Many years ago, I was struck by a quote from Julia Child, "Until I discovered cooking, I was never really interested in anything."

That describes me exactly. Before I began to study food and wine, I never finished anything and I wasted my life at mind-numbing jobs.

Of course, I learned to cook from my mother. She didn't have a huge repertoire, but what she prepared was consistently perfect whether the dish came from her French Canadian roots or if it came from one of her friends.

You know how people joke that they learned everything from television? Well, years before I met Julia Child, I followed her on public television. Slavishly, I made the dishes she taught. I got her book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and made every recipe in the book. My mother loved my experiments with beef bourguignon, bouillabaisse, and cassoulet. I still have a photo of the first duck I cooked.

Around the same time, Joyce Chen began teaching Chinese cookery on public television. I have no doubt that I was the first non-Asian to own a wok in Newark, New Jersey. I got her book, Joyce Chen Cook Book, which I still refer to this day, and made everything in the book.

Fast forward to San Francisco, where I took the basic course at Judith Ets-Hokin's school, as an assistant. It was my finishing school, where I had to make a soufflé and pâté, even though I wasn't terribly fond of them.

While living in West Contra County, I entered a recipe in a newspaper's contest and won my category. I sent a recipe to Bon Appetit magazine and they published it. Mmmm maybe I was on to something. Then I got laid off from my job, had a year and half's worth of unemployment (thank you, President Carter), and the support of a terrific guy.

I went to all the local cooking schools and volunteered to assist the cooking teachers. Always learning, always cooking.

And then I stepped off the pier and became a line cook. It truly was the baptism of fire. All I could think about was what I was going to cook. On the side, I started a catering business and my walking tours.

I also began writing, first for the Montclarion in Oakland and then for Bay Food magazine. My idea for the later was to create a column like the San Francisco Chronicle's Herb Caen, but about restaurants, chefs and food.

Eventually, I wrote that type of column for the Chronicle for 16 years. The Inside Scoop became incredible popular. I also wrote for Sunset, the Wine Spectator and penned eight restaurant guidebooks. I edited a San Francisco cookbook and have stories in two Travelers' Tales books.

Today, I still conduct history-food walking tours of San Francisco neighborhoods, publish a free email magazine, the Yummy report, am a restaurant consultant and enjoy appearing on the radio.