Pioneers Are a Diverse Bunch
I'm not really a fan of Ree Drummond, "The Pioneer Woman." By that, I mean I've never seen her TV show, read her blog or owned her cookbooks. I have read a few of her recipes on Google, but I don't think I've tried any of them. I do, however, admire Ree Drummond.
I'm always surprised by how much people hate success. I was a fan of Martha Stewart some years back. Her's was hardly a rags to riches story. She was a fashion model and celebrity who found a way to start a new phase in her life. Her shows were enjoyable and she introduced the masses to things like cucumber infused water. Simple things to make little luxuries accessible to common folk. People seemed to tire of her, but I think it was because she became such a heavily marketed brand. I remember people crowing when she messed up and broke SEC regulations. They loved joking about her while she was in prison. Frankly, I felt bad about the way things had turned out for her. She lost most of her empire.
Since Martha has been out of prison, she has scaled things back, limiting her exposure, but still doing what she does best--share cooking tips. Oh, and hang out with Snoop Dogg. They are a hoot together.
Paula Deen is another fallen celebrity. I don't know what her back story is, but I know doughnut hamburgers and chocolate bacon brought her fame and fortune. It wasn't long before I heard friends and co-workers talking about how much they hated her. They liked her just fine before she became a household word. It seemed like a lot of people were thrilled when a racist remark on her part wiped out much of the success she had built. Understandably. Racism is simply not acceptable.
I'm not pleased by the fall of either of these chefs. I've used their recipes before. They tend to be simple, straightforward and traditional. I don't condone what they did, I just wish they hadn't.
Ree Drummond went to California to be an actress, but things were tough. When she came home to Oklahoma for a visit, she met a cowboy, a third or fourth, maybe fifth, generation cattle rancher. They fell in love, got married and set up housekeeping on the ranch. That could have been the end of the story, but Ree felt some strange need to be productive, so she started blogging about homesteading in eastern Oklahoma. Her blog led to a store in town, a restaurant, a television show, books and a Pioneer Woman product line.
I've been needing a good spatula to use with my cast iron skillets for some time. I've been replacing the darned things every six months because they have a weak point where they break. And I don't mistreat them. I went shopping and compared a number of spatulas. The one with the best shape, quality, durability and mid-range price was the Pioneer Woman brand. Score one for Ree Drummond.
I believe that Ree represents what so many of us are trying to do. Sure, her husband was already established as a rancher and he and his family are the first or second largest landholders in Oklahoma, but they choose this country life. No matter how long you've been doing it, raising cattle is a high-stakes gamble. I don't think we have to worry about the Drummonds going broke, but they choose and celebrate a way of living that is rare and likely endangered. Pay no attention to the television cameras in Ree's kitchen.
It's only been a year or two since I first heard of The Pioneer Woman. Our local news stations occasionally run stories about what she's been up to and she is one of Oklahoma's native-born celebrities.
But it has already begun. About once a week I see some story on the internet that tries to expose Ree Drummond or somehow taint her success. So far they've found an uncle who was treated for depression and a recipe that Ree failed to credit to it's proper source. They'll keep trying, of course, and eventually they will drag some poor skeleton out of a closet somewhere Ree has been. It will probably be true, but unimportant in the grand scheme of what Drummond does for a living.
And people will crow. Because we can't let these uppity women get too big for their britches.
Stephen P.
I'm always surprised by how much people hate success. I was a fan of Martha Stewart some years back. Her's was hardly a rags to riches story. She was a fashion model and celebrity who found a way to start a new phase in her life. Her shows were enjoyable and she introduced the masses to things like cucumber infused water. Simple things to make little luxuries accessible to common folk. People seemed to tire of her, but I think it was because she became such a heavily marketed brand. I remember people crowing when she messed up and broke SEC regulations. They loved joking about her while she was in prison. Frankly, I felt bad about the way things had turned out for her. She lost most of her empire.
Since Martha has been out of prison, she has scaled things back, limiting her exposure, but still doing what she does best--share cooking tips. Oh, and hang out with Snoop Dogg. They are a hoot together.
Paula Deen is another fallen celebrity. I don't know what her back story is, but I know doughnut hamburgers and chocolate bacon brought her fame and fortune. It wasn't long before I heard friends and co-workers talking about how much they hated her. They liked her just fine before she became a household word. It seemed like a lot of people were thrilled when a racist remark on her part wiped out much of the success she had built. Understandably. Racism is simply not acceptable.
I'm not pleased by the fall of either of these chefs. I've used their recipes before. They tend to be simple, straightforward and traditional. I don't condone what they did, I just wish they hadn't.
Ree Drummond went to California to be an actress, but things were tough. When she came home to Oklahoma for a visit, she met a cowboy, a third or fourth, maybe fifth, generation cattle rancher. They fell in love, got married and set up housekeeping on the ranch. That could have been the end of the story, but Ree felt some strange need to be productive, so she started blogging about homesteading in eastern Oklahoma. Her blog led to a store in town, a restaurant, a television show, books and a Pioneer Woman product line.
I've been needing a good spatula to use with my cast iron skillets for some time. I've been replacing the darned things every six months because they have a weak point where they break. And I don't mistreat them. I went shopping and compared a number of spatulas. The one with the best shape, quality, durability and mid-range price was the Pioneer Woman brand. Score one for Ree Drummond.
I believe that Ree represents what so many of us are trying to do. Sure, her husband was already established as a rancher and he and his family are the first or second largest landholders in Oklahoma, but they choose this country life. No matter how long you've been doing it, raising cattle is a high-stakes gamble. I don't think we have to worry about the Drummonds going broke, but they choose and celebrate a way of living that is rare and likely endangered. Pay no attention to the television cameras in Ree's kitchen.
It's only been a year or two since I first heard of The Pioneer Woman. Our local news stations occasionally run stories about what she's been up to and she is one of Oklahoma's native-born celebrities.
But it has already begun. About once a week I see some story on the internet that tries to expose Ree Drummond or somehow taint her success. So far they've found an uncle who was treated for depression and a recipe that Ree failed to credit to it's proper source. They'll keep trying, of course, and eventually they will drag some poor skeleton out of a closet somewhere Ree has been. It will probably be true, but unimportant in the grand scheme of what Drummond does for a living.
And people will crow. Because we can't let these uppity women get too big for their britches.
Stephen P.
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