I’m not a writer or a scientist. I’m not a scholar or even academic. 

I am a hands-on artistic contrarian who just so happens to really enjoy challenge.  I am the devil’s advocate. The discomfort of writing amidst a journey to my completed manuscript was why I did this.  The vast accumulation of information was a consolation prize and for that I am eternally grateful.  But veering from the mainstream career choices was one that led me to where I am right now.  Pleased and discontent.  Just as I hoped to be.

In the infancy of my writing career I was eager to boast what I had already known.  I was opinionated. I was judgmental. I was wrong.  My interpretation of food’s dos and don’ts was steadfast and, writing and food criticism alike, I struggle to break old habits.  Some of the best things I have ever eaten were so surprising because I questioned the process.  Today I strive to keep an open mind and surrender completely to the experience being offered.

What is nostalgia but a remembrance of time passed? A complicated and bittersweet subject which is intriguing, confusing, thought-provoking— nostalgia can be divided into two categories: historical or vicarious nostalgia and that of personal recollection. The former describes something along the lines of the swing revival of the nineties, when one reminisces on a time in which they seem to better relate. The latter motivates us to remember the past in our own life and helps unite us with our authentic selves. It reminds us of who we have been and combined with who we are today, allows us to decide who we want to be down the road. Information in regard to this definition, in particular, is what I have chosen to pursue in a comprehensive, food-focused manuscript.