There’s something about the fact that I’m taking an at-home class for cooking from a world-renowned french cuisine Chef that’s feeling like got an uncomfortable “rich people things” vibe to it.

It makes me think about a New Yorker article about the “Joylessness of Cooking”. In theory, I love to cook. It’s a way of peering through time and culture to see how different people live and have lived.

Those of us that still have stable incomes can often find far more ingredients than ever before. In New York City there’s Chef Collective seeing even better stock because many restaurants have shuttered or are generally seeing fewer customers. Some restaurants, like Xi’an Famous Foods, have even pivoted to selling “kits” instead of doing delivery because their foods don’t work well with delivery.

The article points out a book - How to Cook a Wolf by MFK Fisher. The book through dealing with shortages and difficulties that existed when cooking during World War 2. I am so grateful that my life is in a place where the feeling of hunger is a choice rather than a fact of life. I picked up a copy of the book. I’m really looking forward to reading it.

In theory, I love to cook. In practice, I’ve been cooking far too often to truly enjoy it. I have always had an extreme respect for my mother and father. We cooked food at home every single day while I was growing up - sometimes out of necessity. We didn’t do fast food, and we very rarely ate at restaurants or had takeout. They followed through with that to make sure there was food on the table & dealt with getting children to eat that food.

I really do love cooking - just.. in theory. In practice, I can’t wait to make it an exciting optional activity like this cooking class I’m taking. I’ve registered to the wait list for the vaccine and boy am I looking forward to that.