Blogging and Baking for Four Years Strong

Four years ago tonight I started The Sour Dough with a "Hello World" post.

When I started The Sour Dough, I figured it would be a place for me to record my thoughts, talk a bit about my job as a designer of professional audio systems and share the occasional recipe or two.

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that four years later not only would I still be writing but that I would have shifted the blog's focus to food with a concentration on bread and baking. Writing this blog has made me a better cook and baker and a better writer. Because of The Sour Dough, I have been invited to review cookbooks and products; which I've discovered I really enjoy doing and look forward to doing a lot more of in the upcoming year. Writing The Sour Dough has allowed me to join a really fantastic and fanatic group of fellow bloggers, The Daring Bakers. This group of zany men and women have pushed me to try things I would not have ever tried on my own. I've learned how to program a bit of CSS, HTML, and what Putty and CMD mean. I've gotten better at taking pictures and I've even learned how to work Photoshop.

Best of all, because of The Sour Dough I have met in both real life and in the ether some really fantastic friends like Sara, Lisa, Helen, Andrea, Veron, Peabody, Kelly, Elle, Ilva, Tanna, Jo, Jill, Ivonne, Jenny, Ruth, Stephanie, Laura Rebecca, Mimi, and Mary to name only a few of the people who not only leave wonderfully encouraging feedback but write me nice emails and solicit my advice about bread, baking and sometimes just life.

So, on the fourth anniversary of The Sour Dough, let me say thank you one and all for making me a better blogger and a better person. You, my readers, are fantastic and I'm proud to know you.

Here's to entering the fifth year of The Sour Dough with great oven spring, tight crumb, and a crispy crust!