Sunday, July 22, 2012
Peanut Butter Cheesecake
Brownie Base (adapted from King Arthur Flour)
12 tablespoons (6 ounces) unsalted butter
1/2 cup (1 1/2 ounces) unsweetened cocoa powder
3 large eggs
... 1 1/2 cups (10 1/2 ounces) sugar
3/4 cup (3 ounces) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour (or spray with baking spray) a 9 x 9 square or 10" round springform pan.
Melt the butter and stir in the cocoa powder. Cover, and set aside to cool.
Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs for 3 minutes (longer if you're using a hand mixer), then gradually add the sugar, beating 2 to 3 minutes more. Stir in the butter/chocolate mixture. Gently fold in the flour and salt, just until combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean or with just a few crumbs. Cool completely.
Peanut Butter Cheesecake
2 pounds (32 ounces) cream cheese
1 cup peanut butter (not the natural kind that you have to stir)
1 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1/3 cup sour cream
1 cup heavy cream
Be sure to have all ingredients at room temperature, especially the eggs and cream cheese. This will help keep cracks from forming in the top of the cheesecake.
Preheat the oven to 325°F (if you're doing the cheesecake the next day; otherwise just reduce the oven temperature). Put a kettle of water on to boil for the water bath. Wrap springform pan in 3-4 layers of aluminum foil to prevent (or lessen at least!) leakage.
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese at medium speed for about 4 minutes, until soft and creamy. Add the peanut butter and beat for another 2-3 minutes. Add the sugar and beat for another 4 minutes. Beat in the salt and vanilla. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well (about 1 minute) and scraping sides of bowl after each addition. Beating at low speed, add the sour cream and heavy cream. The batter will be thin.
(Note: If you're using a hand mixer, you will want to increase the mixing times).
Pour the remaining batter on top of the cooled brownie base. You'll want to leave a little room (half-inch or so) at the very top of the pan, but it should be nearly full (depending on your pan size and your base, you may have a little extra batter which can be cooked in small cake pans or muffin tins).
Place the cheesecake in the pan for the waterbath, and place in the oven. Pour the boiling water in for the water bath, it should come about halfway up the side of the springform. Bake the cheesecake for about 55-65 minutes: it should hold together and appear set at the edges, but there will still be a lot of jiggle in the center. Turn the oven off, and leave the cheesecake in the oven for another hour. After one hour, remove the cake from the water bath, and let it finish cooling on the counter top. Remove the foil, and refrigerate overnight.
Ganache Topping
5 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
3 fluid ounces heavy cream
Place the chopped chocolate in a medium-sized bowl. Bring the heavy cream to a boil, and pour over the chocolate. Let sit for one minute, then stir until smooth. Let the ganache cool to lukewarm or even room temperature, and then pour over the chilled cheesecake. Spread the ganache evenly over the entire cheesecake, and return to the fridge to set.
Bring the cheesecake to room temperature before serving. Run a thin sharp knife around the edge of the spring form pan before removing the outer rim of the pan.
A warm knife works best for cutting the cheesecake, you may want to wipe it clean between slices.
How To Keep Your Cheesecake from Cracking
1. The water bath greatly helps prevent cracks in your cheesecake, because it makes the cheesecake cook more slowly. The problem is that water almost always leaks into the springform pan. You can use a regular cake pan, rather than a spring form - no leaks, but you have to flip the cheesecake out, and then flip again to make it right side up. That's kinda scary. When using an oreo or brownie base, the small amount of water that leaks in can make the crust a little fudgier which I like. So I usually use the water bath, and wrap it with at least 3 layers of aluminum foil.
2. It's very important to have all ingredients at room temperature. Take the eggs, sour cream, and cream cheese out of the refrigerator way ahead of time. But, of course, life happens, and sometimes you forget! You can fake it if you have to: let the eggs rest in warm water for 10-15 minutes to bring them to room temperature. You can also microwave the cream cheese (not too much! use 5-10 second increments and low power) to bring it to room temperature.
3. Don't overbake the cheesecake. The middle should still jiggle a lot when you turn the oven off.
4. Some people swear by just reducing the oven temperature and letting the cheesecake bake for longer (with no water bath). I've never tried this method, but let me know if you do!
5. Cracks come from quick and drastic temperature changes. The water bath keeps the cheesecake from baking too quickly, and leaving the cheesecake in the oven keeps it from cooling too quickly. Placing a warm cheesecake in the fridge may also cause cracks.
6. Even if it cracks, it still tastes great, so don't worry about it! And if it really bothers you, make a sour cream or chocolate ganache topping and cover it up. No one will ever know.
12 tablespoons (6 ounces) unsalted butter
1/2 cup (1 1/2 ounces) unsweetened cocoa powder
3 large eggs
... 1 1/2 cups (10 1/2 ounces) sugar
3/4 cup (3 ounces) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour (or spray with baking spray) a 9 x 9 square or 10" round springform pan.
Melt the butter and stir in the cocoa powder. Cover, and set aside to cool.
Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs for 3 minutes (longer if you're using a hand mixer), then gradually add the sugar, beating 2 to 3 minutes more. Stir in the butter/chocolate mixture. Gently fold in the flour and salt, just until combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean or with just a few crumbs. Cool completely.
Peanut Butter Cheesecake
2 pounds (32 ounces) cream cheese
1 cup peanut butter (not the natural kind that you have to stir)
1 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1/3 cup sour cream
1 cup heavy cream
Be sure to have all ingredients at room temperature, especially the eggs and cream cheese. This will help keep cracks from forming in the top of the cheesecake.
Preheat the oven to 325°F (if you're doing the cheesecake the next day; otherwise just reduce the oven temperature). Put a kettle of water on to boil for the water bath. Wrap springform pan in 3-4 layers of aluminum foil to prevent (or lessen at least!) leakage.
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese at medium speed for about 4 minutes, until soft and creamy. Add the peanut butter and beat for another 2-3 minutes. Add the sugar and beat for another 4 minutes. Beat in the salt and vanilla. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well (about 1 minute) and scraping sides of bowl after each addition. Beating at low speed, add the sour cream and heavy cream. The batter will be thin.
(Note: If you're using a hand mixer, you will want to increase the mixing times).
Pour the remaining batter on top of the cooled brownie base. You'll want to leave a little room (half-inch or so) at the very top of the pan, but it should be nearly full (depending on your pan size and your base, you may have a little extra batter which can be cooked in small cake pans or muffin tins).
Place the cheesecake in the pan for the waterbath, and place in the oven. Pour the boiling water in for the water bath, it should come about halfway up the side of the springform. Bake the cheesecake for about 55-65 minutes: it should hold together and appear set at the edges, but there will still be a lot of jiggle in the center. Turn the oven off, and leave the cheesecake in the oven for another hour. After one hour, remove the cake from the water bath, and let it finish cooling on the counter top. Remove the foil, and refrigerate overnight.
Ganache Topping
5 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
3 fluid ounces heavy cream
Place the chopped chocolate in a medium-sized bowl. Bring the heavy cream to a boil, and pour over the chocolate. Let sit for one minute, then stir until smooth. Let the ganache cool to lukewarm or even room temperature, and then pour over the chilled cheesecake. Spread the ganache evenly over the entire cheesecake, and return to the fridge to set.
Bring the cheesecake to room temperature before serving. Run a thin sharp knife around the edge of the spring form pan before removing the outer rim of the pan.
A warm knife works best for cutting the cheesecake, you may want to wipe it clean between slices.
How To Keep Your Cheesecake from Cracking
1. The water bath greatly helps prevent cracks in your cheesecake, because it makes the cheesecake cook more slowly. The problem is that water almost always leaks into the springform pan. You can use a regular cake pan, rather than a spring form - no leaks, but you have to flip the cheesecake out, and then flip again to make it right side up. That's kinda scary. When using an oreo or brownie base, the small amount of water that leaks in can make the crust a little fudgier which I like. So I usually use the water bath, and wrap it with at least 3 layers of aluminum foil.
2. It's very important to have all ingredients at room temperature. Take the eggs, sour cream, and cream cheese out of the refrigerator way ahead of time. But, of course, life happens, and sometimes you forget! You can fake it if you have to: let the eggs rest in warm water for 10-15 minutes to bring them to room temperature. You can also microwave the cream cheese (not too much! use 5-10 second increments and low power) to bring it to room temperature.
3. Don't overbake the cheesecake. The middle should still jiggle a lot when you turn the oven off.
4. Some people swear by just reducing the oven temperature and letting the cheesecake bake for longer (with no water bath). I've never tried this method, but let me know if you do!
5. Cracks come from quick and drastic temperature changes. The water bath keeps the cheesecake from baking too quickly, and leaving the cheesecake in the oven keeps it from cooling too quickly. Placing a warm cheesecake in the fridge may also cause cracks.
6. Even if it cracks, it still tastes great, so don't worry about it! And if it really bothers you, make a sour cream or chocolate ganache topping and cover it up. No one will ever know.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
When Tomorrow Starts Without Me!
When Tomorrow Starts Without Me!
When tomorrow starts without me
And I'm not there to see;
If the sun should rise and find your eyes
All filled with tears for me.
I wish so much you wouldn't cry
The way you did today;
While thinking of the many things
We didn't get to say.
And I'm not there to see;
If the sun should rise and find your eyes
All filled with tears for me.
I wish so much you wouldn't cry
The way you did today;
While thinking of the many things
We didn't get to say.
I know how much you love me
As much as I love you;
And each time that you think of me,
I know you'll miss me too.
But when tomorrow starts without me
Please try to understand,
That an angel came and called my name
And took me by the hand.
As much as I love you;
And each time that you think of me,
I know you'll miss me too.
But when tomorrow starts without me
Please try to understand,
That an angel came and called my name
And took me by the hand.
She said my place was ready
In heaven far above;
And that I'd have to leave behind,
All those I dearly love.
But as I turned to walk away,
A tear fell from my eye;
For all my life, I'd always thought
I didn't want to die.
In heaven far above;
And that I'd have to leave behind,
All those I dearly love.
But as I turned to walk away,
A tear fell from my eye;
For all my life, I'd always thought
I didn't want to die.
I had so much to live for,
So much yet to do;
It seemed almost impossible,
That I was leaving you.
I thought of all the yesterdays,
The good ones and the bad;
I thought of all the love we shared,
And all the fun we had.
So much yet to do;
It seemed almost impossible,
That I was leaving you.
I thought of all the yesterdays,
The good ones and the bad;
I thought of all the love we shared,
And all the fun we had.
If I could relive yesterday
Just even for awhile,
I'd say goodbye and kiss you
And maybe see you smile.
But then I fully realized
That this could never be;
For emptiness and memories
Would take the place of me.
And when I thought of worldly things
I might miss come tomorrow;
I thought of you, and when I did,
My heart was filled with sorrow.
I might miss come tomorrow;
I thought of you, and when I did,
My heart was filled with sorrow.
So when tomorrow starts without me,
Don't think we're far apart
For every time you think of me,
I'm right here in your heart.
Don't think we're far apart
For every time you think of me,
I'm right here in your heart.
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Tom & Shane! So Sad :(
This is Shane Bitney Crone's speech that was given at Tom Bridegroom's Los Angeles memorial service on June 25, 2011.
Six years ago, I almost didn’t meet the love of my life.
My friend Holly invited me to join her and some of her friends... for a bowling night, promising that there would be a cute guy present to whom she was dying to introduce me. She hyped him up as someone who would be really great for me to meet--apparently he had been doing well in the entertainment industry and had just been named Teen People’s “Hottie of the Month.” I was incredibly reluctant about going--I had never been on a date, nor kissed a guy, and had only kissed a few girls during prepubescent renditions of “spin the bottle” (which still grosses me out). But eventually, after much convincing, I caved and decided to go.
On that ultimately serendipitous night, I initially found Tom to be irritatingly cocky (and I should mention that his sexual orientation remained somewhat ambiguous). I couldn’t help but be attracted to his confidence, and I admitted to Holly the next day that I guess I would be open to seeing him again.
Eventually I did see him again, this time at our friend Lizzie’s apartment for an American Idol viewing party. Two very important events occurred that evening:
One: the mystery of Tom’s sexuality was unequivocally solved…we were at an American Idol viewing party…; and Two: we exchanged phone numbers.
After that night, we hung out with increasing frequency and we found ourselves falling in love quite quickly. Every date was like a little blessing, and we spent every night together--if not in person, then over the phone or through instant messenger until we would fall asleep.
Very little time passed before I moved in with Tom. We made that two bedroom apartment our first home, but were careful to maintain the appearance that we cohabited as strictly roommates. At that juncture, neither Tom nor myself had come out to our families. Having both been raised in conservative, small communities, Tom and I feared our relatives’ reactions and thus broadcasted our relationship as purely platonic. That is, until we realized that we wanted to spend our lives together.
I am so thankful for having Tom in my life, for more reasons than I could ever bother to list, but more than anything I am grateful because our love and our strength as a couple allowed us to face our greatest fears. I was lucky enough to have Tom by my side when I told my mom I was gay. She actually got the words out before I could even finish my sentence, and has been unbelievably supportive of both of us ever since. My entire family loved and respected Tom; even my 90 year old great grandmother welcomed Tom into the family with open arms and thought he was a great guy, and my nieces always called him “Uncle Tom.” I only wish Tom had had as positive of an experience--he was met with much hostility when he came out to his parents in Indiana, and as a result I never had the opportunity to meet much of his family.
Tom and I both ventured to Los Angeles to pursue careers in the entertainment industry. When I met him, he had already found success as a host, model, and actor. We were undoubtedly each other’s biggest supporters, and collaborated on nearly every project with which we became involved. I worked with a group of people to develop a website that specialized in developing content targeted at generation Y; of course, Tom became a part of that, and eventually we created our own website that featured videos of Tom and me gallivanting around the globe. We also started a small business that promoted musicians on MySpace and YouTube and established a successful entertainment blog. We were constantly inventing new projects for ourselves and our friends. Tom’s tenacity and positivity were limitless and he inspired me daily to set and achieve new goals. We lived together, ate together, commuted together, and worked together, a daily routine that would leave many couples feeling completely smothered. And although our relationship was not without its imperfections (yes, believe it or not Tom and I nagged each other, fought with each other, and bothered each other from time to time), we managed to love one another more with every passing day.
Our love was transcendent; it required no words (in spite of our mutual predisposition for gab and gossip). Our relationship was full of humor, kindness, respect, and devotion. Tom was incomparably devoted, not only to me but to everyone he loved and to everything he did. He enjoyed cooking and in spite of being exhausted some days, would always prepare me incredible meals that were delicious and nutritious. He liked maintaining a healthy, cruelty-free life and became a vegan, (and inspired many others to do the same). Tom was a very patient person, and his calmness extended even to the kitchen. About a week before he died I suddenly had an urge to attempt cooking, and he guided me through every step. He beamed with pride and shared a photo of me slaving over the stove with our friends and my family. His belief in me ignited belief within myself; With him by my side, I felt like I could achieve anything. Without him now, I rely on the microwave and my heart breaks all over again every time I look into our empty kitchen.
Tom was versatile and talented, and incredibly generous with his skills. Once I asked him to record piano for a project and within just a few short hours he returned with music that included the basic accompaniment, as well as bass guitar, trumpet, and piccolo….seriously. That’s how Tom was - he couldn’t just do anything simple. It had to be amazing…something like that. He was an excellent host, and not just for MTV--he always entertained our guests and made them feel comfortable. Tom would tie my tie, hang our pictures and iron my shirts - if only because he didn't like how I did it myself. One time I mentioned painting a wall in our house and when I returned from running some errands, he had done so. When we were busy, he would love to surprise me by cleaning and do the laundry without ever being asked. He had a pure and selfless heart, but was often mischievous and silly, which allowed me to feel safe exhibiting my own goofy traits. We loved to scare the hell out of each other by doing stupid stuff like honking our car horns suddenly or by jumping out from behind walls.
The laughs we shared were always loud and plentiful, sometimes alone in our house, others in the company of close friends, and even, on occasion, in a dark movie theatre amongst strangers. One particularly hilarious night last year, we went out to see “127 Hours.” After sitting through the entire film, we finally reached the pinnacle moment when James Franco’s character cuts through his arm in order to escape from being trapped between two giant boulder rocks. Tom grabbed me desperately, assuring me he was going to faint. Captivated by the movie, I dismissed his theatrics…we all know how NOT dramatic Tom could be, but within a matter of seconds he grabbed me again, looked me in the eyes and said “Hhheelllp” and promptly passed out. Yes...he actually fainted in a public cinema. More embarrassed than concerned at first, I slapped him until he came to and we left the theatre (missing the film’s finale, by the way). We laughed about that for months and I loved making fun of him for that.
We never stopped sharing stories from our past, but more importantly we never stopped living in the moment and planning our future. We were a great team: Tom would have an amazing idea and I would implement the plan, and together we saw places and did things that we both had dreamed together of doing. Our adventures included trips to Hawaii, San Francisco, Mexico, and locations on three other continents. Tom and I relished exploring new places together, creating priceless memories every step of the way.
Before I continue, I want to stress something: Tom was an avid supporter of social media and believed that information should be truthful and easily accessible, which is why it’s so painful that his immediate family had his Facebook page deleted. He updated his Twitter and Facebook accounts regularly, and shared his life openly and honestly with those he loved. To honor these convictions, I would like to speak candidly about how he died and the events that followed.
A month and a half ago, I lost the love of my life.
The morning of May 7th began no more unusually than any other day. We had the crazy notion that we should begin a new workout regime, which only lasted about five minutes before Tom, always the klutz, inevitably injured himself rolling his ankle during the warm up. We agreed to spend the rest of the day apart—a rare occurrence, but one that was necessary from time to time. Tom left to hangout with our friend Alex, accidentally taking both sets of keys with him (thus leaving me stranded). They went to her house to do an impromptu photo shoot on her roof that evening. Tom and I texted throughout the entire day. We had a conversation saying we loved each other, and I'm grateful that I had and still have those messages to give me some comfort. While texting, I reminded him to be careful countless times that night when he mentioned they would be taking photos on the roof. We have been on Alex’s roof a handfull of times. He laughed off my paranoia, assuring me he would be cautious. Within minutes though, I received the fateful message from Alex saying he had fallen from her four story building.
(Alex, in the midst of the pain and confusion, I find comfort in knowing you were there for Tom. Thank you for always being such an amazing friend to us both, and for being by his side till the ambulance arrived. Words will never convey how much that means to me, nor how much it breaks my heart that you had to witness such a tragedy.)
Our good neighbor Carrie drove me to the emergency room, where I learned that Tom’s condition was far worse than I feared. After a few hours the doctor informed us that Tom was gone; he said they did everything they could to save him. I hope you all can find comfort in knowing that the doctor said Tom had most likely not felt any pain from the fall.
Disbelief washed over me. The entire night felt surreal; the stuff of nightmares. I could not believe he was gone. The last time I saw Tom he had a sheet over his face. I placed my hand on his leg and kissed his chest, over his heart--the heart that just earlier that day had pulsed power and promise; the heart that bestowed upon my life purpose and meaning; the heart that cherished me and that I treasured as mine.
The next day I picked up Tom’s mother and aunt from the airport--a cruel joke, it seemed, since May 8th was Mother’s Day. From that moment on, I did all I could to appease Tom’s mom. I welcomed her to stay in our condo and drove her everywhere, while my family stayed in a motel and rented a car. I let her sleep with our dog Justin Bobby, even though I was forced to face a half-empty bed. Per his mothers request, we sifted through his belongings, his clothes...everything, and he hadn’t been gone even 3 days. I listened to her discuss his funeral, the planning of which I had no part. They wanted him buried in Indiana, in spite of the fact that Tom had no longer considered Indiana his home. And, to add insult to injury, his family expected me to pay for the costs.
I wish I could say that the days that followed are a blur, but in reality they are painfully clear. Tom’s mom and aunt left the condo to stay in a hotel near the airport, so that they would be prepared for when he was released. His mother assured me she would let me know when his body was to be flown but after dropping her off at the airport that was the last I heard from his mother. I decided to fly to Chicago (the nearest airport to Tom’s hometown) immediately so as not to miss out on any memorial services. I was informed of nothing, except that if I showed up in the town or at any of the memorial services, I would be harmed. Needless to say I was unable to attend any of the services. With the assistance of some very compassionate former schoolmates of Tom’s, however, I was able to sneak into town and see where he grew up before the viewing and funeral took place.
My name was not mentioned in the obituary or the funeral program. My existence would not have been acknowledged during the service at all had it not been for two of Tom’s very brave cousins. I was with Tom for six years; we were each other’s lives, and yet, upon his death, I was completely powerless. Not once was Tom properly honored in a way that would have made him happy, because the people responsible no longer knew who Tom truly was and were unwilling to include those who knew him best.
I tell you this not to evoke sympathy for my situation or to incite hatred towards Tom’s family. I have tried to avoid anger and spite because I know Tom would never have wanted that. I merely want to explain the circumstances. I plead with you all, gay or straight: prepare as much as possible for the unexpected. Learn your rights. Designate a power of attorney. Draw up a will. We are not invincible. Tom was young and healthy. Live each day to the fullest, with vigor and passion.
Thank you all for being here with me as I share my memories of and love for Tom. I want to conclude with a conversation between us from 2006 when I was on a plane waiting to take off to Montana. Always the romantic, Tom had saved the text and emailed it to me; I found it just a few weeks ago while I was sifting through all our old correspondence.
Tom: So I decided that you are going to have to change your name to Shane Bitney Crone Bridegroom.
Me: Hahaha that’s the longest name ever. How about Thomas Lee Crone?
Tom: So the initials would be T.L.C.
Me: It’s a sign….
Tom: You’re a sign…..that love is real. Shane you make me feel like the luckiest guy alive. I look back at all of the people throughout my life and I know that none of them have what we have. I feel like so many people around us spend an eternity searching for what we have.
Me: I agree. If you were to compare what we have to everyone else I can honestly say I’ve never actually seen or heard anyone else say they have what we have.
Tom: I love you.
Me: I love you…we should think about all of the things we want to do in our lives together. Like swimming in the ocean or going camping and sleeping under the stars.
Tom: There’s so much I want to do with you.
Me: Going on a long bike ride together and eating lunch. Going skiing in Montana.
Tom: Taking pictures together when we travel the world.
Me: Waking up to the sound of waves in Hawaii.
Tom: Watching movies in our bedroom until we fall asleep.
Me: Buying our first home together.
Tom: Being able to actually spend our first Christmas together instead of us flying back home.
Me: Getting a dog!
Tom: Adopt a kid together.
Me: Teaching them how to swim and ride a bike.
Tom: Driving them to their first day of school.
Me: All of us sitting at our table together with our dog at our feet waiting for one of us to drop food.
Tom: We are going to have an amazing life together. I pray that we will have these feelings forever.
Me: We will.
Tom: My heart belongs to you Shane Bitney Crone.
Me: Ok we’re going to take off now. I have to turn my phone off.
Tom: I love you and I miss you already.
At the beginning of our relationship, Tom and I bonded over the many similarities we had: we both grew up listening to country music, Garth Brooks is our favorite country artist, and somehow, we both agreed that “The Dance” is our favorite country song. If ever there was a person to truly emulate the lyrics of this song, it was Tom.
“The Dance”
Looking back on the memory of
The dance we shared beneath the stars above
For a moment all the world was right
How could I have known you'd ever say goodbye
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Holding you I held everything
For a moment wasn't I the king
But if I'd only known how the king would fall
Hey who's to say you know I might have changed it all
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Yes my life is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain but I'd of had to miss the dance
I miss you Tom. I will love and miss you always and forever.
Six years ago, I almost didn’t meet the love of my life.
My friend Holly invited me to join her and some of her friends... for a bowling night, promising that there would be a cute guy present to whom she was dying to introduce me. She hyped him up as someone who would be really great for me to meet--apparently he had been doing well in the entertainment industry and had just been named Teen People’s “Hottie of the Month.” I was incredibly reluctant about going--I had never been on a date, nor kissed a guy, and had only kissed a few girls during prepubescent renditions of “spin the bottle” (which still grosses me out). But eventually, after much convincing, I caved and decided to go.
On that ultimately serendipitous night, I initially found Tom to be irritatingly cocky (and I should mention that his sexual orientation remained somewhat ambiguous). I couldn’t help but be attracted to his confidence, and I admitted to Holly the next day that I guess I would be open to seeing him again.
Eventually I did see him again, this time at our friend Lizzie’s apartment for an American Idol viewing party. Two very important events occurred that evening:
One: the mystery of Tom’s sexuality was unequivocally solved…we were at an American Idol viewing party…; and Two: we exchanged phone numbers.
After that night, we hung out with increasing frequency and we found ourselves falling in love quite quickly. Every date was like a little blessing, and we spent every night together--if not in person, then over the phone or through instant messenger until we would fall asleep.
Very little time passed before I moved in with Tom. We made that two bedroom apartment our first home, but were careful to maintain the appearance that we cohabited as strictly roommates. At that juncture, neither Tom nor myself had come out to our families. Having both been raised in conservative, small communities, Tom and I feared our relatives’ reactions and thus broadcasted our relationship as purely platonic. That is, until we realized that we wanted to spend our lives together.
I am so thankful for having Tom in my life, for more reasons than I could ever bother to list, but more than anything I am grateful because our love and our strength as a couple allowed us to face our greatest fears. I was lucky enough to have Tom by my side when I told my mom I was gay. She actually got the words out before I could even finish my sentence, and has been unbelievably supportive of both of us ever since. My entire family loved and respected Tom; even my 90 year old great grandmother welcomed Tom into the family with open arms and thought he was a great guy, and my nieces always called him “Uncle Tom.” I only wish Tom had had as positive of an experience--he was met with much hostility when he came out to his parents in Indiana, and as a result I never had the opportunity to meet much of his family.
Tom and I both ventured to Los Angeles to pursue careers in the entertainment industry. When I met him, he had already found success as a host, model, and actor. We were undoubtedly each other’s biggest supporters, and collaborated on nearly every project with which we became involved. I worked with a group of people to develop a website that specialized in developing content targeted at generation Y; of course, Tom became a part of that, and eventually we created our own website that featured videos of Tom and me gallivanting around the globe. We also started a small business that promoted musicians on MySpace and YouTube and established a successful entertainment blog. We were constantly inventing new projects for ourselves and our friends. Tom’s tenacity and positivity were limitless and he inspired me daily to set and achieve new goals. We lived together, ate together, commuted together, and worked together, a daily routine that would leave many couples feeling completely smothered. And although our relationship was not without its imperfections (yes, believe it or not Tom and I nagged each other, fought with each other, and bothered each other from time to time), we managed to love one another more with every passing day.
Our love was transcendent; it required no words (in spite of our mutual predisposition for gab and gossip). Our relationship was full of humor, kindness, respect, and devotion. Tom was incomparably devoted, not only to me but to everyone he loved and to everything he did. He enjoyed cooking and in spite of being exhausted some days, would always prepare me incredible meals that were delicious and nutritious. He liked maintaining a healthy, cruelty-free life and became a vegan, (and inspired many others to do the same). Tom was a very patient person, and his calmness extended even to the kitchen. About a week before he died I suddenly had an urge to attempt cooking, and he guided me through every step. He beamed with pride and shared a photo of me slaving over the stove with our friends and my family. His belief in me ignited belief within myself; With him by my side, I felt like I could achieve anything. Without him now, I rely on the microwave and my heart breaks all over again every time I look into our empty kitchen.
Tom was versatile and talented, and incredibly generous with his skills. Once I asked him to record piano for a project and within just a few short hours he returned with music that included the basic accompaniment, as well as bass guitar, trumpet, and piccolo….seriously. That’s how Tom was - he couldn’t just do anything simple. It had to be amazing…something like that. He was an excellent host, and not just for MTV--he always entertained our guests and made them feel comfortable. Tom would tie my tie, hang our pictures and iron my shirts - if only because he didn't like how I did it myself. One time I mentioned painting a wall in our house and when I returned from running some errands, he had done so. When we were busy, he would love to surprise me by cleaning and do the laundry without ever being asked. He had a pure and selfless heart, but was often mischievous and silly, which allowed me to feel safe exhibiting my own goofy traits. We loved to scare the hell out of each other by doing stupid stuff like honking our car horns suddenly or by jumping out from behind walls.
The laughs we shared were always loud and plentiful, sometimes alone in our house, others in the company of close friends, and even, on occasion, in a dark movie theatre amongst strangers. One particularly hilarious night last year, we went out to see “127 Hours.” After sitting through the entire film, we finally reached the pinnacle moment when James Franco’s character cuts through his arm in order to escape from being trapped between two giant boulder rocks. Tom grabbed me desperately, assuring me he was going to faint. Captivated by the movie, I dismissed his theatrics…we all know how NOT dramatic Tom could be, but within a matter of seconds he grabbed me again, looked me in the eyes and said “Hhheelllp” and promptly passed out. Yes...he actually fainted in a public cinema. More embarrassed than concerned at first, I slapped him until he came to and we left the theatre (missing the film’s finale, by the way). We laughed about that for months and I loved making fun of him for that.
We never stopped sharing stories from our past, but more importantly we never stopped living in the moment and planning our future. We were a great team: Tom would have an amazing idea and I would implement the plan, and together we saw places and did things that we both had dreamed together of doing. Our adventures included trips to Hawaii, San Francisco, Mexico, and locations on three other continents. Tom and I relished exploring new places together, creating priceless memories every step of the way.
Before I continue, I want to stress something: Tom was an avid supporter of social media and believed that information should be truthful and easily accessible, which is why it’s so painful that his immediate family had his Facebook page deleted. He updated his Twitter and Facebook accounts regularly, and shared his life openly and honestly with those he loved. To honor these convictions, I would like to speak candidly about how he died and the events that followed.
A month and a half ago, I lost the love of my life.
The morning of May 7th began no more unusually than any other day. We had the crazy notion that we should begin a new workout regime, which only lasted about five minutes before Tom, always the klutz, inevitably injured himself rolling his ankle during the warm up. We agreed to spend the rest of the day apart—a rare occurrence, but one that was necessary from time to time. Tom left to hangout with our friend Alex, accidentally taking both sets of keys with him (thus leaving me stranded). They went to her house to do an impromptu photo shoot on her roof that evening. Tom and I texted throughout the entire day. We had a conversation saying we loved each other, and I'm grateful that I had and still have those messages to give me some comfort. While texting, I reminded him to be careful countless times that night when he mentioned they would be taking photos on the roof. We have been on Alex’s roof a handfull of times. He laughed off my paranoia, assuring me he would be cautious. Within minutes though, I received the fateful message from Alex saying he had fallen from her four story building.
(Alex, in the midst of the pain and confusion, I find comfort in knowing you were there for Tom. Thank you for always being such an amazing friend to us both, and for being by his side till the ambulance arrived. Words will never convey how much that means to me, nor how much it breaks my heart that you had to witness such a tragedy.)
Our good neighbor Carrie drove me to the emergency room, where I learned that Tom’s condition was far worse than I feared. After a few hours the doctor informed us that Tom was gone; he said they did everything they could to save him. I hope you all can find comfort in knowing that the doctor said Tom had most likely not felt any pain from the fall.
Disbelief washed over me. The entire night felt surreal; the stuff of nightmares. I could not believe he was gone. The last time I saw Tom he had a sheet over his face. I placed my hand on his leg and kissed his chest, over his heart--the heart that just earlier that day had pulsed power and promise; the heart that bestowed upon my life purpose and meaning; the heart that cherished me and that I treasured as mine.
The next day I picked up Tom’s mother and aunt from the airport--a cruel joke, it seemed, since May 8th was Mother’s Day. From that moment on, I did all I could to appease Tom’s mom. I welcomed her to stay in our condo and drove her everywhere, while my family stayed in a motel and rented a car. I let her sleep with our dog Justin Bobby, even though I was forced to face a half-empty bed. Per his mothers request, we sifted through his belongings, his clothes...everything, and he hadn’t been gone even 3 days. I listened to her discuss his funeral, the planning of which I had no part. They wanted him buried in Indiana, in spite of the fact that Tom had no longer considered Indiana his home. And, to add insult to injury, his family expected me to pay for the costs.
I wish I could say that the days that followed are a blur, but in reality they are painfully clear. Tom’s mom and aunt left the condo to stay in a hotel near the airport, so that they would be prepared for when he was released. His mother assured me she would let me know when his body was to be flown but after dropping her off at the airport that was the last I heard from his mother. I decided to fly to Chicago (the nearest airport to Tom’s hometown) immediately so as not to miss out on any memorial services. I was informed of nothing, except that if I showed up in the town or at any of the memorial services, I would be harmed. Needless to say I was unable to attend any of the services. With the assistance of some very compassionate former schoolmates of Tom’s, however, I was able to sneak into town and see where he grew up before the viewing and funeral took place.
My name was not mentioned in the obituary or the funeral program. My existence would not have been acknowledged during the service at all had it not been for two of Tom’s very brave cousins. I was with Tom for six years; we were each other’s lives, and yet, upon his death, I was completely powerless. Not once was Tom properly honored in a way that would have made him happy, because the people responsible no longer knew who Tom truly was and were unwilling to include those who knew him best.
I tell you this not to evoke sympathy for my situation or to incite hatred towards Tom’s family. I have tried to avoid anger and spite because I know Tom would never have wanted that. I merely want to explain the circumstances. I plead with you all, gay or straight: prepare as much as possible for the unexpected. Learn your rights. Designate a power of attorney. Draw up a will. We are not invincible. Tom was young and healthy. Live each day to the fullest, with vigor and passion.
Thank you all for being here with me as I share my memories of and love for Tom. I want to conclude with a conversation between us from 2006 when I was on a plane waiting to take off to Montana. Always the romantic, Tom had saved the text and emailed it to me; I found it just a few weeks ago while I was sifting through all our old correspondence.
Tom: So I decided that you are going to have to change your name to Shane Bitney Crone Bridegroom.
Me: Hahaha that’s the longest name ever. How about Thomas Lee Crone?
Tom: So the initials would be T.L.C.
Me: It’s a sign….
Tom: You’re a sign…..that love is real. Shane you make me feel like the luckiest guy alive. I look back at all of the people throughout my life and I know that none of them have what we have. I feel like so many people around us spend an eternity searching for what we have.
Me: I agree. If you were to compare what we have to everyone else I can honestly say I’ve never actually seen or heard anyone else say they have what we have.
Tom: I love you.
Me: I love you…we should think about all of the things we want to do in our lives together. Like swimming in the ocean or going camping and sleeping under the stars.
Tom: There’s so much I want to do with you.
Me: Going on a long bike ride together and eating lunch. Going skiing in Montana.
Tom: Taking pictures together when we travel the world.
Me: Waking up to the sound of waves in Hawaii.
Tom: Watching movies in our bedroom until we fall asleep.
Me: Buying our first home together.
Tom: Being able to actually spend our first Christmas together instead of us flying back home.
Me: Getting a dog!
Tom: Adopt a kid together.
Me: Teaching them how to swim and ride a bike.
Tom: Driving them to their first day of school.
Me: All of us sitting at our table together with our dog at our feet waiting for one of us to drop food.
Tom: We are going to have an amazing life together. I pray that we will have these feelings forever.
Me: We will.
Tom: My heart belongs to you Shane Bitney Crone.
Me: Ok we’re going to take off now. I have to turn my phone off.
Tom: I love you and I miss you already.
At the beginning of our relationship, Tom and I bonded over the many similarities we had: we both grew up listening to country music, Garth Brooks is our favorite country artist, and somehow, we both agreed that “The Dance” is our favorite country song. If ever there was a person to truly emulate the lyrics of this song, it was Tom.
“The Dance”
Looking back on the memory of
The dance we shared beneath the stars above
For a moment all the world was right
How could I have known you'd ever say goodbye
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Holding you I held everything
For a moment wasn't I the king
But if I'd only known how the king would fall
Hey who's to say you know I might have changed it all
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Yes my life is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain but I'd of had to miss the dance
I miss you Tom. I will love and miss you always and forever.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Colorado’s Focus On The Family Seeks A Constitutional Right to Discriminate Against All Including LGBT Community
How do religious zealots determined to terminate all rights afforded those they disagree with, have sworn to oppose and find reprehensible go about stopping them? They gather signatures to put an amendment on their state ballot proclaiming that they and all other religious people are being persecuted and need the protection of a constitutional amendment to protect them from these nefarious individuals and laws that impinge upon their religious freedoms. Let me introduce you to Focus on the Family.
Many of us tend to claim a state where we were born, raised or moved to at some time in our life. I’ve always claimed Colorado to be mine. While born in Kansas, I grew up, hit puberty, went through elementary, junior, senior high and college in this state and always thought I would grow old and die there. Maybe I still will—only God knows. And speaking of God….
Whether you believe in Him or not, it is of no import to me. I was not placed here on this earth to judge your religious belief systems. And if you have no religious beliefs or if they differ from mine, that, too, is of no import—to me and shouldn’t be of any importance to anyone else, either. But that cannot be said for a group that finds deep roots in my home state of Colorado, Focus on the Family.
Focus on the Family opened its Welcome Center in 1994 in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and proclaims that over 3 million people have walked through their doors during the past two decades. They claim a passion—a passion that involves the family. Their family consists of a “husband and wife [who] are committed to loving and caring for one another for a lifetime.” And while this would lead one to believe that they might demand a couple to remain in a marriage despite the desire to divorce, this is really not their family focus. While they attempt to counsel couples, they readily admit that their church’s divorce rate is “comparable to that of the culture at large.” No, Focus on the Family is focused on that man and woman thing and as part of their core beliefs they trumpet the call to all Christians “to defend and protect God’s marriage design and to minister in Christ’s name to those who suffer the consequences of its brokenness.” (Emphasis added).
They proclaim it is their passion that “all people are of infinite value, regardless of age, development, appearance or ability” (original emphasis) but it is clear this value does not include gay marriage or any other partnership rights or any rights whatsoever for or between individuals of the same sex. These same-sex people are broken and their brokenness needs to be stopped. And this group intends to try, again, in my home state of Colorado, to stop the Gay!
As ashamed as I am to admit to this, in the early 1990s, Colorado passed a referendum, “Amendment 2,” an amendment to the Colorado state constitution that declared that all cities, towns and counties in the state could take no legislative, executive or judicial action to recognize gay and lesbian citizens as a protected class. Following a state trial court’s permanent injunction preventing the amendment from taking force and effect, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled it violative of the United States Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause finding that it could not withstand the strict scrutiny test that forms the basis of review of the Equal Protection Clause in the case brought before the Court.
It was appealed to the United States Supreme Court and in the decision of Romer v. Evans, 517 U.S. 620 (1996), SCOTUS ruled in a 6-3 decision that “Amendment 2” couldn’t even withstand the simpler rational basis test let alone the strict scrutiny test asserted to apply by the Colorado Supreme Court. Justice Kennedy (the same Kennedy who wrote the majority opinion in Citizens United) wrote the majority opinion and Justices Scalia, Rehnquist and Thomas dissented. Kennedy rejected the State Court’s argument but found ‘Amendment 2′ to be unconstitutional declaring that under this amendment: “Homosexuals are forbidden the safeguards that others enjoy or may seek without constraint,” and implied that “Amendment 2” was created with “a desire to harm a politically unpopular group.”
So let’s pretend you are Focus on the Family–what do you do to get around this Supreme Court opinion that is keeping you from defending God’s marriage design and preventing you from fixing all this brokenness that is spreading across the United States? Flip it. Make it all about YOU and how YOU need to stop state government from interfering with YOUR religious freedom and YOUR religious organization. “It isn’t about the persecution of gays and their rights, it’s about persecution of family values and Focus on the Family’s basic religious tenets.
And so in March, 2012, after several prior attempts by other religious groups failed, Focus on the Family set about circulating petitions throughout Colorado seeking to place on the ballot an initiative stating that government may not directly or indirectly burden a person or organization by withholding benefits, assessing penalties or excluding a person or group from government programs or facilities.
Now just exactly what would that allow individuals and organization to do in my home state? Simply stated, any and every individual or organization could discriminate in the name of any purported religious belief against anyone. One could claim that their religious belief prevents them from distributing birth control. Anyone could refuse to provide food, clothing, housing or employment to ANYONE simply by claiming it is against their religious beliefs. Let your imagination be your guide. There is no limit to the discrimination-–racism—bigotry that this amendment would not support. No one would be safe and nothing would prevent the unGODly impact that this ballot measure will have on my home state and its citizens.
Dear Focus on the Family: You preach that we are all children of God, created in his image and yet, you are trying to make God in your own hate-filled image. You are attempting to quash all rights that the LGBT community and just about any other non-Christian believer have by claiming your religious freedoms are being attacked. No one is attacking you. This is a typical bullying tactic whereby the bully jumps up and down and paints the victim as the aggressor. This is and always will be about your hatred towards individuals and groups that are different from you. If the courts in Colorado are unable to stop you before November, than the citizens that I call my family need to rise up as one voice and stop you before you spread your bigotry ‘in the name of God.’ Amen.
For those that would like to help stop this attack and join the fight to keep this initiative off the November ballot, visit One-Colorado.org.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
President Obama to Travel to North Carolina, Colorado and Iowa, Calling on Congress to Prevent Student Interest Rates from Doubling
WASHINGTON, DC – On April 24-25, President Obama will travel to North Carolina, Colorado and Iowa to launch an effort to get Congress to prevent interest rates on student loans from doubling in July. More than 7.4 million students with federal student loans will see their interest rates double on July 1 unless Congress steps in to keep them low. For each year Congress allows the rate to double, the average student with these loans racks up an additional $1,000 in debt. At a time when Americans owe more on student loans than credit cards, President Obama believes we must reward hard work and responsibility by keeping interest rates on student loans low so more Americans get a fair shot at an affordable college education, the skills they need to find a good job, and a clear path to middle class.
On Tuesday, President Obama will visit the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Colorado at Boulder. On Wednesday he will visit the University of Iowa. At each stop he will speak with students about the critical need for Congress to act.
The White House will also kick off a social media effort using Twitter, Facebook, and Google+, centered around the hashtag #DontDoubleMyRate.
The President’s student loan interest rate efforts will continue throughout the spring and early summer until Congress passes legislation to keep interest rates low and continue to give students the chance to get the college education they need for the jobs of today and tomorrow.
Additional details about President Obama’s trip, including press credentialing information, will be released as they become available.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Budget deficit to top $1 trillion for 4th straight year
While most political types are tweeting out stories on the Hilary Rosen-Ann Romney flap -- see our OnPolitics post -- several Republicans are trying to spotlight another story.
The federal budget deficit is on track to top $1 trillion for a fourth straight year.
The Treasury Department said this week that the deficit for March -- the halfway point of the fiscal year -- totaled $198.2 billion; for the half-year, the total deficit stands at $779 billion, though that is down 6.1% from this time last year.
The Congressional Budget Office forecasts a deficit of $1.17 trillion for the 2012 budget year that ends Sept. 30 -- again, an improvement from last budget year's red ink of $1.3 trillion.
Obama and aides say much of that deficit results from George W. Bush-era tax cuts; they say Republicans are blocking their efforts to close the deficit because they oppose higher taxes on wealthy Americans.
GOP lawmakers such as House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, are tweeting out an Associated Press story on new deficit numbers.
The AP reports:
The federal budget deficit is on track to top $1 trillion for a fourth straight year.
The Treasury Department said this week that the deficit for March -- the halfway point of the fiscal year -- totaled $198.2 billion; for the half-year, the total deficit stands at $779 billion, though that is down 6.1% from this time last year.
The Congressional Budget Office forecasts a deficit of $1.17 trillion for the 2012 budget year that ends Sept. 30 -- again, an improvement from last budget year's red ink of $1.3 trillion.
Obama and aides say much of that deficit results from George W. Bush-era tax cuts; they say Republicans are blocking their efforts to close the deficit because they oppose higher taxes on wealthy Americans.
GOP lawmakers such as House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, are tweeting out an Associated Press story on new deficit numbers.
The AP reports:
Democrats and Republicans are offering voters stark choices on how they would deal with the country's budget problems.
The budget approved by the House late last month calls for deep cuts in Medicare and other programs and a new round of tax cuts that would most benefit wealthy Americans. Obama has called that "thinly veiled social Darwinism" and a radical vision for the country.
Obama's budget request in February called for $4 trillion in deficit reduction over the next decade, through spending cuts and tax hikes on the wealthy. Republicans have rejected the tax increases. They want deeper cuts in government programs.
The House-passed budget has no chance of winning Senate approval, setting the stage for gridlock until after the November elections.
The government last recorded a surplus in 2001. The deficits returned after President George W. Bush won approval for broad tax cuts, pushed a major drug benefit program for seniors and launched wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The deficits grew further under Obama as the Great Recession reduced tax revenue as unemployment rose and income fell. The budget gaps have topped $1 trillion in each of his first three years in office. Obama and Democrats pushed for more emergency spending to support the economy, including extending federal unemployment benefits and cutting Social Security taxes.
U.S. Issues First Anti-Gay Hate Crime Indictment In Kentucky Attack Case
A U.S. federal grand jury has issued the first-ever indictment to charge a violation of the sexual orientation section of the federal hate crimes law.
An email statement from the U.S. Justice Department noted that a federal grand jury in London, Ky., returned a three-count indictment charging David Jason Jenkins, 37, and Anthony Ray Jenkins, 20, for kidnapping and assaulting Kevin Pennington, an openly gay man. Both are also reportedly charged with conspiring with each other and with other unnamed individuals to commit the kidnapping.
The indictment alleges that on April 4, 2011, the two defendants kidnapped and assaulted Kevin Pennington because of Pennington’s sexual orientation. According to the indictment, the defendants enlisted two women to trick Pennington into getting into a truck with the defendants, so that the defendants could drive Pennington to a state park and assault him. According to the indictment, the defendants then drove Pennington a secluded area of the Kingdom Come State Park in Kentucky and assaulted him.The indictment charges the men with committing a hate crime in violation of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which expanded federal jurisdiction to include certain assaults motivated by someone’s sexual orientation. This case marks the first federal hate crime charging a violation of the sexual orientation provision of the statute.
The Lexington Herald-Leader cites a court document that claims Jenkins' wife Alexis and sister Mable, cheered on the attack, yelling gay slurs such as "Kill that faggot."
Pennington also told the paper that he was able to run away during the attack, hiding in the woods until the four stopped looking for him.
As the email statement stressed, an indictment is only an accusation, and the defendants are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty.
'War over women' kicks off Obama-Romney race
Washington (CNN) -- President Barack Obama and his certain Republican opponent in November, Mitt Romney, shifted to full general election mode Wednesday, portraying each other as threats to future American progress as their campaigns engaged in a "war over women" indicative of what to expect for the next seven months.
A day after his path to the GOP nomination cleared by chief rival Rick Santorum's withdrawal, Romney sought to reverse a gender gap problem by attacking Obama's economic policies as bad for women.
According to a Washington Post/ABC News poll released Tuesday, Romney trails well behind Obama among women voters -- a result also seen in recent Gallup and CNN/ORC polls. Obama had the support of 57% of women, compared with 38% who said they backed Romney, while Romney had the backing of 52% of men, compared with 44% who backed Obama, the survey found.
In a speech in Delaware at a woman-owned small business, Romney referred Wednesday to a Democratic attack line that Republicans were waging a "war on women" through socially conservative policies involving abortion, health care and other issues by saying: "The real war on women is being waged by the president's failed economic policies."
"Now the president says, 'Oh I didn't cause this recession.' That's true," Romney said. "He just made it worse, and made it last longer. And because it lasted longer, more and more women lost jobs, such that in his three-and-a-half years, 92.3% of the people who lost jobs have been women. His failures have hurt women."
However, the nonpartisan website PolitiFact.com rated the 92.3% job loss statement "mostly false," saying it included figures from the beginning of the Obama administration, before his policies could take effect.
In addition, PolitiFact.com said the figure failed to reflect a historical pattern of recessions first causing unemployment in traditionally male-dominated industries such as construction, and then later affecting fields with larger percentages of female workers.
The Romney campaign later provided a copy of a letter it sent to PolitiFact.com that challenged the "mostly false" rating.
An analysis of federal labor statistics shows that the Romney claim is technically true but lacks important context.
The number of nonfarm-employed women from January 2009, when Obama took office, to March 2012 fell far more than the number of employed men in that period. The total job loss for the period for both men and women combined was 740,000. The number of women who lost nonfarm jobs in that time span was 683,000, according to figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
That amounts to 92.3% -- the figure Romney cited. However, the statistic does not reflect that men constituted a much larger chunk of the job loss pie in the year leading up to Obama's inauguration.
In the 2008 calendar year, men lost a total of 2.7 million nonfarm jobs, compared with 895,000 jobs lost for women. Men made up 75.4% of the 3.6 million jobs lost that year.
Romney's claim also does not reflect that the job losses for women began in March 2008, almost a full year before Obama took office. At that point, women held a total of 67.3 million nonfarm payroll jobs, the highest level of female employment of the Bush administration.
From that high point, the number of women with nonfarm payroll jobs fell for 23 consecutive months, spanning from the final 10 months of the Bush administration and first 13 months of the Obama administration. Since February 2010, women have actually gained 863,000 jobs.
Meanwhile, a Romney adviser initially hesitated when asked if Romney supported the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act that expands workers' rights to sue in the event of a pay discrepancy between a man and a woman.
"We'll get back to you on that," Romney Campaign Policy Director Lanhee Chen told reporters. A Romney campaign statement afterward said the candidate supported pay equity for women, but it did not specifically say he backed the 2009 Ledbetter law.
The Obama campaign immediately fired back, issuing a statement from Ledbetter that criticized Romney for failing to "stand up for women and their families."
"Anyone who wants to be president of the United States shouldn't have to think about whether they support pursuing every possible avenue to ensuring women get the same pay for the same work as men," Ledbetter said in the statement.
A Romney campaign official later said that the candidate had no plans to change the current pay equity laws if elected.
David Axelrod, the senior adviser to Obama's campaign, called it a "tough day" for Romney's efforts to repair damage with women voters stemming from the Republican primary campaign. Axelrod dubbed the those efforts the "Mitt Rehab with Women Tour" in a Twitter post.
Obama, meanwhile, continued his push for Congress to pass a tax measure that would ensure that millionaires -- like Romney -- pay a higher tax rate than middle-class workers.
"It's just plain wrong that middle-class Americans pay a higher share of their income in taxes than some millionaires and billionaires," Obama told a White House event, flanked by millionaires who support the proposed measure.
Republicans want to cut taxes for the wealthy, which would mean cutting spending on programs that spur economic growth and benefit the middle class, senior citizens and the poor, Obama argued.
"They want to double down on some of the inequities that already exist in the tax code," he said, adding that such a step means "either you've got to borrow more money to pay down a deeper deficit, or you've got to demand deeper sacrifices from the middle class and you've got to cut investments that help us grow as an economy."
Citing "significant" deficits and the need to be competitive in the 21st century's "technologically integrated economy," Obama said: "We can't afford to keep spending more money on tax cuts for wealthy Americans who don't need them and weren't even asking for them."
In a swipe at GOP economic policy, Obama added: "In America, prosperity has never just trickled down from the wealthy few."
Also Wednesday, the Obama campaign released a video highlighting Romney's conservative stances on issues such as abortion rights, health care reform and immigration reform. The video concludes with Romney's declaration on the campaign trail that he was "a severely conservative Republican governor."
The competing messages were attempts by both sides to frame what is expected to be a close and vicious general election campaign in a favorable perspective.
Obama portrays Romney and Republicans as protectors of the wealthy at the expense of the middle class, while Romney and his party say Obama has stifled economic recovery and failed to effectively tackle deficit reduction.
Romney still needs to win several hundred delegates to clinch the GOP nomination, but Santorum was his top remaining challenger, and Tuesday's announcement that Santorum suspended his campaign leaves Romney's path free of obstacles.
However, Romney's campaign still struggles to generate enthusiasm among the GOP conservative base, which questions his more moderate stances as Massachusetts governor.
Sources said Romney wants Santorum -- who had strong support among social conservatives, including Christian evangelicals -- to quickly endorse his campaign. While Romney and Santorum aides said the former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania will work to defeat Obama, it was unclear when or if Santorum would offer a full-throated endorsement for Romney.
In his announcement Tuesday that he was suspending his campaign, Santorum never mentioned Romney.
"I expect when I finally become the nominee, and I hope that happens soon, that we'll be campaigning together, we'll be working together," Romney said Wednesday. "We share very much the same beliefs about the course the nation must take and the fact that under this president, America is not going in the right direction."
Santorum has consistently said Republicans needed a true conservative candidate -- himself -- to defeat Obama, and he has relentlessly attacked Romney's support for health care reforms in Massachusetts that included a mandate for coverage similar to the 2010 federal health care law despised by conservatives.
Romney said he would try to attract Santorum's evangelical and socially conservative supporters by leveraging appearances with the former candidate.
"We campaign together and make sure we see these people and get a chance to talk to them about issues that all Americans care about," Romney said. "I think you see our party, and you will see our party more united than it's been in a long, long time, in part because President Obama has taken America in such a different course than we have ever gone as a nation before."
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Texas Rep. Ron Paul, the other Republican challengers who trail far back, said they intended to stay in the race to the GOP convention in August.
The Obama campaign immediately took aim at Romney after Santorum's announcement, with campaign manager Jim Messina saying it was "no surprise that Mitt Romney finally was able to grind down his opponents under an avalanche of negative ads."
"The more the American people see of Mitt Romney, the less they like him and the less they trust him," Messina said in a statement. "While calling himself the 'ideal candidate' for the tea party, he has promised to return to the same policies that created the economic crisis and has alienated women, middle-class families and Hispanic Americans."
CNN's latest estimate of the GOP delegate tally shows Romney with 659, Santorum with 275, Gingrich with 140 and Paul with 71. It takes 1,144 delegates to clinch the nomination.
New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Delaware vote on April 24, in addition to Pennsylvania. In all, 231 delegates are up for grabs in the five states.
The goal now for Gingrich and Paul is to prevent Romney from reaching the 1,144-delegate threshold before the convention. On Wednesday, though, Gingrich spent time explaining how a technical glitch caused his campaign to bounce a $500 check for Utah primary election fees.
Obama and Biden hit swing states to push tax plan
Washington (CNN) – President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden tag team Thursday as they continue their push for the so-called "Buffett Rule," and they're making their pitches in crucial battleground states.
As the vice president heads to Exeter, New Hampshire to give a campaign speech in favor of the legislation that would mandate that Americans earning more than $1 million per year pay a 30% tax rate, the president stays at the White House but is expected to tout the proposal in interviews with local television stations in four other swing states.– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker
Obama will speak with local television anchors from Columbus, Ohio, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Saint Louis, Missouri, and Reno, Nevada.
GSA cancels Las Vegas conference
WASHINGTON -- The GSA scandal has claimed its first victim in Las Vegas.
A one-day trade show meant to connect government officials with clean-energy vendors at a modest off-Strip hotel was canceled this week by the General Services Administration in the fallout over the extravagant 2010 conference that was held 10 miles away at the M Resort in Henderson.
The cancellation left executives at the Hampton Inn Tropicana lamenting on Wednesday.
The GreenUP 2012 Training Conference and Vendor Showcase at the hotel on Dean Martin Drive, near Interstate 15 and Tropicana Avenue, was budgeted by the federal agency at less than $3,000 for perhaps 100 people.
The hotel will collect a cancellation fee the GSA must pay for calling off the show less than 30 days from its April 25 date, but it still will lose money on refunds to exhibitors who bought booth spaces.
Hotel sales and marketing director Mitchell Hirschman said he loses the opportunity to showcase the space to the 18 or so companies that were planning displays and that might have supplied return business.
Also lost, he said, is a chance to demonstrate his venue as a role model for gatherings done right.
"First of all, it was going to be an excellent event, let's start out on the positive," Hirschman said. "It was being done correctly."
He added: "The beauty of the conference is that it was not exorbitant. They wanted specifically to show that a meeting could be run with as little effort as possible, and effort meant money and it meant the amount of people that you need, and so forth. It had no frills."
Hirschman said he was surprised to get the cancellation call Tuesday. It was explained that the GSA was doing an internal investigation, and as with any investigation, future events were being stopped.
"I thought they should have kept it, if you want to know the truth," he said. "It was a meeting being done the right way, and they should have left this one. It kills me, but that's the way life is."
GSA spokesman Adam Elkington confirmed that the Las Vegas show was canceled as part of a review that acting administrator Daniel Tangherlini ordered after stepping in to clean up following the agency's Western Regions Conference. The agency's inspector general's office detailed thousands of dollars of waste and other questionable spending in the four-day October 2010 conference, which cost $823,000 to plan and execute.
Recordings from the conference showed GSA employees performing in skits and music videos, some of which lampooned the agency and joked about spending taxpayer money. In some clips, workers and supervisors banter about drinking and partying.
The GSA is compiling a list of conferences that are being called off as part of the agency's scrubbing of its calendar.
Among the meetings already canceled was a series of four small-business conferences scheduled over the next year, including a two-day session in September at the M Resort.
Small-business conferences in Honolulu, Phoenix and Oakland, Calif., also were axed.
Tangherlini was appointed acting administrator April 3, a day after the inspector general's report was released and administrator Martha Johnson resigned. Tangherlini told employees on his first day that he was reviewing all planned GSA conferences that involved travel "or substantial expenditures of public funds."
On Wednesday, Tangherlini continued a cleanup mission. He and Brian Miller, the GSA's inspector general, sent a memo to more than 12,000 agency employees, urging them to speak up if they see inappropriate activities by reporting it to supervisors or calling anonymously to the agency's hotline.
"One of the more troubling aspects of this incident is that people did not report this improper conduct or take action to stop it," the officials wrote in reference to the Las Vegas conference.
Friday, February 3, 2012
My Paula Deen Gooey Butter Cake ;)
Servings: 6 to 8 servings
Prep Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 40 min
Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 40 min
Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients:
Cake:
1 18 1/4-ounce package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 18 1/4-ounce package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted
Filling:
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 16-ounce box powdered sugar
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 16-ounce box powdered sugar
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.
In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter and beat together.
Next, add the powdered sugar and mix well. Spread over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Make sure not to over bake as the center should be a little gooey.
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