Bindi Irwin as Ambassador (and gravy is a bitch)

I heard on the radio this morning and again on the TV news tonight that Bindi Irwin has signed up to be an Ambassador for Sea World.

Apparently people are outraged because Sea World has a history of not treating its Orca Whales very well.
Many are disgusted with Bindi for "selling out"

I have a different opinion.
Bindi has signed on to work with them and change the way they work with their animals, teaching them more humane ways of managing Sea World.
I certainly don't see her condoning their practices, so helping them improve would be her reason as far as I see it.

Yes?
No?

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In a TV newsflash last night , I was horrified, gobsmacked even, to hear someone is putting forth a suggestion that parents PAY THEIR CHILDREN to eat their vegetables in an attempt to curb the obesity crisis.
WTF??
So wrong.
So very wrong.

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In further news, a kitchen tip from yours truly...(that would be me)

Gravy is a fussy bitch who demands your complete attention at all times.

Turn your back for even a second and she has a hissy fit......

and spits all over your stovetop.....

the edge of the bench and down onto your floor.

Grrr!


Comments

  1. Yep, there are starving children out there and everyone's worried about what Bindi Irwin is gonna do at Sea World. I think you're right though... that whole family is very into caring for all the animals. :)

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  2. I heard it takes a child ten tastes before they will eat the more bitter vegetables, so making them at least try things is the best. Of course this should happen with the family seated at the dining table without television or devices present. Most importantly, the vegetables must always be on the plate with the expectation that they will eat them.

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  3. Gravy I can cope with, but pasta gets me EVERY time. I watch it like a hawk, leave the lid of the saucepan a little ajar while it simmers, make sure not to overfill the pot etc, but the microsecond I blink, there's boiling water pouring all over my cooktop. Every. Bloody. Time.

    Paying kids to eat veggies? Is it April 1st already? Or have the inmates really taken over the asylum. I guess I was lucky in that both my kids liked veggies. We grew a lot ourselves, so that helps I think. But I never "made" them eat them. It was just a natural part of our day.

    And when I was a kid, my mother's attitude was "you'll eat it and you'll like it". As she was rather hefty and had a strong right hook, we never argued with that. :-)

    I quite like Bindi. People have always criticised the family, but she always seems mature and level headed beyond her years. I'm not a fan of Sea World, but if people really want to take exception, then they ought to question Terri. Bindi is only 15 years old and legally can't make these decisions by herself. I don't even see this as a bad thing; I see it less as some sort of celebrity endorsement and more as a means for Sea World to actually work with people who know what they are doing and who can actually make change within the organisation.

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  4. I am with Marie on the Gravy/Pasta dilemma. Pasta hates me, and gravy behaves like a lady.
    We are very good at interfering in other people lives aren't we? Without knowing the full story. I suspect that Bindi's presence will ensure that the orcas get better treatment rather than worse.
    Vegetables? We ate what was on our plate - or did without. Liver (and offal more generally) made for some dreadful meals. But if I didn't eat what the family was eating I went hungry. And chose hunger over offal every time.
    At its worst my father insisted that the liver be served each meal until I ate it. That was wrong. Fortunately after three meals my mother told him it had gone off. I don't think she could cope with the scenes.

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  5. Gravy demands total attention from start to finish. Never turn your back on it.
    As to Bindi Irwin and Sea World...I am totally against such places as Sea World and Zoos...she won't make it any worse and she may help make it better. Only time will tell.
    If I thought paying my grandson would get him to eat ANYTHING I would do it.

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  6. Happy Elf Christine; I'm hoping my thoughts are correct and Bindi will help to improve the care of the animals at Sea World.

    Andrew; I'm lucky that my kids ate almost everything from the beginning. I've also heard that if you only put the vegetables on your own plate the kids will naturally want them because anything on mum's plate is better than what's on their own. I never did that.

    Marie; with pasta I turn down the heat as soon as the water begins to boil and leave the lid off, ten I watch to see if it is going to boil over. If it looks like it might, I blow on it gently to settle the "suds" while turning it down another notch. If I can't be bothered with all that watching, I'll use the REALLY BIG POT instead.
    I agree having Bindi on board is a way to have someone who really cares helping with the animals.

    Elephant's Child; usually I take the gravy off the heat the second it starts to boil, this time I reached for the oven mitt first.
    I agree Bindi's presence with be nothing but good for the Orcas.
    My mum was a fan of serving uneaten food for the next meal. I don't remember it from when I was little, but in later years when I went to live with her, the stepkids got that treatment a bit. There was a lot of resentment in that house.

    Delores; zoos and places like Sea World have improved a lot from days of yore when animals were kept in small cages. I think Bindi will do a lot to improve the conditions and treatment at Sea World.

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  7. Oh, that kind of bitchy.
    My little brother used to rave about my gravy and intimate to Helyn she could learn something. I led her to my pantry and produced Kitchen Bouquet. Except I called it Kitchen Bucket, in honor of Hyacinth. My sister's gravy went straight to the top of my brother's chart. The least I could do for such a lovely woman.

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  8. I hope that Bindi might be able to ensure a greater level of care and comfort for the Orcas and other sea life.
    Personally, I hate places like sea-world and other aqua worlds.
    And, I mourn for the beautiful mammals that are captured, or are bred, to endure these places for human profit and entertainment.
    Admittedly, the conditions are better than in the past, but, I still resent seeing what equals putting whales in swimming pools. These creatures that migrate hundreds of kilometres every year, aren't suited to a life of captivity. No wonder they "turn on" their trainers, sometimes.
    But, I hope Bindi can do the best she can. And, more importantly, that she is listened to, not just a "face".

    With the far too convenient fast foods that (sadly) seem to be the staple of many home meals these days, it's no wonder that the main veggies that some kids ever eat are found in a burger. The limp, bland tastes overridden by processed meat and plastic cheese.
    If parents will end up paying their children to eat their veggies, then, they're not doing their job as parents.

    Sorry River, some of your great posts are thought provoking and entail subjects that have me ranting on my soapbox - nothing wrong with lively discussion, I think.

    And, (homemade) pasta sauce has me wiping down the stove top every time :)

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  9. I know little of the different places in Queensland so can't comment nor have I really followed Bindi and her family except I thought it tragic the way her dad met his end.

    The thought of paying children to eat vegies has blown my mind!!! I ate everything that was on my plate and was grateful to have 3 meals a day when a child. We had liver, heart, kidneys, brains and sweetbreads and I loved them all. I must admit when I was a child there were limited vegetables available. We mainly had potato, beans, peas and cabbage with carrots, parsnips etc in stews. I am sure cauliflower was in there somewhere too. Such vegies as brussel sprouts, broad beans, artichoke, etc just weren't in the greengrocers in those days.
    My son loved vegies when a toddler but grew out of eating them as a teenager. They seem to get fussier as they grew older.

    I don't think these days there is ever a problem getting kids to eat chips!!!!

    I am fortunate perhaps that Phil doesn't like gravy so never have to make it these days nor do I cook pasta any more as it sends our blood glucose too high; the same with rice as well.

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  10. Paying kids to eat well...no way, let them starve until they eat what theyre told to eat.
    I think the Irwins are a bunch of fools, Steve got what he was always asking for by treating animals like he did.
    Gravy is easy...take an old coffee jar, mix the gravy powder with water by shaking the jar and pour it into the pan just as the pan juices come to the boil...stir for a couple of minutes...done, no lumps, no bumps, no mess.

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  11. Joanne; I use gravox powder, (not the instant kind), ix to a paste with water, then stir into pan juices. Sometimes I'll add a little tomato sauce and worcestershire sauce, depending on what meat I have.
    I love Hyacinth Bucket.

    Vicki; I agree it is a shame to have such large fish/mammals in small environments, when previously they've had an entire ocean. Perhaps Bindi can do something to help...
    I know a lot of the problem with kids eating veggies these days is because of fast foods & convenience foods over the last 20 or so years. A whole generation has grown up not knowing how to cook or even tasting veggies; now their kids are paying the price. They want the kids to eat healthy food yet many kids don't know what a vegetable is and often refuse to try them.
    My homemade sauce spits all over too, every time I take off the lid to stir.

    Mimsie; I'm hopeful of Bindi making some changes at Sea World.
    The trouble with vegetables is so many people now have grown up with fast food and don't know what most veggies are nor how to cook them. Were brussels sprouts really not available when you were young? I love those! I don't remember seeing things like artichoke, asparagus or eggplant, but I knew and ate everything else. Except broccoli, I don't think mum bought it, maybe that wasn't available in Aussie greengrocers. I remember carrots and cauliflower done in cheese sauce, peas with almost everything and mashed potatoes 6 days a week with roast potatoes on Sundays. oh, zucchini! We didn't have that then either. I don't often make gravy now, my stovetop is usually spattered with spaghetti sauce instead.

    Kymbo; a coffee jar is a good method. I just put a couple of teaspoons of gravox in a cup, mix to a paste with water, top up the cup with more water, then cook it. I fI have pan juices I'll skip the extra water and pour the gravox paste into the boiling juices. It's so yummy done like that.



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  12. Kymbo; "I fI"? That's If I...

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  13. Paying kids to eat vegetables!!! What next??? I almost spat my carrots when I heard about that yesterday!

    I tend to agree with you re Bindi, River...she has a very high profile...the critics shouldn't denounce her so readily.

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  14. What has gotten in to good old River today with all the cuss words, I love it! I totally agree with your assessment of Bindi, I'm betting her family would do GOOD for Sea World.

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  15. I've always been to scared to make gravy... too grown-up a job for me I think.
    Yes, I think give Bindi Irwin the benefit of the doubt, she seems to have the right approach with regard to animal welfare to me (perhaps more so than her dad).

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