Gratitude, greens, & good design

This week was a whirlwind - visiting the Smoky Mountains, Dollywood, and thanksgiving, client projects, making videos. The works.

If you've never been to East TN/West NC to see the Great Smoky Mountains, you are missing out. A wonderful juxtaposition of beautiful mountainous nature & a sprawl of unfettered family friendly tourist enterprise. It's a great snapshot of a certain type of American culture.

As we returned, we capped the week with a home cooked Thanksgiving. Cooking is/was a major creative outlet for me. I don't get to do it as much as I'd like (often I must choose between being a dad & being a chef).

So when I do get to command a kitchen for several hours unbothered, it feels like a real treat. Two items that reappeared on this year's menu are so delicious that I thought I'd share.

Neither are overly Thanksgiving-esque, so you could make them tonight:

The first is Chipotle Collared Greens. I remember first having greens in my twenties when I moved to Nashville. This salty, brothy, smoky concoction that paired incredibly with cornbread was a flavor revelation to me.

Also Carrot Souffle. An old buddy of mine once brought this to an Orange Party - a potluck where everyone dressed in orange and brought orange foods. I was floored by this fluffy carrot pudding. Very simple and delicious. Definitely straddles the line between dessert and a side.

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There was a lot to be thankful for this year. I am a pretty driven, future-looking person, so often it's hard for me to smell the roses and acknowledge the all the ways the good Lord has blessed me, but that's exactly what we're going to do:

First, my wife Liz. On top of being an absolute gangster of a mom, she is my confidant and steadies the ship. The invisible and rarely acknowledged half of our biz.

It's hard to imagine being a creative and flying solo. You need someone to bounce your ideas off of and to edit and refine. Whether you are an entrepreneur or creative or both, you need to find a sounding board and create a feedback loop. I am so lucky to have found my wife.

Second, I'd like to acknowledge You. You, the readers. I appreciate every word of feedback, encouragement and thoughtfulness I've received from you all. It's really special to be able to write something and know it will be read.

Since college, I did not get to do much writing. I always liked it but the opportunity never materialized. Towards the end of my time as a real estate agent, I started a small weekly newsletter to about 50 past clients and sincerely enjoyed writing it. Twitter threads further solidified my desire to write and share.

In sharing ideas, I'm genuinely floored that anybody reads and implements them. I always say, no one is more surprised than me. I really mean that. Thank you.

Third, I'd like to acknowledge a lot of people who have helped out over the last year. My friends & Arrington Woods partners, particularly Josh Randolph & Ryan Pattengale have been a huge blessing in my life. Jimmy Chapin for his guidance in working with brands. Carly Ripp - an awesome designer who is always willing to help me out. Oren Schauble & Colin Landforce for helping me on my online business journey. Jordan Mix for his insights and encouragement. Jimmy Meeks, my legal savant. Eli Lever for unwavering positivity, support, and collaboration. Isaac French for so much on a personal, creative and business level. There are more I'm sure I'm forgetting.

Finally, let's be thankful for creativity & the time we're living in. I am going to attempt not to speak in platitudes.

Creativity is a gift. It is a way of seeing the world that you are either born with or not. I got it in a big dose. I can't get rid of it. I've tried multiple times.

It's a superpower that you have to use or else it will eat you alive.

That said, we live in a soft and easy time when the cars drive themselves, the vegetables are pre cut and washed, the meat is boneless, both are delivered to your door by a concierge at the touch of a phone button, the work attire is sweatpants and the office is a computer.

We have this amazing opportunity, right now, in a world hungry for beauty - to share, document, curate it, and build a career.

There are so many excellent artisans, like Jeremy who I just discovered, who are doing compelling work and making things I've never seen before.

Jeremy R Anderson's stoneware Hydra sconces

We're really lucky to be alive in a time when more folks than ever before are able to do creative work and put food on the table.

Media & authority are changing, big time. Individual creators now have the same power formerly held by huge media teams and large corporations.

You can produce reality TV just with your phone.

You can create a great magazine online, maybe with just a photographer and another writer, and you can publish several times a week.

The next Architectural Digest or Vogue or Anna Wintour will not look like what it does today.

Today, a creative individual has immense power and can publish themselves to the entire world.

Naval Ravikant, my favorite modern day philosopher, says, "The Internet has massively broadened the possible space of careers. Most people haven't figured this out yet."

To have been able to provide for my family as a creative is a dream come true after struggling for a long time.

I wish you the greatest of luck on your creative endeavors & design journey. Whether a hobby or full time pursuit, we're just lucky to be able to keep the spark alive.

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2 more things:

A couple times a year, I book discounted video consults. I really enjoy them but don't have time to make them available year round. If you need help getting your space dialed, you can book a 1 on 1 session here. Limited number available.

If you are looking for that perfect gift, my wife and I curated this beautiful gift guide.