Thursday, March 11, 2010

Thanks

At school pick-up on Tuesday afternoon, a friend greeted me with a hearty "Congratulations!"

"What for?" I asked.

"Your dinner party, of course."

Quite frankly, I'm flattered that anyone cares about my little dinner party.

Thanks to friends, family and fellow bloggers who have lent their support and cheered me on along on my journey towards domestication.

Yesterday, when someone asked me to describe this blog, I started by saying "it's about my attempt to learn how to cook, clean, and entertain."

But the more I rambled on about it, the more I began to realize that it's not just about my quest to become "domesticated." Undomesticated Me is about re-inventing yourself and tackling new challenges.

For years, I viewed myself as a non-cook -- a general hazard in the kitchen. I'd laugh about how I couldn't cook anything other than pop-tarts. It was a running joke in my family that I couldn't be trusted to turn on the microwave. I was always afraid that if I learned to cook, I'd be stuck in the kitchen rather than out in the world doing things.

I'm surprised to discover that I can do things in the kitchen and have fun. It's empowering to know that I can feed myself and my family and friends. And it's exciting to know that you're never too old to learn a new skill (even though I've heard that before, I never quite believed it). Now that I've sort of learned how to cook, I can tackle anything -- learning to knit, learning to sew, who knows what's next?!

3 comments:

Bernie Bernstein said...

It's Me, Mom - Welcome to the real world, Kiddo! If you don't take yourself too seriously, cooking, cleaning, etc., can be fun. Just don't overdo it and burn yourself out. Bring on the knitting. Maybe Jesse can get you started before our visit to New York.

Farmgirl Cyn said...

Found your blog a couple of weeks ago and have been so excited for you! You did a great job with your 1st big dinner party and now have a good idea of what to expect....for yourself AND for your guests! You can knit...trust me! I am 56 years old and just taught myself (with some help from a yarn shop owner)! Granted, I can only knit simple things...no sweaters or socks! But...I can knit! And...taught myself how to sew! Found an old machine that works great at the local Goodwill and bought a simple pattern! You can do nearly anything you set your mind to!

Rebecca said...

A couple of years ago I went to a panel discussion with Anthony Bourdain, Bill Buford and Mario Batali. They discussed, among other things, Buford's book Heat about apprenticing himself to Batali and then to a butcher in Italy and trying to learn how to cook like a pro. He had an amazing line about how as adults we need to remember to give ourselves chances to be "stupid and curious." I don't do it often enough myself, but when I do it is soooo rewarding.