Dreams

Things are really kicking into gear, practices are more intense, I'm more focused on my workouts and my training, I'm cranking out cookies and living the dream. When I look back at where I was  when I started this whole cookie experiment and fencing adventure of mine, almost three years ago the transition is  mind blowing. I started fencing because it looked like something fun to try, and a cool way to stay active  I mean you get to stab people with swords, whats not to like? I had no idea what a foil an epee or a sabre were let alone what a parry,or  reposte and I had no idea how far I could go in the sport. I've gone from fencing in a few very small events to fencing all around the country and now with an eye to making a run at international competitions. It seems that it will be a very busy year for this sword slinging cookie baking guy .


Today I signed up for the first domestic event of the 2012-2013 Milwaukee Wisconsin in December. I'm looking forward to the competition, despite the fact that it going to be in December..In Wisconsin! Ive put in a lot of work since the end of last season and i'm looking forward to getting back out there and applying what ive learned.
The push for 50 dozen this month is still going strong, a few roadblocks but that's nothing that cant be managed, there are still a few people out there that don't quite get that Wheeling Chef is not a hobby for me, that it is how I pay for entry fee's gear and  hotel stays and food while I'm competing, and on occasion the funds get used to fill the gas tank so that I can get to practice.
Thank you all for your suppourt along the way, many of you have been involved with this since the start, I hope it has been as fun for you to watch the progression as it has for me as I continue to reach for my dreams!

Parry and Riposte

The last few days have been interesting to say the least . I made my sales goal for the month of September, The new workout program and diet are working well, feel stronger more flexible and more confident in my fencing . I even have a chance to travel outside of the US for a tournament this season, a trip that will require about 150 dozen cookies for the entry fee and probably another 100 dozen for travel expenses. 250 dozen cookies in 5 months roughly 50 dozen cookies a month. Its going to be a long haul but as I have found in the past its reachable, set a goal and reach past it, thats the only way to grow. With all the good things that have been happening recently there have been things going on in my personal life that have taken a toll on this months profits, and have had me questioning if continuing with my dream is possible, after some heavy thinking I have decided that I will not stop fencing, I will continue on with my cookie venture, yes things have been cloudy lately and because of the situation I have had to reallocate cookie profits to help  keep gas in the tank.    It happens, the only thing I can do is parry what life throws at me and riposte! So here is to getting more cookies into the hands of you hungry cookie monsters and to selling 50 dozen cookies in the next 4 weeks!! 

commitment, sacrifice and dedication

Saturday started what promises to be a busy, interesting frustrating and intense few years. Coach came back from London full of ideas and goals for the next few years and the key words that came from the meeting were  "commitment, sacrifice and  dedication."

Commitment to the workouts and the program. Some of the changes  are not going to be easy , but they are necessary and the payoff is worth it. 
Sacrifice, there are plenty of things I could do with the money that cookies bring in, and there are days I'd rather stay home and veg on a  or spend time with my family and friends rather then practice, but dreams are not handed to someone  there will be plenty of days when things will be missed because Ive chosen to chase my dream. My family, friends and fans are behind me in this quest and I thank you I could not do any of this without your support.
Dedication to see the goals through to the finish and doing what it takes to make things happen.   Its going to be an intense few years, its going to take alot of work and I don't want to think about the dozens of cookies it will take, but I'm looking forward to the challenge and adventure!

1464 days

A few hours ago my friends took to the piste in London for the start of the wheelchair fencing events at the 2012 Paralympic games. An opportunity to compete at the Paralympics is a great honor and privilege, but its more then that it is the payoff for the hours months and years that you have put into your sport.   When I started fencing I knew I wanted to compete  but I didn't know how far I wanted to take it, my goal has crystallized in the last few months, It is time to start adding international events to my schedule in a bid for Rio in 2016. This is not a simple nor an inexpensive goal, it means longer hours training, more time at the salee, more frustration and more cookie sales. The games in Rio are just a little over 4 years away from today 1464 days to be exact. between then and now there will be 12 National events and at least that many international events. My road to Rio will be paved in shortbreads held together with the support of all of you cookie monsters out there on twitter, facebook not only in your purchases of my products, but also all the #goodluck tweets and Likes I receive on facebook when I'm away at tournaments. As I approach this season I am going to set a 30 dozen in 30 days goal each month the money earned from these sales will help fund the entry fee's to tournaments, replacement of  gear as it breaks and salee membership fee's. To get the road to Rio started i'm setting a September sales goal of 30 dozen, and I only have 25 left to sell this month! Thank you all for your continued support I couldn't have done any of this without your support and love of my evil shortbread cookies  and if you havent already tell you friends about this guy you know!

Looking to next season

Two years ago I started this cookie experiment as a way to help ends meet and to help suppourt my fencing habit. Thanks to all your suppourt I made it through another fencing season! The next season starts in a few months and its time to start training! With your help I intend to make next season even more successful then the last one!  

Next seasons locations and dates have been officially announced :
December North American Cup
Dec. 7-10
Milwaukee, Wis.

March North American Cup
March 15-18
Reno, Nev.

Division I / Wheelchair Nationals and April North American Cup
April North American Cup: 
April 12-15
Richmond, Va. 
It looks like I will be doing a good bit of training and traveling during the next season, and a few other trips may be in my future!


Just a little over two years ago I was recovering from my first national event and wondering If I would continue fencing. Now two years later I can't wait to  get back out on the strip and compete.


Two years ago I didn't know how I would be able to fund my fencing passion, and to be honest I doubted that cookies would be the answer. Now it seems they were. I still want to take wheeling chef to the brick and mortar level and realize the dream I spoke about in where do I go from here?  and slowly one dozen at a time I'm building to that goal.


What will the next few months bring on the fencing strip and for my cookie empire? I don't know but I cant wait to find out!

The work is paying off

Two weeks ago was my last  tourney for the 2011-2012  fencing season. This season was a very good one for me I learned a lot my fencing improved tremendously and I came home with medals from every event. Its been a long two years at the sport but the hard work and the suppourt from all my family, friends and cookie fiends is paying huge dividends, both on the fencing strip and personally. I've said it time and time again but thank you all for your suppourt, I could have done none of this without your suppourt.  Next seasons schedule will be released next week I already know when the events are, just not sure on the where. You know you'll hear all about the when and get plenty of cookie specials just in time!
Lots of things are in motion with my fencing career and my team Captain and  coach are planning some cool things for me this season. Its even rumored that I'll be taking a trip or two across the pond.

In a few weeks time the worlds best will be gathering in London for the 2012 Olympic games, I will be watching with the rest of the world as athletes come together on the world stage to compete. Unlike most of the world I will also be watching two weeks following the Olympic games when the Paralympics are going on. While the para's I will be continuing working towards my goal of making the 2016 Paralympics. Its going to take lots of work lots of suppourt and lots of cookies to make this goal a reality but I'm not afraid of a little hard work. I cant say it enough but thank you all for your suppourt in this adventure of mine. Helping me make my dream come true.. One dozen and five miles at a time

Stuff stuff and more stuff

The last few months have been busy, stressful, and at times very frustrating for me, between fencing, keeping the cookies rolling and some major family issues and personal  I have not been my usual chatty self. I am happy to say that I'm finally pulling myself up by the boot straps and starting to get back to my old self.

First the family stuff
 In November a family member was diagnosed with lung cancer and had to have three lobes of her lung removed. During the process of diagnosing lung cancer questionable growths were found on this family members remaining kidney, yes you read that correctly   her remaining kidney, she had lost the other one due to cancer 8 years ago. In late February   The doctors decided that best course of action would be to cut out the suspicious growths. information has been hard to come by during this whole ordeal and the stress level has been understandably high, particularly after the order was handed down that a visiting the hospital was forbidden even after a plane ticket and hotel room were purchased. Things have improved in the last week but its still not a great situation.
Now the personal stuff.
In January  I started down a path of reflection, I have made mistakes in my life and done some things that I am not proud of, an email was received that reminded me of these past behaviors but I can honestly say that I am not the same person I was when these transgressions occurred, oddly the reason for the growth is the discovery and involvement in fencing. Fencing has provided me with a reason to get my butt out of bed, something to focus my energies on and at times it  provides  great stress relief. All I can say in light of this reminder of where I have come from is that I am sorry to those I have hurt and do what I can to eradicate those behaviors from my character, learn from my mistakes, and move forward

Finally the fencing stuff
In December I had my first tournament of the domestic season in Kansas City where I had my best finish of my career to that point 7th in both epee and foil. In February   I took a weekend trip to Tampa Florida where my team and I put on a wheelchair fencing demo for a group of enthusiastic kids to get them interested in the sport that I have come to love. In March in the mist of the Miami Drama I had my 2nd tournament of the domestic season where I took 8th in epee and once again 7th in foil, I was not my best tournament but I did place and I learned quite a bit. I can live with that. A few weeks ago I finished my domestic season in Virgina Beach where I finished 8th in epee and 6th in foil.  I seemed to have found my weapon in foil. So much so that coach is telling me to get ready for an international event...after the paralympics in September. Its going to be a hectic few months fencing wise.
Time to rebuild refocus and build my life, my fencing career and my cookie biz

What puts the wheels in Wheeling Chef?

Yesterday it came to my attention that March is Cerebral Palsy awareness month. Cerebral palsy is the name given to a group of   disorders  that  impact muscle coordination and   is characterized by;

• Muscle tightness or spasm
  
• Involuntary movement
  
• Disturbance in gait and mobility
  
• Abnormal sensation and perception
  
• Impairment of sight, hearing or speech
  
• Seizures

Cerebral palsy can occur during fetal development or shortly after birth when specific areas of the brain are damaged. It is not a progressive disability nor is it curable, it is also not genetic or contagious.  Why do I care? Cerebral Palsy is what puts the "wheels" in the wheeling chef. 

I was born with moderate spastic cerebral palsy that affects my legs and my hands to a slight degree.    It may seem strange that a person with a condition that affects my hands would choose a culinary career,  but the involvement in my hands is slight but  my condition does sometimes cause me to come up with creative solutions turning  difficulties into  challenges  to be overcome and adapted too not seen as barriers that cause me to throw my hands up and surrender!


I have been asked if I would take accept a cure to my disability if it were offered. No I would not, I don't suffer from my disability, I am grateful for it. I have done more because of my disability then many of my non disabled friends. I run my own business, I am able to participate in a sport that I love That is not to say that life isn't frustrating at times but who can honestly that they don't get frustrated at times?
I was dealt a hand in life that includes a condition that makes life interesting, and requires me to improvise and adapt to make things work for me, but that makes life fun. 

Some of you may have questions about cerebral palsy. I am no medical expert but I live with it everyday so feel free to ask me any question you may have. I will answer them as best I can.

And now you know a little more about your favorite wheelchair fencing  cookie baker and how I roll!
Now its time to get back in the kitchen and make some cookies, The Cincinnati tournament is in two weeks!

2 years already?

Saturday marked my second year as a wheelchair fencer all in all this year was a positive one, that’s not to say I didn't have set backs, there were moments when I asked myself “what the heck was I thinking” When I attended that first practice I had no idea what I was doing nor what I was getting myself into. There were many times in that first year when I seriously contemplated quitting fencing, especially when the costs started adding up. During that first year I kept at it getting stronger and learning all I could, fortunately I also struck on the idea of making cookies to support my fencing habit, and not just any cookies, shortbreads, a rather obscure cookie style to support a passion for an obscure sport, a rather unknown version of that sport at that.

This last year in fencing I continued to develop and managed to win my first medals. Cookie sales were a great help with gear, registration fees, food and the most important thing. Coffee! Each year on my “fencing birthday” I set goals for the next year, this year I want to continue as I have over the last two years continue collecting medals and keep finishing higher each time I compete.

My next tournament is in March over St Patrick’s day weekend with luck and your support I can hoist a Guinness in celebration of new medals and a great finish.

Again I want to thank you all for joining me on this adventure, purchasing my cookies and standing in my corner while I compete, train and build my cookie business from an experiment into something that will not only support my fencing dream but will help others reach a measure of financial freedom (as outlined  in  Where do I go from here?)

So here I go embarking on another year as a fencer, the hours of training, the miles put on my tires, the frustrations when practices get tough. Another year slinging cookies to suppourt my passion and my dream, full of highs and lows, but I wouldn't have it any other way!

I challange you to a dual..

Dear Walkers Shortbreads.

I am a small shortbread cookie baker who sells his cookies to support a his dream. It is my belief that your popularity is based purely on  a large marketing budget and Christmas tins shaped in the image of a tin highlander. I am also a fencer and as dueling has gone out of style I have chosen this medium to call you out as it were. I challenge Walker Shortbreads to a taste test, my traditional versus yours. You may choose the when an where as you are the challenged party.  I anxiously await your response and will interpret you silence on this matter as an acquiescence on your part that my hand crafted shortbreads are superior to your mass produced... cookies.

Respectfully
Richard Zengler
aka the Wheeling chef

National Shortbread Day

Its National Shortbread cookie day so I figured it was time I should share just how this whole cookie experiment came to be. It amazes me how a simple idea can turn into something worth while. About 5 years ago I was at a Renaissance festival when I saw a vendor selling welsh cookies and making a killing at it. I filed that away for later reference. A few months later I was still looking for a job and trying to find a way to make ends meet. Then I remembered the guy selling cookies and wondered if I could do something similar.

I picked up some old cookbooks and found a basic shortbread cookie recipe. To this point I had done very little baking, in school my major was culinary management and they sorta skipped over the whole baking thing for us. I had made simple doughs before so I figured I would be able to make a simple butter cookie. After some experimentation and some frustration, OK lots of frustration I came up with a cookie recipe and a product to offer the shortbread deprived public.

I had a product and I managed to find a few craft fairs that welcomed me and my cookies, but they didn't sell as well as I had hoped.  Before I could go back to the drawing board, life took a different path and I found myself in Atlanta. Wheeling Chef took a backseat for a while while I adjusted and rebuilt my life. It was during this hiatus that I found myself  getting involved with wheelchair fencing.
I knew early on in my fencing experience that I wanted to do more then just work out I wanted to compete nationally and eventually internationally, with the ultimate goal of making the Paralympic
team. This dream would take hard work and a good bit of money. It was time to relaunch wheeling chef.
I revamped my cookie recipe and was off and rolling. Thanks to twitter and a few lucky breaks wheeling chef started to get sales and some marketing exposure. Those first sales helped cover the entry fee for my 2nd national. I couldn't believe that such a simple idea was paying off. I continued to sell cookies and train and started to see the benefits of both Cookie sales have helped me purchase new weapons  a new uniform a new mask and have  covered my entry fees to 5 tournaments. More important then all of that I'm having fun in this whole adventure!

Cookies have certainly helped financially but I have also met some very cool and supportive people because of my cookie experiment. You all have kept me going when sales have slowed and fencing gets frustrating, and I appreciate it. In celebration of National Shortbread Day and in gratitude for your support I'd like to offer a blog reader coupon. 20% off your entire order between today and 1/10/2012 when you include the word Foil in your order! Thank you again and Happy Shortbread Day

Turning the page

New Years is a few days away so now seems an appropriate time to wrap up what happened this year, and set my goals for next year. A virtual Board of Directors meeting if you will, and since my social media followers and fans are the closest thing I have to a BoD I figured I'd share the wrap up with you.
At the start of 2011 fencing was still something new, and Cookies were still mostly an experiment. In February I was told that I should start thinking about upgrading my equipment to the international standard, this or course came with a hefty price tag. at that point I set a sales goal of 200 dozen cookies. Thanks to some lucky breaks, a spotlight interview on Thrillist ATL andThrillist Seatle I was able to get my internationally rated uniform, unfortunately I came up a little shy on funds for my first international event in Montreal. It worked out better for me in the long run because it gave me more time to develop as a fencer. In March I went to my 3rd National event of my fencing career in Detroit Michigan. I won my first medal at this event and started to see all that all the hard work was paying off.

I lost focus on cookies in April and got away from sharing my story with my friends and customers and started to use social interaction to inundate time lines with sales pitches rather then interacting with customers. I still find myself falling into the "buy my cookies" trap but I'm trying to be more human and less corporate.
In May I had the opportunity to get away from the normal weekend practices with my team and go to an event in Oklahoma. I fenced well and learned how to enjoy myself on the fencing strip. The trip back home was..Well that's another story  

The cookie biz slowed for a bit during  "swimsuit" season and I found myself getting a little discouraged but the slow down gave me time to refocus on my goals for fencing as well as for Wheeling Chef.

Things started to pick back up in October and haven't slowed down since. Holiday sales were very good this year, my one week sales this year actually eclipsed a great month last year. Fencing has also seemed to have taken off. In Kansas City this month I fenced as well as I ever have bringing home two medals.

The next few months are going to be busy as far as fencing I'll be in Tampa in February, Cincinnati, in March and Virgina Beach in April.   The schedule is demanding but I'm looking forward to it.
Like last year I'm setting a sales goal for a major purchase, this year its a new fencing chair. The one that I use now is my team captains old one. It has served me well to this point but it is time I got one of my own that was built for me. A new fencing chair is approximately $2,000 or 333 dozen cookies. A big goal no doubt, but I have never backed down from a challenge.
Thank you all for your support over the last 12 months and for sticking with me during my cookie experiment and fencing adventure.

Little bites of buttery independence!

No it is not a hobby it is not something I am doing "just because" Wheeling Chef is my business, small at the moment but building every day. The recipes are not ones I lifted from the web they are ones I've developed from research and trial and error. The business supports my passion for my fencing and I wouldn't have it any other way. Granted the business started at a time when all I could afford was a 5lb bag of flour and a box of butter and I needed to raise funds to cover some major expenses that I was hardly prepared for. Now those little bits of buttery goodness have done so much more for me then I ever intended. Yes the budget is still tight, but cookies are helping ends meet more and more. There were times when I wondered what I had gotten myself into, and if this crazy idea was to crazy to go anywhere, but just like fencing, and life in general I just put my head down and powered through. Now like fencing, cookies are turning the corner, with every dozen I get closer and closer to my dream. Who knew that butter flour and sugar could be so liberating. Now its time to head back into the kitchen and create a few more dozen little bites of buttery independence!

Well that was fun!

As most of you know I spent last weekend in Kansas City at a fencing tournament. I am happy to report that I fenced very well rolling away with two shiny medals! Thanks to your suppourt and love of wheeling chef cookies I was able to pay my registration fee, cover my hotel room, eat and buy a new mask! More importantly thank you all for the text messages, Facebook posts and tweets wishing me luck, those meant more to me then the financial support.  Delta behaved themselves and my chair and equipment arrived in one piece, honestly I think they managed to bend it back to where it was before the infamous flight from hell.

I never thought I would be participating in wheelchair fencing nor that I would be supporting my participation in it with the profits from cookies, but here we are almost two years into my fencing career and a year and a half into running a cookie business and things are rolling right along. My next major event is in Cincinnati Ohio March 16th-19th and then  April 13,- April 16,   Virginia Beach, Virginia. I'm going to be vary busy.. And I'm going to have to start selling a lot of cookies.

This years big goal is to pay for the tournaments and  get a new fencing chair, the one i'm using now is hand me down and has served me well but its time to get one built just for me, They are not cheap but worth it, a new chair breaks down to about 500 dozen cookies but  it can be done.


Again I cannot express my gratitude for the support I've received from all of you. Thank you for joining and supporting me on this journey.

I am me I am not a wheelchair

A week or so ago received an email from a good friend, she presented me with an odd yet flattering question. In the course of her job she came in contact with the mother of a young man with cerebral palsy who is having a tough time of it. My friend asked me if I would be willing to introduce myself to the family and share some of my experiences. I remember all too well what  its like to be 16 ,have cerebral palsy and  navigate  the social minefield that is high-school. I decided to write the email, but then I figured the fans of my blog might want to get to know a little more about their favorite sword wielding, cookie slinging, twitterrific guy.  
My name is Rick Zengler and I was born with cerebral palsy.  My parents insisted that I attend school public school rather then a school that was designed with the disabled in mind. I went through the normal awkward stages that kids go through complete with  bullying. My teenage years were tough, they are tough on everyone,  the addition of a wheelchair made those years even tougher. I never felt like I fit in with the rest of the kids at school and had periods of depression because of it. I ended up getting involved with High-school sports  and that helped provide what I needed to navigate the high-school jungle. I got involved with the football team in the esteemed position of "hydration coordinator" better know as water-boy. Eventually I approached the coach of the wrestling team and asked if I could do something to help out. His idea of me helping out was having me join the team as a wrestler. I would love to tell you that I was the biggest bad ass on the mat but I wasn't truth be told I wasn't good at all, but I finally fit in. I found out from my friends years later that at first the team didn't know what to think when they saw me roll into the wrestling room but over time  they saw that despite the difficulties I was having I was hanging in with pace of practice and showing up day after day, It was my dedication that impressed them not the fact that I was in a wheelchair. It took a little time and two summers working in Alaska for me to figure out that I use a wheelchair to get around the  wheelchair does not define who I am. Once I figured that out life became a series of obstacles to be met and overcome rather then ones that would cause me to become frustrated and depressed. Don't get me wrong my life has not been all sunshine and puppies, and I've had some tough times, I've been broke, I've been homeless, and I've had relationships fail. I've learned from everything and  I've grown. and there will always be setbacks. its just how you handle them and what you learn from those setbacks. Its because of all of these setbacks and what they taught me  that I found myself in West Palm Beach Florida  entering culinary school, after even after getting resistance from the admissions department, I knew what I wanted and wasn't going to let anything stop me.
I'm Rick Zengler and I make cookies to help make my dream come true.  Oh I use a wheelchair to get around, but its not what defines me.

Of Anchors and Chips

After reading my  last blog entry "discounted" a friend of mine said

"It's really good you have such a good sense of humor about things. I'm sure I would lose patience VERY quickly."
I've always had a good sense of humor about they way some people act around "the disabled" if I  didn't I'd  end up going thru life with a huge chip on my shoulder, I've done that and said chip becomes an anchor really quickly. I'm not saying that I don't have my days, I do and I do get frustrated in the way society can overlook people who don't fit into what is considered the "norm." When I find myself being overlooked or even pitied by individuals and the frustration level rising I take a second, pause collect myself and laugh. Why do I laugh when people approach my like I'm made of glass and have the brains of a  nematode? It's simple really..They have no idea who I am or what I've done with my life, and by treating me as they do, they prove that I'm the one who should feel sorry for them. After-all can they say that they have built a business that supports a habit that gives them a chance to compete on a national stage as well as an international one? How many of the individuals that speak to the people that I am with rather then me  when I'm at a restaurant assume that I know nothing about food or customer service. Some days I just want to put on a t-shirt that says "I'm the one who calculates your TIP!"
My point with all of this is I don't get pissed off when I get discounted by others, I know its a reflection of their  own insecurities and fears, I just smile and laugh. I don't need anchors holding me back in my life.

Discounted

The other day I was at the pet store picking up food for my dogs, and decided to take a look at the selection of fish that the store had to offer. As I navigated through the tanks full of guppies,goldfish and tetras, I found myself  looking at a cool eel looking fish labeled as a Knife fish. As soon as I saw it I wanted to know more, Its called a knife fish after all. I asked the friendly aquarium specialist for the rundown on the knife fish, the first thing she said was that it was half off because it was a "special needs" fish. Knife fish are blind and according to the  aquarium specialist food needs to be placed right in-front of the animals nose. Well It is called a knife fish and since it was discounted by the store because no one would take it due to its disability, I had to have it. The fish is by no means disabled, yes its blind, but it cruises around the tank with ease. As soon as the food hits the tank the little monster is right on it. After experiencing the fish for a few days I couldn't help but laugh. I wonder how many times I've been "discounted" because I roll around instead of walk.

  I've seen it many times, at restaurants my girlfriend gets asked how many for dinner even when I roll in the door first, she gets asked what I want for dinner. If I didn't keep a sense of humor about it I'd go blind with rage. I was at a craft show when I first started my cookie adventure, someone came up to my table and saw the cookie boxes arrayed on the table and asked my table mate who made the cookies, when she pointed to me the lady who posed the question laughed and said "yeah right he couldn't have done that he's in a wheelchair" I think on that incident while looking at what I've done with cookies and I have to laugh.

  This past weekend I took part in another hobby of mine, that of learning rifle marksmanship, while I was engaged in the instruction my girlfriend was approached by one of the attendees and told that "it was good to see me out" to steal a line from one of my favorite movies where am I supposed to be in a closet?

People who use crutches, canes or even wheelchairs are not broken, people with any disability are people, people who have hopes and dreams just like everyone else, true we may have to improvise and adapt how we do things, but we are not to be discounted.

With a little help

I had a great practice on Saturday, my coach and team captain have seen major developments in my fencing recently, So much so that they would like me to get as much experience as I can, to that end they would like me to participate in the Crescent City Open in  New Orleans at the end of the month. Things are going great with fencing and its awesome  that I have this opportunity, I had been planning for Kansas City in December now my timeline for is shorter, so I've got to amp up my training regime and my cookie sales  I've got a little over two weeks to sell 30 dozen..Its a heck of a goal but I can do this, with a little help from my friends.Let's make it happen!

Here we go

The schedule for the upcoming fencing season is out.  I've got a tournament in Kansas City in December, another one in Cincinnati in March and the last one is in Virginia Beach in April . That doesn't include any small events that may pop up  Its going to be a busy few months. I'm starting my second year fencing and my second year of slinging cookies, and I can't help but think of all the help and support I have received from friends and customers, for some strange reason you guys find my story fascinating, I'm just a guy who sells cookies to fund his wheelchair fencing habit, a guy who is making his way the best he can with what he can, but thanks for the support.
We've all been in job interviews where we get the question “where do you see yourself in 5 years?” Five years ago I would not have said “I'll be baking cookies to support my wheelchair fencing habit” Fencing just sort of happened, and cookies started out of the need to fill a financial void. I posted an announcement on my facebook page some friends picked up the post, I got interviewed and the next thing I know I had covered the entry fee and the cost of a new epee, and the orders kept coming. Things were going really well, but then things slowed down a bit, the buzz had worn off. At the same time fencing started to ware on me I had suffered an injury that sidelined me for a month, daily workouts had gotten the best of me and my shoulders started to protest. It was during these low times that I had to dig down and find resolve where I thought none existed. If anything both fencing and cookies have taught me where my strength really is and the depth of my resolve.
So here I am about to embark on another fencing season and gearing up for another round of massive cookie sales and marketing. You guys get to follow all the adventures and miss-adventures, you'll get to share in my victories and my defeats, i'm sure i'll piss you off, make you laugh, and I might even make you cry, who knows, but its your support that is helping this little guy with big dreams realise them and feel 10 ft tall.

Still slinging cookies and swording it up

It was brought to my attention that its been over a year since I was fortunate enough to be interviewed for an article on CHUD.com. Its been one heck of a year. The cookie biz has been great at times and I've caught wondering what the heck I was thinking. The same with fencing, I've had days when fencing rocks and I've had days when I just want to toss the gear into the closet and forget I had even heard of fencing. With an injury,  a lull  in sales and the delta fiasco I really had to dig deep, put my head down and power thru.  So here it is one year after my big break and "I'm still kicking ass, baking and swording it up! I couldn't have done any of this without the support of my loved ones and my loyal tweeps. Thanks for all the support. Lets make the next year even better. Tell your friends about this crazy wheelchair fencing baker you know, share my story and enjoy handcrafted cookies from a little guy with big dreams and a rolling pin.