Identity crisis now averted.

Question: What do you think Val is short for? Valerie? Valkyrie? Val Kilmer?

If you guessed any of these, I'm afraid you are incorrect. (I bet a few of you out there were kinda maybe hoping for Val Kilmer. Don't lie.)

The truth is, Val is a pseudonym. Well actually, it's kind of a pseudonym. It's a pseudo-pseudonym. Because it isn't completely fictitious.

Val is short for Valentina, my middle name. My first name is Inez.

There. It's out. You know my real first name.

I know it may not seem like that big of a deal (and many of you have already known), but it has been kind of a big deal for me. When I created this blog, I wanted to keep it completely separate from other aspects of my life (namely, my job). I wanted to be almost anonymous. That's why I went with Val: a shortened, ambiguous version of my middle name. Val was an alter ego, an online identity I hid behind to allow me to indulge in, without holding back even one tiny bit, what has been a serious passion of mine for years: food. Cooking food, eating food, rambling about food, food and more food.

But I'm outing myself now for these reasons:

1. (Most importantly,) I realized Val, this blog, and @myabsentmind do not make up an alter ego. This is me. And I don't want to be anonymous anymore. This is who I am, and I'm proud of it. YAY.
2. People in my personal life who later found my blog kept asking me why I posted as Val. I'm over explaining it, and the reason is no longer valid (as previously stated).
3. Many of the people I interact with at work already know about this blog anyway.
4. I was getting seriously annoyed with myself and my Val/Inez inconsistency in posting comments on other food blogs (Food Frenzy, Monster Munching, Furey and the Feast -- my favorite OC blogs). Sidenote: My photo of smoky beef stew with blue cheese and chives was totally on Food Frenzy a couple months back.
5. I love my first name. Kudos to my mama on that one.

So, that's pretty much it. Thanks for putting up with that, and sorry I kind of rambled. But that's how I do. That's why this is called food 'blah'g. (blah blah blah blah..)

This is my last blog entry posting as Val.

Wait for it...

This blog is coming back on or before May 1.

Get ready.