Success & Chocolate

Meet SamanthaAnne, 12-year-old who wrote a song for Malala

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 23:53:00 -0800

Everyone has heard of Malala Yousafzai, the 15-year-old Pakistani student and education activist who was tragically shot in the head by the Taliban on October 9, 2012. We were all heartbroken and outraged by this story. Well, when 12-year-old SamanthaAnne Martin heard Malala’s story, she wanted to do something: she wanted to help raise money to help Malala. So, Sammy and her dad, Dan Martin, got right to work on writing a song, Ricochet, and, along with a few friends, creating the spectacular video above. They did all of this over the course of 7 days, right in their backyard in Lafayette, California. Incredible.

SamanthaAnne has her song on iTunes and is kindly donating the proceeds to malalafund.org. Ricochet is a fantastic song; I’ve been singing it in my head ever since I chatted with Sammy, so…click on over and buy it! SamanthaAnne would also like for people to sign the change.org petition to nominate Malala for the Nobel Peace Prize. Great idea. Done.

I had a lovely talk with SamanthaAnne and Dan by phone last week. Sammy is as sweet as can be, and her dad is just as kind. What struck me most about our conversation is that they spoke more about Malala than they did of themselves. And the most exciting part about all of this for SamanthaAnne is knowing that Malala has heard her song.

Bio: For Northern California’s 12-year-old, up and coming artist SamanthaAnne, recording and performing Ricochet is a dream come true. She loves participating in a team that writes beautiful music and meaningful lyrics while keeping an eye on impacting its audience in a positive way. SamanthaAnne describes her music as “sometimes fun, sometimes about the tough times life has to offer”. Nothing is as special to Sammy as telling a story.

Ricochet is inspired by Malala’s courage and determination. Learning about Malala has shown Sammy that a small voice driven by hope can make a change. “The more I learn about Malala and her work, the more I want to help in being a ‘kid teaching kids’. If Ricochet plays a small part in getting the word out — great! That will make me happy.”.

Sammy has starred in Annie and other productions. “I can’t imagine life without music. It’s one of the few things in life where you can be whoever you want to be.” She has been in the studio working on her album for the past few months.

SamanthaAnne’s Wear Me Out will be featured on her debut album due out in the beginning of 2013.

SamanthaAnne strives one day to make a difference in others’ lives, just as Malala has.

Peggy: First of all, thank you for creating a song and wonderful video for Malala, and for donating the proceeds to her fund. You were obviously very touched by her story. What made you decide to take such action?

SamanthaAnne: I first learned about Malala in school when my class was learning about adversity. I couldn’t believe that in some parts of the world girls were not allowed to go to school. How could anyone let this happen?

When I got home, I asked my dad what we could do to support Malala. First, we did more research on Malala’s story on the Internet. That is when we came across the petition to nominate her for the Nobel Prize. What a great idea! My dad and I signed the petition, but I wanted to do something more. I wanted to raise money for such an amazing cause. That’s when we started writing the song.

Peggy: I love your song…it’s very catchy! You have a beautiful voice. Have you always loved singing?

SamanthaAnne: Wow, thanks for the compliment! I can never remember not singing. It’s been a part of my growing up. I have been in many musicals and Orinda Idol for a number of years. I also go to acting and singing camps and was in ACT’s annual A Christmas Carol a year ago and played Annie last year in Berkeley Playhouse’s production of Annie.

Peggy: Tell us about the cool piano!

SamanthaAnne: We actually bought the piano on Craigslist. It was brown when it started! My parents spray painted it white the day before, and many of us spray painted colors on our hands and put them on the piano the morning we made the video. It’s still sitting in our backyard.

Peggy: Do you like chocolate? What kind?

SamanthaAnne: Are you kidding! Of course. See’s Candies; Scotchmallow is my favorite.

Peggy: What do you want to be when you grow up?

SamanthaAnne: I would love to be a singer. I have always wanted to be on stage.

Peggy: Is there anything else you’d like everyone to know about you?

SamanthaAnne: I am working on an album that we will release in 2013. I am so excited. Getting a song on iTunes was a dream come true.

Peggy: Sammy, thank you for all you are doing for Malala, and for taking the time to chat with me. I appreciate the time you and your dad have given me. I wish you well with your singing career and all other endeavors!

samanthaannemusic.com ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Malala Fund ~ change.org petition ~ iTunes

My Visit to Recchiuti's Chocolate Lab...and more

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 00:29:00 -0800

I recently went on an afternoon chocolate field trip to San Francisco with my foodie friend Cathy Curtis. I’d been wanting to visit Michael Recchiuti’s new Chocolate Lab since November, when Michael and his wife Jacky opened their cafe in the Dogpatch neighborhood. I have been a fan of Recchiuti Confections for years, so I was very excited to try their food, in addition to sampling a dessert or two…or three. That’s why it’s smart to go with a friend…

Cathy & I did order lunch first, but we were so excited to eat the delicious-looking food, that I forgot to take pictures. I can tell you that the Winter Greens Salad and the Frittata Tartine were great, though. Very fresh and light. Recchiuti gets their food delivered from local farms, which I greatly appreciate. Pictured above is their Chocolate Custard, which I am craving right now…it was so good! Long story, but we ended up going back later in the day and having a couple of ice cream sundaes (hey, they’re small!), which were also to die for.

The best part of the whole day is that we were fortunate enough to meet the man himself, Michael Recchiuti. He was there working, and was kind enough to come over to our table to chat. Michael is very kind and down-to-earth…I think we may have talked his ear off a bit, but he didn’t seem to mind. I’m looking forward to going back to the Chocolate Lab again soon.

Later that afternoon, Cathy took me to the kitchen for Tout Sweet Patisserie, where she has special foodie connections. Tout Sweet is located inside Macy’s in Union Square. We were invited to sample the cake below, so we took a few pieces of that yummy cake home. As you can see, this was a good day we were having!

We also visited Bi-Rite Market, which has an amazing chocolate selection (below). I was excited to find Mast Brothers chocolate there, and I bought a bar. LOVED it!! Hooked.

Next, we wandered into Craftsman & Wolves, just to look, at this point. But I want to go back there and buy their scrumptious-looking pastries one day.

We had hoped to visit Dandelion Chocolate in their new shop in the Mission, but they were closed for the holidays. I’ll definitely be paying them another visit in the future.

Thank you, Cathy Curtis, for going on a chocolate field trip in San Francisco with me.

Follow-up Interview with Martha Payne, author of Neverseconds

Fri, 23 Nov 2012 03:22:00 -0800

Martha Payne is a young girl who is changing the world through her own passion and determination, as well as via the power of social media, especially Twitter, with the help of her father. Much has happened since I first interviewed Martha back in late May 2012.

Martha, now 10 years old, and her food blog, Neverseconds, have become world-renown. Neverseconds, where Martha posts photos and reviews of her school lunches, has been named by Time magazine as one of the 25 Best Blogs of 2012. Her story is so incredible that she and her father, David Payne, recently released a wonderful book to help raise money for their chosen charity, Mary’s Meals. In addition to all of this, Martha just last week won a Human Rights award, for defending free expression. More about that from Martha, below.

I personally was astounded when I watched the BBC Documentary on the Payne family’s trip to Malawi, where a school kitchen was built with the money Martha has raised. Please take a few minutes to view the clips, as words cannot describe the need there and the difference Martha is making. Martha had some profound words, though, about her Malawi visit: “I have learned that they can sing very loudly, that they don’t have what we have, and that we’ve got to appreciate what we’ve got.” Here are the links: Part 1 & Part 2

The best thing about Martha and her family, to me, is that they are very humble; very down-to earth. It’s obvious that they are not in this for the fame; you will see what I mean…

Peggy: You have been very busy since we last chatted! You have raised a great deal of money for the charity Mary’s Meals. How much have you raised so far, and how did you accomplish that? Why did you choose Mary’s Meals?

Martha: People have donated over £123,000 to my JustGiving page. A lot of donations came after the council banned me taking photographs. I chose Mary’s Meals because I have supported them for a long time because my grandpa is a volunteer. It is about school dinners. They give a school dinner to children so they don’t have to find food instead of coming to school. I understand Mary’s Meals.

Peggy: I heard you recently met Jamie Oliver. Please tell us about that experience. Was it exciting? Were you nervous?

Martha: I met Jamie on the BBC One Show. It was live. I was very nervous, not because of Jamie. I met him a few minutes before the show, but I was nervous because it was live. It was exciting seeing how it’s made but I saw myself on a screen when they played a clip from the documentary and I don’t like seeing myself or hearing myself, so it made me very nervous. (Link to Martha’s BBC One Show blog post)

Peggy: Congratulations on your book Neverseconds: The Incredible Story of Martha Payne which was just released on November 15th. I am reading and loving every bit of it! You and your dad are great writers. Please tell us a little bit about the book. (UK Amazon link)

Martha: Thank you. We talk about how I came up with the idea for NeverSeconds and what happened behind the blog. I didn’t know everything that happened because Mum and Dad didn’t tell me at the time. I think it is very good. Jamie Oliver has read it and loves it! Every copy gives 25 meals in Malawi through Mary’s Meals.

Peggy: You received worldwide attention when your local council banned you from posting photos of your school dinners to your blog. Fortunately, they reversed their decision fairly quickly after receiving a storm of protest on Twitter and elsewhere; there was even a change.org petition (which I signed). How did you feel about that ban?

Martha: I was upset because I didn’t do anything wrong. I don’t write the newspapers, just my blog. Without the ban we would not have raised so much money, though; but the council have never said sorry to me. Sorry is important.

Peggy: Do you feel famous?

Martha: People have recognised me and my picture is on the book. I don’t feel famous because my friends, and where I live, are the same.

Peggy: How has all the media attention affected you?

Martha: I am more nervous in front of cameras now because it has happened a lot. I answer the same questions a lot, as well, and I forget what I say to each person. It gets confusing. It’s not all fun because I am away from home sometimes, but I did meet Rowan Atkinson, Mr Bean, on Monday because he gave me a Human Rights award. He was very very nice. (Link to Martha’s blog post about her trip to the Liberty Awards in London)

Peggy: What is the best thing that has happened to you as a result of this experience?

Martha: Visiting and meeting the kids in Malawi. I wanted to write and now there is a book, and I just sent Jamie Oliver a copy I signed. How cool is that!

Peggy: That is very cool! Thank you for all you are doing for the kids in Malawi, sweet girl. Keep up the good work…you are quite an inspiration! Oh, one last question… Is the Dairy Milk by Cadbury still your favorite chocolate bar? :)

Martha: Yes!

Many thanks to Martha’s dad, Dave Payne, for allowing this interview to happen. We exchanged numerous emails and tweets, all while he and Martha were busy traveling and going about their very busy life. I am grateful. Here is a quote from one of Dave’s emails, just to show you what a humble and kind man he is: “We’re such a normal family, Peggy, but we just got thrown into the spotlight. The only way to be comfortable for us was to reflect that light onto kids that really needed it.”

Martha with her Grandfather, Mum Rebecca, Brother Joe, Dad Dave & Sister Polly

To donate to Mary’s Meals on Martha’s behalf, click here. To purchase the Neverseconds book which also helps feed kids in Malawi, click here (US) or here (UK).

The San Francisco Fall Luxury Chocolate Salon

Tue, 20 Nov 2012 12:08:33 -0800

I attended the Fall Luxury Chocolate Salon in San Francisco on Sunday, November 11th. It was a beautiful, blue-skied day at Fort Mason but I colored this photo brown, as I had chocolate on the brain after tasting so many delicious samples at this fun event!

The best part about taking a week to get this post up, is that the winners have been announced! Congrats to Catherine and Ellin of Toffee Talk, below, for taking the Top Toffee in Salon award again! Well-deserved…I love their toffee!

Sixth Course Artisan Confections, of San Francisco, won several awards for their delicious truffles, including Best in Salon. Congrats, Bridget and Gianina! Jade Chocolates, another woman-owned SF-based chocolate company, took 1st place for Best Flavored Chocolate Bar. Kudos to Mindy Fong (below)!

Snake & Butterfly won several awards, including the Silver in Best Organic or Fair Trade products. Pictured below are Mara & Vince, two of the owners. Gotta love a company with such integrity! Those values mean so much to me.

The flavored popcorn below is from Plumeria Flours. They won the Silver for Best Comfort Snack Product, and I’d have to agree. Their popcorn is so delicious!

I could barely get near the packed Socola table, so we have no photo of owners Wendy & Susan, but I was able to quickly purchase a couple of boxes of their exquisite truffles. Socola Chocolatiers won many awards that day, including 1st Place for Top Artisan Chocolate. Congrats, ladies! The Tea Room Chocolate Co. took 1st Place for Best Milk Chocolate. By the time I got to their table I could eat no more, but I did snatch a dark chocolate sample to save for later, which I was very happy to have after lunch.

Cocotutti won 1st Place for Best Traditional Chocolates. Amano took the Best Dark Chocolate 1st Place award. What else can I say? Their products are amazing!

The two lovely ladies below are Katreece Montgomery, of The Chocolate Addict blog, and Bethany Garland, Chief Chocolatier at Lillian Joy, Decadent Art. They gave a fun and interesting presentation at the Chocolate Salon; I was pleased to meet them both! And just when I thought I knew all of the SF-based chocolate companies, I discovered Feve Artisan Chocolatier. As you can see below, they have beautiful chocolates. Feve won many awards that day, including Most Artistic Designs; well deserved!

Clarine’s Florentines, a woman-owned company out of Berkeley, was handing out samples of their yummy European cookies, for which they won several Bronze awards. And La Chatelaine traveled all the way from Montana to share their scrumptious chocolates. Congrats to them on winning multiple awards!

I tried to get photos of every participant, but I missed a few: Butterfly Brittle, Marti Chocolatt, Quail Point Chocolates, Rachel Dunn Chocolates, and Kallari Chocolate. Kallari won 1st Place for Best Organic or Fair Trade Product, an important category in my opinion, so they deserve a special mention. I’ve had their chocolate in the past; it’s fantastic, as is their mission.

My 13 year old daughter accompanied me to the Chocolate Salon. She’s got a sophisticated palate, that girl; so funny…she turns her nose up at milk chocolate! Needless to say, we had a wonderful time tasting artisan chocolate. After tasting as much as we could, we craved salad, so we headed over to the renown Green’s Restaurant, right there in Fort Mason for a delicious vegetarian lunch. That was a great day. Now we’re looking forward to the San Francisco International Chocolate Salon, which happens on March 24th, 2013.

Chocolate of the Moment… I took this photo a couple of days ago,...

Sat, 10 Nov 2012 21:28:05 -0800

Chocolate of the Moment… I took this photo a couple of days ago, after my package arrived from Snake & Butterfly, and before I ate every single one of those Fig Caramels. SO delicious!! I’m happy to tell you I didn’t eat all 4 in one day. I also didn’t share them with my family…oops! ;)

Snake & Butterfly, whose name I love, by the way (reminds me of Success & Chocolate!), is based in Campbell, CA. They make organic, fair-trade artisan chocolates and confections. They have a newly opened Factory & Lounge which I hope to visit in the near future.

I’m grateful to Mara, one of the owners, for noticing my blog and offering to send me their exquisite chocolates. Each of the bars is delicious, my favorite of the above 3 being the Benjamin’s 76% Blend…dark, rich, and smooth! I *have* shared the bars with my family and we each have our favorites. My 12 year old son, who LOVES spicy stuff, thinks the Cherry & Chili bar rocks!

Chocolate of the Moment… Today (10/28/12) was National...

Sun, 28 Oct 2012 23:19:00 -0700

Chocolate of the Moment… Today (10/28/12) was National Chocolate Day. To celebrate, I ate some of my favorite organic ice cream: Three Twins Vanilla Chocolate Chip, topped with Recchiuti Extra-Bitter Chocolate Sauce…OMG, so sinful and delicious!!

Three Twins Ice Cream is a San Francisco Bay Area-based business… I’ve been a huge fan since they opened their first shop in 2005, in my hometown of San Rafael. The owner, Neal Gottlieb, is a cool guy who’s from New Jersey, like yours truly. He’s built up a hugely successful business, and I’m super happy for him.

Recchiuti Confections belongs to San Francisco’s Michael & Jacky Recchiuti. They are known worldwide for their exquisite chocolates. Soon they will be opening Chocolate Lab, a chocolate cafe in San Francisco…I can’t wait to check that out! No doubt it’ll be as fabulous as their store in the Ferry Building.

This is not a sponsored ad. I wrote this out of the goodness of my heart. Photo credit: Three Twins and Recchiuti

My Interview with Lisa Kift, MFT

Wed, 24 Oct 2012 11:47:47 -0700

Lisa Kift is a therapist in private practice who lives right here in Marin County, where I reside, though we first met via Twitter. If you’re on Twitter, you should follow Lisa @LisaKiftTherapy …she shares excellent relationship and mental health articles and tips. I especially love her #EmotionalHealthMinute tweets, such as: If you tend to scan the horizon for the negative, try changing the channel. You are likely missing a lot.

I admire Lisa because she uses social media, and technology in general, in a very positive and smart way, to help the general public. Lisa is also a very nice, hip, down-to-earth person in real life. And she does like chocolate… :)

Bio: Lisa Brookes Kift, MFT is the creator of The Toolbox at LisaKiftTherapy.com, providing tools for marriage, relationship and emotional health. She has a private practice in Larkspur, Marin County, CA, working with individuals and couples. Lisa is a frequent consultant for the media and has appeared in online news sources and publications such as CNN.com, Huffington Post, and Martha Stewart Weddings Magazine.

Peggy: Where were you born and where do you live now?

Lisa: I was born in San Francisco and grew up in Mill Valley (where I now live again). I spent many years of my life living in Southern California; San Diego and Los Angeles. My husband, son and I moved back to Marin County about four years ago.

Peggy: You have an impressive, information-packed website; as you say, “one of the first therapist created online resources for the public of its kind”. How long ago did you create your website, and what caused you to have such an unusual (at the time) vision?

Lisa: It was a combination of luck and timing. The Toolbox at LisaKiftTherapy.com (with tools for emotional and relationship health) is a separate site from my local Marin practice site (MarinTherapyandCounseling.com) but it didn’t start that way. It originally was my practice site in San Diego where I got my MA in Counseling Psychology and did my internship training. At the time there were barely any therapists online (many still of the old era belief that therapists shouldn’t advertise or market themselves).

I started writing articles on various topics and putting them on that site. Not only did it put me extremely high in search engine rankings but I found my practice was busting at the seams as people were clearly searching for therapists online. I was still a MFT intern and the agency I was working at couldn’t believe it! Additionally, I started getting contacted by people from all around the world who were finding the site and seeking advice from me. I realized there was a huge potential to reach more than I’d ever imagined; people worldwide seeking further education on the topics I was writing about.

It was then that the concept of creating downloadable products for purchase was born. Therapy-At-Home-Workbooks® is my line of tools for couples (and soon individuals) to use to improve their emotional and relationship health. I currently have The Premarital Counseling Workbook for Couples (also available in Spanish) and The Marriage Refresher Course Workbook for Couples. My next project is a workbook for individuals on the topic of emotional health.

Peggy: You are also very popular on Twitter and Facebook. How has your use of social media helped your therapy practice?

Lisa: I typically don’t use social media for my therapy practice specifically, though it’s possible clients have stumbled upon me that way. I primarily use Twitter and my Facebook page to share information related to emotional and relationship health. I also use them to market my workbooks, as well as recommend other products. I’ve established a lot of relationships with therapists, psychologists, and others in my field doing some great stuff.

Peggy: How much time per day do you spend on social media? What advice do you have for others with regards to not getting addicted to social media?

Lisa: During the week I’ll post a few odds and ends in the morning and sometimes again later in the day. I usually don’t engage in social media on the weekends.

I think social media and other online activities can be a big risk for many, particularly those who don’t have a balance of healthy outlets, are depressed, or vulnerable to addiction. There have been recent studies on the similarities between the brain’s response to internet use (gaming, social media) and drug addiction. The most important thing to do to avoid getting “addicted” to social media is to closely monitor any negative consequences (relationships, job, mood issues, etc.).

Peggy: What were you going to be when you grew up?

Lisa: When I was young I used to love to write and when a little older, do photography. My dream at that time was to become a photojournalist. Instead, I embarked on a film/television production career that I ultimately ditched to become a therapist, which is more rewarding and a better overall fit for me.

Peggy: How do you balance motherhood and work?

Lisa: For me the trick is a periodic re-evaluation of how things are balanced. I identify with a lot of roles; mom, wife, friend, therapist, writer…and it’s easy to find my scales have tipped in a way that’s not comfortable. I used to identify with being a “Type A” personality but not anymore. Trying to do it all is highly over-rated. My meditation practice has helped a lot with making that shift.

Peggy: How do you get out of a funk?

Lisa: Exercise helps improve my mood a lot. Talking to my husband and friends helps, too. Sushi or frozen yogurt also does wonders.

Peggy: Dark or milk? Do you have a favorite brand?

Lisa: Dark. I realize this is very “old-school” but I still have a special affinity for Hershey’s Special Dark.

Peggy: Is there anything else you would like people to know about you?

Lisa: I like to mountain bike, hike, and am coaching my son’s soccer team (he’s in kindergarten). I think it’s important for young boys to see that girls play sports too. :)

Peggy: Lisa, thank you so much for your time here!

LisaKiftTherapy.com ~ MarinTherapyandCounseling.com ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ LinkedIn

Chocolate of the Moment… This is for my San Francisco...

Tue, 02 Oct 2012 09:20:00 -0700

Chocolate of the Moment… This is for my San Francisco friends… I was on Union St in SF yesterday for an acupuncture appointment, and I ended up with a parking spot RIGHT in front of Pacific Puffs… So I had to go in, right? :) Pacific Puffs has the most delicious cream puffs. Of course I chose the chocolate cream one…yum! In addition to their Union Street store, Pacific Puffs has 2 cool food trucks.

This is not a sponsored ad. I wrote this out of the goodness of my heart.

My Interview with Chocolate for Breakfast founder Sue Ann Gleason

Thu, 27 Sep 2012 17:00:00 -0700

Sue Ann Gleason has a fabulous and very popular Facebook page called Chocolate For Breakfast which I interact with on a daily basis. She posts great photos of chocolate, and fun quotes…very happy stuff that’s easy to ‘like’. I became curious about who was behind the page, and whether she really ate chocolate for breakfast… so I did a little research and discovered this wonderful and intelligent woman who has amazing credentials and provides exceptional programs and content for women. Please enjoy my interview with Sue Ann…and if you’re interested in growing a business via social media, be sure to pay attention to her excellent tips below. Sue Ann knows what she’s talking about!

Bio: Sue Ann Gleason is a food lover, food writer, food-based healer and savvy marketing strategist. Founder of Conscious Bites Nutrition and the Well Nourished Woman, she inspires women to trust their intuition, unravel their food stories and take back their plates, one luscious bite at a time. Sue Ann shares her expertise through online programs and in one-on-one sessions via telephone or Skype.

To download her free No Longer Asleep at the Meal ebook, click here.

For Sue Ann’s free Chocolate Lover’s Guide, click here.

And for daily interaction and delicious chocolate suggestions and humor, visit her chocolate lover’s playground on Facebook.

Peggy: Where were you born and where do you live now?

Sue Ann: I was born in Buffalo, New York. I now live in Northern Virginia just outside of Washington, DC.

Peggy: I love the name of your blog, Chocolate for Breakfast. What inspired the name? Do you really eat chocolate for breakfast?

Sue Ann: I do eat chocolate for breakfast! My culinary nutrition work is all about pleasure and permission and showing women that they don’t have to deprive themselves of delicious treats to achieve vibrant health. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. When we deny ourselves the pleasure of a treat we end up craving it even more. So rather than ‘curbing’ our cravings, I suggest we ‘honor’ our desires. And we do that with the very best chocolate we can acquire.

My own chocolate for breakfast journey began in January 2011. I was researching hunger and satiety for an article I was writing for my Conscious Bites Nutrition community when I came across the big breakfast diet. Dr. Daniela Jakubowicz, a clinical professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, found that sedentary, obese women on a “big breakfast diet” lost almost five times as much weight as did women following a traditional, restrictive low-carbohydrate diet.

This was a very interesting and informative study, but my ears really perked up when I saw a piece of chocolate on the breakfast menu. Jakubowicz explained that our serotonin levels are highest in the morning. That’s the best time to indulge in a little treat because the brain won’t feel the same serotonin boost. Reaching for a sweet treat later in the day, when your serotonin levels dip, may contribute to an addictive cycle because your body begins to associate good feelings with the treat.

The important thing to note here is that a small square of really good dark chocolate is part of a larger meal that contains some form of clean, lean protein or healthy fat to keep blood sugar levels stable and contribute to satiety.

Peggy: You say you found your calling not once, but twice. What are those callings and how did you find them?

Sue Ann: Before opening my Conscious Bites Nutrition practice I was a teacher of small children, a dance and aerobics instructor, and a mentor to blossoming teachers. About seven years ago I experienced a health crisis that literally brought me to my knees. My vitality was virtually gone. I was falling asleep at the wheel on the way home from school and then falling into bed at 8PM. And even with all that sleep, I could barely drag myself to work in the morning. I attributed it to “burnout.” I had a very demanding class that year and I was pretty drained from that experience. When those symptoms persisted, I made an appointment with an endocrinologist.

Endocrinologists are trained to diagnose and treat hormone imbalances and problems by helping to restore the normal balance of hormones in your system. It turned out there was a lot to treat: my adrenals were shot, Hashimoto had taken up residence in my body (All I could think was, “Who is Hashimoto and what’s he doing in my body?”) I discovered Hashimoto is an autoimmune disorder related to the thyroid.

I also discovered that I had osteoporosis.

Yes, I was a virtual train wreck. Not to worry. The prescription pads came out and I was offered all kinds of solutions to my failing health. I was not ready to hop on the pharmaceutical train.

As luck or serendipity would have it I came across a book at a local bookstore, the Autoimmune Epidemic by Donna Jackson Nakazawa. I just opened the book to a random page and these were the words I found looking up at me: Chapter Three: Dirty Little Secrets, Cluster Epidemics from Buffalo to Texas. Buffalo, New York is my hometown. That book was the catalyst for a very deep study of the endocrine system and the beginning of my journey into food as medicine. I went back to school and for the next few years I studied the various components that make up the career I enjoy today: nutrition, culinary arts, the psychology of eating and positive psychology.

Peggy: What does a Culinary Nutritionist do?

Sue Ann: I help women cultivate a body wisdom approach to nourishment. There is so much conflicting nutritional information out there, we really don’t know what to eat anymore. A more traditional nutritionist might provide you with all kinds of scientific information to help you choose healthier foods. They might say something like: “A single serving of fresh corn tortillas delivers 8 grams of protein, 8 grams of fiber, over 100% the RDA for riboflavin, thiamine, and vitamins B6 and C, and over 40% of the RDA for niacin, selenium, and vitamin B12.

It’s highly unlikely that you’ll leave that experience clamoring for another session, right?

So, instead of handing women a 1400-calorie meal plan or point system and a packet of recipes they may never use, I like to cultivate their culinary curiosity and show them how they can prepare simple, healthy, exquisite meals and still have time to eat.

Rather than taking things OUT of their diet and labeling foods ‘good’ or ‘bad,’ I help women redefine pleasure and the true meaning of nourishment. We gradually build a new repertoire of foods and, even more important, habits around food based on my Conscious Bites Concepts™. Basically, I usher them out of the weight loss war zone and back to a place where eating starts to feel delicious, natural and sustainable.

Peggy: How did you become a chocolate connoisseur? Have you loved chocolate your entire life?

Sue Ann: Yes, my dad introduced me to ‘chocolate for breakfast’. As a special treat he would get up very early on a Saturday morning while the rest of us were asleep and drive to Jet Donut, Buffalo’s favorite donut shop. A beautiful box of yummy confections awaited us when we climbed out of our sleepy nests. My chocolate palate wasn’t nearly as sophisticated as it is now but I sure loved those donuts.

My ‘Chocolate for Breakfast’ connoisseur adventure began in January 2011 when I started my chocolate for breakfast blog and Facebook page with the intention of building a community of chocolate lovers who shared similar viewpoints on pleasure and permission. But much to my surprise (and delight) the chocolate journey took on a life of its own. As my Facebook fan base grew, chocolate makers from all over the world started sending me samples of their chocolates hoping to tease my palate and claim a space in my Top 12 Chocolate Finds ebook, or at the very least, my fan page.

The more chocolate I tasted, the more refined my palate became. Pretty soon I was choosing chocolate by origin, much like a connoisseur of fine wine develops a more informed and discriminating taste for the grapes of a particular region. It’s not that there is anything wrong with a varietal, it’s just that I became rather enchanted with the nuances of flavor that I had never before experienced in chocolate.

Peggy: Your Chocolate for Breakfast Facebook page has over 10,000 fans. You’re obviously doing something right! Do you have any social media tips for other entrepreneurs?

Sue Ann: Yes, that number astonishes me, too. I will celebrate the two-year anniversary of my fan page in January 2013. I never dreamed I’d have over 10,000 fans in less than two years. I never dreamed that the health editor of Oprah Magazine would contact me for recipes for an article on ‘dessert for breakfast’. I am thrilled with the engagement on that page.

Here are the tips I offer fellow entrepreneurs and my marketing strategy clients:

Be intentional: Make it your mission to provide the best content possible and your fan base will grow organically and authentically.

Build Relationship: This is a tricky one because there are only so many hours in a day and there are so many social media opportunities: blogging, Facebook, Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn. Whichever form of social media you choose to engage in, find authentic ways to interact with people on your page to keep them coming back. I don’t look at the ‘number’ of fans I’ve attracted. I look at the ‘engagement’ level. That little number speaks volumes. This is not a popularity contest. It’s a relationship.

Be Present: We live in an automated world. There is nothing more disappointing than being in a conversation with someone who isn’t present. You know that scenario. It’s the conversation you’re having with someone who is glancing over your shoulder instead of looking you in the eye. Social media is no different. You want to be present on your page. People feel your presence.

Keep Your Eyes Wide Open: Keep an eye on what are your fans are responding to. What do they want from you? I discovered early on that the people on my page want to have fun. They come to Chocolate for Breakfast for delicious recipes, chocolate recommendations, humorous posts and community.

Peggy: What are your goals with Chocolate for Breakfast?

Sue Ann: My goal is to continue growing my community while providing richly rewarding content. I offer two online courses: the Well-Nourished Woman Inner Circle and Clueless in the Kitchen No More, six weeks of ‘healthy’ culinary bliss with one week devoted entirely to chocolate. I am building a community of women who are committed to leaving a luscious legacy in the world. I am also writing a book. I bet you can guess the title.

Peggy: Dark or milk? What are some of your favorite brands?

Sue Ann: I stay away from milk chocolate because it is too sweet for my palate and dairy binds with the antioxidants in chocolate and prevents them from nourishing our cells. My favorite chocolate is small batch, bean to bar, single-origin that contains no soy and no dairy. I love Dandelion Chocolate based in San Francisco, Mast Brothers Chocolate based in Brooklyn, Ritual Chocolate based in Colorado and Potomac Chocolate right here in Virginia. For me, these chocolate makers represent the very best in artisan chocolate. When you taste these bars, you begin to understand the nuances in flavor in the chocolate itself. There are no distractions in a bar of single-origin chocolate, just pure unbridled intention.

Peggy: Is there anything else you would like people to know about you?

Sue Ann: My signature online program, the Well-Nourished Woman Inner Circle, runs twice a year for three months. I have been developing this program for the past four years and it has morphed into a truly exquisite online experience for women who are ready to take back their plates, one luscious bite at a time. I would love to offer your readers a kindred spirit special if they are interested in registering for the next session. They can contact me for details and simply mention Success & Chocolate interview.

Peggy: Sue Ann, thank you so much for your time. I have enjoyed learning more about the woman behind the fun chocolate Facebook posts!

Chocolate of the Moment… I’ve long been a fan of Green...

Tue, 25 Sep 2012 14:29:55 -0700

Chocolate of the Moment… I’ve long been a fan of Green & Black’s Organic chocolate, especially their 85% bar, so when they offered to send me some samples, of course I accepted. The awesome person who sent the above samples was paying attention, and took note of the fact that I’m a dark chocolate lover, and therefore made excellent selections for me!

2 out of my 3 kids are now dark chocolate lovers, too (my 7 year old still likes the milky stuff), so I’ve had some help doing the “sampling”. The delicious Cherry bar didn’t last long at all in my house…and the others are on their way to being gone. Thank you very much, Green & Black’s…we love your chocolate! And thank you for being Fair Trade and Organic!

Oh, and if you’re wondering how Green & Black’s got their name…I found this great explanation on their website: There never was, in fact, a Mr. Green or a Mrs. Black. The name was dreamt up by the company founders, Craig and Jo, to symbolize the true foundations of the brand: green for organic and black for the deep, rich dark brown (almost black) color of the chocolate. And so Green & Black’s was born.

My Interview with Leila Radan, Chief Community Wife of ABOW

Mon, 17 Sep 2012 18:04:00 -0700

If you are fellow “wife”… that is, a member of A Band of Wives, this woman requires no introduction. And if you aren’t, read on, and learn about the lovely Leila Radan who is almost impossible to introduce due to her many, many talents. She is as smart and interesting as she is beautiful. And oh, what a creative writer! Women, I highly recommend you join ABOW, if not for the fabulous community, join A Band of Wives just to have a little Leila in your life!

Bio: Leila Radan had a hard time submitting a bio. Ask her to talk about any topic and she’ll give it a go. Her life experiences are easily shared. But ask her to tell you who she is and she is truly stumped. With a background in writing and acting, her unrequited passion, she somehow veered off into ashtanga yoga. She taught yoga for over a decade, whilst raising two kids and being quirkily married to her soul mate and later veered off into creating a jewelry line and somehow, through it all, became an unashamed shoe snob. Now, she’s the Chief Community Wife of a women’s networking group, A Band of Wives. She has no clue what the path that lies ahead holds for her but will be happy if she can simply flow and learn to “just be” better and better each day.

Peggy: Where were you born and where do you live now?

Leila: I was born in Tehran, Iran, am part Danish/part Iranian, was raised between Spain and the US and live in San Francisco, the only place I’ve ever felt I truly belong.

Peggy: You are the face of my favorite online community, A Band of Wives, and you interact daily with over 4800 women, plus coordinate and attend countless local ABOW events. You rock their social media with your creative writing and organizational skills. Christine Bronstein is so lucky to have you, as I’m sure she realizes. How did you two lovely ladies meet? And what is it like being the Chief Community Wife for ABOW?

Leila: Oh my goodness! First and foremost, you are too, too sweet with the love and the compliments. Thank you! But if Chris is lucky to have me then I am even luckier to have her! In my view, Chris is the heart and soul of ABOW and loving her is so easy that being a sincere cheerleader for ABOW just follows organically, you know?

As for how we met, well, I used to be an avid reader of her husband, Phil Bronstein’s, column. I admired his ROAR and was especially taken by a series of scathing, brilliantly written pieces that spoke to me and, well, good writing with an edge is a high for me so, of course, I just HAD to friend Phil on Facebook. He accepted my friend request and within a week of becoming online friends he’d posted a link to ABOW, asking his FB friends to check out this site his wife had created.

I was intrigued, checked it out, joined, was invited by Chris to vend my jewelry at the very first ABOW event ever, met her, was struck by her warmth and amazing spirit and that was it, I was hooked!

As for being ABOW’s Chief Community Wife? What can I say? You KNOW you have a very unique thing going when business calls with your friend/wife/boss end with “I love you”! It’s a wild and beautiful job to have! I get to play online, plan fun events, meet amazing women from ALL walks of life, hang out with Chris (who is simply beyond a friend. She’s family to me), and this is work? NO complaints here.

I am truly blessed and grateful beyond words. I think I have a hard time with compliments as to my “work” for ABOW because it doesn’t feel like work. If there’s a certain energy I put out there that speaks to wives it’s based on a love for the very concept of ABOW, which Chris lives and breathes, and so it follows that it’s rooted in my love for Chris, for the amazing friend she’s been to me and founded on a belief in her and what she’s created. I see my involvement and my work as an act of gratitude for getting to be a part of the inner sanctum of what, to me, is now a movement where women seek more for each other. We’re not joking when we say we want a new kind of sisterhood!

Peggy: Tell us about your other talents…because you have many. How did you end up
becoming an actress and a model? And a jewelry designer?!

Leila: Hmm. I’m still working on taking myself seriously as any of those things. I tend to stumble on things in life. I’m not a model. I’m too short and old for that and I know that. But I sometimes play at being a model for talented designer friends and photographer friends. I have a passion for acting but it’s mostly been unfulfilled, which is why I play at being a model every once in a while. I started making jewelry when I had two children, instead of just one, to sit down and do homework with. I go stir crazy if I have to sit and have nothing to do. I feel restless. I needed to stay busy. My hands needed to do something. So I made jewelry.

Peggy: How do you balance your work and other interests with being a mother of two and a wife?

Leila: With my secret weapon, my husband! From day one he’s been SO hands on with the kids and a true partner in raising them. I don’t even cook now. At all. Which is fine because he is an amazing chef and he’s fully taken over. He practices acupuncture here in SF and we work our schedules around each other to make it work. For the most part, he drops the kids off at school in the morning and I pick them up in the afternoons. If I have ABOW events to go to we plan ahead and make it work. I’m an emotional Pisces so it behooves him to keep his “quirky” (crazy might be more appropriate a term) wife happy lest the emotions spill over into full fledged Piscean drama which, more often than not, will end up being aimed at him! He’s a wise man!

We are also lucky that the children’s schools have extended care programs that allow them to stay on until 6pm. That gives me plenty of time to squeeze all my meetups, auditions, general play time and the like into my day and be able to be on homework and mom duty at night, when they’re home from school. We make it work.

Peggy: What do you do for exercise (because it’s obvious that you do something great!)?

Leila: I am an ashtanga yoga teacher and though I no longer teach, I practice daily. Ashtanga is my sanity. Even if I’m sick I need to make it onto my mat, if only for 5 or 10 minutes (though I practice, as a general rule, for an hour daily as my minimum). It is essential for me to connect to my breath and to ground myself via my practice. I also jog daily, at home, on an urban rebounder. I don’t like jogging on pavement and don’t always have the time to leave the house for exercise as it would be an extra element to factor into the day. So I jog for an hour, at home, whilst watching HGTV (I am HOOKED!) or Sex and the City and barking orders at the kids, should they be home and in need of bossing around. *wink, wink*

Peggy: I don’t think of you as a woman of color, because we live in the melting pot that is the Bay Area, and I just don’t think that way. But what is it like for you, being an Iranian-American? Do you ever feel discriminated against?

Leila: No, not at all but I do realize that it’s because I am SO very blessed to be sheltered in this utopia that is our Bay Area bubble. In my head I am just me… a nutty San Franciscan called Leila of Iranian-Danish-Icelandic blood but with an Iranian-Danish-Spanish-American base. I can’t pick any one part of me as being an overall representative of who or what I am and I fit in in San Francisco, a city I call a perfect home to “fuzzy people” because I am fuzzy. I don’t need a definition. I get to just be.

I’ve had moments where I was probably discriminated against but it didn’t really hit me that it might be because I was a woman of color. I’d chuck it up to whomever was being an ass to their simply being, well, an asshole! I am NOT the sit-there-and-take-it kinda chick so I’d dish it right back and then some. I think the day that it really hit me that I may be seen as “different” by others was when I had an audition down in LA for “Curb Your Enthusiasm”. Before I was told what the role I was auditioning for was, the sky was the limit. I wondered what kind of quirky woman I’d be auditioning for. And then my agent told me. An anti-semitic Palestinian. Huh. It added a bittersweet element to the whole experience. It was thrilling and yet, not.

Peggy: We are Facebook friends, so I know you’re not afraid to express your opinion about political issues (to say the least!:)). How do you feel about the recent comments made by Todd Akin and other members of the GOP?

Leila: I wrote this in 2006. I think it gives you an idea as to how I feel! No?

Peggy: Wow…that’s a very powerful piece of writing, woman! Way to go! Next question: What were you going to be when you grew up?

Leila: Free. The first hurdle was freeing myself from my mother and her influence on me. The next chapter lies in freeing myself from my hold on myself.

Peggy: Rumor has it ABOW is working on a top-secret TV show. You’ve been teasing us with titillating photos on Facebook. Please give us a juicy hint!

Leila: Hmmm… well, it definitely WILL be juicy and it’s a show that MUST be! One thing we CAN guarantee is that it’ll be full of wifey goodness… rawness… authenticity… and something you will not only want to tune in to but HAVE to tune in to! There! Made SO much sense, didn’t it? *wink, wink*

Peggy: OK, then…next question! ;) Dark or milk? Do you have a favorite brand?

Leila: MILK!!!! I see SO many answer dark to this question. I tried, I really did, to like dark chocolate. I HATE it! I LOATHE dark chocolate! It has no soul, no sin! I want me some sin! I want my chocolate creamy, balanced just so, so that when I bite into it I surrender to it and KNOW that I can never quit it, like I vow I will. But I am picky. I don’t like the cheap crap. Don’t get me wrong though. I am NO connoisseur but I won’t do Milky Ways or Mars Bars or any such crap.

I’ve become addicted to See’s Candies. It started with needing to buy a box of chocolates to gift someone. I was given a chocolate sample when I first stepped foot into the local See’s Candies store. I thought it was a fluke. I went back one more time, testing the waters, and lo and behold, another sample came my way! Ooh! So like a good Pavlovian dog I now shirk giftig people wine and opt for See’s Candies instead because, ahem, they give me treats. Oy! And today I got myself another sinful indulgence I LOVE: Toffee & Almonds in Milk Chocolate by Chocolove. I only know the name because I have it here with me. Otherwise it’d be “the yummy chocolate with the crunchy goodies in the yellow packaging from Whole Foods”. I’m just a bitch to chocolate. My kids bemoan this fact. I tend to eat theirs too. If you run into us in the chocolate aisle you’ll hear them say, “If we buy this we HAVE to hide it from Mami or else she will eat it all!” I need help.

Peggy: No milk chocolate apology necessary! To each her own. Is there anything else you would like us to know about you?

Leila: I’m a 20-year vegetarian offended by the fact that a cow once charged at me in Maui. Bastard cow! Also, I don’t like my eyebrows touched, want SO BADLY to smack people who don’t chew properly, feel naked if I don’t wear my ostentatious jewelry and have a slight addiction to Jeffrey Campbell shoes. Slight. *chokes on her words*

Peggy: Leila, thank you so much for your time. I know you’re a very busy woman, so I’m grateful. I look forward to seeing you at the next ABOW event!

leilaradan.com ~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ ABOW ~ ABOW on Twitter ~ ABOW on FB

Chocolate of the Moment… I’m sitting at my desk working on...

Mon, 17 Sep 2012 14:49:00 -0700

Chocolate of the Moment… I’m sitting at my desk working on the next Success & Chocolate interview, snacking on TCHO Dark Chocolate covered Mango pieces. Health food, right?!

I love these little morsels, and I love the fact that they’re made in San Francisco. In fact, I bought them recently while touring their factory at Pier 17, along the Embarcadero.

I think the stainless steel container looks nice next to my iMac. :)

This is not a sponsored ad. I wrote this out of the goodness of my heart.

My Visit to the Ghirardelli Chocolate Festival

Thu, 13 Sep 2012 15:52:00 -0700

Last Saturday I attended the 17th Annual Ghirardelli Chocolate Festival in San Francisco. What a picture-perfect day it was in the city that day! The sun and warm temps brought out big crowds to Ghirardelli Square…not that booths full of chocolate wasn’t enough of a reason to show up. :)

A little history: Ghirardelli Chocolate Company was founded in 1852 by Italian chocolatier Domenico Ghirardelli, and is the second oldest chocolate company in the United States. Ghirardelli is now a division of Lindt & Sprungli.

The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is located in Ghirardelli Square, which is an official landmark of the City of San Francisco. Ghirardelli Square was originally built as a woolen mill in 1864. The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company moved in during the late 1890s. You’ve got to love a building named Cocoa (below)! There is also a Chocolate building and a Mustard building (because the company used to sell mustard…go figure).

Back to the festival… There were many, many booths handing out samples, and plenty of entertainment (including belly dancers, which my 7 year old found interesting). I didn’t purchase the $20 sampling ticket because I had my heart set on having one of Ghirardelli’s famous Ice Cream Sundaes, for old time’s sake.

I did have an ice cream sundae with chocolate chip ice cream, complete with whipped cream and cherry…but I was so excited to dig in, that I forgot to take a picture. So, here’s a photo of a bunch of other yummy confections that were sitting on the counter, awaiting delivery.

This is called The Earthquake…8 scoops of ice cream, 8 toppings. No, I did not order one!

While researching Ghirardelli, I learned this interesting very fact: around the year 1865, someone in the Ghirardelli Company made an important observation—by hanging a bag of chocolate in a warm room, the cocoa butter drips out, leaving a residue that can be processed into ground chocolate. This technique, called the Broma process, is now generally used in the manufacture of chocolate.

I took the above photo inside the Ghirardelli Ice Cream Shop, where they show how chocolate is made. If you’re ever in San Francisco, be sure to visit Ghirardelli Square, and have an ice cream sundae! The festival was fun…I’ll be going back next year.

My Interview with Marilyn Halpin, the @MacFusionGirl

Sat, 08 Sep 2012 11:03:00 -0700

I’ve been following Marilyn Halpin, the @MacFusionGirl, on Twitter for years. I once told her that she should have a “donate” button on her website so that we Apple fans could reward her for her free, friendly, speedy, and smart advice. Marilyn is my go-to person whenever I have a Mac or iOS question or problem. I like her so much that I recently made a big purchase through her company mac-fusion, instead of going to the Apple store. I’m sure you’ll like Marilyn as much as I do after reading my interview with this mother of 2 who runs a business and loves her tech job.

Bio: Marilyn Halpin is a Systems Engineer for mac-fusion which is a Southern California Apple Specialist, a company that she owns with her husband. Her main focus at mac-fusion is providing outsourced Mac IT for small to medium businesses.

Peggy: You have a very cool job, in my opinion…working on Macs! Tell us more about what you do and how you got into your line of work.

Marilyn: I’m not going to lie, I love my job. I love what I do for a living. I didn’t set out to be an Apple technician; it was all quite by accident. My first real job was in an advertising agency as a production artist back between 1995 and 2000. I would help people with their Mac issues in addition to doing my job. I was eventually told I wasn’t there to fix computers so I would sneak in before work and fix them. We worked with a Mac guy that would come in to fix the problems that were over my head. One day he asked me if I knew of anyone that was good with Macs as he was thinking of expanding and taking on an employee. I jumped at the chance. I trained with him for about 7 months before I made the jump and started with him in July of 2000.

Initially mac-fusion was just an Apple Authorized Reseller and Service Provider. We had a business-to-business focus and did AppleCare, warranty and out of warranty repairs out of a small office in Signal Hill. The first 6 years I worked here I juggled my days doing a mix of onsites and in-house hardware repairs. Eventually we expanded to hire more techs, enabling me to focus on just doing onsites. This year we opened a retail store in Seal Beach and now it’s a mix of onsites, repairs, working retail and finding the coolest Apple accessories to stock in our store. Oh, I guess I should mention that I’m also in charge of all the marketing, online advertising and social media. It’s safe to say that I’m a busy girl.

Peggy: What does it mean to you to be a business owner, and why did you become an entrepreneur in the first place?

Marilyn: I didn’t start out a business owner. It’s actually not something I ever wanted to be. I’m a certified worker bee and don’t always love all the headaches that come with owning a business. I started dating Kevin (yes, my boss…not something I recommend for any single mother to do) in 2004. I like to say he married me to secure his number one tech. We are a fantastic team and I like to think we run a fun workplace.

Peggy: What is it like being a woman in tech? Do you ever experience sexism, and if so, how do you deal with it?

Marilyn: There’s been so much talk on this lately. I’ve had more problems being a Mac tech than a woman tech. Sometimes you can tell they are surprised to see a woman show up but once you fix those problems they’ve been having for months, in a short amount of time they don’t care. I’ve only had two incidents that stand out. We had a husband and wife bring in their iMac and printer that they couldn’t get to print. They had spent hours and hours trying on their own and working with HP tech support. They bring it in and I reset the printing system and it prints. The guy looks at me and yells “I can’t believe it was fixed by a girl!”. It was all in good fun but his wife was mortified. So I put on his receipt “FIXED BY A GIRL”. I actually had someone on Twitter, who I was trying to help, get a bit too aggressive with me so I had to block him. It was pointed out to me by someone else that he made a disparaging tweet about me being a woman. Other than that I’ve been to many Apple training camps that were filled with hundreds of male techs and only a handful of women, with absolutely no issues. That’s not to say this behavior or attitude doesn’t exist; in my line of tech I haven’t felt it personally, though.

I would like to mention that I am active in trying to encourage young girls to take this career path. I have done numerous career day talks for middle schools to try and not only get the word out there that this is an option, but show you can be a woman and a tech. I come across so many smart techie woman on Twitter that don’t feel this is a job they could do. There’s some pre-conceived notion that you have to know everything. In our company there are different types of techs. Some know servers and networking, some know hardware; I happen to know software well. All of these things came with time and experience. You don’t start at mac-fusion and go out onsite on your first day. It’s a learning process. I wish more people understood that.

Peggy: What were you going to be when you grew up? Were you interested in computers as a kid?

Marilyn: I actually thought I wanted to be in law enforcement. I was going on police ride-alongs and was very interested in forensics. The LA Riots scared me. I was living in Long Beach at the time, and seeing the very people that were there to protect you being attacked freaked me out. I’m not aggressive by nature so it wouldn’t have been a good fit.

We had an Apple IIe when I was young. My dad would bring home reams of print-outs (the kind that were all attached and had the little holes on the sides) with line after line of code. You would type these codes in and then a little turtle would walk across the screen. Make one typo and nothing worked. The fascination ended quickly. I actually grew up with PCs in the house. I was constantly breaking them. Still to this day I have no idea what a System.ini file is or why they always went missing ;-) I was actually mostly PC until I went to work at the advertising agency. I self-taught myself the Mac (mostly by breaking the software and then having to fix it).

Peggy: I just have to mention that I had an Apple II at home, too…my first computer! And I know all about those reams of paper, and punch cards. (Showing my age now!) What was your first Apple product, and how old were you?

Marilyn: I count my first Apple product as the one I bought myself, a glorious Beige Power Macintosh G3 Minitower running OS 8. There was nothing mini about this bad boy. I think I was around 25 years old and it was the most expensive thing I had ever purchased.

Peggy: Cloud security is a hot topic right now. What advice do you have for people?

Marilyn: Since I deal with businesses primarily, I have a different view of cloud than most people. Most of my clients host their own email on a server that lives in their office. They have physical access to it. We also have a few clients that use a hosting company to host their email. Guess which ones we have more problems with? If there’s a problem with the server, or the server software, being able to access it and fix it is essential. Having to deal with a hosting company and different levels of techs can be time consuming, costly and increase downtime. I feel the same way about backups. Having a secondary or tertiary cloud backup is OK but it would never be my only backup. If I can’t touch the hard drive my backup lives on, I don’t own it. This is one of the reasons that my iPhone doesn’t back up to the cloud. If I need to restore my iPhone I want my data back on it in an hour, not twelve.

Peggy: Are you a morning or a night person? How much sleep do you get?

Marilyn: I’m a mom, so I’m up when I need to be and down when I can ;) I used to be a night person, but these days it’s rare if I sleep in until 7am. I’m really trying to get around 8 hours a night.

Peggy: When you are not working, what are you doing?

Marilyn: Since we opened the retail store this year, we are now open 7 days a week. This adds an extra set of challenges, though we just recently started taking the entire weekend off again. We have paying clients that rely on us so I don’t feel like I can ever fully disengage. Most Sundays we ride our bikes from Seal Beach down to Long Beach to go to the Aquarium of the Pacific and the movies down at the Pike in Long Beach. It’s a 8.5 mile bike ride for us there and then we take the Aqualink boat back to the Long Beach Marina and ride back to Seal. It’s always a fun day. The most challenging thing is finding a movie that can engage a 4 and 13 year old.

Peggy: How do you balance work and motherhood?

Marilyn: Oh boy. I just had to get VERY organized. We just went Paleo (no dairy or grains) and it takes a ton of planning. All veggies, fruits and good meats. Also Soccer practice just started again, and both boys are playing this year! Luckily, since my main job is being an onsite tech, I have a little freedom with my schedule. I just need to watch emails and be equipped to do remote support if necessary. There are days when things happen, but I’m fortunate enough to have a mom and a mother-in-law that are local and can help me if needed. Not to mention my amazing husband; he’s a fantastic dad and stepdad.

Peggy: Dark or milk chocolate? Do you have a favorite brand?

Marilyn: I have a small love for dark but really I’ll try anything. Lindt makes these round truffle balls that are amazing. They also have some chocolate bars that mix in things like chili or sea salts.

Peggy: Is there anything else you would like people to know about you?

Marilyn: I actually have a dirty secret… I was in an informercial for Windows 95. I was attending Cypress Community College at the time, taking graphics classes on PCs! Microsoft featured my professor Michael Johnson due to this. They gathered our class in the lab and had our professor showing us the new features of Windows 95. I was sitting right in the front and got to ask “Where do you go to find Photoshop?”. I find this terribly ironic given that just months later I was on my way to teaching myself the Mac and on a path to my true calling. The infomercial is called “Microsoft Presents: The Start of Something New”. I’ve tried so hard to find a copy of this online. I would love to see me with my bad perm again ;)

Peggy: Marilyn, thank you for taking time out of your super busy schedule to do this interview with me.

Marilyn Halpin: Twitter: @MacFusionGirl & @macfusion_sb ~ Facebook ~ mac-fusion.com

Chocolate of the Moment… My friend Maria (@alembic on...

Thu, 06 Sep 2012 13:25:00 -0700

Chocolate of the Moment… My friend Maria (@alembic on Twitter) recently went to Michigan and visited Zingerman’s Deli, who is known for their fantastic chocolate selection. Maria was kind enough to bring me home a bar of Askisosie’s Dark Chocolate + Black Licorice CollaBARation Bar. OMG…so delicious! In fact, I’m eating some as I write this post…can’t help it.

Maria and I loved this bar so much that we recently bought a kilo of broken pieces that the company had on special. That’s 2.2 pounds…1.1 lb. each…so yes, I’ve gained about a pound since that package arrived! ;)

If you like black licorice and chocolate, be sure to order or find yourself one of these bars. By the way, Askinosie is an impressive company, with eco-friendly packaging and cool corporate ethics. Read all about their awesome packaging on the blog The Dieline.

This is not a sponsored ad. I wrote this out of the goodness of my heart.

My Interview with Celia Graterol

Wed, 15 Aug 2012 10:37:00 -0700

Celia Graterol is a kick. I can say that because I know her in real life, and it’s true that she is a very funny, wild & crazy woman. When I asked Celia for an interview, I was thinking about the two businesses she owns; her impressive education; the fact that English is her second language, yet she has done very well in this country as a gay woman entrepreneur… I’d forgotten that she was once a Catholic nun, and I didn’t think she’d mention how she met Sally, her partner…but it’s all here, so keep reading!

Bio: Celia Graterol, MPH, Founder & Principal of Graterol Consulting Group, has been conducting cutting-edge, web-based evaluations and strategic planning for more than 10 years using the Graterol Logic Map™ methodology. Celia assists non-profit organizations and funders with program and organizational development. She conducts single or multi-site, multi-cultural, community-based evaluations, assessments, and facilitates strategic planning efforts using web-based technology combined with traditional methodologies to engage stakeholders, facilitate learning, and bring clarity throughout the process.

Born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, and after living for over 20 years in the Bay Area, Celia is bilingual English/Spanish and bi-cultural. Celia received her Computer Engineering BS degree in 1989 at the Simón Bolívar University, Caracas, Venezuela. In 2001 she received her MPH in Community Health Education at San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California, with the Graduate Student Award for Distinguish Achievement. Celia resides in Marin County with her partner and wife Sally Kuhlman and her dog Poncho. She practices yoga several days a week and rides her mountain bike all over the trails in Marin where this exhilarating sport was born.

Peggy: Where did you grow up and where do you live now?

Celia: I was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela and lived there until I had my first child when I decided to emigrate because I did not want to raise my children in an unsafe country with such levels of political unrest. My home got broken in three times within the last year I lived there. I moved to the US, Marin County, 22 years ago and for the last 17 years I have lived in Tam Valley near the beautiful Headlands trails. Since I moved to Marin, I had two more wonderful children and got divorced when I fell in love with a sweet woman from Orange County who happened to be my former sister-in-law. But that is another story.

Peggy: Whoa…I guess that is another story! Maybe next time. OK, you have two different businesses. Please tell us about them.

Celia: My main business is Graterol Consulting Group. We assist non-profits and their funders with organizational development services including evaluation, strategic planning, and program design.

My other business is Mountain Biking Marin. We offer mountain bike tours around the Bay Area and bike skills clinics for people who want to improve their riding. Most of our tour clients are visitors from Europe either here on business or vacation.

Peggy: Have you always been self-employed? Why do you think you ended up being an entrepreneur?

Celia: For most of my life I have been self-employed. I became an entrepreneur to have more choice in what I do. Working toward a fair system that offers equal opportunities to get ahead in life has been my passion for as long as I can remember. When I was 18, inspired by my interest in addressing social and health inequities, I became a nun to do social work in small villages in Venezuela. As an adult, my social justice values deepened when I immigrated to the US as I learned that being a “gay woman of color” means belonging to a second or even third class citizen group. Despite these challenges, I have had many successes. As I completed a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering in Venezuela, when I immigrated, I brought with me useful skills. Here, I earned a Master’s degree in Public Health. Both degrees combined with my experience as an evaluator allow me to integrate web-based technology into my research.

Peggy: What were you going to be when you grew up?

Celia: I wanted to be a famous singer, an Olympic champion, the president of a country or the CEO of a corporation. I am the founder and president of Graterol Consulting Group so I am pretty close to one of my dreams.

Peggy: You’re a woman, you’re a Latina, and you’re a lesbian…a minority times 3! Do you get discriminated against in business?

Celia: Yes and no at the same time. It has been a challenge but it has also provided me opportunities to grow both professionally and personally. Learning another culture and language has been fascinating. I love how accepting the people are in Marin County and the Bay Area. One of the challenges is that I am always seen as different, even though I have lived my whole adult life here. Professionally, my accent is sometimes a barrier because people often make the assumption: if you don’t pronounce a word correctly you are not smart, despite the fact you speak two languages fluently. Also, the evaluation field is mostly dominated by Whites so it has been challenging for me to break in to this profession; I have to work harder to prove my credentials. However, being bi-lingual and bi-cultural have given me a foot in the door to obtain evaluation contracts concerning programs with minority populations because there is a belief that I can better relate to the communities involved thus be a better researcher.

Peggy: What is your greatest professional accomplishment to date?

Celia: I am very proud of the evaluation methodology I developed, the LogicMap, used to integrate traditional research methods (site visit observations, surveys, focus groups, storytelling) with on-line tools (websites, photographs, databases, social media, bibliographic references). This methodology has built-in data collection and features for on-going program reporting and monitoring. The LogicMap facilitates affordable yet rigorous evaluations and effectively demonstrates program results on-line. This new evaluation tool increases learning opportunities for program officers, clients, and grantee staff about what works.

Peggy: Are you a morning or a night person? How much sleep do you get?

Celia: I was a morning person during my nun days when I had to wake up really early for meditation and mass service so I was also able to be on time to my college classes. Waking up around 4 am every day for about 2 years made me a night person when I quit being a nun. And I continued being a night person for many years until my partner and wife Sally started working early hours. So now I go to sleep early and wake up early to be on the same schedule as her. It works out nicely because I drop her at the bus stop on my way to early morning yoga and meditation. Talking about closing circles in life!!! I probably won’t become a nun again as I am a bit old for that, but I am going back to my spiritual practice. And instead of mass I do yoga.

I get 6-8 hours of sleep a night.

Peggy: Is there something you do every day that helps you stay grounded?

Celia: I practice yoga about 5 days a week and mountain biking about 3 times a week.

Peggy: How do you get out of a funk?

Celia: The fastest way for me to get out of a funk is to get out in nature and do a technical, scary, adrenaline rushing mountain bike ride. In other words, I am an adrenaline junkie.

Peggy: Dark or milk chocolate? Do you have a favorite brand?

Celia: Dark chocolate truffle or dark chocolate with salt. I also love Toblerone milk chocolate and I have a weakness for milk chocolate Hershey kisses dipped in espresso.

Peggy: You have 3 adult children. How did you balance motherhood and business when your kids were younger?

Celia: I wouldn’t have been able to work, get my masters degree in Public Health, and take care of three kids, without Sally; Sally has been the most nurturing parent for my kids, always making sure they had everything they needed and never expecting anything in return. Not only was she, and still is, another mom for the kids but she also helped me to be a more present and better mom.

Peggy: Is there anything else you would like people to know about you?

Celia: I am very proud of my three wonderful children who are now all in college. My youngest one just left to NY and the other two left to LA. I am adjusting to the empty nest feeling. It is bittersweet. Thank you for interviewing me.

Peggy: Namaste, Celia. I am grateful for your time.

Celia Graterol: graterolconsulting.com ~ mountainbikingmarin.com ~ Facebook ~ Twitter

"I’ve never sought success in order to get fame and money: it’s the talent and the passion that count..."

Mon, 13 Aug 2012 15:25:07 -0700

“I’ve never sought success in order to get fame and money: it’s the talent and the passion that count in success.”

- Ingrid Bergman

Success & Chocolate Panel at the Commonwealth Club of CA

Mon, 13 Aug 2012 06:40:00 -0700

I had the honor of hosting the Success and Chocolate panel at the Commonwealth Club of California on July 16, 2012, thanks to my friend Cathy Curtis who runs their Bay Gourmet food program. It was a well-attended, fun event! SF Weekly even wrote an article about the evening.

This is the set-up I saw when I walked in the door. Having never been to the Commonwealth Club, I was impressed with how beautiful the room looked, and was also a bit nervous…soon I would be standing at that podium! I had never hosted a panel before or done much public speaking in front of a large audience.

We had four lovely, intelligent, and articulate women on the panel: (from left to right) Zohara Mapes with TCHO, Wendy Lieu with Socola Chocolatier, Kathy Wiley with Poco Dolce , and Ellin Purdom with Toffee Talk. They each brought samples of their delicious chocolates for the guests in the audience. And they donated a larger product towards a gift basket that was raffled off to a lucky winner. These ladies were fantastic, and once I got past the introductions, I had a great time asking them questions and chatting about chocolate and business.

I received many great questions from the audience (above), and I also came with my own list of questions. It was a fun challenge, weaving in the guests’ questions as they were handed to me!

Here we are after the panel ended…all smiles! You can listen to the podcast here…please just ignore the introduction piece, where I got all tongue-tied!

And here I am with the woman who made this all happen…Cathy Curtis of Curtis Financial Planning. I am grateful to Cathy for asking me to moderate the Success and Chocolate panel!

"Yes, I did feel a special responsibility to be the first American woman in space."

Mon, 13 Aug 2012 06:36:00 -0700

“Yes, I did feel a special responsibility to be the first American woman in space.”

- Sally Ride

Chocolate of the Moment… So, this awesome new company,...

Fri, 13 Jul 2012 14:35:00 -0700

Chocolate of the Moment… So, this awesome new company, called UNREAL, found me on Twitter and sent me a box of their UNJUNKED candy. It’s great…like M&M’s, Reese’s & Snickers…without the junk! I managed to nab some of this deliciousness before my kids gobbled the rest up. UNJUNKED is what our family will be handing out this Halloween!