There are three activities that keep me grounded throughout all my experiences. They each involve creating a plan, the adventure of deviating from that plan in order for things to grow, and the joy in producing something for friends and family. Whether that be cooking, gardening, or photography, they all influence how I approach problem solving and bring my own perspective to everything I tackle.
Food
Food and cooking have always been passions of mine. Cooking is the ultimate stress reliever. I love getting hold of challenging recipes and seeing how they turn out. My intense love of food started after college when I actually had some money to explore new restaurants and buy more interesting ingredients for cooking at home. From New England to East Africa, I’ve been fortunate in the past 3 years to live in places with an abundance of fresh, local meat and produce. However, living in Zanzibar was different in that it influenced the way I approach ingredients and cooking. Before, I was great at following recipes and having a “feeling” for how the meal should come together, but shopping, preparing, and cooking in Zanzibar taught me how to be creative without a recipe, follow my instincts, and put love into what I create while connecting more intimately with the food, the people, and the culture.
Plants
For the past couple of years I have been trying to perfect my green thumb. Starting with your basic “hard to kill” houseplants and succulents, I’m now growing a winter herb garden with the help of my grandfather. If possible, my entire house would be covered in plants, but for now I’ll settle for a couple windowsills. In Zanzibar, I spent many weekends harvesting tomatoes, eggplant, and watermelon in my coworker’s farm. Ultimately, I’d love to have my own vegetable garden because nothing tastes better than tomato sauce made from tomatoes, garlic, and onions all picked fresh that morning.
photos
Photography is one of my oldest hobbies. In high school, I was always in the dark room developing my black and white film and negatives of my home town to my trips to Arizona, the Dominican Republic and Europe. I don’t always take the finest photos, but I really enjoy having my camera in hand at all times to capture people and settings that inspire. These days I focus on digital photography, taking way too many shots for how little I erase.