A little over two years ago, I began writing Random Cravings on a whim. I am one of the most passionate people you will ever meet when it comes to food, and I had never had an actual outlet (other than my own kitchen) where I could express my complete and total love of all things culinary. My passionate little blog grew wings and started to fly pretty quickly, and soon, I was savoring culinary experiences I never dreamed would happen to me. I met many of my culinary idols, and even befriended some of them. I tasted ingredients and dishes I could not have imagined in my wildest dreams, and honed my own personal cooking skills based on my experiences. I found so many new friends along the way, both in person and on social media, and even proudly defended myself against a few who thought I was just in this for the attention.
The truth is, I was never in this for the attention. Every second I spent on Random Cravings stemmed from a true, passionate, everlasting adoration of food. That love still burns as strong as it ever did, but as my blog has grown, so has the time it requires to keep it going. Mixed blessing that it is, unfortunately, the growing pains have resulted in the need for me to put an end to the wonderful little blog that I love so much.
Those of you who I know personally know that I burn the candle at every end possible in order to keep producing new material for Random Cravings. For those of you who don’t know me, let me explain – Random Cravings is not my job. It is basically a hobby, although that term seems to belittle it somehow. It is a hobby that I adore more than I could ever explain. But I am a full-time paralegal, with a relatively stressful job. I also work as the bookkeeper for my husband’s business. Speaking of Mr. Random, I have a husband who has never, ever complained about a second I spent publishing Random Cravings, and has fully supported me every step of the way, but who deserves more of my time. I have a daughter who, in five short years, will be leaving for college, and time with her seems to be growing increasingly valuable every day. It has gotten to the point where I have no time for even the simple joys in life, and I am becoming a stressed out, cranky person – a person who is the polar opposite of the real, optimistic, generally cheerful me.
I am not sure how I kept this pace up for as long as I did, but its toll is starting to show. This is not how things are supposed to be – cooking and writing about food is supposed to be my lifeblood, what makes me deliriously happy, and lately, all it does is cause me stress. I miss spending good, quality time with my family, and I miss cooking just for the simple enjoyment of it. I don’t know when cooking because I want to turned into cooking because I have to, but I must change it back immediately. I have always said that I am more relaxed when I spend time in my kitchen than during a day at a spa, but lately, neither option seems to be able to relax me. I have literally not a second to breathe, and unfortunately, that is sucking the joy out of what I love to do.
So, short of a miraculous job offer as a full-time food writer (a girl can dream, right?), I must say goodbye to my little corner of the culinary world. This will be my last post on Random Cravings. I am so grateful for everyone who read Random Cravings, every person I met and everything I was fortunate enough to experience over the past couple of years. I still have a completely unbridled passion for food, and I plan to continue to indulge it whenever I can, simply for the pure joy it brings me.
