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Dateline: Bocas del Toro, Panama

Here I am in Panama! I am using an unusual keyboard. Forgive my typos. Besides the great trip, I have more great news. Sup! is a finalist for a HOMIE at Apartment Thearpy. It is an honor because some of the other nominees are among the biggest of the big boys among food bloggers (pardon the expresion, because they are all talented women!) So I am here to beg for your support for the lone man in the group. Vote for SippitySup. It´s not as if I totally deserve the support given the heavy-weights involved, but I promise to uphold the duties of the crown with honor! Besides, I am in Panama, and I am web challenged and cannot pimp the vote. I cannot tweet, I cannot email. I cannot even vote. Nothing...THIS POST TOOK ME 3 DAYS at various internet cafes that barely functioned. So you see, I can only rely on you!

In case that is not enough, I have a video! So vote for Sippity Sup by CLICKING HERE. I do not need to win, I just do not want to be humiliated... so vote tweet and retweet.

I made this video, Happy Noir Year,  one year ago and I just could not resist pulling it out again as my lone attempt to pimp your vote. Besides the message is relevant this year as well as last. Maybe more so.

It is a mock noir film that follows a hapless band of lost souls as they seek out the pleasures of a New Years Eve on the streets of Hollywood. However, in their search for the lure of days gone by– they discover an inner strength that carries them through the holiday! CLICK here to watch video.

This video was also the inspiration for my cooking adventure with Boquete Gourmet. I came down here to Panama to lead a demonstration of classic recipes from the legendary haunts of Hollywood. The evening was a wonderful success and new friendships were formed. What a great way to start a New Year!

At the moment I am on the Caribbean coast of Panama. I've got my toes in the sand and my heart in the hand of the person I love most in this world. Which puts me in a great place (literally and figuratively) to think about the year past and the year to come.

That’s because so much has happened in this past year. As is true for most of us it has been a challenging year for me in many ways. Of course there was the economy, which probably affected us all to some degree or another.

But on a personal level, this is the year I broke my jaw and though it was one of the most difficult periods in my life, it was also a growing experience; I learned a lot about myself, my family and my relationship with food.

Let me tell you, one does quite a bit of soul searching when your mouth is wired shut for 8 weeks and you are forced to admit just how much of your happiness is inappropriately attached to the experience of eating; because Ensure is NOT food, and it brought me no joy.

But through the experience I also learned that I derive just as much pleasure from cooking for others as I do from cooking for myself. Because even in the darkest days of my injury I found comfort and happiness by getting up and going into the kitchen to cook for my friends, my family, and for you guys– my virtual eaters.

So thank you for being there and pushing me forward through the ordeal of my jaw. It would have been so easy to abandon the blog this summer. In fact I even considered a hiatus through my recovery period because in my ugly self-pity it was easy to think that nobody would be interested in a food blogger who can’t eat. Who wants to read that self-serving drivel? But the truth is the experience of food is so much richer and complex than I’d ever imagined. I learned that lesson right here during this challenging year.

And speaking of lessons learned and lessons still to be learned, I am struggling with a new bit of uncertainty related to my jaw. Despite my self-obsessed love of food I have found I find a certain comfort in NOT eating. I suppose I developed this feeling as a way to conquer the constant hunger I felt when my jaw was wired shut. The only way to make peace with my hunger it was to power past it. It’s slightly disturbing, but I am aware of it and with the help and love of those around me, plus the constant encouragement I get from cooking for you (not to mention the gorgeous offerings I see on all the food blogs I know and love) I am sure I will safely pass through this phase too.

Here we are on the cusp of another New Year and despite the uncertainty I just can’t help but feel giddy. I love the metaphoric process of turning the page. It’s the idea of a clean slate; the wide blue yonder and the prospect of all those new and exciting challenges this year will certainly hold. How can I not feel happy? These challenges, be they good, bad or indifferent, will certainly lead us along the road of self-discovery. To me that’s progress and progress is exciting.

So turn the page with me here at SippitySup. I guarantee you there’s adventure ahead. I also guarantee there is the joy of life and the comfort of friends and family still to come. Now, I am not promising you nothing but roses and lollipops, because when you have nothing but roses and lollipops it’s easy to overlook their sweet beauty. But I can promise you with this New Year, there is the opportunity to feel alive and grateful and connected to the great big world happening all around us.

Happy Noir Year! CLICK to watch video

SERIOUS FUN FOOD

Greg Henry

SippitySup