Five Things

Back home again in Indiana.  Ten plus hours  of dry recyled air in a plane reactivated my cold with a vengeance which left me with a couple of days in bed to brood about my life.

I’ve been getting a kick out of reading the “Five Things You Don’t Know About Me” posts as the meme has slowly spread around the blogosphere, marveling at the quirky and impressive details that lurk in the lives of my fellow food bloggers. My amusement and entertainment came to an abrupt halt, however, when I was tagged by the beautiful and talented Bea, at La Tartine Gourmande, to share five things of my own.

On reflection, it seems to me that my life is an open blog. Most of the things about me that are worth knowing, I have already shared; those I’ve held back truly aren’t very interesting, or they are just plain embarrassing.  But I am nothing if not a good sport, so here goes.

1. This is not my only blog. My day job is teaching political science to undergraduates at Indiana  University  -  mostly American politics, though I do have a Food and Politics class that links my two worlds in a fun way. As part of the American politics gig, I am a coauthor of an Intro textbook – one of those 800 page monsters we all hated to lug around in college – called Keeping the Republic. The book has its own blog (KTRBlog) designed to help keep readers current with national events. Unfortunately, its author has not been too diligent lately, and the blog is lagging a bit behind.

2. I am 51 years old. It’s a wonderful age, but OLD in the food blog world where it seems like almost everyone is younger than 40. Took me a long time to find my food writing voice – I didn’t even start looking until 2000 or thereabouts - and though I have long kept a journal, a public version was a bit of a generational leap. I like to wonder what I would have done if blogging had been an option in my twenties and thirties. All you people out there impress the hell out of me with your graceful voices, your curiosity about food, and your immense talent and zest for enjoying life.

3.  I wrote a cookbook. Seems like a natural thing to mention on a food blog, huh? But somehow I don’t think it has ever come up. I should put a link to Amazon somewhere on the site. The book is Indiana  Cooks! Coauthored with my pal Scott Feickert, it profiles 15 of the best restaurants in Indiana  (in 2005), with menus and recipes from each chef and gorgeous photos. The pictures were taken by Tom Stio who did a super job. I learned a lot about photography from Tom by tagging along to each photo shoot, and he inspired me to try it on my own. There is another Indiana  food book  in the works now – Home Grown Indiana - with another coauthor named Scott (this one Scott Hutcheson, aka the Hungry Hoosier.) We are exploring the great producers and fabulous food finds around the state (he’s taking the north, I am taking the south, and we’re splitting the middle.) No pictures in that one, but more words. You’ll hear a lot about it as I crank up to the May deadline.

4. I love great tasting, beautiful looking food (no surprises there.) Some of my favorite meals have been in places like the French Laundry, or Alain Ducasse’s Louis XV in Monaco. But much to the dismay of some of my foodie friends, I also love more humble fare. Tuna casseroles, noodle soup, poached eggs on buttered toast, a fry up of nothing but potatoes and onions, all crispy and fragrant. Last night my husband cooked a dinner of tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich for his snotty wife and served it to her in bed, where she huddled miserably, surrounded by wads of Kleenex. Nothing has ever tasted better. (I am also a fiend for seasonal candy: Valentine’s Day hearts - yes, those chalky little candies with the messages on them - peeps, the staler the better, and candy corn. What can I say?)

5. I had colon cancer 14 years ago, when I was 37. Sometimes it pays to be a hypochondriac – this time it saved my life. I am fully recovered – the only lasting consequence is a surplus of gratitude that makes even the lousiest days seem golden. Get those colonoscopies you’ve been putting off. No matter how bad the prep is, it’s better than being dead.

And that’s it for me. I’d like to know five surprising things about everyone whose blogs I read – I have been delighted to find out that Bea speaks Dutch, that Lisa can drive a tractor, and that Lydia actually survived for two weeks on a tuna sandwich and Good Humor chocolate éclair diet – but I can tag only five, so I will pick the following:

Jared at Alaska Cooks, because his writing is a truly wonderful  feast.

Mae at riceandnoodles, because her photography always makes me hungry.

Kevin at Acme Instant Food, because he makes me laugh and because I love his kitchen.

Renee at Feed Me/Drink Me, because her caustic views on food in the Circle City keep me  endlessly entertained.

Biggles at MeatHenge,  because he knows everything about cooking meat, and he's a hoot besides.

Folks, this meme’s been out there for a while, so if you’ve already done this and I’ve missed it, send me the link so I can catch up! And if you hate memes (or like my buddy Lisa, can’t stand being told what to do), then give it a pass and no hard feelings.

 

Comments

[Bea at La Tartine Gourmande]

What a wonderful read Christine, thanks so much for revealing hidden secrets of yours. You are full of surprises! A cookbook, cancer! And truly a wonderful age. Some of my best friends just turned 50 as well!

[Alanna]

Fifty? No way! Cancer at 37? NO WAY! And someone who writes cookbooks and, um, all those other books authored by someone whose name is the same as yours? No way!

(Dear Christine: I hate to break the news but someone's commandeered your blog and is spilling mistruths.)

[Dr. Biggles]

Hey, I'm 42 and got yer back. I'm working on my entry, listening to AC/DC to get my bearings.

xo,

Biggles

[Mae]

Wow. What an interesting read. I knew you taught Political Science and the Cookbook which i would still say, wow, but cancer at 37? You are one tough cookie.

I love humble food too and sad to say, i haven't been to any of those listed restaurants...

Thanks for the tag. I have done this before only difference is it was 10 things. This time last year i think.

[Lisa (Homesick Texan)]

Wow, what a life! I'm very impressed and very inspired. Thanks for sharing!

[Christine (myplateoryours)]

Thanks, you all. Glad you are so easy to impress!

[tricia]

Hi Christine. I am Jared @ AK cooks partner. I check in to your site along with Jared, and often on my own. I always go to the "about" section of the blogs I know through Jared because I want to learn more about the writers. I was honored to read more about you personally. Thank you for inspiring life embracing gratitude.