There ought to be a day for......

Last year I bought myself at half off in January an Embracing Your Inner Bitch Calendar. I know many are appalled at this word for women, but being the nice, good girl all my life hasn’t gotten me far. It is truly a Self Assertion Calendar for those of us people pleasers, co-dependent, submissive women or any other name of women who don’t stand up for their own needs and wonder why they never get what they truly want.

I miss it this year but I remember reading on April 19th that it was “National Talk like a Pirate Day”yet there was no national holiday honoring a remarkable woman. It reminded me of the old comedy roasts where such and such never had a dinner in his name. Now I know we have Mothers Day a day to honor one’s role as chief nurturer to your own children but what about teachers or Aunts or Uncles?

So I’ve thought of a few women who should have their own day. There’s Betty Crocker who I will start with in my, “There Ought to Be a Day For…” themed Blog. Others include Erma Bombeck, whose writing I could never match, who helped crazy mothers and all women survive their crazy lives with her gift of humor. Susan B Anthony is a no brainer but whoever put her on a difficult coin was clueless. I discovered that she does have a day on Feb. 15th which is President’s Day too along with the day after Valentine’s Day. So I have next weeks topic decided for me. There’s Elizabeth Caddy Stanton Susan’s dearest friend and partner in the Vote for Woman who is sadly unknown.

So perhaps we can make our own appreciation day for all the amazing women who have not only affected our lives but changed us for the better.

As promised my tribute to Betty.

There ought to be a day for Betty Crocker.

Before there was Martha Stewart or Rachel Ray or the Internet there was Betty Crocker. Sure there was that French chef Julia Childs, but the all American expert on cooking and baking was Betty Crocker. Many say that she was just a creation of the General Foods Company, but my Uncle Bob Richards, who used to be on the Wheaties’ box before Bruce Jenner - woops Michael Phelps, said he had met her and that her real name was Mildred something. Whether or not she was real, she was a real person to me. Hers was the cookbook my mother used and I still have to this day. I especially grew fond of her when my Home Ec. teacher (yes they had them back then) told us how much she hated Betty Crocker since she never sifted her flour in baking. I hated that teacher, which endeared Betty to me more and more.

I learned to cook from her book and you can tell which of her cookies I made by looking at the oil-and-flour stained pages of the dessert/cookie section. When others went on to The Joy of Cooking I stayed faithful to her. Though I rarely bake anymore, I still consult Betty whenever I have a question. Every Easter she reminds me how long for to boil eggs, and every Thanksgiving I sense her presence at my elbow, assisting me with the turkey. Whenever I need to substitute something, like that expensive cream of tarter in her Snickerdoodles recipe, she would tell me what to use. Her equivalent page has saved me many a time. She has rarely failed me.

My old cookbook is like my Bible of Cooking, and to Mildred or whoever the real Betty Crocker is out there - I am forever thankful.

Buist©6-8-2009

PS Wikipedia confirms that it was Marjorie Childs Husted who created Betty Crocker. General Foods had so many people asking for recipes that they gathered together a staff and Marjorie made up the icon Betty Crocker. Needless to say she is still real to me along with the thousands who received her cookbook for wedding presents. In fact I used her International Cookbook last night.