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“Things Every Southern Woman Should Know How to Make”

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Alice clicked on the headline, mildly curious about what yet another stranger thought should be in her kitchen repertoire. Pictures of China plates mounded with crispy fried chicken, greens, cobbler, and a pile of biscuits a mile high flooded the screen, all set off with a pitcher of sweet tea beaded with condensation. The table was set; an apron draped off to the side next to a box labeled “Gramma’s Recipes” in fine calligraphy. She closed the browser and put away her tablet. She was born a Georgia peach, but she couldn’t make a cobbler to save her life. Did that mean she wasn’t southern? Or maybe just not “Southern.” For Alice, there was no recipe box full of family traditions. Her younger years were filled with rental homes in different states and her father’s voice coaxing her toward a text book rather than a cookbook. Metalworking and fabrication held more interest than learning to flambé or sauté. Did it make her less of a woman that her cooking skills consisted of fresh salads...
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Comic Recs: unOrdinary by Uru-chan

Hey all! I'm here with another Webtoon recommendation! Today, I want to tell you about unOrdinary by Uru-chan!  In the world of unOrdinary, most people have superpowers, which sounds great! But, of course, people found a way to ruin it. A hierarchy allows the strong to control the weak, and it's often enforced with brute force. And if you're powerless like John, it's no place to be at all.  Except John isn't powerless, and he may just be the most dangerous one of all... Uru-chan does a great job of turning the superpower trope on its head. The whole "with great power comes great responsibility" view gets an amazing twist in this comic. The elites dominate those with lesser abilities, and most accept that this is the way the world works. However, a few believe that the strong should protect the weak--a viewpoint in a book called unOrdinary, and one that is highly discouraged by society and the government. The authorities try to weed out the those ...
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Ramblings of a Gamer: Open World Maps

I love the freedom of an open world map. I've spent endless hours traveling across Skyrim, climbing mountains and discovering hidden altars and caves, enjoying the scenery, and meeting other travelers on the road. Of course, there's danger; a dragon could swoop down and roast me, bandits could (attempt to) waylay me, or I could get caught in a magic battle between two random mages. Most of the time, though, I can go about my business, hunt a few bears, and take in the countryside. Sure, there's a story line to follow, but the game doesn't demand it of me, and I can venture into it at any time. FFXV allowed me to roam for the most part, too. I repeatedly left my car behind to enjoy a chocobo ride with the guys, visiting my favorite fishing spots and seeing how far I could get before night fell and the hordes of fiends came out. I spent a lot of time exploring the map, searching out hidden places until I reached the point of no return and was funneled to the ending. ...
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Ramblings of a Gamer: FFXII: Zodiac Age II or I Sometimes Miss Random Battle

Life's been busy, so gaming's been slow, but I managed to get a little time on FFXII: Zodiac Age. I'm currently hanging out on the Phon Coast, woefully unprepared for the flying fiends and in need of better equipment. There are way too many birds for me to not have found Telekinesis. I'm, of course, out of gil from my last shopping spree in which I loaded up on some spells I'd neglected early on, so I decided to go hunting. Unfortunately, hunting means finding the monsters on the map, battling, and then moving on to another map area to locate more monsters until I've made a circle back to my starting point. I kinda need a lot of dough. It's moments like these when I miss random battle systems. Need money or to harvest a drop item? No problem! Just spin around in this spot until the screen does its flashy transition to a battle. Need to fill your pockets with the equivalent of the king's coffers? Go for it. The enemies won't run out here. Od...
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Anime Rambles: Forest of Piano

Forest of Piano is an anime presented for your viewing pleasure on Netflix. In the forest rests an abandoned piano, and Kai Ichinose, a poor boy from the nearby red light district, is the only one who can coax music from its keys. When his talent is discovered by his new friend Shuhei and his music teacher/former world-renowned pianist, Sosuke Ajino, Kai ventures out to hone his skills and share his piano with the world at the International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition. Kai is this wonderful, bounce-back kid who doesn't let hardship slow him down. He has a natural talent for the piano, but he meets the challenges that Mr. Ajino sets before him with hard work and tenacity. It's about the love of the music for him, even when he's in a competition, and his enthusiasm lifts up his competitors so that they face their challenges head-on. Unfortunately, not everyone sees it as challenge to themselves. His childhood friend, Shuhei, whose dad is a professional pianist, cr...
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Comic Rec: DAYS OF HANA by Seokwoo

Today’s recommendation is the webcomic, DAYS OF HANA, by Indonesian artist Seokwoo, whose romances are far more than a love story. They deal with social perceptions of minority groups, in the case of DAYS OF HANA, werewolves, what happens when the world views begin to change. In the world of this story, humans keep werewolves as pets, but Hana and Haru were raised together like siblings, and the line between owner and pet is blurry. Hana’s family took Haru in when they found him injured and alone one winter. There's an adorable montage of photos of Hana and Haru growing up, ending with a family photo. But as the two get older, the hazy boundaries between human and werewolf become a problem. Werewolves are given limited rights—education, right to work for wages, etc.—with the hopes they they’ll be able to live independently and on equal footing with humans. However, as the werewolves explore their newfound freedoms, there’s pushback from the humans who have owned them. Tensio...
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Ramblings of a Gamer: Final Fantasy XII: Zodiac Age

I played the original FFXII way back in the day, and I didn't love it. The graphics were great, but Vaan annoyed the crap out of me, no one really stood out, the game battle mechanics were meh, and--a personal pet peeve--Ifrit and Shiva and my other favorite summons had been relegated to airships in favor of a new crop of espers. When Zodiac Age came out, I decided to give it a second shot--and it fell into my queue because my game TBP list is greater than my free time. But, at last, I found a moment, and I'm once again exploring Ivalice. And I still have mixed opinions. Vaan is still grating, though he doesn't seem as bad after he finally understands Basch didn't kill his brother. I didn't find much use for him in my original go-around, but this time, with the job system, I've been using him in battle a lot. As a shikari, so far he's fairly well-rounded when it comes to health/speed/strength, though I'm struggling with what I want his second job t...
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