Tuesday, April 21, 2009

I want to be Anthony Bourdain

I did a top 5 on Facebook this morning and it was the 5 things I want to be when I grow up. I had National Geographic Photographer, Comedy Actor, Chef, and Cultural Anthropology for the first four. With that celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain popped into my head as a natural 5th. Bourdain became famous for writing books about the seedy underbelly of the New York resaurant scene. This lead to a show on the Food Network and then the Travel Channel called No Reservations, where he travels around to various places around the world sampling various cuisines. To me this would be perfect because he covers everything from to the fanciest uber chic places to food served off a cart or tiny back alley places. Bourdain combines a wicked sense of humor with a thirst for new and different experiences to make a very entertaining show.

Bourdain is a classically trained professional chef and it was his work as a chef that made the rest of his career possible. I have never seriously thought about being a chef but I do love cooking. I seem to have a natural instinct when it comes to cooking and do a lot of cooking by feel as opposed to a always using a specific recipe. I love combining flavors, textures, and different kinds of food. There is something very satisfying about cooking for others and they really like what you make. I can't imagine my life if I could not cook. However having said all of that working in a restaurant kitchen is a lot different than cooking in your own kitchen. If nothing else I would like to take some cooking classes so that I can add to the variety of dishes that I make.

While Bourdain himself is not a photographer his shows captures amazing images from all kinds of exotic from around the world. I have a feeling if I fortunate enough to be in a similar position there is no way I would not take a camera along with me. I do that now when I travel and it gives me a chance to capture moments of my trips. While I do no think I will ever be a professional photographer it will be something that continue to do and enjoy the rest of my life.

While Bourdain is more of performer being himself on his show as opposed to being an actor he uses his personality and humor to make the show watchable and entertaining. I have been taking classes and studying acting since college. I think in the past few years I have really grown as actor. I did some work with local indie movie makers and perform with Running Gag Improv. I really like performing and making people laugh. There is nothing better than finishing a show and knowing that you really nailed it that night. It can be a very tricky balance if you are not focused or into your performance can be off but if you are thinking too much and in your head your performance can be stiff and unnatural. At this point I am still working on my acting and doing improv. I do think there are some opportunities there to pursue this further but if nothing else it is something I enjoy doing as a hobby.

Last we have Cultural Anthropology. In fact I had settle on Cultural Anthropology because I wanted Food Anthropology in other words how and why people eat certain things. I think this is really fascinating and you look at shows like No Reservations you can see how the Spanish, French, English, and Americans going to other countries for various reasons have influenced their cooking. Such the influence of French cooking on various Asian countries during colonial times. Also it works both ways with Indian food becoming a staple in England for instance. I think it would be an incredible experience to travel outside of the states so I could try other kinds cuisines. However I want to travel anyway to be able to experience different cultures all around. I think No Reservations does this as well even though it is a food oriented show it not just Bourdain going to restaurants but he looks why people eat certain things and how food fits into their lives. How food unites people and that often food is a shared and communal experience. Someday maybe I will be will to travel like that and see something besides my little slice of the world.

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