In high school there were the cool kids and I really ached to be one of them but it was never meant to be. I accepted it and then, I made some of the best friends I will ever have. I am finding that the world of food and foodies in Kansas City also has it's cool kids clique too and I know in my heart I will never ever be one of them, as much as I want to, and I'm trying to accept it. When I lived in Seattle I loved my Pikes Place Market. The moment you touch your toe on that street you belonged, you are one of us the stalls seemed to whisper. Not so much in Kansas, it's just a gut feeling.
As my family approaches our 5 year anniversary in Kansas City I realize there is something I'm missing. A circle of foodie friends. The kind of friends you'd throw a Caribbean themed party in the deepest, darkest part of winter for. The kind of friends who would understand and share your joy when you have been given a 30 year old Single Malt Scotch. I had that in Seattle. Lots of foodie friends. They are hard to meet and become friends with, they are busy (being foodies). I think I had an epiphany as to why our paths don't cross. Keeping in mind I am cool, I met and chatted with Julia Child. I worked with Martha Stewart, and I can make puff pastry from scratch (although I choose not to do that ever again).
Here is a list that I think I need to conquer first.
- I thought the Slow Food movement was a burgeoning interest in Crock Pot cookery.
- I can't afford Organic Farmer's Markets.
- Farm to Market?
- Soil to Plate?
- Dirt to Fork?
- Eating Local means something from my garden or walking to the Blue Moose so I can drink and walk.
- I'll never join the Kansas City Food Circle or go to Bliss Fest.
- I'll never grow heirloom tomatoes, just Bob's Big Boy Beefsteak tomatoes, because the word Bob makes me think of my Dad.
- My daughter will never have an herb stand in lieu of a lemonade stand. That ship has sailed, no matter how much I dream about it.
- I don't twitter about what I eat, yes, I'll eat fresh figs and goat cheese, but I also enjoy Lucky Charms cereal. My dog twitters, what she is doing is fascinating and riveting (@StellaDuCharme ). Twitters are for people who say things like "Using SPARQL and SPIN for Data Quality Mgmt on the Semantic Web" ( @bobdc for the geeks that understood that).
- I'll never be able to afford a dinner at Justice Drugstore.
- I've never been off this continent so I can't start a conversation "Last time I was in Madrid.."
- I'll never leave a corporate life to celebrate food and “Beyond Organic” practices and I'll couldn't pull off Overalls in a cute free spirit manner.
- I already know how to make scones (see scone blog) so I can't hang out with my cool foodie friends at scone class.
- I shop at the Price Chopper in Roeland park for prices and selection of food for my Mexican Husband, and not on an ethereal quest for “queso fresco crema blanca de Oaxaca”,
- I'll never create or even join an Underground Supper Club, as much as I dream about discussing the ethical connotations of Froi Gras with Anthony Bourdain.
When and if I manage to join the circle, I'm sure I'll need a new wardrobe and that's a whole other can of worms.
