danapop

I’ve wanted to interview Jim Denevan, the creative genius behind Outstanding in the Field for ages now. His culinary troupe goes beyond just farm to table by literally bringing the table to the farm. With food events criss-crossing America, stops in Europe slated for 2011, and tickets selling out in hours, this is one dining experience that’s a must when in a town near you.

I’m thrilled to finally be able to post my interview with Jim, in which we chat about charming venues, adventurous eaters, and geographical salts.

dp (danapop) I’m fascinated by the Outstanding in the Field concept, what made you initially come up with it?

oitf (outstanding in the field) I worked at a conventional, popular, interesting restaurant in Santa Cruz and we’d go to the farmers market twice a week and meet the farmers there and also my brother is a farmer, so I was very familiar with farms and farming.

We started farmer dinners at the restaurant and the whole menu was organized around one particular farm with the farmer getting to talk about their work. The dinners were really interesting and people wanted to hear what the farmer had to say.

That was an eye-opener, and that was in the late ‘90s. Then in the summer of ‘99 we took the dinner to a farm. It was very exciting, it went very well, but it became less of a struggle as people became more interested in learning about a farm and having a meal on a farm. Basically in the last 3 years I’ve seen that culturally people throughout the country were ready for this experience.

dp What do you think Outstanding in the Field brings to the culinary and dining scene?

oitf I think it’s fun and it’s also stimulating from a culinary perspective. It would be outstanding as in the best we could find throughout the country. We work with some of the better chefs. It mixes up people’s expectations and I think the concept of a conventional restaurant was a little tired. The whole idea of supperclubs and underground restaurants are examples of doing something out of the ordinary and unusual. People want to be a little more adventurous, really.

dp Do you think farm to table is an overused phrase? A trend?

oinf The farm to table is a little buzzy and mushy, where it used to be a little clearer. Now, you can really use that word to describe anything.

You can’t get anymore direct, or literal and real than taking a table right into the farm. That’s the new phrase, table to farm (laughing).

dp How do you select and scout locations for a tour stop? How do you come up with the menu?

oitf First the location has to be charming and beautiful. Really it comes down to the farmer and their story and cultivation of land for food.

There’s orchards, dairy operations, the sea cove ones. Whatever we find along the way we try to include. There are always more people at the table than just the fisherman or the farmer, there’s the winemaker or local cheese maker, beekeepers.

We brought in guest chefs about 5 years ago. I do the first event of the year every year in California and then the theme from that is to bring in another local chef when we travel across the country. Which is interesting in terms of ingredients and venues.

dp You kind of touched on it a bit, but beyond the remoteness, who comes up with the overall look of an event?

oitf I’m the concept guy. The table shouldn’t be seen when the guests arrive. It should be behind a row of trees. It should be in this spectacular site. I get pretty darn obsessive about that. I really like to have it in the most pleasant place it can be on the farm.

dp I know you live in Santa Cruz as a base, what does California (and its state of mind) bring to your life and business?

oitf People are definitely marching to their own drummer at times. I think here they embrace instead of question things. Across the country there’s more farm to table than in the Bay area. I think people are pretty excited throughout the country, I don’t see it as an east coast west coast thing at this point. Things are changing.

dp I hear (and have also seen) that you are quite the artist. How do you balance Outstanding in the Field with your art?

oitf My season for doing art is about November through the middle of March, through the winter. Outstanding in the Field takes places from the first day in May until late October, so it fits in perfectly really.

dp What gadget, spice, product, or technique is getting you excited these days?

oitf As elemental as it is and somewhat boring, I really like salt. I think it’s kind of a fun like wine from a certain place and such. It’s a fun geographic specific thing.

As for a gadget, a chef thinks about the knives first.

Growing up in a military household, I can’t say I’ve ever had to the motivation to attend a boot camp fitness class. But last summer one of my writing clients was all gung-ho about doing them and asked me to join her long before the sun was up and newspapers delivered. Strangely enough (pretty sure wine was involved), I agreed. Of course I overslept badly and got in a explosive screaming match with my GPS who was giving me poor directions in his British accent to it’s-anyone’s-guess-where-the-eff-I-am-park a good twenty miles from my house.

I knew I was in the right spot when I pulled up to a lot packed with people decked out in running clothes and clearly pumped to be there. I managed to double-park as the crowd waited on me and my unbrushed teeth and raccoon makeup from the night before to join them. They may’ve even clapped in that, “so glad you could join us” way, which is what I also like to call “the sarcastic clap.”

In the end, the workout proved to be really hard, but really fun. Two days later when I was itching from the fertilizer rash I had from all the rolling around in the grass for sit-ups and squat thrusts, I was second-guessing my initial excitement about the camp.

Fast-forward a year to when I’m burned out big time on my usual workouts–yoga, Pilates, and running. I’ve peaked. Beyond a plateau, my body just stayed the same and I was plain bored. And don’t even get me going on lack of motivation when my husband was laid off and both of us were working freelance; let’s just say there was lots o’ sleeping in at my house and not enough working out.

I needed something to boost my workout enthusiasm and kick me back into shape. So, for four weeks I decided to do a boot camp series. That’s twenty classes, five days a week for four weeks. Plus, nutritional support. I decided to go in with an open mind; forget about the actual military father, and my usual course of action when someone is screaming in my face of either hitting the road or completely shutting down. None of the above happened. No one yelled, no one cried, no one stormed off in a huff.

First day–I felt really strong after finding out I can actually run a 7-minute mile. First week as a whole, wow it’s hard to wake up at 6 a.m., and damn, I’m out of shape. It reminds me a lot of high school with all the squats and lunges I did during cheerleading practice. I wish for my senior year cheerleading butt. Also I’m feeling really embarrassed about what I’m writing down in my food journal. I mean, I had to put a scotch lunch on there loaded with calamari, spinach dip, fried green tomatoes, and oh right, five different kinds of scotch at one in the afternoon. Just a normal day at the office folks, nothing to see here.

Week two—More than once I thought I would either A) pass out or B) throw up (neither happened) during a workout. This was the week I also realized I eat like pure garbage with all these media events and such and started being really hard on myself and my Oprah arms, marshmallow tummy, and cottage cheese legs (mmm marshmallows). The other girls in my class looked like L.A. Laker girls and did two-a-day workouts with boot camp just being one workout a day for them. Also slightly annoyed with my husband for buying a berry crumble from Trader Joe’s for a photo shoot, which we both devoured in about two sittings. Ridic. We may or may not have wrestled for the last piece.

Week three—I overslept (Monday Monday, can’t trust that day) and was sort of mad at myself all day. I missed the group’s camaraderie and encouragement about helping whip each other back into shape. By Friday of this week, one campmate’s calorie watch said she’d burned 630 calories in 60 minutes … I can’t even burn that running for an hour–talk about good incentive. This week I also got used to having bone bruises on my knees and palms of my hands from all the pushups and mountain climbers. This was also the first week I truly started to feel like I was getting in shape and my body was getting toned. Lastly, I learned that throwing a medicine ball against the wall of a racquetball court is incredibly liberating.

Week four—I’m starting to feel really strong. Running in place with high knees … no problem. Frog jumps … I’m a pro. No seriously, people in the class started commenting on how amazing my frog jumps were; don’t be jealous. After talking with some of the other boot campers, it seems that most people invest in at least two months because just towards the end of the first month is when you’re really starting to notice change. I would agree. Overall, it was a fantastic workout change of pace, both fun and challenging. I’m thinking of signing up for one more month, but my schedule is beginning to get a little spotty with some upcoming travel, which, you’ll read all about next week…

I’m a firm believer in investing in the summer staple of a good pair of sunglasses, or as stylist Rachel Zoe likes to call them, sunnies.

Everyone needs at least one go-to pair. I have two. My Spys are sporty and do the job of not adding to the onset of crows-feet, while my Ray Ban aviators are used more for style than substance. Beyond those pairs, I’m certainly not the person qualified to let you in on shade styling secrets and what the trends are for this summer.

But, Chris Anderson, a.k.a. my accessories guru, can. Now, here’s the thing with a blog that is one of its greatest perks. You meet people and feel like you know them without ever having hugged or giggled in real life–just across FB status updates, twitter handles, and blog comments, that’s all.

Well, Chris is a former co-worker of my twin sister and just happens to be the most stylish person either of us know (albeit he and I have never met). The two of them were meeting up in San Diego (obviously to stay out until all hours of the night at clubs playing Lady Gaga) and so they went along the boardwalk to work on this dos and don’ts tutorial on the art of picking the best summer accessory around. Chris’ brother Matt also lent a hand in this piece, my favorite is his don’t picture.

Also–be sure to check out Chris’s fabulous work on his blog chrisryanart.tumlr.com.

I love the dualism of Anna Bondoc’s work. This L.A. based artist works in one of the most seemingly simple forms around–paper. But what she does with an X-acto knife creating and cutting these layers is like nothing else. Working and whittling down pieces ever so intricately, using shapes and designs that appear like a modern twist to an ancient medium dating back to origami.

I had the chance for a Skype interview with Anna and her business partner Vanessa Peter in which we chat about perfectionism, patterns, and parenthood.

dp There’s something so simple about working with paper, yet, your work is so intricate, how do you balance that?

ab The simplicity is true it really comes from my background as a printmaker. I like the idea of layers of color, very graphic, and sharply designed shapes. After I had my daughter it was one activity I could do in small bursts and when you’re working with paper there’s immediate color. There’s no weight, no machinery, just paper and an X-acto knife.

That sort of intricacy comes because I enjoy the repetition of it and the actual cutting and as I work with the layers the layers then turn into shapes and all nest with each other and mimic the first shape that I cut.

Similar to when you’re a child making snowflakes the magic of cutting out a shape and having the paper not fall apart and holding it up to the light, seeing that you created a positive space out of a negative space. That forces me to slow down; I’m taking the time to cut and thinking deeply about how colors interact. I’m not rushing through it on a computer, which is very fast. It’s much more deliberate than on a computer.

dp Your work to me seems very influenced by Japanese forms, and even origami, where does that come from?

ab I don’t really know. I do know that when I open up and choose my own art books there was always a negative space and industrial design. Hours and hours spent looking at books. I just kept gravitating towards Japanese design. Lots of open space, but there’s a sense of restraint.

dp How does living in Los Angles affect and influence your work? Because I think L.A. in general would be a complete contradiction to your tight, clean style.

ab L.A. doesn’t necessarily affect me, but my inner goal. I love traveling because it brings layers of history. The California lifestyle has allowed me to bring out levels of concern … in L.A. you have hiking everyday and swimming and in NY (where I used to live) you have twitter everyday.

dp Which is interesting because I think in this conversation and the grid and sort of pattern of New York is would be more you and it’s interesting to me that L.A. and the nature that it is sort of is the balance for you.

ab I feel like NY left sort of an intellectual footprint on me. But, with a child it’s a little too much.

dp How does being a mother influence your work? Or how does it not?

ab This pushed me into art because when I had minutes of free time I worked. Before I was sort of cerebral and thought it through in ways that I don’t now. Now, it’s put up or shut up. Are you going to create or are you not?

And made me think why is a child’s name such a big deal? Now I understand that connection. My work is now a reflection of giving myself one tiny goal and giving myself a space to work.

dp How do you know when a piece is finished? Is it an aesthetic feel or emotional one? With your pieces because there are so many layers, when do you walk away?

ab It’s kind of when I run out of space to cut and those windows are full. And then there is always that question of–do I feel balanced? Does the piece feel top heavy? Bottom heavy? Does the negative shape take too much space? I’m not a gardener, but I imagine that must be how a gardener must feel. Is this space too intricate? My eye now will notice a slight imbalance.

dp You work really resonates with me because there seems to be an exactness and preciseness that I can appreciate. Does that piece of your personality only come out through your work?

ab I was raised in an Asian household and was a chef for a little while and my leaning was towards pastry, which is mathematical. I enjoy the chemistry and exactness of that, that kind of completeness is why I enjoy working with a knife. I want that clean boundary so I can see exactly how a shape interacts with the color. I see it in my parenting. My daughter is on a very strict schedule. I get satisfaction in making right.

dp What’s next for you?

ab The big thing is our launch and after we launch with our product–I’m not just creating layered pieces on paper, it’s on a knitted product, a rug, and beyond. When people see my work they generally say this would look so great on such and such.  I would also love to see it on wallpaper. I don’t picture someone wearing it because it’s so big, but it would be great in a fabric.

We love being on the learning curve. Cut paper is fun, but part of the learning curve is what kind of yarns are out there to make a children’s sock and what kind of manufacturers. And how you translate a flat pattern into a fiber. We have fun contemplating what we must learn.

dp Which is interesting because I think most people don’t want that side to them to be exposed. They do what they know. Interesting that you’re not only willing to step outside of that box, but explore around a bit.

ab It’s fun. And I think I come from an entrepreneurial family. We’re used to the layers and when you look at things you can use it’s endless. Can we work with leather and layer it? Rugs? It’s so exciting.

dp How can my readers get one of your fabulous pieces?

ab Order online through the website–annabondoc.com

I’ve always been a fan of solid Brit pop. From the ’90s Blur, James and Oasis to today’s Travis and Coldplay. I’m a sucker for brooding scowls and accents duking it out with a catchy beat.

As I’ve mentioned before, we’re traveling for a wedding in mid-August and we’ve just begun the planning stage. It’s looking fairly certain that we’ll have three legs to this trip–England, Hungary, and Poland, or more specifically, London, Budapest, and Krakow.

For now, I’m putting together the London version of my playlist that includes a heavy dose of UK invasion, plus a few I think will be perfect for gazing out train windows, daydreaming

Time has Told Me by Nick Drake (One of my favorites by him, such a waste that he only made it to 26).

Maybe Tomorrow by Stereophonics (I don’t think I’ve made a playlist yet without including these boys … I never tire of them and my friend who’s getting married introduced me to them).

There Goes the Fear by The Doves (The great thing about traveling is you can step outside of your norm, fear included).

Dreams by Passion Pit (Their version of the Cranberries original is so beautiful).

Daylight by Matt & Kim (Fit it all in from sunup to sundown).

You Told a Lie by Camera Obscura (The summer before my own wedding in 2003, I went to Scotland with said friend, though we didn’t make it to Glasgow where this band is from).

Quelqu’un M’a Dit by Carla Bruni (Model, singer, and married to the President of France, a luxe life indeed).

Sleep the Clock Around by Belle & Sebastian (A sleep mask and dose of Ambien will aid in the time change).

Svefn-g-englar by Sigur Rós (Almost eleven years to the day the brilliance that is Ágaetis Byrjun was released; such a gorgeous album and particularly this song).

Daniel by Elton John (It’s so strange when you go to a new place how many people remind you of others you know, my interpretation of this song is a bit of that).

I Was Made For You by She & Him (I know Zooey Deschanel’s doe eyed act bothers some, but I do think she has a fabulous voice and everyone could use a sing-a-long).

Shiver by Coldplay (I was gifted this album long before it was cool to own and could not get this song off repeat).

Back to This by Helio Sequence (The trance-like beat on this one is unbelievable).

Young Americans by David Bowie (Can you really list Brit bands without Bowie? More importantly, we’ll do our best to blend in during our travels).

Subterranean Homesick Alien by Radiohead (We won’t be gone long enough to really get homesick–other than missing Otis the wonder puppy).

Holiday by Hourly Radio (It’s ironic how everyone but Americans call vacations a holiday. Going on holiday sounds so official, like you’re declaring it festive, period).

Lay me Down by The Frames (I adore this band from Dublin whose lead singer has since become one part of The Swell Season, equally as good).

Song to Say Goodbye by Placebo (This is an angst-riddled song that’s perfect to blast when you’re feeling frustrated or better yet, totally over it. The lyric, ‘you lying, trying, waste of space’ really sums it all up).

Talk her Down by Starsailor (This English band is said to be influenced by Jeff Buckley. I’ve seen them live several times and believe the comparison).

1901 by Phoenix (I gulped the Kool-Aid, love, love, love this song, muah).

I’ve always been a reader (it sort of goes hand in hand with us writers). As a child, I was certainly the happiest when buried in a book and honestly that hasn’t changed much with age. Since we’re approaching summer months and perhaps I’ll even admit to a little escapism on my part, here are my picks for what to read. Not all of these are newly released titles, but some of my favorites. And truthfully, when you’re in a house rental with your entire family for seven days you won’t care when it came out if you’ve gotten to the point of isolating yourself in a quiet room with a stiff drink reminding yourself serenity now! PS—things would be so much easier if I had a Kindle.

Deborah Copaken Kogan working in Zimbabwe, 1989

I read Shutterbabe the first year I worked at CNN. I was fresh out college with my journalism degree in tow, drowning in a newsroom pool of brilliant minds and it couldn’t have come at a better time–I was an incredibly small fish in a vastly deep pond, struggling to swim. An ex-boyfriend brought the book over, along with a stack of others on our first date. Sounds promising, but I assure you, the book was the best thing out of the relationship.

Since reading it, I’ve likely lost, loaned, or gifted at least 20 copies. It’s just such a great read. I’m beyond thrilled to interview Deborah Copaken Kogan, the author of (among other titles) Shutterbabe.

danapop (dp) How did the idea for Shutterbabe transform into it actually being published? What was your writing process like?

Deborah Copaken Kogan (dck) The whole process, in retrospect, was weirdly easy and lightening fast, especially compared with my second effort, the novel ‘Between Here and April’, whose finished manuscript was rejected 39 times. (While ‘Shutterbabe’ was an instant bestseller, ironically ‘BH&A’ has sold more books over the course of its life, 59,000 to date.)

I took a leave of absence from my job as a producer from Dateline NBC to see if I could actually sit down and write my memoirs of my career as a war photographer from start to finish, something I’d been wanting to do for years. The first day, I went to a coffee shop to sit and think about how to approach it and wound up writing the entire outline, pretty much in its final form, on a napkin. (I then transferred my notes to a small moleskin notebook.) This was back in May of 1998, when my husband and I shared an old desktop computer, so I didn’t have a laptop on which to work. A few weeks of long-hand writing later, realizing I wouldn’t be able to work at home on our one computer—my older kids were 1 and nearly 3, and we lived in a tiny 1 ½ bedroom apartment—I purchased a cheap laptop and started writing at my friend Maia’s apartment on the 3 days a week I had babysitting. (We couldn’t afford to have full-time care once I left Dateline, as my salary, at that point, made up the bulk of our income.)

I wrote the first chapter in a month, and a book proposal within a few weeks of that. I then asked my friend Tad’s then-girlfriend, Courtney, a book editor, to give it a read to see if I was on the right track. She gave me verbal notes while I was on vacation with my family that summer and then provided agent recommendations. I sent the sample chapter and proposal off, via snail mail (remember, this was 1998) to the five agents she suggested. Three came back wanting to represent it, two declined. I picked the agent who seemed the most passionate. She had me edit the first chapter and expand my proposal from 3 pages to 15. She sent it out to publishers, and within days I had a book contract with Villard, who’d made a pre-emptive bid. By that time, my eldest had just started his first year of preschool on the Columbia University campus, so I would drop him off in the morning and write in the Teacher’s College Library, after finagling a library pass from a kind librarian. I wrote three days a week for about a year, then four days, then five—using my advance to pay for extra babysitting—and handed in the manuscript on my then-youngest’s 3rd birthday, March 2, 2000.

Looking back on that era of dial-up internet and few distractions, I realize what a perfect bubble of concentration I had. (Oh, to go back to those twitter-free days!) I would just sit down at 9 AM, when the library opened, and write like a demon until it was time to pick up my kids or relieve the babysitter, whichever applied to that particular day.

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My Grammy turned 90 this year. And if I had to guess, about 74 of those 90 years have been spent with her “face” done. That’s what she calls it, “doing her face.” Something along the lines of, “just let me put my face on.” Overall, she’s an avid Estée Lauder devotee, and more specifically, besides her face, she wouldn’t dream of going anywhere without lipstick. Her purses I’m sure all contain half-used tubes in secret compartments complete with mirrors hidden away for easier application. And at the end of the day, she takes off her face with cold cream and tissues.

Despite being related, the lipstick gene didn’t totally pass through to me. On any given day, you can find any 1 of these 3 things on my lips:

1.    Burt’s Bees lip balm
2.    Estée Lauder high gloss in ivory (obviously a gift from said Grammy). Essentially this is clear lipgloss.
3.    Estée Lauder pure color lipstick in beige (ditto on the Grammy gift). Basically, it’s a hue the same color as my natural lips. I know, daring!

But I’ve noticed this spring, vibrant pink and red lips are popping up everywhere. There are always those classics that pretty much everyone from Rachel Zoe to Nina Garcia dish out. In fashion, it’s generally as standard as a structured tote, a strand of pearls, black stilettos, and so on. And in beauty, it usually circles back to one thing … lip stain, in a signature red.

So, in the spirit of change, and my Grammy, I marched myself over to the Chanel counter to try out the new Spring 2010 Rouge line. Finding the perfect shade is no easy task. It took multiple tries in the name of research. But guess what? I found my perfect shade … it’s called Gabrielle and it makes my lips pop–just in time for spring.

I’m in love with my new look. Here’s to taking it all off with cold cream.

In December, James Wolcott wrote an incredible piece for Vanity Fair about the dumbing down of American culture due to the influx of reality television.

That article got me thinking of the Andy Warhol quote; “in the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes.” So, here we are in 2010, with the MTV, CW, VH1, and E!, lineup of what television executives should be calling 15-minutes-of-fame programming.

The reality in my life is this; I’m the wife of a television and film writer and producer, and I’m about to get on my soapbox about the state of television in America. I’ve come up with this notion … reality TV is the new television “reel”-the new stepping stone for any sort of career in entertainment. Reality TV standouts parlay these vixens, airheads, and otherwise nobodies into other jobs-Kendra Wilkinson, Melissa Rycroft, Kyle Brandt, Lauren Conrad-line them up.

Because what we do know is that Kendra starred on Girls Next Door and it catapulted her into a spin-off show, a husband and a baby; Melissa went from being “blindsided” on The Bachelor’s “After the Rose” ceremony to a gig not just Dancing with the Stars, but as a special correspondent for Entertainment Tonight and 20/20. Go a few years back to when The Real World was in Chicago and Kyle was on it, he then got a reoccurring role on Days of our Lives. And who could forget LC, who starred on Laguna Hills as a mere 17-year-old high school senior, wham bam, now she’s a New York Times bestseller and clothing designer.

It’s as if it’s all a sociology experiment of he who puts themselves out there the most gets a bigger deal, to the nth degree. But, isn’t life kind of like that? He who wows the interviewer, get the job? He who writes the most niche/compelling blog, gets the book deal, then lands at HGTV…hi there Dooce. Or he who competes in a reality cooking show gets a three-show deal on that same network, then a hosting job on NBC this spring … fist pump Guy Fieri and your meal-ticket, Food Network.

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Kelli Fletcher & Allison Beale of George PR

A good publicist can be a journalist’s best friend. A bad one, my worst nightmare.

I “met” Allison Beale last year while trying to get an interview with a company she represented for danapop. She coordinated that interview, and then many others to follow. So, after many emails, interviews and a few music suggestions later … we’ve struck up a bit of friendship all without having ever met each other in person.

And for the record, she’s just about the furthest thing from a nightmare I’ve ever “met.” Her company, George PR turns 5 this month, so in honor of that and all the great things she and her sister Kelli do, here’s a little Q&A with the girls from George in which we talk Skype, sisters, cities, and of course, spin…

George PR, may this be your best year yet!

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As many Facebookers so eloquently put it-not every brunette looks like Kate Beckinsale. Natch.

A couple of weeks back Facebook decided to make it Doppelgänger week. Grr. I didn’t participate.

Reason? I always get frustrated with these sorts of things because my girlfriends and sisters get compared to really gorgeous celebrities.

Like these:

And, me? Well, here’s who I’ve been told I look like:

So, lemme get this straight … an 8-year old precocious tomboy with the old-lady name of Ramona, a celebrity who often looks as if she just finished sucking on a lemon, and the mousy daughter on Life Goes On.

Awesome.

But, celebrity analysis always wants to put me in a different category (err nationality) all together with these as my top matches.

I give you Lucy Lui and Lisa Ling … um gorge, but I’m not Chinese-American. Although, admittedly I get mistaken for other nationalities often–Chinese being the most common, as well as, anywhere in the Pacific Island region. Post beach vacation I apparently look like a native from Guam.

My twin sister did a fellowship in China several years back and when she showed her flatmates a picture of our family the first response was her friend pointing at me saying, “She one of us.” Screw you Scottish ancestry. You ask, “Am I Chinese?”  “Why yes, yes, I am.” But apparently one with a penchant for tart citrus and 10-speed bicycles.

Ah the art of Savoir-Faire.  Does it really come down to a good haircut and good champagne? Maybe.

Merriam Webster’s definition of the French noun is this:

sa⋅voir-faire

Capacity for appropriate action; especially: a polished sureness in social behavior.

I find it funny right now, in this economy, I’ve gotten a part-time job to fill in some holes with my freelance work while my husband and I both search for full-time work again post his layoff. Oh right, the funny (ironic) part–the 20 hours a week I am working at a gourmet retail store called Bella Cucina Artful Food is the best 20 hours a week I spend. What does that say? I adore it. I love my coworkers, love the product, love our customers and honestly cannot believe I get paid to chat about food all day. That’s interesting to me, considering I’ve spend the better part of my adult life getting the good degree, landing the coveted position at top companies–and for what? To find out I adore retail (or maybe it’s the chatting about luxurious foods all day part)?

At any rate, I don’t think Mireille Guiliano (the queen of Savoir Faire) would be all that surprised. See, she was CEO of Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne and took it to 25% share of the market while she was at the helm (she was there from 1984 until her retirement in 2007). And she’s recently written a fabulous business book called Women, Work & The Art of Savoir Faire: Business Sense & Sensibility.

This little gem is one part business book, one part style and etiquette. The perfect read in today’s corporate culture.

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In keeping with tradition, it’s time for the annual playlist fitting of all the turkey and tension your family can handle. This year’s list combines all the components of both food and family dysfunction with a side of past relationship awkwardness. The whole mess equals a true symbol of going home for the holidays in music form.

Here’s to not taking our issues, others, or ourselves too seriously this season. Oink oink, my good man!
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I was at an event a while back and one of the main topics of discussion was the definition of a hipster. Folks, these are not brain surgery conversations. No one is splayed out across an operating table.

The word actually originated in the 1940s, used to describe those on the fringe of society (first used to define the Jazz subculture). But, for argument’s sake, here are a few things that I’ve come up with; all based on my own observations as to what truly defines the modern day hipster (which, by the way, isn’t considered outskirts any longer). Any combination of these items matter and not a whole lot changes the scope with gender (except for noted facial hair).

1.    Occupation
2.    Attire
3.    Overall Appearance
4.    Hobbies
5.    Ride
6.    Family

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Co-ops and collectives are nothing new. Forms of them date back to the both the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions in the 18th and 19th centuries. But, lately, there’s been a bit of resurgence,  and I’m not complaining.

I like the idea of a joint venture of like-minded folks and ideas. Particularly in this economy, the business model has morphed, and if you haven’t changed with it, you just might be folding. My friend, Amy Leavell Bransford of New Moon Skincare so gets that.

Amy is a lot of things (wife, momma of two adorable sons, daughter of the great environmentalist and musician Chuck Leavell … yes, that Chuck Leavell – the Rolling Stones keyboardist and of the Mother Nature Network). But, one of the things I admire most about her is her business sense. She is one the best estheticians in Atlanta and is the only Dr. Hauschka trained and certified person in the state of Georgia. Recently she launched Aviary, her idea of a beauty collective … this little house of creative, organic beauty has some very busy birds…
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