WHAT AN AWESOME DAY!

It’s an historic, game-changing, super, great, super-great day! And what a perfect day to be on a Friday the 13th!

13th COOKIE has two new team members. I was only going to hire one, but I remembered the words of a mentor. He told me, “You don’t hire to fill positions, you find good people and give them jobs.” Great advice.
I found two good people. I gave them jobs. Meet them -

JJ Thoman & Joslin Howe

I’ll post pictures of them as soon as I ask for them and they say, “Yeah! That would be awesome!”

Joslin will be joining me at the Farmers’ Market in Deering Oaks tomorrow and was ecstatic at the prospect of taking a turn toting the Cookie Box. She’s good people.

Stop by and say hello!

It’s like American Idol! …with less singing and more baking. Okay, it isn’t like American Idol at all except that the choices for a new position with 13th COOKIE have been narrowed and a choice has been made!

I, Nicholas J. Stevens, Owner and Proprieter of 13th COOKIE, am the Sweet Genius. Megu Hirayama, brains and backbone of 13th COOKIE, is One Smart Cookie.  The mystery baker, who will be named on this site following the completion of her/his trial baking period, will be known as One Tough Cookie. Nice.

Stay Tuned!

 Look at this.

There’s no mention of Nana Ca’chews, Pompah Doughs, Gingerbends, or even Muggy Cakes! 13th COOKIE treats are timeless.

No, really loves the Farmers’ Market.

I take the Cookie Box down every week (or Megu does) and wander back and forth saying hello, acknowledging intrigued glances, smiling at smiles given, saying “thank you” to kind words, and selling cookies. I love it.

Wait, I’m not sure you understand – I love the Farmers’ Market. I want to bake a cake for the Farmers’ Market… and make it a couple layers… and the layers in-between would be cookie. I want to go to Clay Play or Color Me Mine and paint a picture frame together to hold a picture of us happily enjoying each other, me and the Farmers’ Market. I want to write a song about the Farmers’ Market and badly sing it at the top of my lungs and not care at all because it comes from my swollen heart. I want to write a 96-page letter to the Farmers’ Market while it’s gone all winter and I don’t even hear from it. It won’t even matter. I love the Farmers’ Market.

I love that I can go to the Farmers’ Market with cookies I made and come home with money, sure, but also bags of spinach and greens and tomatoes and strawberry plants and a warm feeling of accomplishment and community and kinship. What kind of awesome, magical place is this where I can trade cookies I made with love for strawberry plants someone else grew with love?!? I love the Farmers’ Market.

*sigh*

I just love it. I just love the Farmers’ Market.

The following is a picture of a cake I made for my dear friend, tattoo artist, and supporter of 13th COOKIE. Her name is Cyndi Lou and she owns Squid & Whale tattoo! She is a big fan of cephalopods and cake, so the Choctopus was an obvious choice for her birthday.

Remember, 13th COOKIE makes cakes, too!

I am extremely fortunate to be surrounded by champions – super, super friends. They are awesome and I have much love, big love for them. They have set the bar pretty high and I hope to be as successful as they are.

Some of them also won awards in… oh yeah, 13th COOKIE won an award! 13th COOKIE won Best Cookie. Thank you. Anyway, some awesome people, some awesome friends, won awards, too. Cyndi Lou and Kapten Hanna won Best Tattoo Shop for Squid & Whale Tattoo, Sam James won Best Street Performer (and Graffiti Artist?), Sarah’s Homegrown Herb & Tea won Best Teahouse, Brook Delorme won for Best Women’s Clothing for her store Brook There, Margarett Rounsavall’s OVE Body Therapy won Best Massage, and Colleen Kelley’s baby, Silly’s, won Best Dessert Place, Best Sandwich, and Best Waitstaff. These people hold a special place in my heart and, apparently, in the hearts of Portlanders across the peninsula and beyond!

They are awesome people who do awesome things and have awesome places. Go there. Enjoy. Support.

(Sam James, Nikki and Cyndi Lou of Squid & Whale, and me)

Following the Portland Phoenix “Best Of” Awards Ceremony, a list of the winners was published in a special section of The Phoenix. They wrote a few lines about the winners and I was touched by what they wrote about lil’ ol’ me.

Here it is.

… and the Thank You ad I placed in response to winning -

BIG THANKS!

The following is taken from an article on Yahoo! entitled Bad Food Ingredients. It’s a list of terrible things, none of which exist in 13th COOKIEs or even in the 13th COOKIE kitchen. These things are no good and have no business being consumed by the human body. Don’t feed them to animals, either.

Eat good things and you will feel good. 13th COOKIEs are good and you will feel great… and happy.

Last night at the Portland Phoenix “Best Of” Awards Ceremony, 13th COOKIE was honored with the title “Best Cookie” in Portland! There will be footage of the acceptance posted shortly, but there was just too much excitement and eagerness to share to download video right now. 13TH COOKIE IS PORTLAND’S BEST COOKIE!!!

Thank you to everyone who voted. Thank you.

13e cookie est là pour vous. Obtenir une boisson chaude, un peu de paix, et un végétalien délicieux, sans gluten, Bio, Soy-cookie libre du 13th COOKIE! Maintenant disponible au matin à Paris au 13, rue de change.

or

Hello, Paris! Hello, World! 13th COOKIE is here for you. Get a warm beverage, some peace, and a delicious Vegan, Gluten-free, Organic, Soy-free cookie from 13th COOKIE! Now available at Mornings in Paris at 13 Exchange Street, edge of the Old Port, Portland, ME.

Check it out!