Mixed Plate: You Can't Eat Bucky, But He's Food for Thought

If you didn't already see on the Facebook-Twitter-Internet-iverse, there's a nifty new children's book that just came out, written by Lisa Nakamura and scribble-doodles by Yours Truly. Lisa wrote this charming story of how one dollar bill can truly change the fate of so many others, and it came together in the book, Bucky the Dollar Bill. Rebekah Denn wrote this great article about Lisa and the book in the Seattle Times early last week, and you can just hop on over to Amazon.com or Bucky's book site to get yourself a copy or twelve. Go do it. Right now! Hurry!! 

Is the book about food? Well, Bucky was very fortunate to have the amazing Thomas Keller write a heartfelt foreword for the book. And Lisa's restaurant, Allium on Orcas is a delicious destination that you must experience. But no, the book is not about food. So why is it on the blog? Aside from me wanting to toot my own horn (toot-toot), I really felt lucky to be a part of this project. I was long overdue for a serious kick in the pants by my terribly empty sketchbook, and frankly, the message behind Bucky the Dollar Bill is something that makes a lot of sense, not just for the current state of the economy, but from a food perspective. When you visit a neighborhood restaurant, enroll your household in a community supported agriculture program or buy your fancy truffle oil from that cute little shop you love, you are supporting your community. The dollar you spend in those small businesses has a much more direct route to the people who are operating that business, ensuring that favorite restaurant/shop/farm stays open and everyone's happy.

There's nothing wrong with big businesses. I'm the queen of bulk buying at big-brand stores, and I have the Hoarder-like towers of toilet paper to prove it. The message behind Bucky is to simply do what you can when it comes to mindful spending, because every little bit helps. And it's not just about buying local, it's also supporting local nonprofit organizations and causes close to your heart. None of this is breaking news, but how about teaching these ideas to your little ones? If they're old enough to spend money, they're old enough to understand the value of purchase power. Enter Bucky the Dollar Bill. He goes on adventures! He's dressed like a superhero! He's got big soulful eyes! The book is as much for adults as it is for children; even through cute, colorful drawings, the message is a reminder for us to step up and be involved with how our communities function, even if it's as simple as eating one meal at your neighborhood restaurant per week -- having someone else cook for you, come on, how hard is that?

Don't just consider Bucky the Dollar Bill a book, it's a mindset that deserves to be shared and spread around. Parents with children would love it for the meaningful message. Friends who own and operate a small business would get a kick out of it. Working on this book was a true pleasure and Lisa literally put her heart and soul into this story, both as a writer and a small business owner. I hope you enjoy the experience of reading Bucky's story and that it stays with you. As the book so rightly puts it: Generosity breeds prosperity.  

Mixed Plate: My Name is Wasabi, and I Like to do Draw-rings

Wasabi, what the hell do you do besides blogging? Well, I've said it before that I do graphic design along with freelance writing and photography. And I also like to do draw-rings. I don't normally share daily workstuff on the blog, but I was so pleased with this piece, and it was somewhat food-related, so I just had to share, so pardon my hubris for the day. What I do for my daily 9-to-5 can include really special projects like this one, illustrating an editorial piece for our very own local awesomesauce newspaper, Northwest Asian Weekly.

Originally published in NW Asian Weekly - illustration by Wasabi, aka, Denise Sakaki

This was published for their Mother's Day feature, put together by Pat Tanumihardja, where they asked local writers to share personal memories of their moms and specific dishes that had great meaning to them. They even asked me to contribute a memory, of which I was very blessed to have it share the space with such well-known local food experts. You can see the full article here, on NW Asian Weekly's site.  I know it's not Mother's Day anymore, but we always say she's the hardest working lady we know and she deserves more than just one day of celebration. So gaze upon this drawing... and pick up the phone, she would appreciate a phone call saying, "hi."

Yes, I totally printed the article out and snail-mailed it to Wasabi Mom. It meant a lot to be able to send that piece to her, even if I had to kill a tree in the process.

This is how I hit "send" to give Wasabi Mom article copies - Photo by Wasabi Prime

I don't always get to do a lot of illustration work, and with a lot of creative freedom to boot, so it was a special treat to combine all the things I love into one project -- even food! Yes, those are real star anise, and I used the texture of rice paper to give the background a nice organic pattern. Wasabi, you so artsy! I also made the illustration into Mother's Day cards, so that was extra special as well. And I didn't have to pore over the greeting card aisle trying to choose the perfect card that you can never truly find.

I know it sounds cheesy, but the saying is true: "If you love what you do, then you'll never work a day in your life." Well, okay, I do work on plenty of bread-and-butter projects, and the hours get crazy, but when you're working for yourself, even the worst day can have a silver lining of basic gratitude. Gratitude for clients who keep you busy. Gratitude for the creative projects that both challenge and scare you. Gratitude for just being able to write a blog that more than your cousin's best friend's old roommate reads once in a while.

So thank you, everyone. I really mean it. You have no idea what a privilege it is to be writing these words and drawing these pictures.