Comfort Zones and Cool Dinners

When I began blogging a couple of years ago I had no idea what I was doing, I simply found out that half of all of the websites I frequented were actually blogs – and I thought that was pretty cool. Fast forward to today and I really still couldn’t tell you exactly what I’m doing here on my little slice of the online pie, but I can tell you that I must be doing something right because I’ve never been so excited about life.

I think that coming from a healthcare background, I’d seen way too much sickness and sadness over the past decade, and it really made me take a step back and think about how precious life truly is – how much I want to actively live my life in as many ways possible and to not let my own insecurities get in the way of it.

One thing that has happened since I began blogging is the number of amazing opportunities that allows me to try new things – see new places, and taste new foods that I would normally had never of ordered for myself. It has also forced me to jump out of my comfort zone by traveling solo in the unknown, attending events without knowing anyone there, having to talk about myself (which I know seems silly since I write about myself all of the time, but words flow so much easier for me when typed up with images that I choose to share).

It’s been extremely rewarding for me both professionally and personally. I’ve made several good acquaintances and friends.

I’ve had the opportunity to attend several events at Whole Foods Market lately. They do an amazing job here to get community involvement together and really have some fun things going on! Thursday evening I was invited to a Brew Dinner with Fort George Brewery and all of the stars aligned and I was able to attend. I live about 30 miles from Portland, so mileage wise it’s not that bad, but the traffic can be nasty at times, and unfortunately Thursday was one of them. It took a total of an hour and forty minutes to travel those 30 miles, and I was stressed out because I was going to be late, and I hate being late. It’s like I get a flashback to my childhood, when I had to stand up in front of the class or something and all eyes were on me.

For a moment I thought about not going. I knew I was going to be at least 15 minutes late for the dinner, but I swallowed my anxiety and plunged forward. I couldn’t just not show up after I had RSVP’d.

I was so glad I went.

I arrived during the first course and everyone was seated at a community table and I quickly spotted another blogger that I knew – but there were no seats next to her so I snagged one of the three available ones left. I was greeted with an Artisan Cheese Plate and their Quick Wit beer which turned out to be one of the best beers I have ever had.

Next up was Halibut with tomatoes, potatoes, and sherry bacon vinaigrette paired with a glass of Tripel Au Poivre. I am not much of a seafood or fish eater with the exception of smoked salmon, but the halibut was great because it didn’t have a fishy flavor and the sherry bacon vinaigrette with the vegetables was delicious.