Name: Marcella Symington, but I go by Marci
Age: 49
Title: Blogger, Freelance Writer and Photographer
Married/Single: Married 24 years and still truckin’
Kids: 3 wonderful lights in my life
City you live in: Paradise Valley
A typical day in my life includes…
5 am wake up and run or go to boxing class. 7 am take kids to school. 9 am – 2 pm write, check out a new restaurant, or take photos at home of food styling. 4 pm pick kids up and take to swim practice. Make dinner. If I am not going to a media event, I am in bed by 9 reading…heaven!
I was born…
to a 7th generation Texas belle and an Army General from Mississippi who fought in WWII under George S. Patton. My parents were two of the most fascinating and complex people, whose stories I hope one day to write down and publish.
My favorite thing about Arizona…
the varied topography, from the Sonoran Desert to the White Mountain snow-capped peaks to the vastness of the Navajo and Hopi reservations. Plus, AZ has the best sunsets (don’t tell the Texans!).
I’m listening to…
Young the Giant. Saw them at the Santa Barbara Bowl last summer and was blown away by their energy.
My family…
is large (I am the youngest of 5) and crazy. I remember taking my now-husband to Texas to meet them for the first time, and at the end of the weekend, I thought, “OK, that’s it, he is going to break up with me…this has been too much for him to handle”. Lucky for me, he embraced the chaos wholeheartedly.
If I could have dinner with anyone, it would be…
Ernest Hemingway in Paris circa 1925. Anyone who writes about Paris as a moveable feast is my kind of guy.
One thing I cannot live without…
my family.
When I was younger, I wanted to be…
a jockey (tearing across the countryside on a horse was my thing).
I’m inspired by…
tenacity.
The one person who motivates me is…
my husband. He is always encouraging me to climb the highest mountain, literally and figuratively.
If I could change anything in the world, it would be…
ignorance.
The perfect day would be…
wake up and watch the sunrise in the cool of the morning with a hot cup of coffee. The bulk of the day would be spent doing some of my favorite activities: hiking a mountain to a waterfall, having a picnic lunch on the beach followed by a dive along the most beautiful coral reef, ending with a horseback ride and watching the sun set. For dinner I would be surrounded by family and friends telling stories and laughing until my belly ached.
My first job was…
Hermès in Highland Park Village, Dallas, helping distinguished men pick out ties for their suits and showing the most beautifully jeweled ladies 20 ways how to knot a scarf.
My favorite escape…
the Texas Hill Country surrounded by blue bonnets, and in the words of the late, great Waylon Jennings, “getting back to the basics of love”.
My life…
is blessed beyond words.
I’m currently working on…
launching my new website at www.TEXAZTASTE.com, and reading “The Gourmand’s Way: Six Americans in Paris and the Birth of a New Gastronomy”.
Always…
be kind and give others the benefit of the doubt.
Never…
say never (especially as a new parent…i.e., “I would NEVER let MY kid do THAT!”)
Favorite Quote…
“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” – Antoine de St. Exupery
Biggest Dream…
to write a book incorporating my own photography and to live to see my kids realize their dreams.
My Pet Peeve(s)…
when people smack their gum. Or ignorance. That’s a toss up.
