Monday, September 17, 2012

Teach a Kid to Blog - PLUS a Restaurant Review

Photo from:
http://blog.hubspot.com/Portals/249/images/i_love_blogging1.jpg
Hi there again, food fans.

I had an interesting experience this past week that led me here.

I was asked by a friend and former co-worker to be a guest speaker in her 8th grade class. The topic: blogging.

Wait, what?

Believe me, I know.

It all happened so fast! Before I knew it, it was Friday morning and I was standing in front of a group of kiddos, introducing them to the wonders of blogging.

I came prepared with an arsenal of candy and goodies because crossing the threshold of a junior high instantly evokes all long-forgotten feelings of LIKE MEEEE! A few years under one's belt and that all changes, according to my friend the teacher. But not for me. LIKE MEEEE!

In all seriousness, I thoroughly enjoyed being back in a classroom again. The students were wonderful and so full of enthusiasm. I earned my degrees with every intention of teaching once I finished, and only time will tell whether that's where my life takes me. But it's experiences like last Friday that keep the spark going.

The experience also got me thinking about my blog and why it can be so hard to dedicate time to it. Part of it is my fault. But I also see people who manage to cram so much into their days, and all I can think is, there are still 24 hours in the day, right? How do they do it?! I wish I were that... together. But I'm not. Many nights, we don't have homecooked meals. We have thrown-together-ness. A last minute effort to put something in our bellies. My husband works a lot of evening shifts, and it's hard to work up enough give-a-damn to cook a meal at that point, much less photograph it for the blogosphere.

I know. Excuses, excuses.

In an effort to make amends for this, I'd like to switch gears a little bit, blog-wise. I still have every intention of posting recipes and how-tos. Cooking is as important to me now as it has ever been. But so is eating. I love eating. My waistline is a testament to my food love affair. To better reflect this interest of mine, I'd like to incorporate some restaurant reviews into my blog in the hopes it will alleviate some of the gaps I experience due to a lack of cooking and thereby a lack of recipes. I know a lot of blogs post recipes picture-free, and I enjoy a lot of these blogs. However, it is important to me to maintain a visual element to my blog, and that takes time, guys. When I do it, I want it done right. So for the times when I can't do it right, you'll get to hear about the food I am eating.

I know some of you don't live in the area, but I hope you'll stay for the foodie chit chat. I love hearing about food from far off places and adding it to my foodie bucket list. I hope maybe some of my reviews will do the same for you, should you ever be in my neck of the woods, and also educate you on some places to avoid. Trust me, I'll be sufficiently up front about the misses and not just the hits.

So, without further ado, let's move on to my first review, shall we?