Hasta La Gadget!

Alex Morgan is everywhere: from winning Olympic gold with the U.S. women’s soccer team to beaming on your box of Cocoa Pebbles to making the New York Times’ bestsellers list to posing for Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue.

Just days after scoring twice in an international friendly against France, we found her in Miami Beach talking to kids about staying active and healthy, part of a program with Olympic sponsors McDonald’s and Coca Cola. She’ll also read them a section of her latest book “Kicks: Sabotage Season,” part of a three-book series aimed at young girls. Then it’s back to Oregon with the Portland Thorns of the National Women’s Soccer League, before training begins in earnest for the 2015 Women’s World Cup in Canada. “I’m really happy with where our team is right now,” she says of the U.S., who aim to win their first World Cup since 1999.

Oh yeah, and Morgan’s also planning a wedding to Servando Carrasco of Major League Soccer’s Houston Dynamo. Clearly, America’s star forward is back at full speed after being sidelined for months with a left ankle injury.

You’re here talking to kids, and you’ve just put out your third book geared toward young girls. What about working with kids directly is the most fun for you?
It’s the most fulfilling part about what I do. When I was younger and wanted to be a professional soccer player, I didn’t know what that meant — I thought it just meant playing soccer every day. There’s really so much more to that. There’s those young girls that I once was, looking up to Mia Hamm, Christine Lilly, all those players, and I know how much of an effect they had on me. Knowing that, I feel like I’m in a position where I can really help be a positive influence in girls’ lives. I put out the books because I don’t think there’s enough for girls’ soccer out there. I don’t think there’s enough for girls’ sports, period. It’s important to take on that responsibility and try to be a positive influence, impact them in a good way, and let them know that if they do want to become a women’s professional soccer player, or [become a professional] in women’s sports when they grow up, they can achieve that dream.

When you were that age, was there somebody that gave you good advice that you always remembered?
My dad has been to every soccer game that I’ve played in, both at the amateur level and at the professional level, and he always had great things to say whether we won or we lost, whether I felt great or not so great. I am where I am today because of my parents and their support, because my dad really encouraged me and because he felt like I was deserving of the stepping stones that I took to get where I am.

You obviously don’t get a whole lot of down time, between your club play, the national team, and events like this. What do you do to recharge?
I really love to do yoga. Sometimes I forget about myself, forget about what I need and the calmness that I need at times. Yoga helps me just calm down and think about where I am in my life and the fact that I’m only 25 years old and that I still have so much of my life to live. I also love reading, and I love just being with my family. Most of the time when I see them, it’s because I have a soccer game — they’re on vacation while I’m playing soccer, so when I actually get to relax with them, it’s the best kind of rehab and therapy for me.

Is yoga something you do alone in a hotel room, or are you able to find classes on the road?
I always try to find a class, wherever it is. And on the national team, we have a massage therapist who’s actually a certified yoga instructor, so they know how important it is for us. And whatever city I’m in, I think you can always take an hour out of your day to give yourself some time.

There’s an endless media debate about the U.S. as a soccer nation — whether it could be, how much of one is it? What do you think we do right, and what would you love to see improve?
I think there’s good support for MLS and NWSL; I think it could always be better. We see so many more fans this World Cup than previous World Cups, but that doesn’t always translate into the MLS, that doesn’t always translate to soccer here in the U.S. The World Cup comes around once every four years; it’s not like the Super Bowl, it’s not like the World Series. I love the fact that people are coming together and celebrating the World Cup together, because that’s really what soccer’s all about: it’s celebrating all different cultures, all different languages into one sport. That’s really why I love the sport, but I think there’s a long ways to go for the U.S. to become a soccer country. You see glimpses of it, but I wouldn’t necessarily say that this is a soccer country.

Speaking of the men’s World Cup, what’s been your favorite match so far?
The Brazil-Chile game in the round of 16 was stressful, amazing. Beautiful soccer was played in that game. I had so much fun as a fan watching that game.

I really do believe that the U.S. men’s team has a great team going into the World Cup. A lot of people doubted them, but I felt from day one they were getting out of their bracket. I even made my own bracket and had them coming out, and now that they face Belgium I think they have a great opportunity to make it to the quarters. I’m really proud of our guys, because the better that they do the more fans I think the U.S. will gain in MLS and with women’s soccer, the NWSL. I think they’re really taking hold of soccer and doing great things with it.

If you had to play a game with Kyle Beckerman’s hair or Tim Howard’s hair…?
Kyle Beckerman’s hair. I think it’s awesome. And although I love Tim Howard, I don’t think the bald look looks good on me.

You have A LOT going on. What’s the most stressful part of planning a wedding?
Probably trying to take on too much on my own. My fiancé knows me really well and he knows that although I don’t want to do everything, I want everything to be done my way. So with that in mind, I need to let go of the reins a little. My sister has helped me so much, my fiancé wants to help me a lot more. I need to give up trying to make it exactly how I want it and know that my first job is playing soccer and that wedding planning is fun, not stressful!

At this time next year, the women’s World Cup will be underway in Canada. Obviously qualification still has to happen, but at what point do you get nervous?
I don’t think nervous would be the right word, but I always have butterflies before each game. Leading up to the World Cup we have a sendoff series just like the men did. We’ll have those games and that’ll make it really feel real, like it’s around the corner. I don’t think that it’ll feel completely real until we’re at the venue of our first game. But preparation starts now. We were one of the last teams to qualify [for the 2011 World Cup]; we had to go to Italy to qualify. So we’re not taking it lightly this time.

How’s the ankle?
The ankle feels really good. I don’t feel it at all anymore, so moving forward I’m not thinking about my injury, I’m thinking about how I can be my best self for World Cup.

Girls will be girls.

Lena Dunham served as a bridesmaid at her best friend Isabel Bramlette Halley’s wedding on Saturday, June 28. The “Girls” star, 28, wore a cap sleeved grey dress, which featured a low-back, by Reformation and sported a chic, braided ‘do. She deemed the gown “charming, breathable and stylish.”

Getting ready for my best friend’s wedding. Potent, emotional, feel someone should make a movie about it. Called “Wedding Of My Best Friend”

— Lena Dunham (@lenadunham) June 27, 2014

“Isabel and I met 28 years ago,” Dunham wrote on Instagram alongside the below photo. “Watching her take this step was a crazy honor.”

The event looks to have taken place somewhere in the country — the wooded background sort of, kind of gives it away.

It turns out you can cook that frozen seafood right now. Plus, four more clever ways to get dinner on the table faster.

By Lynn Andriani

Don’t Defrost the Fish

Waiting for frozen seafood to thaw can be a drag—which is why chef Jesse Cool of the Flea Street café in Menlo Park, California, skips that step. She sautés, broils and roasts fillets directly from frozen, just adding a few minutes to the usual cooking time. As the fish thaws, its juices infuse the pan sauce.

Get the recipe: Cod with Lemon, Olives and Capers

Toss Tacos Like Salad

DIY tacos are great. Filling 14 bowls of fixings and arranging them on the table, not so much. This throw-everything-in-a-bowl version is a major time-saver; think of it as moo shu pork, but Mexican. You mix all the taco fillings together on the table, place them on a serving platter and let everyone fill their own tortilla.

Get the recipe: Shrimp Tacos

Let Hot Water Do All the Work

A rich-tasting bowl of homemade noodle soup with vegetables is a dependable and healthy meal, but it isn’t usually the speediest dinner, which is why we were thrilled to learn this shortcut: All you need to do is place thin egg noodles, powdered vegetable bouillon, a pinch of sugar and some shredded or chopped carrot, scallion, bok choy, garlic and chili into a container. Pour boiling water over everything and let stand 10 to 15 minutes. The noodles and vegetables will become soft and tender, and the water will turn into a delicious savory broth.

Get the recipe: Noodle Bowl

Freeze Beef for Just a Moment

Whether you’re making fajitas, a stir-fry or some other dish that involves thin slices of beef, cutting the meat into a uniform size can be frustratingly time-consuming. The trick to getting the job done in a flash is to partially freeze the uncooked steak first. Place it in the freezer for 20 minutes, while preparing the rest of the ingredients; when you take it out, you should have no trouble slicing the beef into perfect, quick-cooking bite-size pieces.

Get the recipe: Stir-Fried Orange Beef with Sesame Seeds

Don’t Just Preheat the Oven

The recent popularity of cast-iron skillets makes sense for so many reasons: The pans are a great value, incredibly durable and, as time-pressed cooks know, excellent conductors of heat. But a cast-iron skillet can be even handier if you stick it in the oven to preheat while the oven warms up. It doesn’t matter if you’re cooking chicken or potatoes; adding the ingredient to an already-hot pan will not only shave your overall cooking time but will also give the food a nice browned edge.

Get the recipe: Cast Iron-Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary and Onion

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The used-car sales lobby must be licking its chops.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the Susan B. Anthony List (an antiabortion group) may sue over an Ohio law that prevented it from making false statements about a political candidate.

What was Ohio thinking? Keep political campaigns from lying? Why not just tell humans to stop breathing?

In 2010, the Susan B. Anthony List wanted to construct billboards accusing Rep. Steve Driehaus (D., Ohio) of sponsoring “taxpayer-funded abortion” because he voted for the Affordable Care Act. Driehaus protested, saying state law prohibited “false statements” in campaigns. Obamacare would not change federal law, he argued, because federal dollars would continue to be used for abortions only in cases of rape or incest.

Driehaus lost the election, but the SBA List kept fighting Ohio’s law. “The truth or falsity of political speech should be judged by voters,” SBA List President Marjorie Dannenfelser said, “not government bureaucrats.”

So true. Surely you wouldn’t want politicians taking their valuable time trying to figure out what’s factual and what’s kind of truthful if you give me some time to explain it. And really, do voters want to be forced to make their decisions based on the truth?

Clearly, when the Founding Fathers framed the First Amendment, they wanted to allow wiggle room so politicians could deceive voters. Imagine the discussion in Independence Hall:

George Washington: Order, order. Gentlemen, leave some cheesesteaks for the troops. Are we all clear on the Second Amendment?

Ben Franklin: I don’t think anyone would have any doubt about what we mean.

Washington: And do we fully agree that a black man holds three-fifths the value of a white man?

Alexander Hamilton: To be clear, are you saying a black man or woman gets only three-fifths of a vote? (The room is filled with laughter.)

Washington: I’m sure you realize we’re clearly saying that the black folks have three-fifths representation. Black men and women with the right to vote? Please.

Hamilton: So only white men and women can vote? (More laughter.)

Washington: OK, Shecky, save it for the wrap party. All right, let’s get to freedom of speech. Should there be any restrictions?

Franklin: I don’t see why. Why would anyone twist speech into an unfair advantage so they end up looking like some saint, when in reality –

Washington: I get it, Franklin. So I didn’t admit I cut down that *&@# tree. Would you let it go already?

John Adams: Let’s think about this. For example, would anyone ever take a small portion of someone else’s speech that would give a false impression of that person’s point of view and represent it as what the person actually meant?

Samuel Chase: That could never happen.

Adams: Why not?

Chase: That would be like someone taking a verb as simple as is and attempting to question its definition. He’d be laughed out of office. You might as well say that anyone who disagrees with General Washington hates our troops. It’s just not who we are.

Washington: So we all agree? There will be no reason to abridge free spee-

John Hancock: FIRE! THERE’S A FIRE IN THE HALL! (Panic ensues.)

Hancock: Kidding. I just wanted to be in the transcript.

Washington: OK, there will be some restrictions. But just so we don’t miss the obvious, would anyone here ever lie about an opponent in a political campaign? (No hands go up.)

Washington: Great. Let’s sign this thing. I’ve got a horrific toothache. Anyone know a good carpenter?

This column was originally published in The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Steve Young is the author of “Great Failures of the Extremely Successful: Mistakes, Adversity, Failure, and Other Steppingstones to Success.” (www.greatfailure.com) theeothersteveyoung@juno.com

High cholesterol levels can be a major health concern. Lucky for us, health and nutrition expert Joy Bauer knows all of the best foods to eat to knock your cholesterol down!

“Add chia seeds to your diet,” Joy recommends, “A tablespoon a day can help to lower your cholesterol. It’s a soluble fiber that latches on to the cholesterol that is circulating in your body, and pushes it out. Chia seeds don’t have a taste, so it’s impossible not to like them!”

Nuts are another cholesterol-fighting food. “Have a handful of nuts as an afternoon snack,” Joy says, “they are loaded with heart healthy fats, fiber, and protein, and are great for your blood sugar levels!”

Sign up for Joy Bauer’s delicious (and healthy!) Nourish Snacks, here.

For more of Joy’s healthy eating tips, view the slideshow, below:

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