Just cleared the cache again, for the heck of it.
Hold volume up for 10-15 seconds, then press and release the power button to enter recovery.
Also, USB OTG works with KitKat.
Just got a cable and sd card to usb adaptor delivered, and it works without any additional software, though having a file manager like ES File Explorer is useful.
But there are a couple of issues.
1) after unmounting, I get a persistent notification that asks me to insert new media, that cannot be removed.
2) after inserting the stick into 1 phone, it doesn't work in the other unless I plug it into my computer first. Android writes something to the drive, so maybe that's the problem.