(No this is not me in the picture. This is my Mom and my cousin...however it could have been me topless because I was born in 1975 and I was allowed to not wear clothes.)

So I was raised by a single Mom who made the decision to dedicate her entire life to providing me with childhood happiness and entertainment. She was the type of carefree Mom who let life be one big experience and lesson-whether it was taking me to places that most kids didn't go like hippie hangouts at The Plaza in Arcata, Bonnie Raitt (sp?) concerts or the Cadillac Bar in SF to showing me culture like The Nutcracker in NY, amazing restaurants everywhere we went or just letting me be a kid with a wild imagination and a lack of inhibition that we all lose way too early. I had an amazing childhood! She taught me how to live and how to cherish every experience, how to be independent in thought and action and how to truly be passionate about the one life you have. She taught me how to appreciate people...all people...and how to learn from every interaction...and that life was the biggest school you could ever want.

My Mom was born and raised in NJ. She moved to California when she was 6 months pregnant with me with a group of friends and lived on a "farm" when I was born in Humboldt County. She loves to tell people that she was watching "Born Free" when she went into labor with me...and damn that movie couldn't be any more indicative of my attitude towards life. She was amazingly laid back and there are countless stories about her taking me out and forgetting to bring me diapers or a change of clothes and her friends having to run to the store to keep me happy and content. I was born in 1975 so we had the 1970's lifestyle as I had some hideous clothes complete with embroidery and mirrors...yes I said mirrors...yes on a dress...love it! We tried to grow our own food, we had goats and chickens and we had a family of friends who had afros and looked like transients even though they weren't. She called my temper tantrums creative outlets...seriously I was a little spoiled bitch is what I was. But I had fun and I was allowed to be a kid! I was allowed to have imaginary friends...and seriously if it wasn't so creepy I would still have them today. I was allowed to explore...whether it was hiking in the forest, getting my first black eye at the age of 2 on the beach (self-inflicted don't worry) or taking over our kitchen and making it into a restaurant and I was happy.

As I have mentioned before my Mom and her family of friends taught me everything I know about food. And even tonight I was talking to her and she taught me something else. So as you know my battle with minestrone soup continues and I asked her why does my pasta keep absorbing all of my broth and taking away the soup texture. And she said "well dear you need to cook the pasta separate and add it in at the end." Oh well that would have been nice to know 2 minestrones ago...however thought I would pass that on so you don't make my same mistakes.

Here are some other food lessons that I learned from my Mom and my family

1. There is nothing better than the smell of onions and garlic sauteing in olive oil. And every time I smell it I remember my childhood (like right now as I cook chili and write this)

2. Fresh food is the only food. I learned about Farmers Markets and the bounty of the Earth at a young age and its true. Food that is fresh and close to the source is so much better and better for you. I still to this day love going to the Farmers Markets and supporting farmers directly, knowing where my food came from and knowing that it was recently picked

3. Food that is made with love is so much better and better for you. I remember countless meals where they would spend hours preparing a serving a feast-worrying about taste, texture, theme and pairing. However, now that I live far away from them I would kill for pasta on a Sunday night or fresh crab with butter in December or scallops breaded and cooked in olive oil during Dynasty nights at Carol's.

4. To appreciate wine. Sure we all went through the tequila stage in our lives...where all you want was to feel that buzz and feel it quickly. But I was raised on the beauty of wine and the symbolism associated with savoring a good glass of vino accompanied with good food. And once I threw up tequila and Tabasco shots one night (at about the age of 21) I realized that wine is classy and way more accommodating and more my style.

So thank you Mom for teaching me the finer things in life and showing me the eclectic parts of the world. For my life experiences I am forever thankful. Cheers!