How did I get here?

As I stepped outside my front door today, I got smacked in the face with the sweet stench of fried food. Unfortunately, it came from the local Wendy's located around the corner. But,  I immediately flashed back to my County Fair days. Yep--I showed horses at the local county fair. Rode them, bathed them, jumped them, raced them and (occasionally) won a ribbon in some Equestrian classes. At one point, I was even the Treasurer of my 4-H club. But, as I inhaled the first chest-full of that greasy aroma outside my front door today, horses were not the first thing that popped into my head. I thought of the love/hate relationship I had with the county fair and my (and everyone else's maybe?) bizarre fascination with the despicable, devilish but lusted-after, "county fair" food.

Fried cheese on a stick, foot-long hotdogs, the Slushy, Lemon "shake-ups", Elephant Ears, Funnel cakes, Polish Sausage, greasy burgers, deluxe onion rings, chili-cheese fries...should I keep going? Believe me--I could. No other food aroma (except my Polish Grandma's peirogies) can take me back to such a happy, awkward, bitter-sweet time in my life. Back to when time stood still, when I didnt get the "big-picture" and when winning a ribbon in some class wasnt more important than seeing my friends on the fairway that night. This is when my love for food, in all its greasy glory, was born.

So, you may be wondering how I got to where I am now? I am obviously not a chef--although I thought about it for a brief moment. Then, I realized that I didnt want to spend my nights and weekends sweating over some grill or fire--I wanted to be back on that Fairway again! I wanted to be in the middle of it all! I didnt want to be behind the scenes. I didnt want to be some ghost face in the crowd, no regular Joe. I wanted to be bigger, better, more enticing and most of all--I wanted to put a dent in it all. Not a scratch--a DENT!

Two colleges and two majors later, I have happily decided (and rested upon) doing my own thing. No college degree, time card or monthly evaluations required. You cant tell me what to do, you cant tell me how to do it and you cant tell me when its due (unless I agree to it, of course). So, I merged my love for Culinary Arts, Design, Fashion and Hair into one pretty amazing package. Me. Take it or leave it. Love me or hate me. But, at least I get to enjoy myself on the Fairway again. Lights, food, art, action...all wrapped up into one helluva good time.

Hello...my name is Erin. Nice to meet you.