Break from the blogosphere

I've decided to take a break from updating my blog for awhile as I have pretty much abandoned it already and I am hoping to put together a photography website very soon so I want to focus my energy on that. If and when I resume blogging, It will have more of a focus rather than just a scattering of my random photos and thoughts.

Thanks to all the commenters/readers of this blog!

Fruit

Wheat

A few random close-up lens pics

Classic duo

YouTube is an amazing repository of the random, the obscure and the bizarre. A few weeks ago when I was a virtual prisoner to the bitter cold outside I spent some time watching clips of 60's and 70's TV variety shows and came upon this gem. Who knew that Tom Jones & Janis Joplin had ever performed together? This clip is worth a watch just for the hilarity of the background dancers.... now there's some head flingin'!!

My new fave website

From xkcd.com

Sadly, I can kind of relate to this cartoon. (If you click on the picture, it is clearer...)

Hee hee

- Courtesy of the xkcd website.

No time for cheese!

My cheese making has been put on hold for the time being for lack of time. In addition to my recent foray into the land of fromage, I have entered the perilous world of magazine publishing which has left me with no time for anything else. Well, except for my day job of course.

In November I answered an ad to volunteer with a small literary magazine called FreeFall . I initially joined to help them write grant proposals but then I joined the editorial collective and now I have also became a member of the board. (This is what happens in the non-profit world...)

Right now, I'm reading the submissions for our current prose competition to shortlist the entries before they are sent to the contest judge (Giller prize winner Austin Clarke). I've been doing nothing but read, read, read in my spare time as the magazine received a record number of entries this year. I am finding it quite exciting thus far to be so involved... despite the many, many hours of unpaid labour! There are some excellent writers out there and I'm impressed by the quality of some of the short stories that were submitted.

If you would like to subscribe to the mag, you can do it from the FreeFall website. Our contest issue will be out in April.

Yay for Canlit!

Cheese making 101

I tried to make mozzarella cheese the other day but my first attempt, similar to my first yogurt-making experience, was a failure. Once again I didn't read the instructions as closely as I should have (perhaps I was a man in a former life?) The cheese ended up being a crumbly, tasteless blob that went straight to the garbage.

I bought a couple more gallons of milk today and will try again this weekend.

The experience was fun despite the failure. It is an exciting moment when the warm milk on the stove suddenly splits into 'curds and whey' when you add the magical elixir rennet to the pot. I have no idea what rennet is, but it is the necessary ingredient in all cheese making. All varieties of cheese are made of heated milk mixed with rennet but the different consistencies and flavours come from the type of culture that you add into the mix.

Wish me luck for attempt #2!