“Cooking is an expression that crosses boundaries.” raveer brar
Sorry, House Hunters International. You've just been “chopped” from your position as my favorite TV program. My new fave is Chopped.
I recently stumbled across a Chopped marathon on the Food Network. I spent the next four hours glued to the TV screen like burnt molasses on a cast-iron skillet. I marveled as each chef combined a collection of disparate ingredients into mouthwatering (and sometimes mindboggling) culinary creations. I was addicted. I’m now a certified choppedaholic.
I began to analyze my fascination with the show and realized that each of the chefs were essentially doing what I have to do every day — taking a group of often unrelated components and combining them to create something that meets (or exceeds) established criteria. In the case of Chopped, the ingredients might be jackfruit, canned sardines, limburger cheese and peppermints, and its criteria creativity, presentation and taste.
In my case, it may be bunches of text files, stock photos, grunge type and primary colors. My criteria may be visual appeal, rapid delivery of complex information and immediate, emotional response. Somehow, within these parameters, I must create an eye-catching and effective brochure within the allotted amount of time. Or get chopped. Ouch!
Nevertheless, nothing is more satisfying and rewarding than meeting the challenge. And that’s what keeps me in the kitchen, so to speak.
UPDATE: Since returning from our travels across Europe, House Hunters International has reclaimed its position as my top TV show. The program has acquired new significance, especially when it features house or apartment hunting in places we stayed. It’s thrilling to recognize streets, plazas, markets and museums we actually visited in places like Paris, Nice, Bern, Lucerne, Zurich, Florence, Milan, Rome, Seville and Madrid. Recently, a young couple was looking for a home outside Huelva, Spain, and in another episode, a man purchased an apartment just a few blocks from the one we rented in Nice for a month.