Hello and Goodbye

Brim will be on hold for a couple days while I'm enjoying a visit from my parents.

I've written about my parents frequently, and I owe them a great deal for so many reasons. They both played an important role in fostering my interest in wine (my dad) and cooking (my mom).

Before I take a short break I'll leave you with this link.

While I'm sad to say goodbye to The Minimalist, I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next for Mark Bittman and glad he's staying with The Times.

I've been working on a post about cooking and how my cooking skills have grown. Reading Bittman has been part of that growth. E gave me The Best Recipes in the World as a gift early in our relationship and How to Cook Everything Vegetarian more recently. Her copy of How to Cook Everything joined my cookbook collection when we merged homes.

Reading his final column also brought to mind how much Brim has changed from where I started it. It's been quite a journey.

Here's to you, Bittman. Thanks for the lessons -- past, present and future.