1) I cook because
A) It's something I am terribly passionate about
B) It's a creative outlet for me, where I allow myself to try new things, and encourage myself to fail.
C) It's a form of meditation for me. When I cook, I sometimes lose hours of time and get away from the rest of the world.
2) Yes I will generally plan 1-2 meals a week, the rest I try to cobble together from what's in the fridge (hence #1B)
3) It varies greatly. Recently I've been BBQ'ing (duh)
4) No
5) I felt I became a good cook when I started to try new techniques and ingredients and was willing to fail / overcook / make flavorless crap. Once I figured out some techniques, I was able to make up recipes on the spot.
2) Yes I will generally plan 1-2 meals a week, the rest I try to cobble together from what's in the fridge (hence #1B)
3) It varies greatly. Recently I've been BBQ'ing (duh)
4) No
5) I felt I became a good cook when I started to try new techniques and ingredients and was willing to fail / overcook / make flavorless crap. Once I figured out some techniques, I was able to make up recipes on the spot.