad-jokes and frequent puns on "elementary." Apparently following the example of the Enola Holmes movie sequel, Moriarty is a Black woman, but she keeps her status as a professor, and at least she's a separate character from Irene Adler. I hate shows that conflate the two, or that make Irene evil rather than merely ethically gray. (This Irene at least is canon-appropriate, a widow of Godfrey Norton who is out for revenge against the King who sent his agents to murder Godfrey. Thank god for writers who remember the admirable, wronged woman who is sympathetic and even fun.) Meanwhile, Mary Watson is also a Black woman here, and very charming. It's interesting how theatre is quick to accept new innovations in the Sherlock Holmes genre.

This melodrama is actually a revival of a 2010 play by the now-deceased founder of the Pocket Sandwich Theatre, so it has some local history. The spoof is set in 1892, but alludes to Reichenbach Falls being in the future, so it's kind of nebulous time-wise like Without a Clue. But it is certainly full of references to Sherlockian lore and deep cut characters like Kitty Winter and Lord Holdhurst. There's also anachronistic dress, such as Mrs. Hudson dressing like an medieval tavern wench, and the prime minister wearing a powdered wig and tricorne hat. Also Inspector Lestrade dresses like a lowly police constable with a helmet. These things may be deliberate to increase the broadness of the stereotypes and the fun. When Holmes disguises himself as Kitty Winter, the actual actress appears. The whole thing's delightful and runs through May 11th, so see it if you can.

Meanwhile, in June, Stage West will put on a Sherlock Holmes adventure of their own.

Awesome

The eclipse was great. There were a lot of clouds in DFW, but they moved enough in the afternoon that we could see it happen. I didn't try to get any photos. Just enjoyed the experience.

Meanwhile, I saw Wicked Little Letters this past weekend. It's a funny British film based on a true story about poison pen letters in the 1920s. They do take some dramatic license, omitting any involvement of Scotland Yard, changing Edith Swan's age, and tweaking some details about Edith's and Rose's family members. Also "woman police officer" Gladys Moss gets her own feminist arc investigating the crime while her male colleagues dismiss her. (Surely her title should have been WPC, woman police constable, like in See How They Run.) The movie features colorblind casting, and I recognized one of the actresses as Kitty from the original Ghosts show in the UK. It's less a whodunit than a delightfully quirky bit of British coziness.

Cooking Adventures

I got a new rice cooker, though I haven't tried using the included vegetable steamer yet. It seems okay, though the handles don't have holes like my previous rice cooker. That's where I used to store the rice spoon; now I don't have anywhere to put it. Meanwhile, I also tried deep frying in my wok, based on a youtube video which said it was better than frying in a dutch oven. The oil did come out fairly clean afterward, though I need more mason jars to store the cooled oil I guess. My cooking thermometer helped.

I was deep frying lumpia, which I discovered is a Filipino food similar to egg rolls. My local Asian market sells frozen lumpia much cheaper than they sell frozen Vietnamese egg rolls; it may be because the lumpia is smaller. Since the lumpia were frozen, I needed an icepick to separate the lumpia enough so I could put them in the fryer. It's hard to make the lumpia brown on all sides, though, because when I flipped them over, they just flipped back on the same side again.

Anyway I'm looking forward to the solar eclipse on April 8th. My workplace is having a party and I'm considering whether to bring some lumpia to the party or even bring some mooncake. Those are traditional Asian treats for the Mid-Autumn Festival, but they sell them at other times too. They're super dense and rich, like a fruitcake, and even though it's small, it's hard to eat a whole cake by yourself. You're supposed to share it with friends and family over tea.