My "revenue stream" comes from my husband--thankfully!    I'm not getting paid for anyone's sales.  In some cases, I might be writing about an item that was given to me, but I am writing about my actual experience with the item.  My site is called "Tricia's Dish" the address is my own name--triciachaves.blogspot.com-- I know  that what I write will be out there for the world to see, so I do have integrity about what I write and the people/places I write about.  In my opinion, what I'm shouting from the rooftops about is worth hearing, but that's my personal opinion, and the world can (and most will) take it with a grain of salt (although I seem to have a pretty loyal group of readers who gasp--like it).

Reading though the "Advertising" section of my site, you can see how I do what I do. Not every place/person/company I write about is a sponsor.  But when they are, they are places and people I recommend because I personally think they have a cool concept, not because I'm getting some sort of kickback.  95% of the places who sponsor the giveaways on the site do so because I talked to them and said, "Hey you have a really great thing here, and it would be a shame for the world not to know about you..."

If you read my reviews, you'll notice I try to write is a description of how I feel about it, and a little bit about the individual, along with some "insider tips" or things that a person might find useful if they go there (ie: a friend of mine from Shaker just told me where to find the giant free parking lot behind CVS when I went to Sarava---I've long avoided Shaker because it seems like valet was the only option.  Now, I plan to get out to the North Union Farmer's Market soon too!)  

I appreciate the constructive feedback, though my motivation isn't to become a food 'critic'.  I'm not a "chef" nor do I feel I have the authority to criticize someone's life work (in fact, I stopped linking to Eating Cleveland because the criticism/negativity was annoying me)...but like a a lot of people, I'm  font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
color:black">struggling "Times New Roman","serif";mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black"> trying to live consciously/ethically/stustainably/affordably/semi-healthfully, so the part of my site I haven't shared with the Real NEO community is a small (but growing) library of fitness and cooking stuff.

Along with that, I'm just hoping my site will be a window into some of the places you might miss if you don't know Cleveland (or if you're wanting to travel--Brazil) all that well--I was really fortunate when I worked for Scene Magazine about 5 years ago, to have a boss who was really excited about independent places--anytime we had to go on a sales call, we'd have lunch at some little place I didn't know about.  I was in my mid-20's and finally ventured East for the first-time!  Once I "discovered" places like LaCave du Vin & Heather Haviland's Sweet Mosaic cupcakes from Lucky's Cafe--I was hooked on trying to stay out of my "box" in Brooklyn/Old Brooklyn (most of my childhood friends can be found in a bar within a 3 mile radius of their childhood home on any given night out).  

I love to see all the little places cropping up when they do, and all of the people who still have hope in the city.  It's been a while since I went to Tremont, and yesterday, I was going to Fresh Fork Market and came across an amazing choclatier named Lilly who has the most adorable shop with wine, beer and the most beautiful (and unusual) handmade choclates that she & her husband make.  Although she's been there a year, she's in a little shop on Starkweather where a person who isn't a Tremont resident or exceptionally informed about the city may never hear about them.  I spent $22 on a box of chocolates, brought them home and photographed them, and plan to write about them.  Not because I have some pyramid scheme with Lilly (though I did give her a card & suggest she register to win, and maybe sponsor a giveaway), but because her place is cool as hell and I want her to be successful because she adds to our community. 

I do write for the Examiner (and the Old Brookyn News, AC, and a few others), and I am the "Exploring Cleveland" Examiner--a lot of what I am writing about now is in the hope that I'll build a nice library for people who want to "Explore Cleveland".  If you (or anyone else) wants to write about topics that interest  you, there are several open Cleveland channels on the site.  It's been a nice experience for me so far and they are very helpful but give you freedom to write and edit your content as long as it's relevant to your channel.  There is a referral program--but it's on the 'honor system' so if you decide to write for the Examiner, tell them how you heard about it.

Tricia Chaves

Weekly giveaways every Friday!

www.triciachaves.blogspot.com