Rebranding the FeauxCajun Blog

So recently The Hubs and I took a trip to Cancun, while I was reading the book "Quitter" by Jon Acuff.  Now, I really enjoy my day job as a geologist, and I make pretty good money doing it, so I have no delusions about leaving that job to become a professional blogger.  This has always been a hobby for me--a venue for me to exercise my creative writing skills.

A little history about me: I originally went to school to be a journalist. I wanted to work for a newspaper, or a magazine...for a while I really wanted to be a photographer for National Geographic.  At times I wanted to become a screenwriter, or maybe a casting director, or a critic who reviewed movies and restaurants for a living.  I graduated with a degree in Mass Media with a minor in geology (because at the time my career arrow was pointed toward "environmental journalist").

And then...the internet happened.  And suddenly, everyone could be a critic...fo' FREE.  I had a realization that unless I was willing to move to Orlando, New York, or Hollywood, I probably wasn't going into TV or the movies, or National Geographic.  I did work as a production assistant for a local TV station for a while right after college. And it WAS super fun.  But I wanted something...more.  I wanted to play outside for a living.   So I decided to go back to school to get my master's degree in Environmental Science, and go into environmental consulting.  That was about 15 years ago, and it brought me to Louisiana.

I'm happy I made that career change, because it led me on the path that my life has followed and I have no regrets.  But the underlying joy within my original degree path was CREATIVITY.  I wanted to be creative and have someone pay me for it.  The downside about being a scientist--while there is a lot of problem solving involved, there's not a lot of traditional "creative outlets".  My journalism background has helped me become excellent at writing reports that have good flow and are easy for the average person to read and understand.  Now a big part of my job is to help others I work with build and grow these skills by training them and reviewing/editing reports for them.

But this blog is my place to just be CREATIVE.  Be that with food or words or photos.

It originally started with my journey to learn to cook Cajun food in 2008.  But over the last decade, this blog has changed, as I'VE changed.  I've become a wife, a mom, a beer traveler, a home brewer, a debt-free thrifty person.  

And so, I've decided to rebrand this blog.  The name won't be changing, because I'M still the "FeauxCajun".  That's a big part of my identity, just like the other parts of me.  (Also, it would be a giant pain in the butt, and y'all know I'm lazy.)

But the look of this blog will be changing, as will the focus of future content.  I want to spend more time focusing on the things that drive me today.

- Beer Traveling: (still with a focus on kid-friendliness)

- Home Brewing: with a lot of help from The Hubs, our unofficial "brew master".

- Travel Adventures: restaurant, event and hotel reviews, both with and without our kiddo.

- Money Saving Tips: Mostly on travel deals, but also just how we save money on a day-to-day basis, including on home renovations.

- Cajun Cooking:  Yes, there will still be some of this, but I want to focus more on creating my own recipes, rather than just remaking someone else's recipe that I found on Pinterest.  Things that are my own creation, or a collaboration with friends, like Crawchos and Bacon Wrapped Boudin Jalapeno Poppers.

So that's the plan.  If you, as a reader, have any feedback on these changes to come, I'd love to hear them!