Do you know a business in your area that does a lot for the community? The ninja knows a couple in his and he is thinking about nominating them for the Chrysalis Awards.
If you haven’t heard of the Chrysalis Awards before let the ninja explain.
The awards were created to honor the people and businesses that have had a positive impact on your local community. They were created as a joint project between the Greater Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce Inc. and the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau. Wow, that is a mouth full. Let’s just call them VCB from here on out.
What they do is collect nominations from people all across the country who have contributed in remodeling projects. And they are on the look out for people in your area.
All nominations for the Chrysalis Awards are due in on March 12th. All memebers of the local business community are welcomed to partisipate regardless if they are directly linked to tourism or not.
You can visit the official website to learn more about the event and see where it is being held in your state. Visit Chrysalis Awards.
For some of the people in The Prairie State today is a holiday. Honestly, it is probably unlikely that a lot of people in IL know what today is though. Today is Casimir Pulaski Day. And the holiday is celebrated in Chicago and Cook County.
If you aren’t familiar with the holiday then let me explain.
On March 1st of each year Casimir Pulaski Day is celebrated. It is in remembrance of the Polish-born cavalry man that was fatally wounded in the Revolutionary War.
Casimir Pulaski fought along side other heroes including: the Marquis de Lafayefte, Thomas Paine, Giuseppe Garibaldi and Thaddeus Kosciuszko a fellow Polish Soldier. Casimir lost is life in the battle of Savannah in 1779, becoming a symol of the valiant struggle to fight tyranny where ever it is in the world.
What that means today is that public schools in Chicago and many of the outer lying suburbs will be closed today. Public libraries, as well as all of the city offices will likewise be closed today. Since the holiday is only for the Chicago and Cook County area both federal and state offices will still be open.
Ironically the Post Office will not be taking a holiday today so the mail will be delivered as normal. However, the garbage will not be collected today. Go figure.
He has even inspired the song Casimir Pulaski Day. The song was written by Sufjan Stevens and is off the album Illinois.
For everyone that would like the lyrics here they are.
Casimir Pulaski Day Lyrics
Golden rod and the 4-H stone
The things I brought you
When I found out you had cancer of the bone
Your father cried on the telephone
And he drove his car to the Navy yard
Just to prove that he was sorry
In the morning through the window shade
When the light pressed up against your shoulder blade
I could see what you were reading
Oh the glory that the lord has made
And the complications you could do without
When I kissed you on the mouth
Tuesday night at the bible study
We lift our hands and pray over your body
But nothing ever happens
I remember at Michael’s house
In the living room when you kissed my neck
And I almost touched your blouse
In the morning at the top of the stairs
When your father found out what we did that night
And you told me you were scared
Oh the glory when you ran outside
With your shirt tucked in and your shoes untied
And you told me not to follow you
Sunday night when I cleaned the house
I find the card where you wrote it out
With the pictures of your mother
On the floor at the great divide
With my shirt tucked in and my shoes untied
I am crying in the bathroom
In the morning when you finally go
And the nurse runs in with her head hung low
And the cardinal hits the window
In the morning in the winter shade
On the first of March on the holiday
I thought I saw you breathing
Oh the glory that the lord has made
And the complications when I see his face
In the morning in the window
Oh the glory when he took our place
But he took my shoulders and he shook my face
And he takes and he takes and he takes
The ninja wrote about Paczki Day earlier this month. This really made the ninja hungry for the traditional Polish treat eaten on that day, Punchkis. And he decided to make some.
Well, with that said the ninja set out on a quest to find a Punchki recipe, which was easier said than done. Yeah, the ninja can cook. And after more than a little digging he found a pretty good recipe, being a nice ninja he decided to share it here, saving you the effort for looking for your own.
Enjoy, just don’t down too many of them and you will keep your delicious figure.
Punchki Ingredents
7 cups flour
6-7 tbls. butter
5 tbls. sugar
1 tsp. salt
flavoring (optional)
(almond, lemon, or rum)
1-2 eggs
2 packages yeast
2 1/4 cups milk
As needed:
filling
oil (canola)
brown paper bag (cut up)
granulated sugar
Instructions
Make sure you have a large bowl and mix the flour, butter, sugar, salt and flavoring together.
Add the eggs to the mixture.
Mix the yeast with some warm milk, make sure that the milk doesn’t get too hot and mix it with the rest of the ingredients.
Let the dough rise for 40 minutes.
Roll the dough out on your counter until it is about 1/3 of any inch thick.
Use a cookie cutter or a large glass to cut out the Punchki.
Let them rise again until they are slightly puffy.
Heat the canola oil in a two inch deep pan and place them in the oil to fry.
Drain the excess oil out of the Punchki on some paper, paper towels work.
While they are still warm role them in some granulated sugar and will them with your desired filling.
Are you wondering how healthy these little calorie bombs are? You can find out how many calories the punchki has here.
If you are looking for an ultimate hobby you might want to get the Legos back out. If you are asking yourself why, the ninja has 16 photos that will answer all of your questions.
The following 16 photos are of amazing Lego sculptures. These sculptures are either done by people with way too much time on their hands or true artists. The ninja is guessing that it is a little of both.
If you still have some of your Lego blocks now is the perfect time to get them out and start sculpting.
