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There's so much to download, I think I'm going to write a few different posts. But here are some highlights:

Attendance was better than expected, and everyone loved the space at Open Square. We used three different rooms for sessions, and wi-fi was provided by AtlasTC, so Twitter was electrified by #pcwm Tweets.

Morriss came up with the idea of naming the rooms after Western Mass. landmarks, so the first two were named Connecticut River and Mt. Tom. The third room, way down the hall away from everything else, was aptly named Shay's Rebellion.

We started the day with coffee from the GoNomad Cafe, and then it was on to sessions, which ranged from blogging 101 to hyperlocal journalism. The ideas, tips, fixes, tweaks, and concepts that everyone traded throughout the day are still processing in my brain.

After camp, we celebrated at The Mick at the Delaney House in Holyoke, which is one of the best lounges in the Commonwealth, near the base of Mt. Tom.

However, the best part of PodCamp WesternMass was by far the people. The crowd was so diverse, including  business owners, Creatives, techies, and Webphiles of all sorts. A best-selling, internationally known author mingled with podcasters. An auctioneer made friends with a graphic designer. A student ate lunch with a marketing prof from Boston Medical Center. And, we were so glad to have attendees from Boston, Worcester, and Connecticut, in addition to folks from all four counties in The 413.

Planning for PodCamp started more than a year ago, at Smokin' Lils BBQ in Northampton. Morriss, Tish, and I decided to give it a go, and to finally see the whole thing come together so well was extremely gratifying (not to mention validating). Our unofficial motto yesterday was 'We are all rockstars,' and as the day went on, man did I believe it. It really brought home the idea that fear of getting closed in by technology walls keeps a lot of people away from social media, but in the end, that's all it's about: people. People creating a community, and thriving within.

See more photos

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Today, I interviewed the affable Amanda at Chandler's Restaurant, for an article that will be in the Wedding Day Sourcebook.

The historic-style restaurant specializes in American fare, but is also uniquely romantic due to its candle-lit ambiance. Amanda told me more than 250 wicks are lighted for a normal dinner service, and double that for a special occasion.

The candles on the tables are, smartly, made of beeswax, so no scent will affect the meal, and protected by hurricane glass. I'm looking forward to diving into the feel of Chandler's for the article I'm writing - the vibe was natural, easy, and peaceful.

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The dishes are all contemporary takes on Shaker meals, which use fresh and local ingredients whenever possible, a surprising amount of herbs and spices, and slow-cooking techniques to coax out flavors. HSV devised the menu along with new executive chef Michael Roller, who worked to create an updated lunch, dinner, and banquet experience for patrons. 

When I walked in, I was expecting homey, heavy, and traditional - but the tasting proved that Shaker cooking is surprisingly modern under Roller's direction - even trendy. Here's a glimpse: 

Tomato bisque

Argentinian, Chilean, and South African wines

Parsnip cakes, ahi tuna rolls, potato pancakes with ginger, cheese fritters, tomato bread pudding, and bisque.

Simple centerpieces - greens in soil from the village gardens

The pitch: The Village Harvest Café is open daily from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm during Main Season at Hancock Shaker Village, and serves continental breakfast, hearty Shaker-inspired lunches and take-out picnics. Enjoy quiches, soups, overstuffed sandwiches, and cookies and brownies. Family-friendly fare is also available.

 Click here to see the full menu. It's huge.

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When I walked around the corner into a semi-private seating area and saw a long table with rows of wine glasses and stacks of plates, I thought, aw, yeah. This is gonna be good.

Indeed, one of the highlights of the Glacier Country Press Trip to Montana was the six-course wine and food tasting dinner at the chef's table of the Blue Canyon restaurant. For me, anyway, the consummate food-geek.

Blue Canyon has locations in Montana, Ohio, and Texas, and their menu is crafted by Executive Chef Brandt Evans, who hosted our dinner. Chef Brandt is a pretty cool dude - he travels the world mixing his own table wines for Blue Canyon, is a great speaker, and is currently in the process of auditioning for Top Chef, which of course is my favorite show of all time, and makes the signed menu I received from Chef Brandt all the more squeal-worthy. This, btw, is Chef Brandt and Chef Lawrence Coffner of the Montana Blue Canyon:

Here's the run-down:

Yellow Fin Tuna Crudo with olive, fennel, lemon zest, and EVO; WhiteHaven Sauvignon Blanc, NZ 06

Toasted Coriander Sea Scallops with thai chili sweet soy pickled ginger emulsion; Blue Canyon Reisling, Mosel, GR 07 (this wine was my favorite, and as a Cape Cod girl in Montana, I was amazed by how good these scallops were. They were cooked perfectly, but the sauce was also responsible for a lot.)

Roasted Duck Breast and Smoked Tomato Corn Spoon Bread; La Posta, Malbec, ARG 05 (This was another favorite. The duck was tender and the spoon bread was a new taste for me; I was intrigued after one bite, sold after two, and in love after three. What an adventure - ya, I know. Food geek.)

Bison Strip Loin with Brussels Sprouts leaves, coconut curry, red onion marmalade; CG Di Arie, Zinfandel, CA 07 (The bison was surprisingly tender and the curry was a really cool touch. The wine was a red, and my favorite red of the night. Cool factor - it was developed by winemaker Chaim Gur-Arieh, who also invented Cap'n Crunch, Jello Puddin Pops, and a slew of other products as a food engineer.)

Three Acts of Chocolate: White Chocolate Bavarois, Mik Chocolate Pot de Creme, Dark Chocolate rench Macaroons; Blue Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa, CA 04 (This was one of the best desserts I've ever had. the bavarois had an orange zest, and the macaroons were just as good as those I had in Lyon, made by Seve.)

In addition to developing some of the wines that were served along with the dishes (which were prepared by the restaurant's lead chef and pastry chef), Chef Brandt also developed a set of spices for rubs, marinades, and dips. We got to walk away with a set each plus recipe cards, very cool:

I'm looking forward to making the neighbors jealous.

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I was hosted, along with four other writers, by Glacier Country Montana - the Northwest corner that includes several ski resorts. The trip was fantastic, if not butt-kicking, and included skis down Blacktail Mountain, Snow Bowl, Lost Trail, and Lookout Pass -- the latter straddles the Idaho/Montana border.

We also took a couple of dips in hot springs, known for their therapeutic properties, had a six-course wine tasting dinner, and snowmobiled along the Lewis and Clark trail -- all of which I'll get into in greater detail in later posts. For now, here's the three-minute version in pictures and vids - the soundtrack is one of our 'songs of the trip.' See if you can spot it.

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The last few days have been big writing days for me, and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight, so it's just as well that it's nasty out because I don't have time for the light of day. I saw the finished product of my latest feature, in The Women's Times and dealing with children's heart health. I also finished up a copywriting gig and submitted my latest piece to The Wedding Sourcebook, and finally wrote my next rough-draft chapter for Writer's Group.

Next projects will be a press release and PR plan for a client and interviews for the next issue of The Women's Times. Serving as a nice transition into these projects was a great chat I had yesterday with Marla Beck (Web site), a life coach for writers and creatives. We talked about process, goals, challenges, and opportunities that freelancers face, and quite a bit about the power of bouncing ideas around in groups of writers and other creative professionals. It was a great conversation, and fun to be on the other side of the interview. Check out Marla's blog and Web site for more info.

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I've just booked my next press trip -- this time around, I'll be trekking to Glacier Country Montana to do some big skiing!

It's true that my travel writing gigs most often stay domestic or take me to western Europe, but the gig has yet to get boring. I love tours of U.S. states - they're all different, and they're just as fun to color in on a map, once visited.

Montana is a nice, big square on the map, so I'll have to pick a good marker. Plus, here are some other fun facts: Montana has a slew of monikers: Big Sky Country, The Last Best Place, The Treasure State, and the Land of Shining Mountains among them. It also has its own Film Office, used by directors and producers to site locations for movies and television. The state fish is the Blackspotted Cutthroat Trout (think he's a talent agent for the other fish?).

Montana also has several ski resorts, and I'll be taking a swoosh on four of them. Stay tuned in February for On the Beat updates!

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I spoke at the Annual WNEC Media Conference last week; overall, it's a worthwhile conference for small business owners, nonprofits, and media profs alike, and I give props to the WNEC Communications staff -- they're some of the best in the business.  

This was my third year speaking at the conference, which I mention only to point out that I knew what to expect. This includes the potential for bad photos of me -- there are several reporters, photogs, and PR profs milling around with cameras, taking photos of people as they hunch over tables to speak into the mic. Mouths agape, eyes half closed -- this is the face of thoughtful conversation. Not flattering.

Take me here, for instance. Nora Ephron feels bad about her neck? Well, I've completely lost mine:

and in this one? It's too funny not to share. I mean, clearly,  Tom Vannah had launch codes in front of him... or something equally shocking, per my expression.

Incidentally, there were a few other bloggers in attendance, including SuzBon of Shout Out, GrammarGirl, and  Mike Dobbs.

Max of GoNomad and Heather of Urban Compass also got some great nods from panel members throughout the day, and there were a lot of great questions about social media, blogging, citizen journalism, and using the Web to release your message. Branding was also a big topic -- it always seems to get people's wheels turning.

And I'm not knocking anyone's photo skills, btw.  I just feel bad about my neck.

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But it's also the year we embarked on historic change in our political and social structures. The iPhone and Google phone launches were pretty fun, and 2008 was definitely the year of social media.

On a more personal note, I'll always remember 2008 as the year I got married, first and foremost. And survived the planning process. I also saw Stevie Nicks and Lucinda Williams in concert, took a culinary press trip to Lyon, France, took ArcherVision skiing for the first time, went on my first hot-air balloon ride, went to Bermuda, went to New Orleans, became an aunt again, and embarked on a new phase of my career.

Not too shabby.

Writing-wise, I'm most proud of the pieces I've been to invited to write on breast cancer, young girls and stereotypes, custom-designed jewelry, and the above-mentioned French foodie article. I've also had some really cool corporate and copy-writing gigs, concerning health care, entertainment, technology, and culture. I've even blogged-for-dollars here and there. And on the publicity side of things, I'm working with fantastic people, and have a dynamic roster of clients that I respect and am so excited to help get to the next level, whatever that level may be.

But it's these successes, as well as my failures -- which I choose not to dwell on here or anywhere, because it's a waste of time once you've made your peace with yourself and the world -- that have me totally pumped for 2009. There's a lot of good stuff bubbling up, nationally, globally, and personally. Dare I say, without wallowing in cheese, that the excitement comes from hope and possibilities?

There's a buzz in the air -- a feeling of living in the moment, and the here and now. For the first time in my life, I think, there is nowhere else I'd rather be.

Happy New Year. Let's get on with it.

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Twist, an alternative art and craft fair, kicked off last night in Northampton, Mass., and I stopped by to shoot some photos for the mag I work for (and to just check out the scene). Twist is, in a word, radical. It's a collection of artists, artisans, and crafters, many of whom sell their wares on etsy.

From hand-knitted scarves to blown-glass picture frames to edgy clothing (like these Stank Puss panties, for instance:

photo by ArcherVision) Twist had a little bit of everything, and put a whole new spin on the idea of a crafter's market.

In addition, it was held inside an architecturally awesome building, and featured 'adult beverages', a disco ball, and live DJs (not to mention an after party).

It was all an effort to showcase handmade and small-run artists and crafters in a hip setting, and in my opinion it was totally successful. The place was crammed at 6 pm on Friday, just an hour into its two-day run, and sales seemed brisk. I picked up at least a dozen business cards, in hopes of buying more goods on etsy later on. A couple of my favorites include James Anthony, Lexie Barnes, BMW Ironworks, and Whispering Willow. Plus, a second Twist is planned for the spring.

After Twist, we headed to the Toasted Owl for their awesome wings and to watch a little of the Sox game, and took in some of Noho's colorful storefront windows:

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Actually, it's more GrammarGirl's post that people are looking for than mine; she added some of her own comments to Yale's list of most memorable quotes for 2007, and Biden was included on the list.

Are you watching or attending the DNC?

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It was a highlight of the trip, as was getting to see the Excambian, a massive, amphibious plane that was donated to the museum by actress Maureen O'hara. The luxury liner accomodated 16 people in full-length beds, and took off from New York's East River, landing in Ireland. It's amazing the behemoth ever even got off the ground -- the wheels are the size of industrial Dumpsters -- but apparently it had an unscathed run in its heyday.

I uploaded a few of my photos from the tour to flickr, but as per the usual on flickr, I've gotten the most hits on a picture of a McDonalds I snapped while stopped at a red light.

Ah, America and your capitalist ideals. Marvels of aviation? Yeah, dat's coo. CHICKEN ON A BISCUIT FOR BREAKFAST?? WHERE DO I SIGN UP!!

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Lyon is known for its Beaujolais wine, but it's also famous for candies and desserts, and an interesting entree called quenelles -- a mixture of dough and meat (seafood, chicken, truffles, you name it) served often with a creamy sauce.

I'm going to search for a recipe and post it here soon.

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Sure, it's an adage that doesn't roll of the tongue that easily, but it's true nevertheless. I've attended many a benefit dinner with a deliberately over-sized purse. It's not just economics that make me take notice of the spread, though -- I'm a complete foodie, and thankfully, my job is one that allows for some liberal face-stuffing.

I have a flickr set called The Foodie Files where I post some of my plated adventures, like this sirloin and gnocchi parfait:

and this action shot of Shootflying Hill Dessert Sauce being made before I was able to taste-test it:

and these quenelles with Giraudet sauce, served at a Rhone-Alpes tasting dinner in Lyon, France:

But I'm always looking for something new and epicurious, whether I'm writing about it or not, and lately I've been taking notice of many of the fantastic foodie blogs out there, in an effort to further stretch my culinary muscle.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Bakerella

superfood

My Burning Kitchen

Dozen Flours

Steakhead's Atlanta Eats

Any other suggestions?

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My friends at Winstanley Associates sent me their latest wacky creation, the Pet Peeve. It's actually an empty box - something they've had success with before -- but the cool factor here is that the packaging directs you to a Web site where you really can air your grievances.

Peeves already posted range from 'people who say on line instead of in line' to 'agency owners who create inane promotions I'm compelled to respond to.' There's also space to 're-peeve,' or comment on other people's peeves.

Hint: click on The Pet Peeve on the right of the screen for 14-year-old fun.

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I had a lot of writing to do this week in addition to going viral, and thankfully the topics I covered were pretty interesting. I wrote a little about Stormy the helpful pollution duck at Think Blue , and about Friendly ice cream's new foray into producing biodiesel using vegetable oil from the fryolators, for example. 

I really need to go help the environment and order a turkey Supermelt or a Fishamajig soon.

All of this intrepid reporting in family restaurants, on riverbanks, and YouTube is why The Jump has been The Vast Wasteland of Two-week-old Posts, but at least I'm ending on a journalistic high-note as I head out for a little while. Yes kids, hold your applause tears, WriterJax will be on hiatus for a little while, returning to its former glory in the dog-days of July. It will be the first time in years I'll be traveling for a reason other than my job, and while travel writing is no day in the mines, a girl's gotta do her own thing some of the time.

That said, I will leave you with something I know you're going to want to revisit a few times in my absence. This is one of the best things I've found on the Internets in a long time, and also likely to become one of my favorite videos of all time. 

So, behold! And remember:

"I'm doin' the things that I wanna do - I ain't got a thing to prove to you ... I ain't gonna wear the clothes that you like, I'm fine and dandy with the me inside." 

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For months, we've been talking in code at my office.

"Where's the 40 folder?" "Are we doing open bar at the 40?" "Those are for The 40."

We've been so wrapped up in this lingo that it's been hard to decode for outsiders. But now that we've put our magazine's biggest event of the year behind us, let the translation begin.

For those of you who don't know, 'Forty Under 40' is sort of a brand in the business journal world. There's no single entity that controls these contests, but many journals across the country hold annual Forty Under 40 competitions within their readership area, to cull 40 of the most promising young professionals in the region and give them their comeuppance. Journals and magazines take on the project in varying degrees of grandiosity (yes, that is a word; I looked it up), but there's usually a print component - a list of The 40 with a photo, for instance, and an event such as a dinner or awards ceremony.

That's about all we knew at my office two years ago, when we decided to launch our first Forty Under 40. Eighty recipients later, I'd like to think that we're just hitting our stride, but with wisdom infinitely more far-reaching than when we bought into this crazy idea.

To give you an inside look at the planning, here's the low-down on the hoe-down:

Meetings (yay, meetings!) begin about six months ahead of time. There's a venue to secure, marketing materials to design, nomination forms to draft, judges to pick ... we're a one-stop shop, you see. Event planners? Nevah!

From there, we start hyping the nomination process, as well as the issue and party that announce and celebrate the winners. We schmooze at after-fives here and there, mention it at our appointments ... grass-roots efforts at their best. Then, when we get closer to nomination time, we write and record our own radio spots. Fellow writer Joe and I usually take on this part

...but Joe and I have fun running the lines with each other and playing with the background music tracks with the producer.

The nomination forms are posted on our Web site and placed in print issues, and since we're only two years into this process, we still watch the mail and the fax machine to see them trickle in. Then we fight over who gets to look at it first like ducks over a breadcrumb, before ithey're placed, carefully, into a manila envelope with the others.

The real whirring begins when the deadline for nominations is reached and we start collecting the forms to send to the judges. We don't have any say in who's picked - last year, it was three outside judges from the business community, and this year, there were five. Five bulging FedEx boxes went out ... five thin envelopes with scores came back. The top 40 are skimmed off the top, and we get very acquainted with that group over the next few months. The creepy thing for them, though, is most don't ever see any of us until the big party.

Joe, our editor, me, and a freelancer split up The 40 in groups of ten and start calling them, to have informal chats about the information on their nomination forms, their goals, hobbies... basically everything that makes them stellar. These are compiled into a pull-out section in a special issue, and paired with photos - one of my favorite aspects of the whole process. For the last two years, this studio has taken the photos of our winners, who are asked to bring props to illustrate their jobs, pasttimes, or something else they're passionate about, like their families and pets.

Here's my favorite from this year:

Once the issue drops, there's mayhem in the streets! Extra! Extra! Readalluhboutit! The Forty Under 40 are here!

Well, there is a buzz, I can say that much. That's what sustains the office as we pause only to take a breath and leap right into event planning 101. We decided as a team last year to keep our event as hip and low-stress as possible, to be a good fit with the winners and their colleagues and friends. Instead of a sit-down dinner, for example, we have station-service, and we ask the venue (we've had two different locations so far) to work with us to create a trendy-but-cohesive menu. I'm pretty sure that at some point, someone from our office has actually said trendy-but-cohesive in conversation. Last year, the big hits were the risotto bar and the fresh mojitos. This year, Go Green salad and the paella table were popular. I was a fan, however, of the beignets. Fancy name for doughnut in a cup. Doooouughhhhnuuuut.

The party itself is a fun event, as illustrated here by Forty Under 40 winner Brendan Ciecko and the ice sculpture:

 

We set up the stage, the sponsor tables, the schwag, the awards, and the welcome table, and finished this time around with just enough time for food. The quick-change from set-up crew to professional magazine staff in semi-formal attire is not an easy feat, though. Two years running, we've been able to, thankfully, make use of the venues' bridal suites to look more presentable, and two years running a bunch of 30-plus-year-olds have turned into a gaggle of prom goers on Red Bull. It's amazing any of us escaped without curling iron burns on our foreheads.

But as the guests arrive feeling the excitement of an event about to begin, we're feeling the denouement of a process that's nearing its close. I think this collision created a great energy for the gala this year; the crowd was into it, we were relaxed - or relaxing - and there were no major issues. The next day, rolling into the office in varying degrees of acceptably tardy, we reflected on The 40 gala and decided it had been a smash, while tempering our relief and pride by talking about how we'll do even better next year. We'll start marketing earlier, for instance, and maybe hold a press conference to announce next year's venue and get the buzz going sooner.

There's not much time to dwell at any rate - it won't be long until the whole process starts again. If that's what I have to do to get a doughnut in a cup, so be it.

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