Food Blogging Retirement

Well, ladies and gents, readers from all over the world, the time has come; Greg's Gourmet is shutting its doors.

Truth be told, this is a decision that's been several years in the making. I haven't considered myself a "regular" food blogger since 2013. While it was fun to write about all the crap I'd eat, it became repetitive and boring after a while. How many times can I write about the latest burger or about how Company XYZ sucks at life? It takes a toll on you. I tried numerous times to rebrand and relaunch the blog but every attempt was short-lived. Between those rogue relaunches, I set myself to a system of posting once per month to the blog, just so it didn't look abandoned.

But I simply can't do that anymore. My heart is no longer in it. My appetite is no longer what it once was.

My eating habits have changed drastically. Gone are the days of four slabs of prime rib, giant chocolate chip scones, and mountains of candy. Present are the days of fruit salads (every day is Fruit Salad Friday), green salad once a week, and trying my best to go vegetarian during the week. Aside from a few token appearance, I'm completely off dairy, I've cut my candy down to almost nothing, and I'm in the process of cutting bread and related products altogether. Not that I needed to lose much weight, but I'm down half a belt size. The flip side of that is now my pants don't fit; they're either too loose or too tight. Just can't win.

We've had some fun times here. We've had contests, giveaways, challenges, videos, events, television recaps, reviews, Hall of Shame rants, food news, and even the occasional troll. It's been a blast to say the least. I started this blog in January of 2011 as a joke where I would post pictures of the food I'd eat for the world to see. For some reason, people seemed to dig it and I watched its readership grow. After about a year the blog gradually transformed into the visual layout you see today, which was the result of going back to school to learn various coding languages.

Greg's Gourmet was more than a blog; it was a playground. It gave me the freedom to experiment and try new things to see what worked and what didn't. Today in 2016, when people reference Greg's Gourmet, they're not referring to the blog; they're referring to the brand. I created a brand and even after the blog posts dwindled, people still saw me as Greg's Gourmet. That's when you know you've done something right.

I want to thank everyone for your loyal readership and enthusiasm over the years. It's been fun. Greg's Gourmet the brand will continue on in its own way. I'll still take pictures of my food and I'll still post them to Facebook and Instagram and the such, but as for this blog? It's been a good run. There may be a time in the future when the site is revived but right now I just need to focus on other things.

As always, thanks for reading.

A Fruit Salad

I call this...Summer Breeze (Makes Me Feel Fine):

A delicious summer assortments of colorful fruits, comprised of: pineapple, watermelon, peach, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, plum, and Maraschino cherries for extra flavor. 

Delish!