That chicken is thin and meaner than sin and uglier than Bamboo Jack--

You know what's been missing from this blog for a while? Chicken, that's what. This was mostly due to my having been out of town almost as often as not over the past three weeks -- Williamstown, then New York, then Williamstown again -- so I haven't been cooking as much. But I picked up some beets, tomatoes, corn, scallions, sheep's milk cheese and a jalapeno pepper at the farmer's market last week, and I ended up turning most of them to the service of some chicken.

There's been some chicken out there more famous than mine, though.

I've eaten at Chick-Fil-A twice in my life, back in the year that I was interning at a theatre in Orlando, where I learned a lot of things, including that I never wanted to lived in Orlando. Their food was pretty good for a fast food chain, but I also learned in the course of that year that the company was aligned with and financially supported some principles that I found to be morally disagreeable, so I decided that an easy right action would be not to spend my money there. Over the past weeks, Chick-Fil-A and the publicly professed principles of its president Dan Cathy have gotten a lot more press, and the issue has moved far beyond the questionable quality of life in central Florida.

If you want a coherent, comprehensive summary about what this ridiculous outcry -- let's face it, guys, the central images of this are fried chicken sandwiches and advertisements with barely literate cows -- really means, I'd like to direct you to this articulate essay on this issue. If, on the other hand, you'd just like to read me being angry, please do continue on here.

One of the reactions to Chick-Fil-A's declaration of opposition to marriage equality was, of course, the statement by Boston Mayor Thomas Merino that Chick-Fil-A had no place in Boston and that that he'll make their license process "very difficult" unless they backpedal. He also sent an open letter to Chick-fil-A President Dan Cathy. These actions have gotten a lot of kneejerk liberal rejoicing, conservative backlash and moderate hedging. I'm usually camping out in the moderate hedge club, but I have to say that I'm finding myself pitching my tent with the liberals on this one. Do I want Mayor Merino to violate the Constitution in order to keep a fast food chain out of a city? Hell, no. But do I think that he was out of line for what he did? Based on what I've heard reported about his words and actions: no.

Nowhere have I seen Chick-Fil-A being outlawed from Boston. I saw a company being told that they weren't welcome in a place because they conflicted with the values held there. It was a statement of principles. And it was, in a representative government, the representing of a city's character and ideal and of its citizens, particularly those citizens who are often marginalized -- not the representation of dollar signs and business deals. Do we need those dollar signs and logistics to run a city? Of course we do! But we also need the other side of it, the reasons that we're running those dollar signs in the first place, and that's the side that seems to get lost so often. And maybe that representation didn't represent the view of all citizens. In that case, by all means, get up and let it be known that you're not being represented -- that's what the rest of us have to do, after all.

As for the conservative backlash, I'll just link to The Least Subtle Tweets From Chick-Fil-A Appreciation Day. While not something to be read on an emotionally fragile day, I believe it to be important to occasionally give myself a wake-up call about what's really out there. The world is not a friendly place. There is a lot of work to be done.

So was Mayor Merino confrontational? Yes. Was there a backlash? Yes, apparently. You know what? I don't care. We definitely need cool heads and tactical action, but there is also something galling and tiring about always having to play nice with those who see you as being lesser and even actively work to keep you in a lesser place. It brings to my mind the image of a dog being made to sit up and beg for a treat: "That's it... that's it... good boy... just a little higher... wait for it... wait for it... Ah-ah, not yet, I've still got it...!"

The essay I referenced earlier has it: "All your life, you’re told to stand up to bullies, but when WE do it, we’re told WE are the ones being intolerant? Well, okay. Yes. I refuse to tolerate getting my ass kicked. "Guilty as charged.""

And to those harshing on the people hopping on the Chick-Fil-A Boycott Bandwagon, claiming it to be an ineffective drop in the bucket, I must disagree. It definitely has an impact, if only by letting other people know that you support their right to dignity and equality. Will boycotting Chick-Fil-A change the world by directly creating just laws and saving innocent lives and sending double rainbows all the way across the sky? Nope. In that sense, it is just a drop in the bucket. But just because something is small or easy, does that mean that we shouldn't do it? That logic just doesn't make sense to me. "Oh man, why are you not letting that door you're going through close in that person's face? That doesn't take, like, any effort. If you care about people so much, shouldn't you be building schoolhouses in rural Africa right now?"

It's okay to do small things. We should be open-eyed and realistic about what they are -- small and easy things, not great high horses for us to go galloping around on -- but that doesn't make them without value. And maybe while we're paying attention to not giving money to certain businesses that go against our values, we're still ignorant about others, but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't make any effort. (And if you are interested in that sort of thing, there is a Human Rights Campaign Buyer's Guide to help to look at companies' performances in regard to treatment of GLBT employees and communities.) I remember almost burning myself out in a great conflagration of activist enthusiasm as a kid when it hit me: one person can't do everything. Learning about the world was overwhelming, because there was just so much to be done, but thinking logically, it seemed to me that the best thing was to narrow it down. Concentrate your energies to where they are most suited and can be most amplified by your passion. The world is not your burden alone. There are other people in the world upon whom we must depend to make it better, which makes it all the more important to be mindful of others.

Of course, the lesson about burnout wouldn't completely sink in until almost a decade and a half, countless blood draws and a Christmas Day hospital trip later. It was a start, though, for someone who wanted to do all of the things.

I also believe in the inherent value of doing the right thing.

But back to my chicken.

First up was BBQ chicken with spicy grilled summer squash and corn on the cob.

Sauces are an area in which I readily admit my weakness and desire to do better. My mom always made pasta sauce and BBQ sauce from scratch, but I use pre-made/bottled. I think that I'm frightened of them. I aim to overcome that fear, but that's something for the future, not this summer, I think.

When it comes to pre-made BBQ, my go-to is generally the Bull's Eye brand. It's cheap, readily available, relatively low in sodium and contains no high-fructose corn syrup. I marinated a chicken breast overnight, then broiled it in the oven for about 10 minutes (cover your smoke detectors for this shit -- the sugars in the sauce will get burny), also heating up some extra sauce to toss on top. The result was pretty much perfect. I've mentioned before that I hate dry chicken with a passion, but this was deliciously juicy.

Earlier in the day, I'd sliced up a zucchini and a yellow squash and tossed them in bowl with olive oil, black pepper and half a chopped jalapeno. I then covered the bowl and let it sit in the refrigerator for a few hours before throwing the sliced onto the hot grill pan while the chicken was cooking. The corn on the cob was boiled during that time as well, for about 6 minutes.

I'd been unsure about what a little bit of chopped of jalapeno just sitting in the same bowl as the squash would do, but it actually did give it a nice warm spiciness. Nothing even approaching excessively hot, but you could definitely feel that there was a heat to it. I also liked mixing the little pieces of charred pepper from the grill pan in with the rice.

Next came chicken with roasted tomatoes.

This was mostly from this Epicurious recipe, though with my usual M.O. of altering as needed due to not having shit. Red wine vinegar? As if. Let's throw in some balsamic. "Herbes de Provence"? Parsley and tarragon? What the shit? How about I just toss in some green things that I have on my spice shelf, which I think are rosemary, oregano and thyme. And for the tomatoes, I cut two medium-sized regular tomatoes into eighths. I also lack an oven-safe skillet, so I transferred things back and forth between a skillet on the stove-top and a roasting pan in the oven.

Tossed it on top of a pile of brown rice, heated up my leftover veggies: voila. Deliciousness. And then yesterday, I roasted my beets as the side veggie, which was also deliciousness.

Even if it's a little rough around the edges, it just tastes better going down when you're comfortable with what went into it.

Let's live together in harmony, guys. Just like Taylor Swift and T-Pain.