my marathon oscar speech

"the next food network star" series

entry number four: my marathon oscar speech

so, for all those who tuned it tonight, you know that i won’t be the next food network star. i know a lot of you are sad/angry/disgruntled for me, but don’t be, because worse things have happened, and i walk away from this experience with nothing but happiness, inspiration and appreciation. happiness that i got to take a huge risk to pursue something i love and not make a total fool of myself while doing so; inspiration to continue on my culinary journey after meeting seven talented and amazing chefs and personalities; and pure appreciation for having had the opportunity to experience something so unique and different. it was a tough decision to hear, but it was a fair decision. i was the only one who did not finish my dish in that last demo. seriously people, i demoed how to not cook meat for five minutes. i deserved the boot. however, if you still feel cheated, email the food network and let your voice be heard. 

i watched tonight’s 2 hour premiere surrounded by love, a huge smorgasbord of down home southern food and family (or the closest people i have to family out here in the bay area). the evening ended in a lot of satisfied bellies and a lot of hugs – i could not ask for a better way to watch my big tv debut. to me, the funniest thing was how stressed out everyone was during those two hours. if they were stressed out, you could only imagine what it was like going through those challenges . . . it was definitely not a piece of cake and i learned so much about both my strengths and weaknesses during that time.

 

i have faced a good number of challenges in my life, but i don’t think anything has really compared to the challenges i faced in that studio - never had i experienced such nausea for days on end. i did not sleep, could barely eat, had butterflies to the point where i felt like i just wanted to vomit all day long, was just one big sweaty mess- seriously, i would have been the perfect candidate for a “sure” deodorant commercial. everyday, the eight of us went to war together full of camaraderie and support for one another. i can sit here for days on end and try to convey this unique experience in words, but no one can really understand the challenges and stress we went through together but the eight of us. because of that, i will always feel a connection to these seven people that started out as strangers only 4 months ago and are now good friends. i wish all of them only the best. keep on watching because i guarantee you there will be much more great entertainment as well as a great showcase of talent.

lastly, lastly (i know, this is like the oscar speech that wouldn’t end and they've cued the music and i'm still shamelessly exploiting my few minutes of fame. what makes it worse is that i didn’t even win - ha!), i want to thank everyone for their support and vote of confidence over the past few months. in the past two hours, since the show has ended in the east coast, i have been inundated with phone calls, text messages and emails. i cannot explain how amazed i am by the community this little experience of mine has created. i have gotten emails from people i haven’t talked to in years to complete strangers just reaching out – it has been pretty darn cool. most importantly, i am so glad that “the petite pig” was born out of this experience. when i really try to understand what drove me to send in that audition tape – it wasn’t the desire to be on tv, cause believe me, i hated the camera – it was more the desire to share something i love – food – with people. perhaps the tv gig didn’t work out for me, but i hope to continue sharing my recipes, my culinary ruminations and love for food right here, and i hope you continue to visit even if i won’t be the next big tv star chef.

i know a lot of you on the west coast missed the broadcast due to your cable's scheduling. food network will be reairing all episodes. click here for the schedule.

now, some shout outs (this is going to be long, i warn you – i’ve got a lot of wonderful people in my life to thank. and if this has already gotten to “emo” for you, i do not suggest reading on cause it only gets worse.):

my dad, for calling me after the show to tell me how proud he was – regardless.

my mom, for calling me after the show to tell me to not be discouraged and asking, “what were you thinking putting all that meat in the wok?” (she is a very chinese mother)

my little bro, just for being there and always supporting everything his big sis does

tim, for encouraging me to pursue something i love, holding my hand every step of the way, eating my food everyday and telling me how good it is even when i know it sucks

carla, ilana, jill and rachel, for letting me flood your inboxes when this all was unfolding and being so excited for me

the pon, for taking me to a knife skills class as my birthday present (it came in handy until i had to filet that damn fish for morimoto) and one of the best foodie friends i could ask for

brent and jere, for promoting me on their blogs – you guys rock!

joyce, grace and michelle, for being my fellow chinese sisters and inspiring me to hold true to those asian roots in the kitchen

my company, for being so supportive, understanding and flexible with all of this craziness

everyone that worked on the show, for just being such wonderful people to be around

the producers of the show, for pushing me to find myself on camera and for not making me look like a complete fool on the show (thank you!)

andy, beth, carissa, evette, guid, nathan and reggie, for being the only people in the world i could imagine sharing this experience with

em, for making me smile even when i really just wanted to vomit

and to so many wonderful, wonderful friends – thanks for your love and support and undeserved confidence in me.

signing off for now . . . but don't worry, this won't be the last word from this pig. who knows? you just might see the petite pig the book . you just never know where life will take you.

Comments

[Gi]

Jie Jie, you're still a winner in my book!

[Kara]

I think you did a great job--the whole time I was watching it, I kept thanking my lucky stars that I will never have to be under that sort of pressure/scrutiny. I imagine it takes the fun out of food, huh?