I didn’t really see this coming either. My resolution for 2012 was basically to “keep my eye upon the donut and not upon the hole.” Pretty innocuous, up-beat, and more of a mantra to enhance my parenting skills with positivity than anything to do with my food and social commentary. But, here I am, calling it quits, as of February 1st. Going on indefinite hiatus, putting this blog and the @RVAfoodie Twitter account in a time capsule to be revisited, maybe never.
I'd just run out of these Moo cards. Another sign to give it up.
Man, I’m gonna miss it. This thing has connected me to so many people, media outlets, restaurants, good guys and bad guys, the list is humbling. It’s really been my window to the world. What will come of all of my thoughts that percolate up and don’t get captured by my phone? Or the hot-button questions that need asking, that clearly concern a larger community? Will I lose my fascination with food if I drop the exhibitionism? I don’t know. But I do know that, besides the food thing, I have more interests and aspirations than I have time or energy for. And I pass up on so much, because I let the RVAfoodie priority push possibly more important things into the background. That’s reason enough to shake things up, redirect my focus, take inventory of the debts that I owe to myself and those close to me, and hopefully rediscover assets that I’ve probably forgotten.
Although I’m being vague about a complicated set of factors that have necessitated this decision, for those looking for a simple explanation, the biggest catalyst is that I’m starting a new day-job situation and need to give it my full attention. I’ve just ended over 10 years of public sector employment, supporting Virginia’s system of adult education (namely GED and literacy programs). And I’m going to work for a company providing online learning options toward the same goals of a GED credential and college and career readiness for people of all ages. My background in distance education and all this experience with social media makes me more than qualified. Now I’ve just got to make it work. It’s something I believe in, so I think I’m up to the task (contact me at guardjk – @ – gmail if this peaks your interest, or you have connections to pass along).
Yeah. My motivation is partly economic, as much as it is about trying a different approach to life in pursuit of a fresh perspective. I’m sure I could find time to squeeze in a scaled down amount of blogging and tweeting, but I’d rather not. I wanna see what life reveals to me while going cold-turkey from the habits (both bad and good) that went along with the extroverted food commentator hobby. It is ironic, though, that my consumer advocacy wound up being so damned consuming. Too bad I never bothered to monetize it, or make it truly sustainable, or establish any verifiable outcomes for the resume at the very least. Boo hoo hoo.
But don’t think for a second that I’m not proud of what I’ve achieved with this over the years, in part thanks to the participation of the commenters and guest bloggers who’ve contributed here. It’s been a real labor of love trying to balance my curious palate, the moving target of the public’s interest, and a healthy dose of my own politics. That’s why I don’t attribute an iota of this decision to a handful of detractors in the restaurant-bar scene, or the supposed alternative media, or the convenient overlap between the two. I’m okay with leaving a number of accounts unsettled and things on my todo list (though a few might get posted here before January is over). But mostly, I’m comfortable stepping back and letting other voices fill that void. There’s almost 80 food bloggers at EatingRichmond.com (and more on the verge of going public). So, keep an eye on that space. For anyone looking to pitch in, I’m pretty sure I’m gonna need someone else to step up and help the designer/programmer, David VanBlaricom, with that food blog aggregator.
This blog grew out of a relatively innocuous impulse, and at the urging of my wife: to try and share a food experience that I didn’t feel worthy of – a wedding present dinner at The Inn at Little Washington in 2006. I wanted my parents to be able to taste the fruits of their generous gift, if only vicariously. And I kinda felt like the experience would have been kinda wasted on me if I didn’t try to tell the tale. That last part has continued on throughout this blog and tweets. What’s it matter how much I enjoyed or puzzled over that or the subsequent thousands of food experiences, if I don’t find some way to share it? Just consume and forget? I guess I’ll be rediscovering that sensation come February, and ironically, my wife will breathe a sign of relief.
Hopefully, this site’s spirit of “frugality and uncouth social action” will find other outlets and spokespeople.
Thanks for reading and participating.
Jason Guard/RVAfoodie
Updated with a last hurrah of tweets on January 31:
RVAfoodie RVAfoodie
RVAfoodie RVAfoodie
Wow. You will be sorely missed both for your perspective and for the discussions that you have started to keep Richmond’s food scene moving along.
Actually, it’s not just the food scene here but you have stirred discussions on a lot of different subjects and always engaged the interest of your audience.
I imagine it can be very time consuming, though. All the best in anything that you do, and I hope you don’t fall off of virtual world entirely.
I don’t know if I believe in living without interacting, so we’ll see what happens. Community. Civic participation. Can’t get that stuff out of my blood, nor my creative impulse. But, not though this venue. We’ll see what happens.
Social media —> Social meditation.
(not really gonna do the namaste thing, just saying, I need to ruminate on it)
Jason–
While I will miss your blog, I am proud of you! I think it’s hard to turn away from extra-curricular passions and change the focus to your day job. You’re lucky you are passionate about that too!
I think what you’ve done for Richmond’s food & restaurant community is fantastic–the ability to get people talking is a really admirable trait.
It also looks like you and Karen have a big job ahead of you with that bathroom reno so it might be a good time for an Internet break.
Melissa/bunnycaper
Getting people talking. That’s a great point. In Richmond, with all the division, connecting people is pretty important. Not to be too high-minded about it, since I essentially played the role of throwing the first fist-full of mashed potatoes across the cafeteria to get the food fights started.
Good luck Killah. Thanks for everything!
Somebody asked me if the Farm to Family debate broke my blogging spirit. HELL NO. That couldn’t be farther from the truth! I’m so glad that this blog and Richmond at large, got to tackle that topic before I got out of the food discussion business. Richmond needed to air those grievances. We’ll see what comes of it. But, a more discerning customer base for farmers and their promoters has surely resulted. Thanks for being a part of that consensus process, Russell.
I will miss reading your posts and following your spicy discussions on twitter. All the best with new projects and adventures.
I want “Spicy” on this blog’s tombstone.
Oh, you will be missed! Good luck on your new job!
Veron: I’m leaving the food scene in good hands, namely yours. Both a producer and a consumer, I really think you’re blog/twitter output is underrated (@kitchenmusings yall). When I want restaurant recs, I’ll be pulling up your blog.
Jason, I can’t imagine the RVA food world without you! You have done so much for the food blogging community- we so appreciate you bringing us together on Eating Richmond and with the meetups you organized. We appreciate your drive, and hope we’ll see you ’round. Thank you so much for all of your support, and for your unique perspective. We’ll miss you!
Thanks Erin. I can’t wait to see what it all looks like from outside… from a safe distance.
Because of your twitter feed and this blog I would have never met you or made so many good friends as a result of your urging and advocacy. You are in my heart. Thank you for all you’ve done.
Well put, Kell.
Hear, hear.
I hope I’m not liable for the connections that resulted from people finding affinity on this blog. Anywho, Kelley, Paul, and Mark. You are three of my favorite people that I’ve met through food blogging.
I know it’ll sound cheesy, but that’s what final pages are for. Like in your senior yearbook: “Stay cool!” “Class of ‘92 RULZ” Oftentimes we fall into trite phrases and platitudes because we want to say something meaningful, but our words fail us.
As a vegetarians fond of progressive politicas and such, when returning to Richmond in 2007 (from Farmville, VA) Janet and I were ecstatic about the varieties of veggie-friendly restaurants in town, the new foods to try, and a sense that we actually belonged somewhere. But: we didn’t know many people here, and not being terribly outgoing we didn’t meet many people.
As we settled in, we ran across your blog and your Twitter account. As we read and interacted with you (and, later, Karen) we realized that there was an affinity between us that has become a friendship.
If not for this blog and the Twitter account that supplemented it, it’s likely we would never have met you guys. Or maybe we would have, but it would have taken much longer. We also would have missed out on some damn good food.
So: we’re glad you were here, and we’re sorry that soon you won’t be. You’ll have to keep in touch some other way…
Have a great summer. Class of 2012 RULZ.
Thanks for everything, it was EatingRichmond that got me excited about posting, and let me find so many other interesting food bloggers. Very cool job description, I’ve got some contacts on the disability employment world let me know if you need some help on that side.
Eugenio: Seeing you and your son preparing dinner and feasting on some very unvegetarian fare has been a highlight for me, and some good vicarious eating.
Best of luck on the new adventure. RVAfoodie will be missed.
HillsandHeights.org!
There are so many great people we wouldn’t have met, and great restaurants we wouldn’t have ventured to, if it hadn’t been for you! Thank you, friend!
One of those restaurants is my kitchen, and you’re always welcome there. (Mark too)
Careful about those invites…never know when we’ll just show up…
Will you at least let us know what good cheap veggie food you find? Offline, if need be.
You can’t leave the twitters!! Keep the twitters!! Although I will miss your blog. It did start a few interesting conversations. And pissing matches!
Measured praise. I’ll take it. The twitters are going to continue, just not as @RVAfoodie. I’ve got a couple other accounts for work and the community blog. Hopefully, those finally start to thrive.
I will definitely miss reading your posts. I remember really enjoying your “Is This Your Style” post. I’m sure I’ll see you at the market; you’ll have to fill me in on whatever you’re gritting on then.
I’m so glad that the “Is This Your Style” piece still sticks with people. We need to demand better of our media, alternative or otherwise. Hopefully, that paper gets a clue one of these days.
Jason, congratulations on the impact you’ve made and the relationships you’ve built. I know how cool it is to look back and (re)discover that you’ve been part of something amazing – and you’ve done exactly that. Good luck on the journey forward!
For those keeping score at home, that’s John Sarvay commenting. And, with his internet-famous Buttermilk and Molasses blog now in the Hall of Fame, I’ll take that praise as pretty fucking righteous. Thanks, John.
Good luck Jason! See ya round the eating scene. Your posts will be missed.
E.A.T.
Food is fun. Always will be. Might even be more fun without the iPhone all up in its business. We’ll see.
Sorry to see this project come to an end, but I understand about needing to re-prioritize. It’s been a real pleasure following your food exploits and I will definitely miss hearing about your future ones.
Great. Now I’m brainstorming things I can do once per day for 365 days per year. There goes my new found freedom!
Thanks for showing the blogging world how to do it in a thoughtful, insightful way. Don’t stop eating and drinking or drinking.
richmondwineculture.wordpress.com
Excited for your wine blogging output, Hank. I challenge you to do something for the value focused wine drinker one out of five posts. Cheers.
Jason – Wow. Didn’t see this coming. Selfishly I hate to see it end, you’ve turned me on to many cool eateries around RVA. But I’m sure I’ll see you and the family at the farmer’s market. Good luck!
Aaron, you broke my heart with that tweet you sent me last week (he said the blog has never been better and to keep up the good work). I almost blabbed to you. I’d already told people on Facebook, but they don’t care about RVAfoodie there. If it wasn’t clear, I’ve been trying to get some things out before stopping all posting. Anywho, it was good to meet up those couple times. Our paths will cross again.
Jason we just met you! I’m sorry to see you go, but being the optimist that I am, the “indefinite hiatus” doesn’t mean forever in my book. Good luck in everything you do and please don’t be a stranger.
Did Roma not tell you? I’m moving into your shop, possibly with both of my kids. Your tea has me hooked. I’ve had three flavors. That leaves 57 more for me to try when I need to escape the house. See you then. Good catch with my choice of words. I don’t think there’s anything that’s definite in life.
Jason, RVAfoodie may be gone, left us with “play it safe” food blogs, but the numerous discussions posted by your readers will live on in our conscience. Thanks for facilitating civic discourse over the years, and thanks for the obscure food finds recommendations. Good luck with your new endeavor, and enjoy the “normal life” from our side of the street.
Jason, who in the heck am I going to tweet when I bite into a fluffy falafel on the streets of NYC when we move this summer?!? Thanks for challenging the Richmond food scene to be better and for offering a medium by which people can learn more about the foods we eat in the city we love.
Now, with all this extra time on your hands, I really hope you’ll give the White House Roll another shot! One day, when you don’t feel like being a herbivore for the afternoon, get 1/4 pound country ham and a bag of White House – place a fatty slice of ham in the roll, repeat. That’s it. I’m a Richmond outsider and it may be my most favorite food in the city. It is the only thing my parents want me to bring to SC when I come visit. That, and Hanover Tomatoes.
Best of luck my friend. Stay hungry!
I have much hope this isn’t all for you.
However, if it is to be the end of your road, I hope you know how many of us enjoyed your journey.
Be proud of this work.
Good luck.
R
Dude! I just got “here.” Aye, aye, aye.
Ok. Weird. I hit submit and it said “duplicate response detected.” I was thinking, “I haven’t replied on this thread yet!” So, I changed it and it went through, only to see my original reply above it! Oh well. There, then. You get two.
No! I just got here! I was just getting comfortable around these parts, too. Guess us Texans smell or something.
an intermittent lurker and observer, i’ve greatly appreciated your providing a window into the richmond food zeitgeist.
happy trails in any and all future endeavors !
Best wishes and congrats! I’m sure this was like its own full-time job. More voices speaking up and out are always needed in this community, and I’m sure yours will continue in new and different ways..
Jason Guard I’ll try not to gush here but I have to say you and your blog totally changed my food life and career for the better. Ive been cooking for 15 years but mostly with my head down, obsessing over the food and neglecting how much more there is to being a chef. You single handedly brought me out of my shell not only by introducing me to others with similar passions and ideals but by chiding me for my hermit like qualities, and letting me know when I could have done better. I’ve always said that food is the one thing that all people together and that is exactly what this blog did for Richmond. Perhaps much of the writing was about food but it always shined through that the power of community was the real story. I am so sad to see the blog end here but so happy to have had it at all. Well done my friend and best of luck with everything.