At around 3 pm on Wednesday October 14th my phone beeped. Before that innocuous buzz the weekend of October 23rd had me waking up at 5 am from loud meows of my hungry cats, feeding those cats, trying to fight their paws off while feeding myself, watching tv surrounded by the aforementioned cats, oh, and how can I forget, talking and moving really quietly so to not disturb my cats from their 4-hour naps.
After my phone lazily beeped and hopped from the vibrations on the table, it turned out that the only thing that will stay the same that weekend would be me waking up at 5 am (cats trained me well) and I’ll be spending those days in Montreal in a company of 150 food bloggers at the 3rd annual Food Bloggers of Canada Conference.
That phone notification was another post by Melissa Hartfiel, co-founder and managing director of Food Bloggers of Canada (FBC), about another awesome thing that would be happening at the conference and another reminder that I wasn’t going. And just like that, without any second thought I decided that I didn’t want to be a mere spectator, I didn’t want to just follow the #FBC2015 hashtags, I wanted to write those hashtags myself.
Two and a half whirlwind days filled with friends, information and excitement. One weekend full of intense energy, surrounded by like-minded people. 60 hours immersed in delicious food, drink and laughter.
My head was spinning after I came back from the conference. It felt like I packed three weeks worth of experiences into one weekend. But after the excitement faded a little bit and thoughts stopped bumping against each other in my head with dizzying speed, two themes emerged: taking the leap and telling stories.
It was mentioned over and over again by Ricardo, amazing man behind amazing brand; Meghan Telpner, food blogger and cookbook author; Jay Nutt, chef/owner of Nuttshell Next Door Cafe; Ayngelina Brogan, owner of Bacon is Magic; and many more that I can’t mention here as it will take another few paragraphs, that sometimes you need to take a leap and jump into something new and scary. Sometimes it means quitting your job and dedicating yourself full time to what you love, but sometimes it means taking smaller leaps and just asking for opportunity. No-one would know that you want something until you ask for it. And when you ask, more often than not, you will get. Hearing all these people speak, listening to their leaps was truly inspirational and their stories moved a lot of attendees at the conference to do something new, to start something different, to be true to themselves.
The conference was also about telling stories. Telling stories of local farmers and their lives and challenges. Telling stories of yourself, your food, and your memories. And painting stories with photographs where every prop is a paragraph and every shadow is a word. Those stories are what connects you with the audience and draws people in, giving them access into your life through recipes and photos. It’s the stories that inspire others and provide comfort. And this is what we, food bloggers, do – we tell stories.
I am sure there will be a lot of recaps written with beautiful photographs of food and detailed step-by-step overviews of sessions. I could go on and talk about SEO, shadows, copyrights, business behind the hobby, but I won’t, because this is not what this conference was about for me. It was about seeing that I am not alone. It was about physically feeling the energy of 150 people who love talking about food. It was about hearing their passion and sharing mine..
It was about leaps and stories, because, as Ricardo said, with words you can change the world.
Ginni says
Hi Julia, it was fantastic meeting you at the conference and I love your heart touching recap on everything that happened at the conference. It was an amazing experience and it was the first time I had gone too, and needless to say, will be attending the next one since its in our hometown! Looking forward to connecting with you soon.
Justine says
Hey Julia! I loved reading your recap of the conference. Since I’m a newer member, it wasn’t possible for me to attend this year, but I’m definitely planning to attend the 2016 conference. And I totally feel you on taking the leap! It’s scary, but awesome and rewarding once you just go ahead and DO IT! That’s something I’m constantly reminding myself of and working on. 🙂
Have a fantastic weekend!
~ Justine
Imagelicious says
Thank you so much for your kind words. I am also a new member. Only joined in April or May this year and that’s why I wasn’t going to go. But then I just kept seeing all those posts about it and I could not resist. It was really last minute decision. I am really hoping to see you next year at the conference!
Lily @GastroSenses says
Thank you for sharing Julia! I was out of town for that weekend in Florida watching my niece while her mom was attending another conference for her job. But I was following the stories and FBC hashtags which are all sooo inspirational! I will definitely try to join next year. No more excuses 🙂
Imagelicious says
Lily – no excuses next year! Since it’ll be in your area. It was amazing meeting all the people and sharing this weekend with them. I hope to see you there next year! Or maybe earlier since we are so close to each other
Lily @GastroSenses says
Glad you had so much fun connecting with other bloggers and people in cooking industry. I’m kinda jealous:) And yes, we should meet up soon! I’m actually in Mississauga area. Whereabouts are you?
Imagelicious says
I’m in Thornhill, so not too far. And yes, meeting sounds like a cool idea, maybe collaborating on something like I did with Alanna?
Sofia | From the Land we Live on says
Thanks for sharing your experience 🙂 I was following the hashtag this time but hoping to make it out next year…sounds like it was an incredible event. Is it weird that I didn’t now who Ricardo was before reading your post? I feel like I’m living in a bubble sometimes.
Imagelicious says
I hope you get to go next year since it’s in our city. I already signed up as it was an incredible experience for me. I am glad you learned about Ricardo now because he’s amazing!! I am totally in love! (shh… don’t tell my husband)
olivia @ livforcake says
Great recap Julia and I’m so glad that you were able to go last minute! Good for you for taking that leap ;). Unfortunately I WAS following the #FBC2015 hashtag rather than being there, but I hope that won’t be the case next year. Sounds like you had an amazing time!!
Imagelicious says
Olivia – I hope you will be able to attend next year. I already purchased my ticket, so hoping to see you there…
Kimberlie Robert says
Julia! Yours is a beautiful write up. You summed up my experience perfectly. It felt so good to meet my community in person and to understand that taking the leap is possible and positive. Since we are neighbours, I hope to see you again soon. BTW, your blog is just beautiful. The photography is inspired. Continued success! Kim @thefinercookie.
Imagelicious says
Thanks, Kim! Thank you for such nice words about my photography. It was really nice meeting you this weekend and getting a chance to talk to you even if briefly.
Evelyne@cheapethniceatz says
So nice to have met you on Sunday and I agree, it was a whirlwind amazing experience! So inspirational.
Imagelicious says
It was nice meeting you too! I still have to sort through all the business cards I got.
Melissa says
Julia, I am so glad I got to meet you this weekend and that you were able to come. And reading your recap makes me realize that we achieved our weekend goal for at least one person in the room and that makes it all worth it.
For what it’s worth, I think you, and everyone else who bought a ticket, made a big leap by just making the choice to come to Montreal and I hope that all of you continue to make those leaps, whether they’re big or small… or even just baby steps. When you add them all up, you wind up with a pretty awesome journey!
Imagelicious says
Melissa – I don’t have enough words to express my gratitude to you and Ethan for organizing this event. I can’t even imagine how much work went into making it run so smoothly and getting all the great content. I feel connected and inspired! Thank you so much! Can’t wait until #FBC2016
Gloria @ Homemade & Yummy says
Julia is was so nice to meet you….even though I was only there for the Sunday. That being said…during those few short hours I did manage to cram in as much info as possible, and talk to as many people as possible….and of course taste as much food as possible.
This is a great opportunity for bloggers (like you I am a newbie) to ask questions, talk to lots of people and listen to others tell how they manage to do what they do. There are SO many aspects to a blog and it is comforting to know that I am not the only one that struggles in an area or two.
Taking the necessary steps to improve whatever it is you are seeking to achieve is so important…and you can do it…it just takes time!
I look forward to spending more time with you next year, but since we are so close…perhaps we can get together sometime….and share "cat stories"
Imagelicious says
Hi Gloria – it was lovely to meet you and your husband as well. You did well in that one day and I am glad you got a chance to be there. I do hope we get to see each other sooner than at #FBC2016 and talk about cats 🙂 As I mentioned on facebook, I have an idea for something and I’ll let you know if it works out.
Liliana says
I totally agree with you. It’s not only about what we learned, but being with people who share our passion.
Imagelicious says
Thank you, Liliana. I’ve only been to one conference before and although the content was great, I did not feel connected there and the experience was sub par.