I don’t like coffee. I don’t like bananas. I don’t like watermelon. I don’t like pie. I don’t like ketchup. I especially don’t like whatever Asian restaurant Joel is dying to try this week. I don’t like a lot of things. I’m a picky eater.

I was reading one of my favorite blogs [ http://www.deephungerdeepgladness.com ] and as the writer so delicately put in a post about The Bachelorette : “I gotta say, if you’re a grown man, “Picky Eater” is not really an attractive quality.” I laughed out loud at this statement because it is so true. Not just for grown men, for grown people – and little people for that matter. No one wants to cook for the picky eater.

It’s something I’m working on. My  mother is shocked by things I’ve been eating since going off to college. I’ve seen her stop what she was doing and stare at me. Joel just last week commented in disbelief on the fact that I was eating baked beans (for the first time ever maybe, but I was TRYING not to make a big deal out of it since we were at an event where others were so kind to cook for us).

I have this story about the ketchup (ask me sometime if you haven’t heard it-but be prepared for it to be gross), so it’s justifiable. And I’m allergic to shellfish and other seafood related things. But those are my only excuses other then my mother tried her hardest, but with three kids and a full schedule listening to me complain was too much and it was easier just to tell me to make myself a grilled cheese.

But it being so blatantly stated as an unattractive quality in an adult made me stop and think. What else have I let my bad habits from youth turn into lifetime qualities of my personality? And what on earth can I do about them?! I decided this was a thought best taken on slowly, so I’m focusing on the picky eater thing first.

At Supper Club this week we were having Korean Tacos. That scared me, but I agreed to come and bring dips anyway (that way I could be assured queso would be there..) A coworker of Joel’s is a very impressive chef – and he made a wonderful meal with some help of a few friends. And y’all. I ate the taco with everything on it. The sauce, the slaw, and I even used the homemade corn tortilla instead of the familiar flour one. And it was delicious. I enjoyed every bite. And then I had the second taco that I make as a back up with the flour tortilla and just steak and queso. That one was good too, but not the one I would have gone back to for seconds. This story (told basically to brag on my friend group for being awesome and having a Supper Club) is one that hopefully will exemplify my new outlook on life/food. I’m going to give myself a chance to be an adult and eat stuff even if it scares me. I know – it was a taco for goodness sake- but still, I’m trying. I may occasionally complain about the textures – growing up is a process.

Slow and steady wins the race right? Last week it was baked beans, this week it was Korean tacos, next week – who knows what Joel will try and get me to eat after he reads this post! But now that my mind is on this train of thought, there is no slowing down. My thoughts are racing with self observations about the kind of adult I want to be. “Picky eater” is a trait I’m going to attempt to squash, and others will arrive in its wake. Adult Katelyn is going to be awesome y’all. Be ready – and have the interesting food ready.