…and now for something completely different

by Stacy

When I started this blog it was mainly to combat boredom. In my freelance theater work I had weeks –sometimes even months– between jobs; I went from working six days a week, up to eighteen hours a day, to unemployed for what felt like a million years. Since I was already home I might as well cook and bake, right? And since I had the time, I might as well challenge myself to make more complicated dishes.

What a slippery slope that was.

It is rapidly approaching one year since I quietly launched Little Blue Hen to an audience of three, and in that year I have learned a lot. I’ve typed a lot. I’ve taken a lot of photos, most of them bad. Meals have been cooked and over-cooked. I’ve over-proofed more than half the loaves of bread I have baked in the last three months. Pie crust and pasta and tortillas have been rolled, cooked, and devoured. I’ve packed up and moved across the country. Vegetables and herbs have been grown on very different balconies. I’ve read a lot of advice, tutorials, forums, other blogs, and FAQs.

And for the last half of the year, I’ve been mostly unemployed. Though I started the blog to help fill those times, this has been a long stretch which hasn’t been easy for me. I was frustrated and unmotivated and needed something else.

books

On May 3 I officially start “classes” for the distance learning program with the Institute for Integrative Nutrition to become a certified health coach. It’s a professional training program where I’ll be learning about how food and lifestyle affect people’s health, happiness, and well-being. I’ll also learn how to counsel other people to improve their lives and reach their health goals.

Starting this blog was instrumental in getting me interested in health, nutrition, and a holistic approach to well-being. Sometimes it seems like a totally logical step. Sometimes it’s a little scary. But I’m excited.

Does that mean I will stop posting marathons of dessert recipes? Probably not. I’m sure the curriculum will influence my posting, but eating healthy doesn’t mean a salad- (or anything-) only diet. If anything I am looking forward to improving the quality of the information in my posts through these classes and I hope you find it rewarding.

In other news, I have still been sending out resumes and I did get a job offer for a show that starts rehearsal in August. I am hoping to fill in the months between now and then with other opportunities.

I’m also writing content for another site and you can see my first “published” article here at GreenDivaMom.com.

So thank you for visiting my little site and I will keep trying to improve it. If you have any questions, please leave a comment or send me an email — I love feedback! If you have any questions about health coaching, definitely let me know, and I will keep posting information as my program progresses.

{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }

Mimi April 17, 2010 at 8:38 am

Congratulations Stacey. I looked into going into nutrition and was thinking for about ten seconds about becoming a registered dietition, but then someone I asked a question to on a forum emailed me with stories of having to force feed the elderly at rest homes and it put a damper on it for me. I’ll be interested to see where your journey takes you. Your studies sound more like what I envisioned from a health study program. I’m going on a year of unemployment and I have no direction for my life. Ugh. It’s nice to see that someone has things together! 😀

Reply

stacy April 17, 2010 at 7:56 pm

Thanks, Mimi. =) I also considered something similar to what you mention but this seemed more aligned with my interests. After emailing with some alumni I just had a positive feeling about the program and decided to take the plunge. I was starting to feel like unemployment was turning my brain to mush and I needed some purpose, even if I don’t have a specific goal — yet. And I’m glad you think I have things together! ;p

Reply

Kathie April 18, 2010 at 7:07 pm

This is so very awesome. Go you, congrats!

Reply

stacy April 18, 2010 at 10:19 pm

Thanks, Kathie. =)

Reply

Justin April 19, 2010 at 7:52 am

This is super cool! It sounds interesting. I hope you find it interesting and enjoyable.

Reply

Leave a Comment

CommentLuv badge

{ 5 trackbacks }

Previous post:

Next post: