The Members

So we now have all five members of the club.  I thought you might like to know a little about each of us. 

R and I met through a mutual friend.  It turns out we have the same car.  She’s originally from NY but has lived in Seattle for about 8 years now.  Her mom used to work in the test kitchens for Ladies Home Journal, so cooking and experimenting have always been a part of her life.  I think she has been exposed to more food stuff than most of us.  I’d say she has the most sophisticated palate of the group. When we met she was working for a PR firm but left a few months ago.  She is currently at Amazon working on a top secret project!  She loves books and writing and writers.  She hopes to have her own magazine someday. 

M and I met when we worked together at a large, local software company.  But we really weren’t friends then and we don’t know why!  However, there was another woman we were both friends with and in doing things with her we eventually became great friends.  We have the same birthday and we are both big Mariner fans.  M is half Japanese and grew up eating mostly Japanese meals.  She thinks meatloaf is very exotic!  She’s originally from California and has also lived in NY.  She’s been in Seattle about 7 years and loves it here the best.  We often meet at Farmer’s Markets on the weekends to do our shopping.  She has her own company and does different things that generally fall under the umbrella of online marketing. 

K and I have known each other for over 15 years!  She used to date a guy I worked with and was friends with.  The first time I went to NY, K and the guy met me there.  It was her first time in NY, too.  Over the years we’ve golfed together (she still plays, I don’t really) and we’re part of a group of women who used to work together and still meet once a month to catch up.  K has a secret that I’ve discovered through this cooking club.  She is a closet picky eater!  I’m not sure the others have really figured it out yet.  You can sometimes find her pushing items around her plate as she pretends to be enjoying them!  However, I was happy on the day we had caviar – I got to eat some of hers!  K works for a commercial real estate company and is always buying or selling something.

V is the youngest of the group.  I met her through M.  They both teach Bikram’s Yoga (hot yoga).  V is like me in that she has lots of dish sets.  We like using different sets for different occasions!  She has always cooked a lot and does nice things like cooks for her friends after they run the Seattle Marathon!  She’s a very busy person.  She works for an investment firm and is working on getting professional designations – her classes and studies take up quite a lot of time.  She also belongs to a book club.  V is from Seattle but lived in Montana for a couple years.  I’m pretty sure she’s happy to be back!  Most of her family is around the area and they have lots of family traditions around the holidays.

Then there’s me. I’m B. I’ve been cooking as long as I can remember.  I am the oldest of four, so it was up to me to get dinner started while my mom was taking care of the younger kids.  We also baked lots of cookies and pies at my house.  In the summers we canned or froze fruits and vegetables, many that we grew ourselves.  I’m originally from Salem, Oregon but have lived in Seattle for over 20 years.  Cooking, eating, and sharing it all with friends makes me amazingly happy.  A little over a year ago I left my job at that software company and took some time off.  I’m now back looking for work.  I’m focused on a local coffee company you may have heard of, Starbucks.  I think it’s a good place for me to work with food and yet use my experience in business and technical processes.  Do you work there?  I’m always interested in talking to people about the company!