Though the 6:25 58 never came, so I didn't get home until 7:30

Yesterday I nearly finished plying the sock yarn, had some good meetings st
work, and decided at the last minute to go to a talk by Olin prof Sara
Hendren. She sits at the intersection of engineering, design, and art, in
the field of disability, and the talk was for the design school so it
skewed that direction. The big theme was about the contrast between
traditional design for disability which focuses on the medical view that
disability resides in the body and can be "solved" by technology that
attempts to restore function, and a more modern approach that views
disability as a product of social expectations and the built environment,
where the most appropriate response is accommodation. Examples include
schools for the deaf that don't require sound baffling between divided
spaces but do require chamfering of hallway corners to prevent collisions;
a portable podium for a little person (which effectively shrinks the scale
of the room to fit her, as opposed to something like a step stool that
would permit her to only awkwardly use the kind of built-in podium usually
present); a collection of simple custom-built single-task tools developed
by an amputee that together are more effective than a state-of-the-art
general-purpose electronic prosthesis; a set of modular, portable ramps
that can move about a city for use by skateboarders and wheelchair users
alike. My fave quote, by someone she works with: "I'm not disabled because
of my legs, I'm disabled by a world full of stairs"

Great talk.

Recipe: spiced rice stew

Serves 1.

Wash 1/3 c rice, add 3/4 c water* and set over high heat. Add 1/2 t salt, 1
t ground coriander, 1/4 t each ground cumin, red pepper (I like ancho but
paprika is fine), and fenugreek, and a pinch each cinnamon, turmeric, and
cayenne. Please do adjust all spice amounts to taste. Add 2T nut butter of
choice, 1/3 c diced carrot, 1/3 c frozen green beans, and 2T dried
cranberries. Stir until it boils, then reduce heat to low, cover, and
simmer 15 minutes. Turn off heat and let stand a further 5 minutes. Serve.

* WARNING: the only thing I actually measure in this recipe is the rice.
You won't ruin it if you lift the lid to check on it periodically and add
more water from the kettle as needed. When it's done it should be thick and
saucy, but it's also nice as a soup so don't overthink it.