A Kominar Chronicle

While browsing through my Google Analytics yesterday I noticed a strange concentration of visitors from Bulgaria.  I traced the referrals down to a site called Svejo. 

d_r_watson, A member of this community media site recommended my mushroom skull food carving.  At the time of posting I’ve got 32 гласа and counting.  Finally, some international recognition! You can read my original blog article here: Mushroom Skulls.  If you want to help with my гласа you can vote at : Svejo Салата от гъби

I took the liberty of translating some of the user comments for you below. 

• “ей аз обичам гъби не плаши така хората” “hey I love mushrooms so people are not afraid“
• “…отровни“ “… poisonous”
• “Виж, за това не съм се сетила” “See, for I do not think”
• “Сол сложи ли?” “I put the salt?“

Try some translation of your own! (ImTranslator.net)

Tags: Zack

Introducing Sir Kenneth Fixture, Sir Kenny to his friends and servants.  He was adopted from the Kitchener Humane Society and comes complete with a case of ear mites.  This relatively common ailment is being treated with daily ear cleanings and some medication.  Chatty is also getting spa treatment of ear cleanings until the mites are gone.

Sir Kenny and Chatty appear to be getting along as well as one can expect with cats really.  It will only be a matter of days before they are working in collusion to get that pesky red laser that suddenly appears to intrigue them. In the mean time you can Watch Sir Kenny play with Chatty’s Toys (Youtube.com)

Although it is a happy time we are also remembering our little kitty Asha who passed away too suddenly on Valentine’s weekend.  We will miss her but are content in the solace that her ultimate fate was out of our hands.  She was a street-wise, chinese-food loving, clever and cute feline who had an amazing life who kept us very happy but most importantly had an intensely spoiled life.

Tags: Cats

Man #1 - “Can you cook chicken in a crock-pot?”

Zach (Me) - “You can cook anything in a crock-pot.”

Man #1 - “That’s the answer I wanted to hear.”

Man #2 - “You can’t cook Jell-o in a crock-pot.”

Zach (Me) – “I can make anything in a crock-pot."

So I went home and did some research, searched “jell-o in a crock-pot” and stumbled into the world of crocking.  My quest was after evidence of jell-o being wholly prepared in a crock-pot.  I first landed on a recipe for Crock Pot Grape Jelly Meatballs, which was irrelevant. I was after Jell-o, and jelly just wouldn’t do. 

Browsing the comment-thread of the crock-pottin’est cranberryiest recipe forum I found all the evidence I needed.  An unanswered challenge to prepare jell-o in a crock-pot.  I quickly scanned the rest of the thread and noticed no reply.  Surely the internet would have dug up a link to answer this audacious challenge with most haste. Unless.. maybe it has never been done before? 

That was enough.  Not one, but two challenges, one from the meat-space and one from the internet.  I quickly set to task. 

Jell-o in a Crock-Pot Recipe:

1. Add 1 cup room-temperature water to crock-pot
2. Turn crock-pot on high and boil water
3. Add Jell-o powder
4. Turn off crock-pot
5. Add 2 cups ice-cubes
6. Stir vigorously for 3 minutes
7. Store crock-pot in fridge until jell-o is gelatinous
8. Enjoy jell-o from a crock-pot

Here’s a collection of photos from a trip to Ottawa, the nation’s capital. It was also Canada’s 141st birthday, and one massive street party downtown.

Canada Day Weekend (Photos)

I carved these skulls for my nephew’s first birthday.  Convenient that it was a pirate-theme birthday party.  This is my first creative food carving piece and I think they came out very scary.

A few weekends ago I found myself back in with the Aussies.  The Aussies of Manhattan anyway.  April 25th was Anzac Day (Wikipedia) a commemoration of the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps who fought at Gallipoli.  There’s a Mel Gibson flick about it which is worth watching.

While drinking with comrades, we played two-up, and it was probably the only day of the year where so much unregulated gambling would be permitted at a bar in NY.  The premise is simple, bet against those around you whether the spinner will toss two coins from the kip.  Players bet whether they will both show heads or tails, a 50/50 warrants a re-toss.

When the night was done we stayed at Nadine’s cousin’s apartment on the upper east side.  The view was spectacular and overlooked the park, maybe I could live in NYC someday.