Starches, suds, and snacks...oh my!

I am excited to report that my first day with my PT job was a success!! What an exciting and adventurous way to start out my new career path! I had so much fun and I have already learned a few tips from the chef, who I will refer to as 'Boss Lady' until I come up with something better.

I arrived at 4pm (actually about 10 min early. Yea, that shocks me too, lol.) and "punched in". After taking a small tour of the place, and a quick "lesson" on dish washing and sanitizing, I put on an apron and got to work. My first "job" was to peel and cut up potatoes. With this task, I learned that if you keep potatoes in water after peeling, and again after chopping up, they will not turn brown. The water also washes the starch off, which is great for non-sticky mashed potatoes.

After the potatoes, I made several little garlic butter dollops on baking sheets and placed them in the freezer for later use. The Boss Lady uses them while cooking, as they are the perfect size to saute one serving of veggies. The butter mixture was made previously in a Cuisinart, I loaded into a pastry bag, lined the baking sheets with parchment paper, and dolluped away. Lesson learned with this activity: use ALL of the contents of the Cuisinart bowl, even if you have to use your fingers. Boss Lady told me that there was too much left over in the container, and that I will definitely need to know this in school. I totally appreciated that tip!

Boss Lady showed me how to tell the "doneness" of a steak. There are parts of your hand that you can feel to compare to rare, med-mare, and medium. Of course, I can't show you on the blog, but on my hand the part below my thumb is rare, the part by my pinky is medium, and the parts between my fingers are med-rare. I actually learned what a rare steak feels like by actually touching one...and YES, my hands were clean. Interesting!

Garshing! Ok, I have to admit, this is one of my favorite things!! ;) To prep for the garnishing, Boss Lady had me pull off 40 geranium buds from the front of the restaurant and rinse them for garnishes. Then, I picked out the "good" cranberries to set aside for the dessert garnishes.

Speaking of desserts, I was SO excited to learn to plate desserts! This was by far the most fun thing of the whole night! I have to admit, I was nervous at first, my first night and I am plating?! I told Boss Lady to 'assume I know nothing' when it comes to cooking, but she obviously was confident in my skills. With the dessert plating, I felt like I had a real part in the customers experience. There were 3 different desserts, a mini apple cake, an apricot cake, and another pastry that was surrounded in icing and had caramel topping, 4 raspberries, and whipped cream. YUM. Each one was plated differently, but all of them had the geranium buds that I picked and a few mint leaves. Half-way through the night, I was given the name "Dessert Lady" by the servers. How cool. I learned that when you plate, you must make sure that every time to plate a specific dish, it MUST look the same as the last time. Consistancy is very important in the restaurant business, a customer expects the same service, and same product each time they come in. GREAT advice!

My main job throughout the night was to wash and sanitize dishes. This needs no description, but I learned the importance of sanitation in a kitchen. And here I thought I was OCD....as it turns out, I am probably not THAT sanitary at home and that kind of creeped me out.

My job is also to do whatever Boss Lady tells me to do. She's super cool and showed me some cool tips throughout the night and also let me taste some of her creations. The wild rice with cranberries, fish crusted with walnuts, rosemary, etc., and the little apple cake that was a "reject" since the ice cream melted before the server picked it up. Oops. Note to self: pick cold plate from the bottom of the stack for ice cream instead of the hot ones from the dishwasher. Oh, and some kind of tasty pepper, it was red but not a bell, a piece of cheese, and an awesome chocolate espresso cookie. lol. I guess I had several "mini snacks" throughout the night.

It was quite an adventure and the night flew by! Boss Lady must have liked me too, because she asked if I could work an additional night. Woo hoo! This week I will be working 3 nights, including a Friday which should be SUPER busy! The coolest part about Friday is that my cousin is working that night as well. No nepotism here, lol!!

Well, there you have it, Day 1. :)

Really??

I can't believe I let so much time lapse from my last post!! Whoa!

I officially start my kitchen job on Wednesday! I am super excited, but I have to admit I am a little nervous, but who wouldn't be....I am diving into not only a new job, but a completely new field! I can't wait to learn with the pros - in school and also at work. I am so blessed to have found something that totally excites me and fits me perfectly.

It's a short one today, because I smell popcorn. Yum. More later.

It's not picking up dog poo, but it ain't no circus either!

I was actually serious when I referenced the dog poo job last year when trying to leave "the circus". As a matter of fact, when looking into franchises, I found a few for dog poo pickup services that looked pretty lucrative. Really, who enjoys picking up after their dog? It's easier to have someone else do it. Had it not been for the large inital investment I didn't have, I was going to do it just for the irony.

I have found myself so enthusiastic about everything lately, and I am wondering if it is starting to rub off on people. Why do I say this, you ask? Yours truly, a former accounting/IT exec, recieved a phone call today with a job offer as kitchen staff at her favorite restaurant! Even with my lack of restaurant experience, I apparently made some type of impression on the owners when I went in yesterday. Ok, ok, I will admit, my cousin works there too. :)

Part time, 2 nights a week, I will be washing dishes, prepping, and expediting! I couldn't be more excited to be involved in a "kitchen of action"! It's a small, but BUSY restaurant that strives for customer satisfaction and perfection in it's dishes. What more could I possibly ask for? I have a feeling my OCD inspired personality will fit right in at the garnish line....

Any-who, (is that even a word?) I found something of humor the other day and wanted to share. In one of my prior posts, I had briefly referenced a "cooking show" and someone actually thought I meant on television, lol. No, I am not quite to the Next Food Network Star status, geez, I haven't even started school yet!! However, I will be making a living by demonstrating fabulous kitchenware in front of small crowds in homes.... ;)

What I am finding so truly amazing is that I never would have expected myself in this position, right here, right now. I decided to step outside of my comfort zone and ventured out to discover many things, meet incredible people, and travel more than any jobless person I know. I am truly grateful for every moment that passes me by, and look forward to each one that is coming my way, with genuine esperance.

More waves of excitement!

Just when you think you've tapped all the exciting news, more of it comes rolling in! As I was coming back from my vacation, I got a message that a Captain in our area needed some help on his yacht for a few days before putting into storage for the winter. Hm, you don't say! I immediately said, "YES!", and there is my next adventure...by way of water!

I spent 2 days with the Captain, assisting him with the trip from Bay Harbor to Northport, MI. I am not sure how much help I was....drinking all those rum and cokes and all. But, we made it to port and settled in with a nice steak dinner with mashed potatoes and asparagus. We also had sliced tomatoes with fresh mozzarella and black olives, and drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. Then we proceeded to the local watering hole and filled up on a few more tasty beverages. Tough day, huh?

The next day we got up and ate breakfast at this cute place called The Treasure Chest. They sell antiques and also have a little restaurant. Donna treated us like family and it was an excellent meal! After breakfast we got to work: vaccuming, cleaning floors, defrosting refridgerators, covering up furniture and the like. Then we took a "break" and had a few Bloody Marys....yum!! Chatted about my upcoming culinary classes, and his extensive background as a Captain. Too much fun! Then we had to finish up some red wine, so we did that as we waited for my bf to show up so he could get a tour of the 70' vessel.

And the adventure does not stop there! Captain wants me to send my resume' to him, as he is interested in hiring me for other gigs in the future, including some chef work! He told me that he would be a reference ANYTIME and said he can tell I am going to be a great chef because I am so thorough. How cool is that?!!

THEN, yesterday I got a lead from my cousin that the restaurant where she works may be looking to hire kitchen help. Uh, yea, it's my FAVORITE restaurant up here!! So, she talked with one of the owners and I am going to meet with her next week!!! Everything seems to be coming together on my travels through the culinary seas! I haven't even started culinary school and already have 2 solid leads!! Amazing!

I could not have done all this without my AWESOME supportive friends who have not doubted me for a second! You rock!

What a whirlwind!

It's official! Yes, I received my acceptance letter and will be heading to culinary school in January! I love school. I love learning new things. But this, my friends, is completely different. I am used to taking BORING business and accounting classes, and now I am going to learn about something I LOVE to do! Somehow, this is all somewhat surreal to me, but also VERY exciting!

More fun news for this little foodie....

I am going on yet another vacation! In November, my bf and I are heading for Tunisia! We are going for a conference and making a vacation of it! The weather will be cool, but who cares! It's a beautiful Mediterranean country that I am excited to learn more about it's culture. AND on the way back, we stay one night in Paris!! How perfect!!

Ok, going to get back to my vacation, but just had to share!!

Working Vacation

Yea, there is such a thing and I am doing it. But, I am LOVING it too! Thanks to my BF for letting me borrow his laptop, what a guy!

I am getting excited for culinary school and just itching to cook for people these days. Of course, cooking takes food, food takes money, so..... I have found a great way to enjoy what I do and get paid for it. I am keeping myself in check on this vaca by prepping for a few cooking shows I have coming up.

Speaking of culinary school, I am actually still waiting for my "official acceptance letter". I thought that because I am applying at a 2 year college I wouldn't have a problem getting in, BUT I did get an email saying they were "reviewing my application". Hm, well I guess I will have to sit tight until I get the final word, but in the mean time they sent me a huge packet on Financial Aid. We all know I need to take advantage of THAT!

Have you ever just known you are making the right choices? Well, a funny thing happened on the way to Raleigh....

I was reading the Southwest Airlines magazine, Spirit and ran across several articles that pretty much assured me I am on the right path:

• Senior Corporate Executives have the #3 toughest job, and this actually outranked police officers!! Not that I don't want to work hard, but I don't want to go home feeling like I tried to save the world and got "nothin but this t-shirt".
• Played some game to see if wealth is in your future, and I actually am not that far from being financially fit - even with my horrid credit. It's more about attitude and beliefs.
• Read an article on Meyers-Briggs personality traits and jobs. THIS was interesting. Basically I gathered I was in the WRONG JOB for my personality type!! Not surprising!!
• Took an entrepreneur quiz and the result said: Steve Jobs should be calling you for advice. Ok, this is a major exaggeration...but fun to think about anyway.
• Last, but very not least, read about Leanna Archer . You can do anything you set your mind to, if you just do the research. This girl has some spirit!!

I didn't really need the reassurance, but it was right in front of me anyway.

Ok, back to vaca, folks!

How is it........

that an unemployed person gets to go on vacation? Well, you see, there are frugal ways to travel. One being a insanely low price on airline (thank you very much!) that DOES NOT charge the $15 bag fee, the second being to go visit someone who can appreciate the frugality of your being, um, I mean unemployment. Aka, your sister, or any kind relative for that matter.

I am excited to report I will be traveling for a whole week to NC! This will be a chance to get refreshed, renewed, and excited for the next chapter in my life.

Short and sweet today, folks!! Make it a great day!