The world is obsessed with two things: story and food.

From This American Life to Lord of the Rings to Netflix to Spotify, we can’t get enough story. And there’s a reason for that. Story teaches. Story creates empathy. Story gives voice.

Likewise, we can’t get enough food. Americans spend an average of $8,500 a year eating out. (If you’re wondering, that’s two around-the-world tickets.) We like food. We’re fascinated by food. And we tell stories over food and through food. We share our stories at the table.

Yet, most people haven’t experienced Italian food in Italy or dumplings in China or ceviche in Peru. Work gets in the way or money is an issue or family or health or whatever. The next thing you know, you’re 86 and in a nursing home watching Jeopardy and wondering what you did with your life.

I don’t want the highlights of my life to be told by Jeopardy reels, so I’m pursuing my dream. I’ve decided that 2017 is going to be my remote year. I’m going to be a digital nomad, and I’m going to write about it.

Every place I travel, I’m going to connect with a local and have them teach me a recipe that’s dear to their culture. I’m going to sit at their table and hear their stories and bring it back to you. Think of it as a cultural cookbook.

Make sure you subscribe to and catch up with my adventures in the Little Spoon Weekly.

So, why me?

For starters, I’ve been storytelling my whole life. It started with chalk on the sidewalk and turned into writing short stories and songs. In high school, I learned visual storytelling through photography. In college, I found the principles of design. For the past ten years, I’ve honed my design craft and started a boutique web agency. And for the past two years, I’ve hosted Discussion Dinners here in Austin with the explicit purpose of bringing people to the table to share their story.

So whether you’re a foodie, a traveler, or just plain curious, this book and this trip are for you.

What the money will be used for:

Creating and delivering the rewards. They all take time and money to produce!
Hosting and MailChimp. These virtual homes aren't free, and expenses grow as the audience grows.
Travel expenses to visit the cooks. Whether they're in the same city as me or a couple of hours away, I don't want transportation costs to hold me back from the best recipes and stories.
Contributing to food costs. I'd like to offer to help the cooks pay for the food.
Writing. As expected, books don't write themselves. Neither do blog posts. ;)

Thanks for any support you want to offer, and thanks for being a reader!