I bought Ratio, because I am a big believer in one of the philosophies underpinning the book – that one should not be a slave to recipes, in fact you don’t need recipes. You need to know basics about cooking, but you shouldn’t need a precise recipe for everything. I buy cookbooks, and recipebooks (whatever may be the distinction) but I rarely follow them. I read them…I get inspired, but I do not generally set out to follow a specific recipe  for most dishes. For doughs and batters, I admit that I may follow a recipe the first time, but it’s not part of me to want to keep following a recipe. It’s why it’s hard for me to write recipes for this blog! I cook and try new exciting things, even take photos of them, but to write down what I do, when I don’t do it exactly the same way twice?

So, what is Ratio if not a recipe book? It is “the simple codes behind the craft of everyday cooking” (from the title). So it provides you with the culinary ratios for bread/doughs, custards, batters, sauces etc – just the ratios of the core ingredients so that you learn the basics and can take it from there. Know the ratio for bread dough, keep it in your head or on your kitchen shelf (5 parts flour and 3 parts water) and you’ll never be at a loss when you suddenly ketch a vaps to make a feta cheese+olive+za’atar bread, for example. Of course, you have to open to this kind of cooking – the devising of meals and dishes based on what you have in your pantry and not what’s written on a list in a cookbook. Or being inspired by some deliciously fresh ingredient you discovered in the market that day. If that’s the kind of cook you’d like to be, then this would be a good read. It’s not going to have everything you need, but it’s a good reference to have.

I will admit that I decided to buy Ratio when Ruhlman blogged about his upcoming book and the custard ratio and I saw that photo of the quiche! That photo (by Donna) is in the book, and it stands to reason that a full year after that post, when I get my hands on the book I decided to make quiche! Now, I make quiche a lot – it’s been some time now that I have felt comfortable making a basic pastry/pie crust – mix of shortening and butter (depending on what I have), keep everything cold, don’t overwork etc. So, although I made sure to follow the ratio for pie dough too, what I was really after was the custard ratio. See, since I use varying size pans for the quiche when I make it, I tend to eyeball the amount of filling/custard I need, so I know I wasn’t getting it right – tasted great (eggs, cheese, veggies, why not?) but was it all that Ruhlman raves about? So, I sauteed onions, lots of fresh mushrooms (which I kept picking at they were so good – tinned stuff just doesn’t compare) and built the custard – 2 parts liquid: 1 part egg. From my experience with my pans’ capacity, I measured the eggs and then added twice the amount of liquid (milk+cream). Oh. So good. Velvety smooth and nary a taste of scrambled eggs. At all. It was no longer eggs baked in a crust, it was a CUSTARD.

Now I can replicate that for any quiche or free-standing custard. Granted, as you can tell from the photo, I didn’t have a 2″ baking ring, and used a cast iron skillet. My oven-that-sucks overbaked the pastry a bit. I didn’t leave the pastry overhanging enough to prevent leakage over the side. And you do NOT want to know how hard it was to get this out of the pan. But those were all my variables that I expected. And you know what? The other philosophy behind Ratio that I like is expressed in Ruhlman’s introduction:

“This is important: my aim isn’t to make the perfect bread or pasta or mayonnaise or biscuits – “the best I’ve ever had.” It’s to set a baseline to work from…I love that hunt for the perfect sauce, the perfect custard, but here I’m after good. Only when we know good can we begin to inch up from good to excellent.”

And that’s all I want. To be able to make good food, with occasional flashes of brilliance. Hopefully when I have guests who can attest to this brilliance.

Now all I need is someone to write a book about flour, baking and tropical humidity!

Given it’s location, the easiest way to get there is by plane, where an hour’s flight on a small plane will land you on an airstrip just a few minutes walk away from the very top of the Falls. Otherwise it’s several days hike through deep forest, and I hear it takes days just to get from the base of the falls to the top. That’s more for a trip when you have some time to kill…and are of an intrepid spirit. Not to mention well equipped and trained. Given that the average trip to Kaieteur (if you can get a tour just to the Falls and not to any other resort stops) can cost US$150-175 (up to US$250 or $275 for the longer trip) it is not perhaps surprising that many Guyanese have not yet visited the Falls (of course, we should all wonder what homeland wonders we have yet to get around to visit in our own countries!). Chartering a plane may work out cheaper for a group and then you’re not locked in to any tourist extras. In either case, prepare for a 8-10 seater plane…some shy away from such forms of travel, but just keep in mind that the views you get are unsurpassed, especially when they circle around the top of the falls. Get ready to hold on to the seat next to the pilot for the best view!

The official website:

Kaieteur National Park occupies a prominent position in the center of the Guyana Shield. The Guiana Highlands or Guiana Shield being roughly 2 billion years old is the earth’s oldest surface. Located in north-eastern South America, it includes a large mountain plateau and rainforest system that is part of a vast watershed between the Amazon and the Orinoco rivers. Specifically, it covers 75,000 square kilometers (30, 000 square miles) and is bounded roughly by the Amazon River to the South and the Japur- Caqueta River to the southwest, the Sierra de Chiribiquete Mountains to the West, the Orinoco and Guaviare Rivers to the northwest and the north, and the Atlantic to the East.One feature of the Shield is its distinctive plateaus or table-top mountains, called tepuis by the Indians.

When you land on the little airstrip, you take a short walk over what used to be the seabed a long long time ago, try to spot the birds and golden frog they say can be seen and then you arrive at the top of the falls. Before you even catch sight of it you can hear it, and see the mist rising above the trees. And then, there you are next to the river just where it starts its 741-foot drop. The better photos are from the viewpoints a little further away, but you can’t stop snapping away in awe at being this close to this natural wonder. And then you turn to see where the water goes and there are the mountains. I love the image of those repeating plateaus as you stand next to the falls and look toward where the river snakes through those mountains. When you browse the photos you may see as many different shots of the tepui as of the actual falls! The volume of the falls also means lots of water in the air, sometimes in the form of annoying mist blocking clear shots and very often rainbows everywhere. The first time I went, I felt I was in some sort of magical rainbow world. Lovely Oh, and in case you worry about the description of the water as reddish-brown, never fear, it’s not dirt – the water is actually clear, but coloured by minerals in the soil the river passes through up there.

Kaieteur is a great experience, because for such a large waterfall, you can walk right to the edge of the falls, sit on the ledges, and look down into the valley. There are no ropes or barriers at any of the viewpoints, and until recently they haven’t had any reason to rethink that. For the first time anyone can remember, there was an incident last November where a depressed young girl jumped to her death at the falls. And just before that, the tour guides saw this dog sitting by the side of the river, staying there for days. Those who knew he belonged to a miner, figured out the miner had somehow gone over the edge at that spot and the dog remained. They located the boat and the miner, but up to a month ago, the dog was still there, part of the Kaieteur landscape and history now.

I have been twice to the falls now – in January 2006 and then a few weeks ago in late December (2009). Both times the falls were fairly full, although I believe January 2006 was not as dry as it is now, and so the photo on the left (coolpix E7900) shows a somewhat larger volume. As it has been dry recently, the falls would have dwindled significantly, so I was fortunate in my timing both times. So visit Guyana when it has been raining – not enough to flood Georgetown, but enough for an impressive falls. The timing might not be as difficult as it sounds…

This last trip I had my D80, and after many months I put back on the 18-135 mm lens because I wanted some wide shots. I’ve been so enamoured of the Sigma 50mm I have been using that I wasn’t sure anymore how the old lens would perform, but fortunately a lovely bright day made for good photos for my first D80 trip to Kaieteur. I went a little overboard in capturing the froth and splash and water droplets, but I love those photos. Where else will I get endless streams and gushes of coloured water splashing onto rocks just so I can try to get sharply defined water shots?

Kaieteur Flickr Set for the whole experience!

Please remember that the people of Haiti are still in need of assistance. My previous post gives some information that may be helpful.

On a flight from Guyana to Trinidad last week, the passenger behind me seems to be in possession of exciting new technology.

Pilot: Good afternoon from the flight deck. We are just awaiting air traffic control clearance and should be taxiing off in about 5 minutes, so we are on schedule to arrive on time in Piarco. Flying time is estimated to be 55 minutes this afternoon.

Purser: usual spiel about closing doors, turn off all electronic devices, turn off cellphones etc

Passenger: on the phone Yeah, ah have to turn off the phone now, so call me back in about 20 minutes. Yeah, yeah, I going change the chip, but call me back in 15 minutes, I have to turn off the phone now for takeoff.

I would have thought that in 20 minutes we would have been high above the earth, over waters. He must get excellent reception with that other chip.

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Please remember that the people of Haiti are still in need of assistance. My previous post gives some information that may be helpful.

From my brief visit in October, my mind is still filled with images of broken-down buildings on many streets in Port au Prince – and that was before the earthquake. But there was much positive images from that trip as well – the hospitality of the people, the views from the Hotel Montana (which was hit hard by the quake), the lovely Caribbean food, the art and music that people surround themselves with. As a lawyer, it was also most telling that we were there the day they voted out the Prime Minister, yet life (outside Government offices) went on as normal, without the violence and chaos that in previous times might have met any of the frequent hiccoughs in the stability of the administration.

Hard enough for Haiti to be hit like this…worse that it hit the capital so hard. There is much being said, and much more will continue to be said about the adequacy of the immediate international response to actually get aid on the ground. The fact that even now, ten days later essential aid is not getting to people, rescue efforts amid the rubble seem to never have started in some areas, and still people are dying. I am not an expert on disaster responses, but I do feel that alot of that has to be because the quake hit Port au Prince leaving the government, in terms of persons and manpower, physical buildings and mental state, in shambles. Even the UN mission office was devastated and key relief agency personnel were lost. Lessons to learn for those of us who live in even smaller islands where we centralise our entire official administration in one single crammed capital. Not to name names – I try not to do that in this blog, but seriously, who would take the reins if Port of Spain were to be hit? The Mayor of San Fernando???).

Most of our Caribbean governments have received the disfavour of regional commenters (and of course bloggers) for slow or insufficient responses, whether it be for holding to a wait-and-see attitude or pledging relatively small sums to the aid effort. Again, I am not an expert. But I do know that none of us is equipped to deal with the disaster of the kind Haiti is experiencing. Not individually. Another lesson to learn for our own benefit. The response had to be international to secure the best of the best for Haiti, ever the poor outside child. If the response failed, we, the whole world failed. Not just the Caribbean. That’s not to let our people off the hook though. We might be small and only a few of us have standing militaries and heavy rescue and transportation equipment, and even if we were not the best placed for the immediate rescue and relief efforts, that is just the first stage. Haiti is our Caribbean sister. The responsibility to be there for Haiti and Haitians will not end for us. It does not end when the city is cleaned up and the emergency volunteers have left. Not even when things appear to be functioning with normal administration systems. The level of destruction Haiti has experienced cannot be reversed overnight. Or even in a few years. They had little foundation to begin with.

So, Caribbean leaders, I am not going to calculate what you have pledged in this the first ten days since the earthquake. Your accounting should continue for years and years into the future. We cannot leave Haiti to be rebuilt by the superpowers. Our first independent sister should not be subjected to newer forms of colonialism, well-meaning as they may be, not if all of us who celebrate the history beginning with Toussaint L’Ouverture really believe what we’re talking about when we take the victory of the black people in Haiti as part of our Caribbean history.

Maybe this is why I took this long to post…too much to say that I usually try to stay away from on this blog. I cannot end without noting that there have been responses from the Caribbean. It may not be reported, it may not be considered great by the international news media, or sadly even by the regional media, but there is a system in the Caribbean to respond to disasters and it was triggered. If you visit the website of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) you will see updates on the actions taken. Operations started with the Jamaica Defence Force including relief supplies and medical personnel. CDEMA is also coordinating and reporting on its member countries’ relief efforts. The Caribbean Community is also compiling volunteer information via a questionnaire on its website, so fill out the form if you have some special skill or time to give to relief efforts.

“Nationals of the Caribbean Community including French, French Creole Patois speakers, who are willing to make available their expertise and services to the Community’s response to this tragedy, are invited to submit contact details and other information using the questionnaire provided”

Although the focus right now is on financial contributions and medical assistance, it appears the information will be compiled for further relief efforts. I reiterate that I make no comment on the adequacy or efficiency of this action, but know that it is there.

And that’s just official responses, as in governments. The outpourings of private citizens and organisations, NGOs and commercial entities are encouraging. And I hope they persist. Check in with Global Voices Online special coverage on Haiti to get citizen-media updates, including from bloggers in Haiti right now.

As to where else you can make contributions, the listing on CNN is a good start as it gives you information on various organisations from which you can make your choice.

If you want to offer something more tangible than money, Jai and Bee of Jugalbandi have provided some information on the ShelterBox, a system designed to shelter 10 people, something really needed in Haiti right now.

So, go help. But remember the help shouldn’t disappear when the global attention moves on to something else.

Courtesy this job, I have been to Grenada quite a few times in the last few years. It’s generally just to Grand Anse, and usually not enough to time to do more than the hotel (cue sigh about the supposed glamour of a job-with-travel). Due to the number of visits, however, I do have a few ideas. Grenada is probably my next favourite island after T&T. Or it alternates with Dominica (who would not love a country that is tiny yet still 2/3 uninhabitable because of gorgeous rain forested mountain?). And occasionally sentimentality about the 2.5 years (over a 12 year period) lived in Barbados.

But no. Back to the point. I decided the last time that Grenada was my favourite other Caribbean island. Decisions are helpful to know how you feel. Try it. It’s life-changing.

Grenada is a small island with rainforest and natural features like waterfalls and volcanic crater lakes, the expected gorgeous Caribbean beach and coastal views, narrow winding and steep little roads right in town and through the rainforest, and gorgeous colour everywhere. It is the Spice Isle, being the source of great things like the nutmeg pictured above, which I picked up from nder a tree just growing on the side of a road…incredible. Because of this, it is also the source of the incredibly delicious treat called nutmeg ice cream. Which, when done well, is like the richest, creamiest eggnog-y ice cream. Oh so good. On my first trip to Grenada, my aunt packed me up with 2 large  containers of this island specialty to take to Trinidad (just before the days of liquid restrictions on hand luggage), which I dutifully dropped off with her sister (my mother) and continued my travels. Upon my return a mere week later, there was NONE left. Nary a drop. It was that good.

While Grenada may seem like a typical Caribbean island there are a few features that are worth noting. One of the iconic views of Grenada is of the Carenage. The Carenage is the inner harbour in downtown St. George’s surrounded by hills and colourful houses and buildings picturesquely crammed onto those hills. It reminds me somewhat of the harbour towns in the Highlands and the Hebridean Islands. Obviously much warmer The Carenage is a bustling transportation and shopping hub, with markets and duty free shopping, and is always busy. And yes, the blues are that blue. I did no colour-tweaking at all on the most recent photos (new Sigma 50mm f2.8 lens has been great!).

Then there’s Grand Anse – there on the right. Home of many hotels and shopping around this gorgeous bay, it’s where I usually stay. Convenient because of the malls, supermarket and restaurants (and dentists, which I needed the last time) with easy access to that lovely beach. The view on the right is from the Flamboyant Hotel, which is up the hill the bay, giving you spectacular views.

There is more than just the beach to Grenada, however. In the Grand Etang Rainforest Reserve you’ll see lush rainforest (naturally), waterfalls, crater lakes and more. Annandale Falls is a pretty waterfall in the midst of tropical foliage. There’s a little area you can swim in, and people do jump although that may not be advisable… The Falls are in the Grand Etang Rainforest but very accessible from the road – a short walk past vendors and over a sulphur-laden stream. There is another waterfall people visit, but I have not yet been.

Of course, you don’t have to leave your hotel to experience wildlife. In Grand Anse in particular, they come to you…crabs. Big and small. Red crabs dot the roadways, coming out of every little hole in the dirt by the drains and ditches. Better yet, big ones suddenly appear in the night in the hotel as you walk to your room!

If you’re not partial to crabs in their live form, then head up to the Gouyave Fish Friday Festival (pronounced Gwah-v). Every Friday, the people in this little coastal town come out in the narrow streets and set up tents, stoves, grills etc and serve up seafood and local delicacies every where you look. It’s a bit of a drive from Grand Anse (taxi can cost about EC$200-220 round-trip) but it’s worth it if you go hungry and ready to try out everything. You can have all kinds of seafood obviously – fried, steamed or grilled fish, served with breadfruit, or fried bakes or chips. Crab backs. Coconut fried shrimp. Fish cakes. Nutmeg Ice Cream. Fresh Juices. Lots of different vendors to try different hands. The photo on the right is snapper wrapped in foil with onions and peppers and seasoning and cooked on a grill. Served with fried bakes. You may not always find a place to sit, but stick around people will have to get up and move eventually.

More formal dining is available of course. You can visit my  Eating Out: Grenada set on Flickr for views of food at The Beach House, Coconut Beach, Flamboyant and Le Chatueau. I highly recommend the Beach House – it’s an open building right on the beach and their food is excellent.

One of the popular tourist sites in Grenada is the agro-tourism of the Belmont Estate, which is a 17th century plantation where you can see their cocoa processing, organic farm, lovely gardens and dine at their restaurant. I can’t speak to the restaurant, since when I visited it was Ramadan and while my colleagues enjoyed lunch, I sat in the gardens and tried out my new lens on the lovely flowers and greenery. But I did see the cocoa laid out to dry, and a fruit stand with the estate’s produce.

Leapers’ Hill or Le Morne De Sauteurs is located in the northern part of the island where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Caribbean, and was named so by the French settlers after the indigenous Carib Amerindians, were defeated by the French for possesion of the island. Rather than facing submission to the French, the last few remaining Caribs jumped off the high cliff that is now called Leapers’ Hill. There’s a monument on the hill on the cemetary, from where you can get some nice views of Kick-em Jenny (a still active volcano off the coast of Grenada). The Information Centre is closed on Sundays, so take note.

Lots of things are closed on Sundays actually… like the Grenada Chocolate Company. Home to that lovely Organic Dark Chocolate in the pretty packaging. Sigh. If you’re headed to Grenada, make sure to schedule a visit on one of the other 6 days of the week.

There are many more photos in my Grenada set on Flickr.

I hope you enjoyed this little visit to Grenada, one of T&T’s closest neighbours. I realise I have been failing on the travel elements of this blog, so why not catch up so that I start 2010 on a good note!

According to Wikipedia, za’atar i’s generally a combination of ground dried herbs such as oregano, thyme and marjoram, with toasted sesame seeds and salt. And then there’s the sumac. Which isn’t necessarily found in all varieties – Wikipedia says it’s a Lebanese addition, perhaps. Sumac is used in the Middle East and in the Mediterranean as spice to add some sourness or tangy taste, hint of citrus, to dishes. It’s found as a ground red (or dark purple) spice and people use it as a seasoning in all kinds of dishes, or just over a salad (see salad at right which we had in Saudi Arabia last year after the Hajj). I wanted my za’atar sour-ish, so I wanted the sumac version.

So to get back to the sumac. We bought some when we went to Hajj last year. We weren’t entirely sure what we were looking for, but in a trip to one of the big stores (a Bin Dawud) we looked all throughout the spice counter just to see what they sold (such big spice counters!). In addition to our trying to figure out what was good saffron (and that is yet another story we haven’t told**), we saw this huge tub behind the counter with a reddish ground spice. Hmm…we asked what it was. The guy looked confused…confused that we were asking I think, he seemed to understand but not speak English but was most likely wondering who on earth doesn’t know what sumac is? After a few tries, with the salesperson becoming increasingly amused we figured it must be sumac and bought up a big bag (might have been a pound…it’s light stuff, but the deciding how much to buy further delighted the man behind the counter I am sure.

So this Eid I had sumac. I had sesame seeds. I even had dried oregano and thyme. Za’atar was my destiny. Za’atar has a complex flavour – nuttiness from the toasted sesame seeds (which is enhanced if you use a little geera/cumin like I did, the tang from the sumac and the thyme and oregano rounding out the overall depth. In addition to dipping some fresh bread (of any kind, doesn’t have to be pita) into this, I’ve used it for chicken, in pasta, baked on a flat bread/pizza dough…possibilities abound.

ZA’ATAR RECIPE (so easy)

• 1/4 cup sesame seeds (toasted)
• 2 tbs dried thyme
• 2 tbs dried oregano
• 1 tbs sumac (or a bit more)
• 1 tbs geera (cumin)

I left out salt, since I figured I could add that to taste depending on need and use of the za’atar, but if you are making a batch for a specific use, go ahead and add the salt – about 1 tsp.

Toasting sesame seeds is great, because I love the smell and the magic of seeing the shiny goldenness appear – but be very careful, since it goes from a hint of gold to black very vast. The seeds are very small after all.  I used a small non-stick pan, stirred frequently, and when many started to get shiny and golden (even if still lots of white) I turned off the heat and kept stirring in the pan till they were evenly brown.

You could just mix all ingredients together, or do as I did,  and zap them briefly in my coffee grinder. Which doesn’t really grind tiny sesame seeds, but everything gets mixed together very evenly.

Also…those amounts up there – VERY subjective. You might want more sumac, or less thyme. Or no cumin at all.  Add marjoram. Play around with the amounts. If you don’t have access to sumac, add some lemon salt or lime/lemon zest for the sourness (see Arabic Bites, a great blog by two sisters, for a recipe for Za’atar and Arabic Pizza (manosha).

For Eid, I did a chicken kebab inspired dish, using lots of za’atar, that was apparently a hit even for fussy pre-teens. And more recently I added it to some whole wheat  pasta and that was just lovely. I have no photos of these meals, but will post the chicken recipe soon enough. When I was in Trinidad for Eid ul Adha last month, Lilandra and I made pizza and used one of the pizzas as a za’atar flatbread. Yum.

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* A quick word as to pronounciation. Lilandra and I were recently shocked to hear Mario Batali and Alton Brown mangling this word on Iron Chef America (old episode I guess, can’t remember the secret ingredient) with variations given and ALL wrong. It is not pronounced zaTAH or zaTARR… Stress the first syllable, ZAHtar and if you want to get technical, the Arabic has an ‘ayn in the middle, which gives a in-the-back-of-your-throat vowel sound and hence the apostrophe in some spellings to indicate it’s like za-ahtar.

** The saffron story – I started to write it here, and decided that perhaps I should post on our much-neglected Hajj blog!

It’s that time of the Islamic calendar again – Eid ul Adha, the Festival of the Sacrifice. It falls on the 10th day of Dhul Hijjah, which is the month in which Hajj falls (hence name, if you recognise the root syllables).

So today (or yesterday, as we are behind over here) the Hujaaj or pilgrims would have spent the day in prayer on Mount Arafat (photo on the right). It’s one of the pillars of the Hajj where you spend the hours between the midday prayer and sunset making supplications, or personal prayers (du’a). It is the day when prayers will be answered and most Hujaaj have a list of prayers to make from friends and family for this day. If you are not performing Hajj this year, you fast and still make du’a.

You spend the day in tents, which are not permanent and as they are only for the day are not airconditioned, made from regular tent fabric. Still, rows and rows and rows! And of course people…you leave at sunset…if your bus is there…OR you get time to take photos of the empty tents…Arafat is also where I got that photo of the camel!

This is technically the Big Eid, the bigger of the 2 official Muslim festivals, but in T&T it tends to get overtaken by Eid ul Fitr which has a holiday and is preceded by a month of fasting. In Guyana and Suriname, Eid ul Adha is a holiday, so those Muslims will have the day off tomorrow. Those of us lucky enough to be caught in the CHOGM holiday bracket (schools and POS government offices) can also take the day to celebrate. As this Eid can be celebrated over 3 days, many persons are also taking the opportunity to have the sacrifice or Kurbani done tomorrow, Saturday.

I am in Trinidad until tomorrow night, so Lilandra and I are making baklava (done), apple crumble (done, and so good, nice balance of tart and sweet), pizza (getting there) and a flatbread with za’atar (one of those things I am to post soon). Today Mom also made fresh kachourie for iftar (breaking of the fast) and tomorrow we make mutton biriyani!

I am still on the road more or less until the week after, so more posts then!

Photos should be at least transferred before you reach 220 shots…

Earth crust displacement theory is the best device ever for a screenwriter who needs the earth to move to suit the bare threads of a plot…or just to get his characters from Vegas to a precise location in remote China on time…

Photos of places you have never been to before and are unlikely to revisit soon should be saved on your hard drive as soon as possible…

Don’t go sticking your memory card in strange computers, even if just to view the photos…

The passport office might be able to deliver some of those 26,000 unclaimed passports it alleges are sitting in the office if it would just tell people if their passports were ready over the phone, before forcing them to make the trek to line up again and again…

Don’t stick your memory card in alien computers without moving the teeny switch to lock it…

No matter how cool, colourful,  appropriate and appreciated the gifts you buy, the 3 year old niece will still ask how come she didn’t get a pen too, like her mother got…

When you lose all 220 photos of Eid food (for which recipes are still to be posted), your first glimpses of Haiti, rare family get-togethers, seminar for your newsletter, brilliant flamboyant in Guyana, top local performers in Haiti, great Indian food in Barbados and Trinidad, (did I say Haiti?) try not to cry or smash the alien computer that ate them on contact.

SIGH.

And that’s why I haven’t posted the za’atar chicken recipe yet or anything else. That and I’ve been so overwhelmed at work that I got my boss to give me this week off which I am spending in the homeland and avoiding the computer.

The photo is unrelated to this post. I am just liking my 50mm f2.8 lens. This is at the Belmont Estate in Grenada, from September…which apart from a few of my Eid food shots, is the last set of photos I have…except for the couple hundred on the camera now…darn…getting to it NOW!

But that brings us to today. Geocities is closing today. I cannot do better than XKCD who redesigned the site to reflect the design elements, html broken code and all, that became the characteristic geocities look, from all those users similarly wading in the very shallow end of html.

It’s almost at the end of the day already so there’s not much to say. I just felt the need to steal a few minutes from my beyond-overwhelming work day to remember when I first thought I could be famous online.

*Superstitions of T&T is what I ended up with. An idea, a beginning…