Blog Aid 2010: Haiti

I follow A LOT of foodie blogs, hardly a day does not go by that I don't catch up on all my favorites. I will drop what I am doing and be whisked away to a kitchen across the country or across the world and see what they have cooked, baked or mixed. I LOVE it these days. I feel as if I am discovering this underground culture, a group of peers all talented and incredibly passionate about food, writing and which creates this strong community that supports its self. I aspire to reach the level of beauty and creativity that many of these people/sites produce.

This was in network proved to be strong and thoughtful with the amazing feat of creating a beautiful cookbook in three weeks with the proceeds going to Haiti. Julie Van Rosendall from Dinner with Julie is the brain child behind it all. It was released last night and this morning, I had to support such an effort and such a worthy cause. It is the least I can do. ALL of the proceeds from the cookbook will go directly to the Red Cross and Doctor’s Without Borders to assist in their efforts in Haiti. But it gets better: Both West Canadian Printing AND Blurb are matching the dollar amount of the proceeds raised, to TRIPLE those dollars going to Haiti. AND until February 12th, the Canadian government will match that!!!! So, we have the potential to raise quite a bit of money here.
It’s a POD (print-on-demand) system, meaning the books are printed and shipped as they’re ordered and arrive at your doorstep in about 8 days. You can purchase yours in softcover ($25US) HERE or as a hardcover ($50US) HERE.
For more on the book, including a complete list of contributors, click HERE.

Back to the blog

Wow, I have been sad to see the blog slip to the back burner. I guess that life has driven my passions elsewhere for a bit. As I flipped through several other great blogs I rekindled my love for blogging. Good thing only a few weeks have passed with only a slight notion of holding off on blogging. What was I thinking, I love my blog!
As I scrolled though numerous blogs, I tried to put my finger on what it was that attracted me to the idea of blogging. I have never been much of a writer, never journal (that was just a venue for my mom to snoop into my personal life), never wrote stories, just notes to girlfriends in the school years, I am not even a big reader. Then it hit me. I am a crafter/pack rat/dreamer/collector/adventurer. I love to read what people are up to, what they are cooking in their kitchens/what they are sewing/what they are stringing together, what they are listening to/watching/reading, what trails people have found/races/runs/climbs, what people feel/love/miss, what people value/cherish/love, what inspires/resonates/motivates, and according to John: what people want to spray about (this is not true!). I love blogs. I love to scroll through friends blogs, finding little treasures lost in cyberspace.
As I sit and wonder what makes a blog so interesting and worth any one's time I find one theme: a theme... I want to make my blog worthy of peoples' time. One day I could maybe even quit my day job and blog about my adventures with my sweetie. So any ideas on what I should focus on? Until then... it is just a whole lot of Michelle Stiles. Hey what is better than that? Hmmmm....