Unusual for me to post two days in a row, I know. But I’m wallowing in a sort of philosophical conundrum that I’d be interested in hearing your views on.
My head is spinning from all the fantastic presentations going on here at IACP, many on blogging and New Media. Some of the blogs were already on my radar and frequent destinations of mine (serious eats, chez pim, aroma cucina) and some are new to me (the kitchn at apartment therapy, spices of life, rancho gordo). I’ve had a ball meeting the people behind them all.
So here’s the conundrum.
I was craving a po-boy (I’ve had a cold and haven’t eaten much, as strange as that sounds in New Orleans, so I was jonesing for comfort food). So I went to what used to be my hole-in-the-wall-joint of choice—Mother’s. Only it’s become a tourist spot and there was a line snaking out the door. No thanks.
I stood on the corner and scrolled through my Blackberry (why did it take me so long to get on the Blackberry wagon?) for an e-mail from my New Orleanian friend, Jason, with places I should hit while in town. In the list, he mentioned Deanies. So I googled the place and gave them a call. Yes, they had po-boys. Yes, “honey,” they were still open.
So I hiked half-way across town in heels to a nondescript place with plastic trays. The lady behind the counter greeted me with, “hi honey, what can I get you.” It was perfect. The catfish was crisp, the roll tender and soft inside yet with a thin, chewy crust. The tangy sauce—one of my favorite aspects of a “dressed” po-boy—had just the perfect amount of vinegar for my taste and blended with the shredded lettuce and a few shakes of Tabasco to create a makeshift slaw on the roll. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and walked out feeling oh so much better.
Until I was three blocks away and realized I hadn’t taken one dang photo. That made me feel like a bad blogger. And yet, if I had been thinking about writing a blog post when I was there, would my experience have been as satisfying? Having been a food and travel writer for many years, I’m used to tuning into details to make a story come alive. But there’s something different about blogging, in that it’s so immediate, so microscopically focused on one moment at a time. And that’s not a bad thing, it’s just something I’m still getting used to and have to check myself on every once in a while.
How do you guys feel about this? Do you find blogging about something enhances or dilutes the experience itself, or even a little of both?
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I had to think a bit about this one and I think it all depends on the context. I never do restaurant reviews or the like on my blog (but I am thankful for those that do). I like to just take that whole experience in, and I’ll do my best to remember the new ideas I encounter in a well prepared meal so I can try to put my own twist on it later, but it ends there. I figure I’m so busy dissecting every meal I put together at home, eating out at a nice place is a sacrosanct thing, but that might just be my weird personal philosophy. I think I’d have a tougher time coming up with good stuff to write about and it would probably take away from my personal enjoyment, but this also goes hand in hand with the fact that I am most definitely not a spectacular writer by any means.
But then there’s cooking at home. For me, I find that blogging about that has been a fantastic thing for me. I used to cook a little here and there, but by forcing myself to analyze, plan, and discuss what I did, I’ve grown a lot and I feel like I make much better decisions about my food and I get to engage in conversations with many other talented home/pro cooks out there with it all laid out bare which has been invaluable.
So I guess for me, the thing to take from it all: all in moderation. After having a number of projects (e.g. blogs) I started and lost interest in over time, I tell myself: blog for fun, don’t have fun to blog.
Well, Lia honey,
I read this twice, and I think you answered your own question. You are either wholly in the po-boy present or partially out of it. You jes’ can’t have it both ways. But mixing pleasures is as reasonable as mixing catfish and slaw, yes?
I agree with Mike and Rosemary. And you have to choose which experiences where you want to be wholly present and those that are ok to be there partially. I can’t imagine making notes while eating a great meal or enjoying conversation with good friends and so I share Mike’s “weird personal philosophy”. I don’t blog either . . . although I do belong to a nursing website where I post, mostly on political issues. On my trip to Vietnam, I did keep a notebook and jotted something every day so I could look back and write more extensively. I was amazed when reading my notes how much I would have forgotten had I not written something. Now, I’m getting hungry . . . . . steph
For me, it can enhance the pleasure, but I don’t tend to do a lot of real-time blogging. No restaurant reviews, and not all that many recipe/photo combos. I blog to create a conversation, so I tend to view my experiences in that vein - how will sharing this enhance the conversation or more simply “is this something that would be fun to share with my readers?”. My blog is simply a hobby though, I’m not trying to earn any revenue, so I can freely blog, or not, as I choose. I’m a bit of a hypocrite though, since I do enjoy others’ live blogging.
When I was younger I used to be the one at the parties taking the pictures. When I would get them developed I noticed that I was never in them, I was watching other people having fun. I finally realized that there is a balance of actually living and capturing the moment to share with others.
I just posted a blog in response to this post…. I believe that it basically all comes down to enjoying life the way you want to without having it pass by.
Like Mike, I don’t ever blog about restaurant experiences..only things I make myself. Partially because we don’t eat out very often, and partially because I DO think I might have some difficulty “savoring” the experience - though I admire and appreciate those who do restaurant reviews on their blogs. At my house, the most difficult thing to contend with is waiting to eat something until I get that perfect photo - especially if I have guests. I’ve learned to let that go a bit and realize that it’s not the end of the world if I don’t get a photo of EVERYTHING that comes out of the kitchen - sometimes it’s more important to enjoy the food itself, and of course, the company.
I was just in New Orleans two weeks ago. I made the mistake of waiting in line for Mother’s. It wasn’t what I remembered it to be. Deanie’s was great though. I love down-home cooking.
I struggle with this topic. I have taken two weeks off from blogging, entirely unintentionally, and I have to say I have enjoyed wine and eating out much more. It is mentally taxing to be thinking about your blog while doing something.
I do it in stages: pay close attention to the details for a few minutes; then put the blog out of my mind and concentrate on the pleasure.
Then the next day, I go over it, in my mind, so I don’t forget anything. I never take notes, and, only maybe, 1 photo at the start.
What an awesome conversation we have going here! I love hearing everyone’s perspective on this.
Mike . . . I love your mantra, “blog for fun, don’t have fun to blog.” It keeps it real. Thanks for sharing.
Rosemary . . . Everything about your comment is precioius. You are adorable.
Steph . . . And there’s the conundrum of how much is forgotten if it’s not written down . . .
Robin . . . I think I tend to view blogging more as you do. I’ll ponder something for a while in a larger context and then capture it in a post to spark conversation. And you’re right, there’s a big difference between that approach and sort of in-the-moment blogging.
Shana . . . What a great illustration.
Elisabeth . . . I still haven’t got the take-a-photo instinct embedded yet. Even when I’m cooking at home, I’ll clean my plate and think, “what a great dish,” and then lament that I didn’t take a photo to post. Any suggestions for getting in the habit? Or is it just practice?
Steve . . . I’m so glad you made it to Deanie’s! You didn’t happen to snap a pic, per chance, did you?
And I agree, blogging can become pervasive–and invasive–when you’re thinking about it all the time . . . and maybe Katie’s method is one answer on how to balance.
I love Shana’s illustration too . . . as to writing things down, I am grateful my daughter was beside me in Vietnam also keeping a journal. One thing we both wrote about was on the 4th of July, as we drove through the mountains “home” after a long clinic day, a storm pounded us and lightening flashed in a way I’ve never seen . . . our own special fireworks. I’m still hungry.
You’ve posted a very interesting question and one I’m sure most people who spend time blogging have thought about. I don’t draw hard lines. Sometimes, I’m in the mood where paying attention to blog issues is important, and sometimes I’d rather be more in the moment. It’s like Justice Potter said about pornography, I know it when I see it - in this case, “it” being the frame of mind necessary to catalog information.
You also wonder about getting in the habit of taking photos of dinner. I try to keep my tripod visible and convenient which is a helpful reminder to take pictures.
If I make enough food for there to be leftovers, I take pictures before I put the food away, as I’m cleaning the kitchen. If there is only enough for dinner, I take them before. After awhile, it becomes an easy habit. I end up photographing lots of things I don’t write about, but it doesn’t matter because it means I will have pictures of everything I do want to write about.
Hey there,
I’m fairly new to blogging so I can say that yes, I do sometimes find blogging a bit intrusive to enjoying food experiences. More than once I’ve had to ask people to “Wait! Don’t eat that yet!” So that I could get a picture. Needless to say, this interupts the seamless enjoyment of eating.
The other comment I’d make is that blogging about food adds complexity to otherwise easy party preparation. I found that the day of my Scotch tasting (http://danamccauley.wordpress.com/2008/03/17/scotch-tasting-and-its-connection-to-butterscotch/ , http://danamccauley.wordpress.com/2008/03/20/an-easy-appetizer-for-the-weekend/ )that I had to build in time for photos. Once I got started the chairs were distracting so I had to move them all and then move them back when I was done…In a way it’s all worth it though since now I have much better pictures of the set up than I would have bothered to take if I hadn’t planned to blog about the party.
And that, is my .02$ on that!
Steph . . . What a lovely image!
Laurie . . . Those are great tips, thank you! I think it’s even more the photography that throws me off than the writing. So I really appreciate your advice.
Dana . . . I so know what you mean! Last weekend, I had a bottle of CDB rose on the table with some mortadella and jamon serrano and the sun happened to be shining in just a certain way that it illuminated the wine and just made a gorgeous composition with the meats. So I made my husband wait on the salumi course while I snapped away!
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