On my way to Austin, I became entranced by the prose of An Everlasting Meal: Cooking with Economy and Grace by Tamar Adler. I knew I would. A few months ago I read an excerpt of her passion statement about food’s place and preparation in our lives and instantly I knew I’d devour it like a well-made meal.
As I prepare myself for this next chapter of my career – one of great risk, great faith, and God and Universe willing, great meaning, I have seriously begun to examine my finances and the necessary changes needed to make the leap. To be fair, I do not live a lavish lifestyle. My clothes are simple and always bought on sale. My home is small and simple. I cook much more often than I eat out. The New York Public Library furnishes most of the books I read. I do my own nails, hair, etc.
These last couple of months my credit card bills have been outsized with the long-overdue furnishing of my apartment, 2 upcoming trips to Florida, my vacation of a lifetime to India, and the next phase of my advanced yoga teacher training. This pile up of expenses got a bit scary, though they were planned, and my fine-tuned sense of frugality demanded an immediate halt and investigation.
Enter Tamar Adler and her celebration of eating well on a miniscule budget. Her experience and aptitude for stretching a small grocery budget actually made me excited to get started today rather than wait until I inevitably make the leap into the next phase of my career. Her book has left me feeling more resourceful than fearful, more capable than novice.
I may well be just this side of crazy to exit stage left from a stable job and salary in favor of carving out a new kind of living that unifies my earnings and values. Life is too short to imagine going forward any other way.
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
2 thoughts on “Leap: Inspired by Tamar Adler and Frugality”
One of the amazing things I learned from taking my leap is that when I let go of my fear of not having enough and began to shift my relationship with money (as you are doing before you leap which is soooo very wise), we always had enough. And then we began to find creative ways to save money. We did away with our land line and cable and only have basic TV. We ask – is that something we really need? I wrote a blog post about the Universe providing and sending signs that you will enjoy: http://newworldgreetings.blogspot.com/2012/01/pennies-from-heaven.html How amazing you are going to India. I’m so glad you are this side of crazy. It’s so exciting to share in your journey.
Thanks so much, Mary. What a gorgeous post about the Universe sending signs. It seems I’m getting inundated w/ them, or maybe I always have been and am now just doing a better job of noticing them. I’m glad I’m this side of crazy too – life’s more fun that way š
One of the amazing things I learned from taking my leap is that when I let go of my fear of not having enough and began to shift my relationship with money (as you are doing before you leap which is soooo very wise), we always had enough. And then we began to find creative ways to save money. We did away with our land line and cable and only have basic TV. We ask – is that something we really need? I wrote a blog post about the Universe providing and sending signs that you will enjoy: http://newworldgreetings.blogspot.com/2012/01/pennies-from-heaven.html How amazing you are going to India. I’m so glad you are this side of crazy. It’s so exciting to share in your journey.
LikeLike
Thanks so much, Mary. What a gorgeous post about the Universe sending signs. It seems I’m getting inundated w/ them, or maybe I always have been and am now just doing a better job of noticing them. I’m glad I’m this side of crazy too – life’s more fun that way š
LikeLike