Giving Thanks

Friends, readers, foodies, and Googlers (who just so happened to stumble upon this site), we have so much catching up to do.

I have great news to report, updates to give, and so many thanks I want to extend to you all that I’m not sure how they’ll fit below, but let’s see what we (or I) can do.

Tonight is the official “release party” for my book, The Fresh Table: Cooking in Louisiana All Year Round—

Pictured: Tonight’s event banner from our Facebook page – a celebration as much as it is a night to release the book.

AND, I feel the way a bride must the morning of her wedding—

nervousness, anxiousness (which is the same as nervousness, yes?), excitement, overly worried (again, the same as the first two?), and a little dizzy from party planning details, media events, and trying to reach out to everyone in a timely and appropriate manner.

I even had one of my own quiet, red-faced, high-blood pressured “Bridezilla” moments Monday afternoon when we were faced with the possibility that we wouldn’t have nearly enough books at tonight’s party (since remedied thanks to LSU Press).

I told Olivia Keen – our Event Planner – I’ll never make fun of Bridezillas again. If a bride on the morning of her wedding can feel even a fraction of the wave of fear I felt Monday afternoon, then she’s a hero. A war hero, dressed in white and ready to kick butt, because seriously getting things right (or the way you want them) is a task so difficult, she should be given a medal of honor as well as a wedding band.

[I digress.]

I keep telling people that tonight is a book party, yes, but it’s also a celebration: a celebration of Louisiana, its year-round growing season, and the people and food that make this state great. I’ll check myself before going on another rant about how proud I am to write and publish here (there will plenty of this in next week’s posts), but I did want to write a big “thank you” in bold, red letters:

Thank you.

And as I write this post, I find that it’s…actually…really hard for me to do.

I have so much to be grateful for, so many people to thank, and so much pride I put into my little square, green-girl that I don’t quite know what to say.

[And it’s not because I don’t have anything to say–quite the opposite, I have everything to say (especially those of you who know me!).]

Perhaps I can put it this way:

I am the luckiest girl in the entire world. Really, I am. I get to wake up, eat, photograph, and write about food on my terms, my schedule, and with my direction. And, I get to do this at work (as with my dissertation) and when I get home (as with the Clearly Delicious – now, “Dances with Lobsters” – blog).

So, here’s a little bit of what you can expect from tonight’s event:

When: Thursday, March 28th from 6:30 – 9:00

Where: Baton Rouge Art Gallery

1515 Dalrymple Drive

Baton Rouge, LA 70808

What: Food, Music, Drinks, and Speakers all in Celebration of Louisiana, the beginning of spring, and our year-round growing season.

So many people have helped to make tonight happen and it’s hard to detail each person with a proper thank you and why, but here’s an idea of who has made tonight possible:

Executive Chef Chris Wadsworth @ Restaurant IPO / Reginelli’s / 926-Muff / Abita / Amato’s Winery / Bayou Teche Brewery / Red Stick Spice Company / Denicola’s Foods / Coffee Call

In addition, I have been blessed with a dedicated group of interns who are making tonight possible in ways that just couldn’t have happened without their help. In fact, Amy Laws from the “Old Dogs, New Tricks” post put together these name tags for tonight’s event:

Pictured: Spring 2013 Clearly Delicious Intern Tags for tonight’s event – get to know these names and faces! They’ll be helping with book sales, our party raffle, and all sorts of event particulars.

But . . . I’m still in shock.

I’ve been so overwhelmed (truly, overwhelmed) by the kind words, positive response, and beautiful people I’ve met in the last few weeks, that gearing up for tonight’s book party and spring celebration has me quite beside myself. I’m a bit of a homebody by nature, and all I want to do this morning is drink coffee, chat with my best friend Christina, and think about all of the blessings I have.

You know you’re a blessed person when your best friend from college flies in the morning before your party just to share it with you:

Pictured: a blurry Instagram shot of Christina coming down the escalator at BR Airport yesterday. We were quite the sight to passengers on their way to baggage claim (see lady smiling in the back).

AND, you know that you’re REALLY blessed when you check your mail to find “thank you notes” from actors like Darren E. Burrows (Northern Exposure, Hi-Low Country) who wrote to say they not only received your book, but that it was also, a “successful and gorgeous completion”:

Pictured: a short thank you note scrawled on Hilton letterhead from Darren Burrows.

I have so many notes I want to put here, but I can’t possibly begin to conceptualize them all. I hope tomorrow will allow me some time to look back, reflect, and organize all of the “thank you” remarks I wish to give out. But for now, THANK YOU TO

1 – My publisher, LSU Press, MaryKatherine Callaway, Alisa Plant, Erin Rolfs, Neal Novak, and Barbara Bourgouyne for helping actualize the book.

2 – The Baton Rouge and Louisiana communities for receiving this work with such support and interest (and for selling out all of my books at my cooking demo yesterday and Saturday! What a treat!).

3 – My friends and close loved ones for support and fellowship.

4 – YOU, my readers, for making a book like The Fresh Table possible.

5 – My interns – Erica deVeer, Meredith Quinn, Amy Laws, Tara Hebert, Olivia Keen, and Benjamin Morrison. You guys are wonderful beyond words.

6 – Baton Rouge Gallery for having us in your halls tonight.

7 – Chef Chris Wadsworth and all of the food and beverage sponsors I can hardly remember.

8 – AND, Louisiana, for welcoming me into your home.

See you tonight for free food, drinks, music, and words from some of Louisiana’s best. I can’t wait to see you all.

—

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