If you've made it to this page, either you want to know more about my life and why I started this blog, or you just clicked on the wrong link... either way, I hope you will stick around and find out a little more about the living, breathing person behind these words!
My name is Terri Rogers, and am from Knoxville, Tennessee. I am currently living in Vienna, Austria as part of a 6 month expat assignment for my hubby's job. Hubby and I have been married for almost 4 years, and we are proud parents to 2 fur kids, Lucy and Toby. Check out the personal photos page to learn more about our family and friends and the people who inspire us!
I write this blog as a form of therapy and as a creative outlet to share my love of food with more people. Here's a little more about my story and what I mean by the "power of food."
Let's face it- food is comforting. It's remarkable how that comfort varies from person to person as we get older. For some, the comfort comes in the form of a favorite dish at grandma's house. That same dish may one day comfort your own family as you carry the tradition through generations.
For some people, food takes over the role of friend. It can literally take on the role of comforter, protector, and companion. When no one else is there to share your good days and bad, food always is. For those people, every mood, action and day is planned around food.
For true 'foodies' and chefs, simply the smell of your favorite or prized ingredient can drive you mad and take you to a place of pure euphoria. The fact that you can take a few humble things from your back yard and turn them into a five star meal worthy of praise by James Beard himself is a comfort like no other.
Food isn't always comforting, and for some it is the most uncomfortable subject there is. For those afflicted with eating disorders and body image disorders, the thought of eating even the healthiest of meals can send them into full blown panic attacks. I know, because I suffered this fear for 9 years of my life. I was so afraid of getting fat, that I would refuse to eat, then lie and say I had already eaten. At my lowest point, I would binge and purge up to 12 times a day. It was a horrible time for me, because I really, really, loved food. Even during this process I would still make huge meals for my family, and watch silently as they ate them. Every day was like torture as my mind told me that I could never love food again if I wanted to look like the image I had in my mind. I believed that lie for years, then one day decided enough was enough.
I met my husband, who still tells me every single day that I am beautiful. He proposed, and I got busy planning a wedding, and moved on with my life. The feelings were still in the back of my mind, so I decided to talk to a nutritionist and food counselor. I told her how much I loved food, and she quickly suggested that I start doing something creative with food and learn how to approach it in a different way. Thus, my first venture in cake decorating was born- and look at it now!
We decided that once I got comfortable with food again, that I should actively pursue culinary school. Hoping that it would be a good way for me to appreciate food again, I enrolled at UT, took the courses, met some amazing people, and rekindled my love affair with food and eating. One year later, I'm 30 pounds heavier, and on a journey to find the happy medium between starving myself and being a chef who feels the need to eat all of everything that I create!
So, here we are. Now that you know my story, I hope you can appreciate the struggles that I go through on this journey every day. I can assure you it will be a bumpy ride, but here's hoping we can get through it together!
Cheers!
