Archive for March, 2011

Today is a Milestone Day For Me

Mar 23, 2011 life

Today is March 23, which means it has been six months since I had my heart surgery.

I had a heart catheter procedure done on my birthday last year, and it turned out I had an 80% blockage in my heart.

Six months later, I still am not up to my normal stamina, but every day I feel myself getting stronger. I almost never need my nitro spray anymore, and I walk faster than I did pre-surgery.

It’s amazing how much better I feel with the blood fully circulating through my heart. LOL

I still have to contend with the MS and all that, but as scary as it was to have it done, I’m glad that I took that leap of faith and did it.

I probably wouldn’t be here marking a six-month milestone if I hadn’t.

Now, I just need to build up my stamina so I can handle all the walking on my June trip to Canada for TBEX.

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Just a Reminder About #Blog4NZ

Mar 22, 2011 travel, writing

As I posted last week, today is the day I participate in the Blog4NZ event online.

Blog4NZ is an collective effort that started yesterday and runs until tomorrow, encouraging bloggers to post positive things about New Zealand.

My post appeared today over at my newly revamped travel blog, Travel Via Words.

Since I’ve never been to New Zealand (something I hope to remedy next year), I wrote my post on how gorgeous the country is and how it doubled for the lands of Middle Earth in Peter Jackson’s screen adaptations of the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

If you want more information on the event or want to participate on your own blog, you’ll find all the info you need at the Blog4NZ website and Facebook page.

[Photo courtesy of Tourism New Zealand]

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Enjoy Your Next Drink out of a Gelatin Cup

Mar 19, 2011 food and drink

If a quartet of Parsons School of Design grads have their way, you won’t be serving drinks at your next party out of paper or plastic cups. You’ll be serving them out of edible tumblers.

The cups are made from agar agar, which is a vegetarian gelatin substitute produced from seaweed. Since it has no taste of its own, it can be flavored with endless combinations of ingredients.

Some of their prototype edible cups have been flavored with such exotic combos as lemon-basil, ginger-mint, and rosemary-beet. These would then compliment the drinks that are served in them, as the cups can be nibbled on while drinking.

For the adults at a party, imagine serving martinis in an olive-flavored cup, or a White Russian in a Kahlua cream-flavored cup.

For the kids, you could serve grape Kool-aid in a grape cup or milk in a chocolate-flavored cup.  As an added bonus, the cups themselves are great for kid use since they won’t break.

Even if you didn’t want to eat the cup, the nature of the material makes it biodegradable and very eco-friendly.

Awesome idea, eh?

Currently this product isn’t available, but if it did make it to mass market, I’d sure give it a try.  How about you?

[Photos and info courtesy of The Way We See the World]

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Wedding Couples are McLoving It in Hong Kong

Mar 17, 2011 bizarre findings, food and drink

Last month I wrote about White Castle’s Valentine Dinner packages, but I really think I’ve found something even more romantic to the fast food lover.

It seems in the Asian country of Hong Kong, wedding couples can say, “I Do,” to more than just supersizing their meal.

They can now hold their wedding underneath the Golden Arches.

That’s right, starting at HK$9,999 (approximately US$1,282), you and your significant other can get married at McDonald’s.

This starting price includes, among other things:

  • 2 hrs of venue renting to hold the event at the restaurant
  • 50 invitations
  • Up to HK$3,000 in McD’s food (approx. US$385 – wonder if they have a value menu in Hong Kong?)
  • Happy meal toys McD-themed wedding gifts for up to 50 guests
  • Wedding decorations

But the best items of the package? You get a pair of McDonald’s  “balloon wedding rings” and a “cake” make out of boxes of McD’s apple pies.

Snazzy and romantic, or what?

Oh, and if you forgot to buy a wedding dress in all the excitement of having your nuptials at the fast food giant’s dining room, you can rent or buy a wedding dress from them, made completely of balloons.

Wonder if I can buy a dress without getting married?

I suppose, it’s a far cheaper price tag than having a traditional church-based wedding. But it’s a lot harder to toast the bride with super-sized cups of Coke.

[photos courtesy of McDonald's Hong Kong]

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I’m Participating in Blog4NZ to Support New Zealand Travel

Mar 15, 2011 travel, writing

I’ve never been to New Zealand, but I’ve wanted to go since I was a teenager.  Every photo I’d see of the countryside just looked so dramatic and beautiful.


Blog4NZ logoSo when the country was hit by the devastating earthquake in Christchurch on February 22 of this year, it really saddened me. Of course, I felt for the people affected by the quake, but I just couldn’t believe all of the landmarks that were damaged, as well.

Because I still hope to visit New Zealand someday (hopefully soon), I’m participating in Blog4NZ this next week.  The event will feature posts about New Zealand in an effort to encourage people to continue to visit the country, even as they rebuild.

It’s going to take a lot of love and a lot of cash to do so. Tourism makes up approximately 10% of New Zealand’s GDP and it is essential for the world to know that New Zealand is open for business, and that it doesn’t look like a war zone.

My post will appear on March 22 on my revamped travel blog Travel Via Words, which will reopen on March 20.

If you want more information on the event or want to participate on your own blog, you’ll find all the info you need at the Blog4NZ website and Facebook page.

And before you ask, I do plan a Japan post in the near future – another place I’ve wanted to visit.  I’m not sure if there’s a similar initiative like Blog4NZ for the recent Japanese disaster, but if there is, let me know the link, ok?

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What’s Better Than a Saturday of Chocolate?

Mar 6, 2011 food and drink, life

Rhonda and I spent yesterday afternoon over at the Orlando Science Center. Why? Because this weekend is the OSC’s annual Festival of Chocolate.

I have to admit, I’m not much of a chocolate eater, but Rhon’s more normal than I am about the stuff – she loves it immensely.

So we headed over after she got off work, to check out what the fest had to offer.

Normally admission was $17 per person (regular admission to the OSC), but we were invited by them to check out the event for CitySurfing Orlando.

It was more crowded than the Otronicon event in January, so much so that we typically had to wait 10 minutes just to get on the elevator.

We walked around, doing a once-over of all the treats for sale. They used gold coins for currency at the event, and there were several tables to exchange dollars for coins on a one-to-one basis.

We then bought a few pieces and went out to the fourth floor terrace for a breather from the crowds. It was a beautiful afternoon – sunny but cool, with a gentle breeze. From the terrace, we had a great view of the downtown Orlando skyline. We sat out there for a bit then went back inside.

We continued to peruse the various sale tables – in addition to chocolate confections, there were chocolate fountains to dip stuff in, chocolate-covered cookies, graham crackers and marshmallows (even chocolate-covered bugs, which I passed on). Lots of baked goods, like cupcakes, as well as chocolate-flavored cotton candy and ice cream.

All-in-all, I think we spent 15 coins on various goodies (including a few non-chocolate treats like pralines and a pecan nut bar, for me).  Walked out with a bag full of stuff, since most of what we got was 1 or 2 coins in price.

Since we arrived later in the afternoon, we missed most of the demonstrations and contests. I was disappointed at that, but maybe next year they will run these events a little later.

Even though I’m not a chocolate fiend, I had fun at the event. And Rhon was the proverbial kid in a candy store.

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