Hello!
It’s 2018. Let’s just all take that in for a moment. (Extremely long pause while taking another bite of my chocolate bar...oops! #promisedhealthysnacking) Each year it just gets faster and faster that I can barely keep up. Less than a week it will be March!
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and New Year celebrating with friends and family. There is just something about the start of the year that gets me very excited. It’s a fresh start. A time to set some goals whether it be daily/monthly/yearly. A time to really sit down and think about what you want out of life. I really never had goals to aim for.
A few years back I was just really living everyday. I didn’t have many life changing goals. Nothing. I didn’t know where I wanted to go, although I did know there was something so much more out there for me... I just didn’t know how to get there. Then one gloomy day in September 2016 I had a thought. I knew I liked cooking and I was always camera snap happy. I was one of those annoying people who would take 5000 shots of their plate prior to eating. So one afternoon going through another day of watching another shitty show on Nexflix, I decided to write. I’d heard of a blog before but didn’t really know how to start one. I mean who in the hell would want to hear what I had to say? None the less I decided to give it a go. I had nothing to lose.
A few months later, The Delightful Cook was launched and a year on it’s been one of the most incredible things I’ve ever pursued in my life. It’s given me a sense of purpose. A chance to express my creativity and most of all it’s taken control of my life. It's that job that you look forward to getting up for in the morning.
So I thought I would start this year off with a little Q & A from some of the questions I've received over the last few months. I've never been really comfortable talking about myself but sometimes you need to step out of your comfort zone and just do. So with that I give you guys a chance to get to know me just that little bit better... Sarcasm and all!
1. I’m 32 and I’m still single. I just celebrated my 32nd birthday in January and yes I still haven’t found that someone special. The truth is right now I’m not really fussed and I love how things are going. I was in a long term relationship for 8 years which ended horribly on my end. I was taken on an emotional roller coaster for a long time and basically ended up getting hurt and left to pick up the pieces. To start a brand new life. It was hard but I got there. That was almost 3 years ago and right now I’ve never felt so free. It's amazing when toxic people no longer rule your life. Never to settle for someone who treats you like an after thought. So in saying that, I'm just enjoying the single life for what it is. The right man will come along when the time is right, until then I'm just enjoying the ride!
2. I have completed both the 21km and 42km Melbourne marathons. My very first 21km was back in 2015 and the big one – the 42km in 2016. Why, you may ask? Well, the very first 21km I did was in the same year I had broken up with my ex. The reason behind it was I told that I was never really dedicated to anything and didn’t see the majority of things out. Well in other words “You can’t do what I do” and “You're just not built for that” So that was my motivation for signing up. Petty I know, but at the time that’s how I coped. The second was just that little more personal. I had suffered a lot of anxiety during that breakup that lead to many sleepless nights, stress, not eating and smoking which continued into that following year - not a great way to be. Until one day I stopped giving power to all that toxic shit. Probably the best thing I've ever done. So, I guess me completing the marathon was kind of like a new beginning. I may not have been the fastest on the track but I promised myself I would cross that line and finish no matter what. When I did I felt like I was floating on air.
3. Growing up in a large Italian family, you’re basically surrounded by breads and pasta from birth. Lucky, these are my two are favourite foods. My family is big and I mean BIG so, family gatherings were always a massive thing and growing up, and dinner was always the number one meal. I have a few chefs in the family so I definitely had a great starting point - not to mention my Nonna (the Matriarch) who really taught me the fundamentals about cooking at a very young age. Over the years her meals range from homemade pastas and pizzas to delicious poultry and meats to fresh seafood and salads which she will still always ask each and every one of us if we have eaten enough. She's still a gun at 81! I hope to continue the tradition once I have my own family. Wishing my future husband the very best of luck.. You'll be kept well fed!
4. Those of you that know me know that I am a massive movie buff. I'm not talking about a specific era or genre.. I mean EVERYTHING! But my special talent is that I'm very good at remembering lines and long speeches from movies. As a kid I would recite scenes from movies and television shows to my family and friends, covering every voice and action in the scene. I must've sent my family bonkers growing up! My favourite to this day would have to be Eddie Murphy's "Coming to America" & "Trading Places." They really don't make movies like they used to.
5.When you're a kid you constantly get asked the question "What do you want to be when you grow up?" Most kids would answer with the most random thing but when I was younger I wanted to be an actor, which kind of makes sense after reading question #3. All throughout primary/high school, mum played taxi driver, dropping off and picking up several times a week. Since the age of 7-21 I've performed in endless productions, showcasing my singing, dancing and acting skills in front of thousands of bright lights and people. It came to a halt one day where I didn't really have time for it anymore. I actually miss it a hell of a lot. They say that you are never too old to start something new... I guess time will tell
6. I own my own house right now but it's not my dream home. This may sound crazy but I already have plans drawn up of what my future home will look like. The power of visualisation is unbelievable! At home, I have turned a spare bedroom into an office/studio where I can work, and looking right at me is my vision board. If you want things in life you need to act as if you're already living that life, even if you don't have it.
7. I love a great book. I'll read everything and anything I can get my hands on. You name it, cooking, fiction, non-fiction, biographies, auto-biographies, adventure, travel and so many more! My love of reading began at the age of 7 where I would always take home books from the school library, read that night and return the next day, only to borrow more. Now that I live on my own I find myself reading multiple books at the one time. I can always find the time to nestle into a great book.
So, that's a few things you didn't know about me and I hope you all enjoyed getting to know me that little bit more.
Keep your questions coming. Your support inspires me to continue…
Caroline x