About

Quickly | A Little More | What You’ll Find Here | Terra | Street Cred

Quickly

Eat Play Live is a cool little corner of the internet that focuses on Food, DIY Decor, and Fresh Ideas for Heart Centered Living.

A Little More

Eat Play Live is the 5th iteration of my 18-year blogging obsession. Though I’ve only focused strictly on food since 2014, I have spent eleventy-billion blog years on the internet.

In real-time, Eat Play Live exists in all of my friends’ homes around the world. I have spent the majority of my time writing recipes from my suitcase, wherever the wind takes me. I am currently looking for my own space to grow some roots and finally relax in my own kitchen.

What you’ll find here

My favorite thing in the world is creating and cultivating connections. It should come as no surprise then that I am a Connector Maven.

I also like to create recipes that are unique, and that are also relatively easy and fast to make. My favorite recipes to create are Sweets, Soups, and Sauces. I believe that a great sauce can make a mediocre meal much better, that eating sweets is an act of self-care, and that there are healing and comforting properties in a hearty bowl of soup.

My original goal was to show how well you can eat by using local and seasonal ingredients. I still aim for that, and want you to know that you don’t have to make the mother sauces to have a spectacular dinner party. A cheap version of ceviche and and easy baba ganoush will have the same effect.

I also like to dispel myths about difficult dishes like macarons and meringues. Anyone can make those things, and they’re not as difficult as cooking shows would have you believe. All you need is a cold bowl and a gentle hand.

Oh, and you cannot carmelize onions in 5 minutes; it takes at least 45. 

You can make a lot of unique dishes with what you find around your house, after you feel like you’ve eaten everything. Trust me, I’ll keep you from starving.

I am also very crafty, and I like to teach, so in between the food posts, you’ll find easy DIY Decor and tips from my Home Ec Handbook. Who knew you’d have to adjust your recipes for High Altitudes, or that Autumn Wreaths can be made with items from Dollar Tree?! (Me. The answer is me.)

About Me

Hi! I’m Terra, and this is the 80th time I’ve tried to be a blogger 😉 Now, my life depends on it!

In previous lives – in between restaurant gigs – I have been a Marketing Coordinator for Big Telecom, a Project Coordinator for Major Construction, and managed offices for Big Oil, Land Law, and Massive Engineering Firms.

Along the way, I learned to cook from some of the best chefs around the country, in towns you’ve never heard of (Laurel, Montana, anyone?). As my education in how to survive gained momentum, I started seeing all the ways food brings people together. 

Big decisions are made over food; great loves are won and lost; friendships solidified; memories made. Next time you have people over, pay attention to where they gather, and I’m willing to bet it involves your eating space in some way.

I have over 30 years of experience in the Food Service Industry, and part-timed my way through a career in Entertainment Marketing. I have been featured on CBS Local, and am known for my party-throwing prowess.

Check out my Street Cred below, and toss me a line if you want to connect. I love hearing from amazing people like you.

Much Love. May your larder and your home never be empty.

XOXO T

Restaurant & Hospitality Street Cred

This isn’t everything, it’s just the big (food) things.

• 14-15 Years Old: Landed a job as a dishwasher at Fanta’s Pizza in Greeley, CO
• 16 – 17: Worked at Lindy’s Quickbite in Northglenn, CO (fast food, similar to 5 Guys)
• 21: Went to Bartending Academy and worked at The Balloon Inn in Arvada, CO; Cook at what is now Avamere Senior Living in Northglenn, CO
• 22 – 23: FOH/Floor Captain/Bartender for Macaroni Grill; Marketing + Beer Tub + Bartending at a few clubs in Denver
• 22 – 26: Bartender & Grill Cook at Family Fun Center in Wheat Ridge, CO; Cocktail Waitress & Line Cook at Table Steaks in Edgewater, CO, and Billiard Institute in Denver, CO
• 27 – 31: Ran a BBQ as a street vendor at major music venues in Denver, Beer tub girl at Bender’s
• 32-33: Overnight Restaurant Manager/ Fill-In Line Cook & Waitstaff at the Flying J Truck Stop in Belgrade, MT; Lead Waitress and Prep Cook at The Owl Restaurant, Bartender at The Board of Trade in Laurel, MT
• 34-36: Cocktail Waitress at Sage & Sand in Glendale, AZ; Lead Bar & FOH Manager at Coyote Crest in Glendale AZ. Began sharing my recipes online.
• 39-41: Food Blogger at A Spork in the Road, started Terra’s Bites & Decadence HQ
• 41-Present: Recipe Developer & Food Writer at Eat Play Live *gestures broadly*