AHH! The frozen king crab you buy at the market IS COOKED.

I worked for a seafood processing/packaging plant in AK for three years, and a good portion of our business was mail order king crab. It was absolutely, always, 100% cooked as soon as it came off the boats. The "story" about crab becoming poisonous once it dies (if not cooked) is absolutely true.

When we shipped ours it was cooked immediately, flash frozen, and shipped overnight with gel ice packs. Dry ice should work fine too as long as you really protect the crab from direct contact.

The best way to warm it back up once frozen is to allow it to thaw in the fridge overnight, then quickly steam it in a large pot, just until warm. Or just eat it cold.

Fun story about dead crab- we once had a fisherman offload an entire boat of dead king crab on a Friday afternoon. The plant manager let it sit over the weekend and by Monday morning the smell coming out of the building was so pungent we were all sick trying to work in the front office. I had to get rid of all of the clothes I wore that first week. Mmm. One crab had died and poisoned the entire load. Nasty and awful.

I did a cleanse a while back from The Herbalist and loved it SO much. I've been wanting to do another but keep putting it off. I did a pretty in-depth write up of my experience on my blog (http://www.areyoumyghost.com/2010/04/week-long-cleanse-breakdown.html)

You actually sound like a number of people who I've lived with in shared households.

Assuming you'll be using Craigslist- don't just look through already posted room ads. Write up an ad for yourself and go into as much detail as you're comfortable with. I've found that the more honest and straight forward you are the more replies you get. And it's perfectly acceptable to list the things that you don't want in a household/roommate situation. Lay it all out! Do try to outweigh the good with the bad, and if you have any projects/things you do that will score you cool points it's probably a good idea to include those. I've also found that mentioning if you are queer/420/dog/kid/vegetarian/whatever friendly (be honest) you'll get a lot more replies.

It's far better to be in the position of people asking you to live with them than the other way around. You get to be more selective and generally just have more options than hunting for posted rooms alone.

GOOD LUCK!

I tried a basic recipe I found online, and instead of corn syrup used mostly golden syrup (Lyles) and a little homemade ginger syrup. They were insane.

It really helps to have a stand mixer so your arm doesn't fall off or the motor on your hand mixer doesn't go out.

Be careful with your gelatin and make sure you don't have any lumps.

Make sure your thermometer is calibrated before getting too far into the process and worrying about messing up your sugars.

Powdered sugar and parchment paper will be your very best friends.

And they really do toast and melt like you'd expect. I brought mine to a friends birthday party and people were roasting them on the gas range. Not sure if that was the smartest thing, but they were delicious.

Asparagus season is in the spring, and it's summer. However- you can still find it at Ballard Market, several farmers markets, and probably Safeway since they don't carry local produce so seasons don't mean shit. Just be aware that it's going to be woody and stringy right now. Mmm.

Hi Life is always a really good bet

I kept my blogspot address for about a year, but when I decided to make business cards I figured it was time for my own url. It's cheap and kind of fun to have your own. Also far easier for other people to remember it that way. My blog name/address doesn't make an ounce of real sense, but people remember it better than they had previously.

I bought one for my dad's wife for Christmas- and her first shot at it didn't work. It was shipped to Alaska during December though and I'm not sure if it froze or was otherwise compromised. I contacted the company (http://www.bttrventures.com/) and they were not only incredibly friendly and helpful- but they sent her TWO new kits to ensure that she'd get mushrooms. I haven't heard from her if she's tried growing them again yet, but I think she may be waiting for their weather to warm up a bit. The company I ordered from does have a 100% guarantee and if you check Amazon their product gets better reviews that a lot of others. I just really like them because they're tiny and real people replied to my emails (actually both partners did). So mines only a half answer- but I'd say give it a shot!

The problem with jam is that it uses sugar as a preservative. So even if you do a veggie jam- it's still going to be sweet. It's possible that you don't want a jam at all.

However- since you asked- carrots make a lovely jam. My favorite recipe is here: http://wherestherevolution.blogspot.com/2009/10/carrot-jam.html

Have you considered relishes? Where the base is vinegar/salt and you are either finely dicing, or running vegetables through a food processor. We make a jalapeno relish that is spreadable, and you could easily do the same with carrots, cucumbers, beets, etc.

Olsen Farms beef bacon, herbed potatoes, wilted kale with a poached egg, and arugula salad. Just a typical breakfast at home. Hah.