Midnight Drive

After a great day out at the lake, hanging out with friends, and tubing behind a speedboat, I cranked up my music and headed back to the Lodge.
I love driving alone...not that I don't like driving with people, but there's a certain freedom when you can cruise along blaring the music of your choosing and singing along at the top of your lungs...

Anyway, point of the story...by the time I got to the lodge, I wasn't ready to end my alone time. So I kept on going...

and pulled over somewhere along the road, to take in the beautiful view of the sunset....It was so silent and peaceful. Not a car on the road, not a sound. Just the moonlight, Peppy, and me.

It was the best.

Myra Falls

Last week some fellow cooks and I took off for an afternoon to explore Lower Myra Falls.


It was such a gorgeous location. I was in awe of the thundering waters, and view of the mountains. The perfect place for a photoshoot :)
I love being out in nature.

MouseAdventures

After a long day of work yesterday (11 hours...ugh) I arrived home to find a neat little mouse turd right smack in the middle of my bed. Just a pleasant reminder of my little mouse friend, Houdini's, existence.
After his close call with the mousetrap, the nights in the Annex have been pretty quiet. I thought he had finally decided to leave.
It was not to be.
He woke me up sometime between 12/1AM, scrambling around like a maniac. I turned on my light and watched him scurry about the room, revolted, irritated, and a little squeamish. I wanted to throw my hiking shoe at him and squish him. But I didn't want to get too close, and I didn't want to wake everyone up.
Eventually my roommate did wake up, and we plotted the mouse's demise in the darkness. We set our traps in strategic places, but he just kept running back and forth between my half of the room, and hers.
Then he went next door and woke our neighbours up. They have peanut butter.
My roommate knew this, and quickly ran over there to get some. We baited our trap and waited...

Sure enough, even Houdini cannot resist the temptation of peanut butter.
He didn't go down without a fight though. Oh no, not this one. He couldn't die a quick, peaceful death. He had to thrash around for five minutes and make sure we were good and awake before he bit the bullet.

I thought maybe he had escaped again, because later I heard another mouse sound. I think it must be Party Mouse's cousin. Also known as...victim #12. Muahaha!

Project #1

I love being surrounded by so many creative people...its so inspiring!
With the help of some friends, I am doing a couple "projects". I am halfway through a sewing experiment, and the other work of art will begin next week. This winter will be one of trying new and creative things for me, I think. Mom, I will even allow you to teach me the art of knitting.

I'm not going to tell you what this will be...but I will post a picture when its done!

Internet Deprived

The internet has been down at Strathcona for the last couple days, and since I was away Sunday night to Tuesday morning, I have been without Facebook, email, or blogs for nearly 5 days...
and I'm starting to feel the withdrawl symptoms.
Thus, I am at Karissa's house in Courtenay, using her computer.
How sad am I?
I have a lot to blog about, but it requires pictures, which are on my laptop back at the lodge. So you will have to wait til they fix the internet connection. poor you.

What I Do

I put these together yesterday for a private group of 18-ish. It was fun, but a little stressful. I'm always a little nervous about doing "fancy" stuff, because I don't feel confident or qualified. At least there was no one else around when I was arranging it. That is the worst, because I just freeze.
The critical side of me is analyzing everything that is wrong with it...but in spite of myself, I like them, and I wanted to take pictures and show them off a little. So here they are:

The Cheese Platter
-Blue Brie
-plain Brie (by Qualicum Beach Cheeseworks)
-Smoked Cheddar (yummy!)
-Goat cheese in paprika, tumeric, and cracked pepper
-organic crackers
-grape tomatoes

And the Fruit Platter
-Watermelon
-Cantaloupe
-Plums
-crasins

AWOL

Sorry I've been so bad at blogging lately.
I feel like I haven't got much to say these days. Nothing super exciting has happened (besides Karissa's 21st Birthday! Happy Birthday!!), and I actually slept through the night last night. No mouse stories, no adventure stories, no kitchen stories...
I do have a question though. I've been thinking about acronyms (I think that is the word), and I was wondering what they mean. MIA is Missing in Action, right? What about AWOL? Is that Absent WithOut Leave? And what is STAT? Like, "I need that scalpel, STAT!" Does it mean anything? Or is it just fun to say? I dont' know.

Games I Play at Night with Mice

In the wee hours of the morning I chased Houdini around the ceiling with my flashlight. I guess he is scared of the light when it shines through the cracks.
Then he and I listened to music from 4AM-unknown hour when the playlist finished. I think it put us both to sleep. At least it put me to sleep, and kept him away. I hope.

Houdini

While I believe Party-er Mouse met his demise at the fangs of Daphne the Cat, there is a new annoyance to keep me up at night.
Party Mouse's young padawan is not as noisy, but a mouse in your house, is a mouse in your house, and hearing him shuffle about "upstairs" is not the kind of sound I like to fall asleep to.
Eventually, however, I did drop off, until about 4 in the morning, when I woke up to a loud "SNAP!!!"
Of course that jolted me out of never never land, and I listened with wide eyes as there was the usual thumping of what is (usually) a partier's death throes.
Then something that had never happened before, happened. I heard the squeak of springs, and the thumping stopped. Did he escape? I wondered, groggily, before drifting off again.
When I investigated this morning, the trap was indeed set off, and empty.
Houdini escaped. I don't know how. Maybe he is wandering around missing a limb...and hopefully he won't come back.

Wedding Weekend

So the last couple days I've been super tired...just zero energy. Which normally wouldn't be weird, but the past month I've felt better energy-wise than I have in the last year or so. Probably due to the aforementioned good food, fresh air, and exercise.
This has brought me to the conclusion that I am probably getting sick. I've been trying to fend it off by getting lots of sleep, drinking lots of tea and water, and all those good things. I had a sore throat this morning, and nausea in the afternoon, so I don't know what this is all about but it had better go away QUICK, because I'm catering a wedding tomorrow!
I did a lot of prep for it today, but there is still plenty to do tomorrow, and I'm a little nervous!
I am treating myself to a massage today though...one of my friends here is a massage therapist and she's giving me a sweet discount, so hopefully I will be a perfect picture of health and relaxation tomorrow! Can't wait.

I don't know what it is, but lately I have just been so genuinely content. Lets take a closer look as to why I am happy...

-A job I like, that is frequently changing, and challenging, with co-workers I like and have fun with.
-A whole week of mouse-free, mosquito-free nights.
-Great summery weather, and a lake at my disposal.
-Sweet awesome friends to visit all over the island on my days off!
-Green lush scenery!
-Pretty reliable internet access to keep in touch with all you special people!
-A frickin sweet car that works, (even if it does need a few small repairs) with enough personality for the both of us.
-Not worrying about the future at all, even though maybe I should be...a little.
-Plenty of good food, exercise, and fresh air every day!

Life is good!

Could it Be?

My ceiling has been party-free since Monday.
Not a scritch, nor a scratch.
I've been sleeping peacefully.
It has also been noted that Daphne, the neighbor's cat, has been on the prowl. And a large, over-size mouse was discovered dead on their path early this week.
Coincidence?
I hope not.

Summer Weather

It blows my mind to think that four short weeks ago I was swaddled in numerous layers of clothing, shivering under the covers of my wool blanket, my feather duvet, and my sleepingbag. I was completely frozen, and the rain was thundering on the roof, while an icy draft seeped under the door frame.
I thought to myself, What have I done? Have I forsaken warmth forever, to cook on this frozen mountain? When I went to work in the morning I would bundle up, and huddle by the oven to keep warm.
How things change!
These past few days summer has charged in with a vengeance! 30 plus degree weather, not a cloud in the sky...perfect vacationing heat.
But not perfect cooking heat!
The kitchen staff have been suffering. With both ovens, burners, and dishpit running from 6AM-8PM, and recently cut-down shade trees missing...well, it gets pretty toasty in there. Especially since I am wearing socks, and shoes, long pants, a tanktop, and my long-sleeve cook jacket! Sometimes it just comes over you like a wave and you think you're not gonna make it.
Inevitably tempers get short, and everyone is just wanting the day to end.
I have been guzzling water, as well as seeking refuge in the walk-in cooler whenever possible. My appetite is completely gone in the heat, so I haven't been porking out as much...that is at least one positive :)
After work I get changed into my bathingsuit and jump in the lake. Its sooo cold, but sooo refreshing. And then I think, How lucky am I to be able live here? Pretty lucky, I think.

One Month Anniversary!

I've been gone a month!
Already!
Its gone fast, but at the same time I feel like I've been here forever.
The terrible "newbie" feeling has mostly worn off, and even though I still haven't explored much of the property, I have a much better sense of where everything is. There are still staff I haven't met, but with such a large crew and such different hours and areas of interest, I think that is inevitable.
I've made some good friends among the kitchen/serving/housekeeping staff, and I am enjoying my chef and fellow cooks very much.
My instructor from school called my chef today, and apparently he is coming up some weekend to check it out! I suddenly got kinda nervous. I can't believe my "practicum" flew by so fast! I feel like I haven't been learning enough...I'm going to start reading books on gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan diets now so that I will be all knowledgeable when he comes.
We have 2 more weeks of buffet-style cooking for school groups, and then everything changes...which makes me excited and anxious at the same time! When the summer season officially begins, I will be doing more of al a carte style cooking for guests who come to stay at the lodge. The food will be a little fancier, and there will be "plating" involved, which has never been a strong point for me and my shaky hands!
I am excited to be stepping it up in the culinary department though! As much as I love the buffet cooking, it gets a little redundant after a while.
In my free time I've been doing a lot of reading (supplied by my friend with a personal library...BARB!), facebooking, hiking, visiting friends, watching hockey games, and hanging out. Its a blast. This whole month has been fantastic and I am so excited for the rest of the summer.
Also...my lovely mother just sent up my laptop cable so now I have my own computer in the staff room, and you know what that means....PICTURES! I've just uploaded a bunch to my facebook, so go ahead and take a look. You can see a little bit of what I've been up to on my days off, and I'm also putting up some videos of Tim's hockey and such. Check it out!

The Partier Lives On

I may have been hasty in proclaiming that casualty #9 was the partier mouse.
I should have known better. He won't die so easily.
The night after the "ant incident" I caught one more mouse (that brings us to a total of 10)...the snap woke me up around 3 AM. And then the Partier Mouse was awakened as well. He kept me up until my shift at 6AM.
I've been wondering if he is indeed a mouse, or maybe something larger like a squirrel, or (heaven forbid) a rat.
Anyway I was tired the whole day, but I got to sleep at Barb's last night, so I did get some peace and quiet. Maybe he will be caught in the trap when I get back...or maybe I just need to get a cat.

Announcements

#1. I have written a proper post, but because I uploaded the picture on the weekend, it was published to an earlier date. Therefore you need to scroll down to read it. Its pretty exciting, so you should do that. Now.

#2. This is my 400th post! hooray!

#3. If you have trouble acheiving satisfactory high-fives, as I have all my life, you will be interested to know that if you focus on the recipient's elbow, your high-five will be successful every time. Isn't that EXCITING?? Its made my life sooo much easier.

My Little Hockey-Playing Brother

Randoms

Campbell River- I went for a walk on one of my days off, got caught in pouring rain, and then went to Tim's hockey game.
A big spider living directly over my head when I lay in my bed. He didn't live very long after I discovered him.
This is what happens to my hands when I cut up a whole case of squash. Its hard to get off, and I'm not sure whether its squash or skin that peels.
A pretty tulip growing in a flowerbed in front of the office. I've never seen this kind before. I like.

Mouse Tail

Some of you may have heard about the infestation of mice in my room.
One of the first nights at Strathcona (when the rain stopped pounding on the roof, and I could actually hear things at night) I was falling asleep to the blissful evening silence, when all of a sudden there was a scritch, and there was a scratch, and then more and more.
I knew the sound well, since as a 16 and 17-year-old CIT I had lived in the old retired Lodge at camp, known as the Homestead. It was filled to the beams with mice, and I would wake up to their noise every morning, in the wall behind my head.
As I lay there listening to Timothy Tittlemouse prance around my ceiling I told myself I had lived with this before, and I could do it again. Just ignore it. Just pretend its not there. Go to sleep....
it didn't work. I was awake for hours.
And the next night. And the next.
As it grew warmer and drier every day, the number grew. I could hear hoards of them partying overhead.
It had to stop.
I think Mice are Rather Nice, as long as they are in the outdoors where they belong, and as long as they don't interuppt my sleep!
If you know me at all, you know nothing...nothing....comes between me and my sleep.
I asked the maintenance guy for some mousetraps, and assembled them eagerly. Then realized I had not brought up any bait. But was too tired to go all the way back down the hill to get some.
I decided to sit on my bed and read instead.
Then I heard the scurrying. I pricked my ears. The light was on. The mice had never revealed themselves in the light. I was safe. I thought.
Suddenly the small, furry menace darted across the bedroom floor. I could hardly believe my eyes. The nerve! His place is in the darkness, not in broad lightbulb light! How dare he show his impudent whiskered face! I wished I had baited the trap.
Then there was a loud, death-proclaiming SNAP!!!

The following image is highly disturbing and somewhat graphic.

The faint of heart should not go on.

The stupid little creature had gotten himself killed by a baitless trap. I sat frozen in horror and disbelief for a good 5 minutes, not even kidding.
I do like mice if they don't intrude on my living quarters, and I had never outright killed one before. I felt kind of bad.

Nevertheless, his body was tossed into the bushes, and the traps were reset.
The first couple of nights were peaceful and quiet. Then the partying began again.
We have since caught 9 mice in traps with no bait! Once we caught 2 in one night.
This past week there has been a particularly stubborn mouse, who partied louder than any of his predecessors and refused to be caught. I actually heard him last night creep down from the ceiling. He must have tiptoed around the trap because I heard him in my closet, and then scurried back to the ceiling. I was so grossed out, and swore he would meet his demise.

Today after work I tore some crumbs from a chocolate cake, intending to bait the traps. Surely even this mouse could not resist chocolate cake.

I entered my room, eagerly anticipating a night of silence. I baited the first trap, and went to bait the second...

and then I saw.
#9 was caught, deep in the shadows of my closet floor.

I reached in to dispose of the body...

...only to shriek bloody murder and drop it a second later, as a multitude of large black ants fell away from the corpse.

Are you ready for some gory details? Because I felt like vomiting after witnessing this.
His tail and..."nether regions"....were completely eaten away, as was one hind leg. Just gone.
Sick, sick, SIIIIICKKKKK!!!

I had no choice but to pick it up and throw it away outside, and the disgusting little carrions had fled by the time I returned.

I only hope that hardcore partier, casualty #9, taught a valuable lesson to all those other mice out there, and we can live in peace (and quiet) from now on.

I would prefer not to have to deal with anymore half-eaten dead bodies.

EWWWWWWW........!

Cheering

I was sad to leave Kamloops when I did, because my two older brothers had just joined a ball hockey league and I was able to go and cheer for them for a couple games. I love watching sports where I know the people playing...its so much more fun! And its especially fun when its your family, and you get to cheer them on!
Luckily for me, my little brother Tim joined a league in Campbell River around the same time, and so now that I live here, I've had a few chances to get out and watch his games!
He is so intense about his hockey. When I was visiting Homewood (where he works) I could hear him practicing his shot up in the bus barn, and the girls I know there say he spends a lot of his spare time up there, preparing for his games. He sometimes has to leave his duties early to catch the ferry to get to a game on time, but he always works so hard to do the most he can before anyone else even starts, so that it all evens out.
He jogs before games to warm up, and when he gets dropped off to the arena he is fairly shaking with adrenaline. He just loves it so much!
Last week I surprised him by picking him up off the ferry, because it arrived at the same time his game was supposed to start, and usually he has to hitch a ride. He was so relieved...maybe because it was pouring the mother-load of rain!!!
I love watching him play. He is so good at it! He is one of their fastest players, and always seems to be in the right place at the right time. When the other team has the ball, he can just seem to effortlessly knock it out of their control and spring away with it. Maybe I'm just biased as his sister, but I keep thinking that if his whole team were made up of Tim's, they would do a lot better :)
Its so cool that I get to go and cheer for him, (shouting really loud to embarass him), and I think deep down he likes it too, because no one else can be there to see him doing what he loves.
My favorite part is after the game, win or lose, Tim comes off the rink sweaty and stinky, with his quirky half-smile, and then we go for an ice-cap at Tim Hortons and chat until the last ferry pulls in. Its funny that we have lived in the same house for years, but we never took a lot of time to visit, and now that we live a distance from each other we finally can appreciate each other's company!
I'm looking forward to his next games on Monday and Wednesday, already :)

What an Introvert Does on Saturday Night

There is a staff party up at the barn, and I'm tucked away in the computer room, typing on my blog.
I made the excuse that I worked a long shift today, my feet are aching, and I don't have a purple shirt to complete my rubiks cube costume. But I think I'm just an Introvert and I don't like parties. The loud music, dancing, and partying just isn't my thing.
I'm ok with that...but its those darn Extroverts that think everyone should enjoy the things they enjoy. Just kidding. I love Extroverts. Most of my friends are Extroverts.
But at times like these, I enjoy creeping to the corner to meet with the other Introverts, where we laugh nervously and raise our eyebrows at the antics of those silly, wild E's, and talk about how much we would rather read a book or play cards.
In fact, one of the other girls that works in the kitchen and I snuck away from the party (there is a real technique to this, which you E's never have had to learn) and crept into the lodge to drink tea and have a good long conversation, and I feel like I really got to know her better.
I consider that a Saturday night well spent.

"Weekend"

I got my first "weekend" on Monday and Tuesday, and it was so great!

As soon as I finished work (around 7PM) I jumped into Peppy, and we sped down the long winding road to Campbell River.

As much as I love being at Strathcona it is frickin isolated out there, and you don't see anyone but who you are working with, so I was ready for a change of scenery and company! It was a very exciting and freeing feeling to fly out of there just as the sun is going down, a little sprinkle of rain dotting the windshield, and my music turned up loud!

I also love the Campbell River ferry because it has such good memories attached to it, and such a strong feeling of anticipation. I couldn't wait to get across and see Tim and the Homewood crew again!

My coming Sunday night was a bit of a spur of the moment thing, and as it turned out the staff had gone to the Woodsman camp unaware I was arriving! I had a really good visit with Irwin and Rita Harder (camp directors) and then my friend Jenna and I drove out to Woodsman at 11PM and snuck out to where the staff were camping out. It was pouring rain, and extremely dark, and extremely fun! When we got to the girls tent they were already in bed, so we crept up and I started whispering their names and saying creepy things to scare them. It was SO FUNNY! Charlene was freaking out, half-asleep and a little delusional. They finally figured it out, and then we all had a hearty belly laugh and packed all 7 of us in a 4-man tent.

I got to spend some time with little brother Timo, and I even got a chance to go to Campbell River and watch him play ball hockey, which was so awesome! There were only one or two other fans in the stands with me to begin with, and I think I out-cheered them all. Tim was really amazing...he's a quick little guy, and he spent most of his time up by the other team's net, and I think he even got a goal (it was a little confusing with so many people leaping about).

As much as I like watching my brother play, it was a little lonely, so I was super happy when my friend Graeme (who I know from camp) showed up to watch the game with me, and we got a chance to catch up too.

Wednesday morning I was back on the ferry and then driving down to Courtenay to visit my friend Barb. It was quite a delight...we did some gardening (she has a greenhouse!), and we ate some really yummy things, and we did some window shopping in Cumberland...cutest little place. It was such a relaxing and fun day. To top it all off we watched "Once" and it was a great movie, with an amazing soundtrack that I simply must have! It was also cool to watch because its an Irish-produced movie and there were some spots they filmed in Dublin that I had actually been to, so that was neat.

I left Barb's early this morning so that I could be here to work at 11AM, and I just got off work now, so its been a pretty full and busy weekend. But I wouldn't change any of it, because it was just about the greatest thing ever.

However, I didn't get any of my "chores" done, so I've decided I will have to take one of my next days off just to do those annoying necessary things. sigh.

Anyway, that's what I've been up to! This week I'm going to be pretty much on my own as far as dinner is concerned, and I'm cooking for 260 people tomorrow...so that should be interesting!!!
You might not be hearing from me. I might be passing out after my shift is done :)

Some Pictures

Crappy shot, but this is my ruined hand. On my finger is a popped blister on a popped blister, and around my thumb is a fresh burn. above that is an old burn.

This is part of my room. I also have a closet, which you will hear more about in a later post.

the walls are paper thin, and I had no curtain, so my towel is the substitute.

This is the amazing view from the dining room deck...so nice.

this is the kitchen/dining room/some accomadations up top. as you can see its right on the highway, but there is so little traffic it doesn't even matter!

Knife Skills

One thing I was keenly aware of this year in school was my lack of knife skills. Some students are soooo good with their knives, they can make stuff look so professional without even trying. Me...well I try, but usually when I'm the one chopping everything is a different size and shape.
I put down "knife skills" as one of my practicum goals, because I want to get better.
Well, I've been chopping veggies ever since! Ok, not quite, but I am doing a lot more "quantity" than ever before! I had to cut up a case of butternut squash the first day...I don't know if you've ever cut up squash. I did one or two in my Soups station, and they are TOUGH. Tough skin. Well, if I thought cutting up one or two was hard, the whole frickin case was something else altogether.
I got a huuuge whopping blister on my right index finger.
The next day I cut up a case of carrots, a case of zuchinni, kale, and onion.
Today it was a case of potatoes.
I actually...no joke...have blisters ON my popped blisters.
Obviously my knife is not a prep knife.
You learn something new every day.

I have Monday and Tuesday off, so I am hoping to upload some pictures and post them. My ruined hands might be among the documentation.

First Day

So...my first (and second) day in the kitchen has come and gone.
Its been really good so far.
The Chef is so relaxed. He used to run the Lovin' Oven pizza place on Quadra Island. That should tell you a lot about him right there! Great guy. He also has a funny French accent which is not like a snooty stuck-up French accent, but a kind of...I don't even know. Its just great. And hilarious. Sometimes he and the other chef that comes in sometimes, Renee, will just start going off in French throwing English words in at random. It makes me giggle.

The other girls in the kitchen are really nice. Apparently this Saturday I will be cooking with one of them for the staff...just us. Kinda scared, but it will be fun because we both want to do something cool. I just hope we can pull it off!

Its still raining and cold. I'm so glad I bought a new rain jacket just before I came. Its perfect.

Anyway I'm going to head up to one of the girls' houses. I feel like I should be social and get to know some people, and a bunch of them are hanging out there tonight. I hope I can find it. The property seems so huge and confusing to me. Now I know how newbies at Homewood must feel!

I am missing you and the warmth of the Kamloops sun!

I Have Arrived

I don't have any pictures yet...mostly because it has been downpouring since I got here and all you would see is RAIN!
Its a beautiful spot...way closer to the road than I expected, and I haven't seen all the property yet either. I've been stowed away in the staff housing up the hill called "the Annex". Its a pretty bare bones little building, and I'm sharing my room with a girl from NZ named Catherine.
The people here are cool, and pretty hardcore outdoorsy type! I keep thinking that this would be the perfect place for Mike.
The Chef's name is Jessie. He is probably late twenties, early thirties, with a beard and ponytail. He seems pretty laid-back, and excited that I am a "real" cook....now I'm scared! Haha...he seems really nice though. I start in about an hour.
I am really regretting not bringing more warm clothes! I guess because it felt so much like summer in Kamloops, I thought it would be the same here. They said it might snow this week!!!
I slept in my sleepingbag under my duvet last night to stay warm :)
Other than the cold, and just the general "newbie" feeling, I'm doing well and looking forward to being here for the next couple months.
As you may have gathered, I DO have an internet connection up here. However it is notoriously unreliable, especially in bad weather, and there are dozens of staff who want to use the same computer, so I don't know how often I will be able to get on.
Anyway, I love to have lots of little messages from people when I do get on, so drop me a line here or facebook and you will make my day!
I will put up pictures as soon as weather, time, and computer-access permits!

Where Am I?

I wont be updating my blog very regularly for the next 4 months.
Don't know if I mentioned this, but I'm doing my practicum at Strathcona Park Lodge, an outdoor education/adventure resort-ish thing about 45 minutes away from Campbell River, on Vancouver Island.
Apparently there is no internet connection or cell phone reception out there, so I will be cut off from the outside world!
I drove all the way to Horseshoe Bay this morning, caught the 12:30 ferry, and I am now enjoying the company of the wonderful Epp family in Comox. Tomorrow I head out to the Lodge to get settled in, and I will have my first day of work on Tuesday.
I am hoping to get lots of pictures and update my blog when I head into town on my day(s) off, but I can guarantee nothing.
So if you are wondering where I have got to...I will be working my butt off in a sweet kitchen, and enjoying the beautiful Vancouver Island.

What Happened Within Those Walls

Since I sort of promised a couple people that I would blog a little more about my exam, here goes...watch out, its kind of a novel.

First of all, I hardly slept at all the night before, but I did actually sleep which was a pleasant surprise! However, I think I was subconsciously stressing because I woke up all rigid and sweaty....ewww....

That was about 5AM, and I lay there until 5:30AM and I had a shower and got ready. I was out the door just after 6.

After I had parked at the school, tried the door to the locker rooms and found it locked, I checked the time. 6:30AM. I was an hour early. So I sat and waited in the chilly morning air until 7, when one of the examiners came and unlocked the door for me.

Then I hung around the locker rooms. One by one the other girls came in...each with a half-scream and crazy nervous half-smiles. It was a frightening time.

It was torturous waiting until 7:30. We did breathing exercises (only half serious...) and trued our knives (that was kind of scary), and asked each other about different dishes. There was only one guy in our group. I'm pretty sure he thought we were crazy.

FINALLY we were called in, and we each drew numbers. On the opposite table were trays with 2 containers, 2 cloths, and recipes with ingredients, but no method. I was the last to draw, and I got #4. Then we drew again, this time for desserts.

Let me go off on a rabbit trail for a sec. Desserts.
I have been practicing and reviewing desserts because I know they are my weakness (I'm not talking about eating them...). They are so finicky. So I did all the big things: pastry cream, choux paste (for things like profiteroles, and eclairs), and bavarians. AND I read about the others.
I thought I was prepared, ok!?! I TRIED!!!
*breaaaathe Jill....breeeeathe*

Anyway. As soon as I picked out my scrap of paper, I knew I was done.
Crepes.
Another rabbit trail. Please...just bear with me.

I cannot make a crepe to save my life.
Back in Entrees I was making seafood crepes, and it nearly brought me to tears. I just can't get them right. And then I had to make them again, to show another girl how to do it. What a joke.
They burn, they aren't round, they stick, they're too thick, they look and taste horrible....there's just nothing good about them.
Out of a liter of thin batter, I probably could make one or two (if I'm lucky) decent crepes.
I knew this before. I remember looking at the sheet of possible practical items and seeing "Crepes- with your choice of filling" and thinking, gee, wouldn't it suck if I got that? What are the chances? And then skimming over it. FOOLISH, FOOLISH, CHILD.

Back to the exam.
After receiving our menus, we all got to work on our recipe conversions and work plans.
Really, I don't see how I could have done anything differently there. It was pretty good...for me.

My menu & service times were like this:

Mayonnaise 10 AM
Manhattan Clam Chowder 11:45 AM
Chicken in Phyllo with Leek Buerre Blanc 12:00 PM
Crepes 12:15 PM

I did my mayo right away. The emulsification broke the first time, but I just added another egg yolk, and then it was fine.

There was no phyllo pastry in the coolers, which was bad news. The only other phyllo is in the freezer...which means it needs to be thawed. That is what threw me off my work plan.
It took about an hour for it to thaw, so I had to do other things when I was supposed to be prepping my chicken. I started my soup too early. Bad idea. I prepped crepe batter. I blanched carrots and roasted beets.
Its all kind of a stressed, panicky blur now. For the most part I was pretty organized. I made some really dumb mistakes though, which I'm sure knocked my mark waaay down.
As soon as 11:45 hit, I knew it was giong downhill.
My soup was dark and not very appealing...pretty sure I cooked it too long.
Then I had trouble getting my beets peeled in time for plating my main course. My hands were shaking soooo bad. The plates went out late, but they looked decent, and tasted good...I think.

By this time my station was stacked with dirty pans, beet peelings, leftover buerre blanc, spatulas, and miscellaneous crepe garnishes. That took my mark down too, I'm pretty sure. But I didn't have time to get rid of it. I had to make crepes.
Oh, the crepes.

The first one stuck and burnt. I tossed it.
Oh yeah, they monitor our waste, did I mention that?
I tried again. It looked crappy, but I was getting desperate so I made the sauce and plated it.

Then I started to cry.
It looked terrible.
A great, gross, messy plop of yellow, black, and crimson (from the blood orange sauce).
By now I was shaking soo bad, and they were calling that it was time to serve the desserts.

I can't serve that. I can't do it. I'd rather not put out anything, than serve that.

I was really crying at that point. I was ready to give up. Everyone else had put out their dessert already, and I had no hope.

My favorite instructor, Sully, wandered over at that point, whistling.

"Have you put out your dessert yet?" He asked. My back to him, I just shook my head.
I think he saw my hideous creation then, and the way I was just staring at my batter and ladle.

"Hey," He said, "Its ok. All you need to do is send out 2 plates. That's all. Its ok."

I couldn't talk so I just squeaked something out, and shook my head again.

"What's wrong with that one?" He asked. And he was serious.

"IT LOOKS LIKE VOMIT!!" I said, finding my voice.

The best thing about Sully is when he cracks up. Sometimes he can look so scary, but as soon as he smiles and laughs you can't help but laugh with him. And he cracked up now.

I know he wants me to succeed. And if he could laugh about my terrible crepes, he must not have been too worried that I would fail. That gave me a bit of hope, so I cracked a smile and turned up the heat on my pan.

A few minutes later I put out two awful crepes, though not as awful as the vomit crepe, and cleaned up my station. I had been 15 minutes late. Sort of serious. Actually, serious enough that combined with all my other mistakes, I was 99.9% sure I had failed. I was already thinking about what I should do in the Fall, since I wouldn't be going to school.

I vaguely remember scrubbing some pots, and a tearful girly group hug in the mop room, as well as one of the girls disapearing downstairs and returning with a huge smile, waving a piece of paper.

A few minutes later someone told me it was my turn.

It was creepy walking the short flight of stairs into Accolades Restraunt.
It was dead silent, and the lighting seemed dim.

I saw Sully first, sitting casually to one side... I looked for some kind of hint in his face, but his expression was unreadable. Then I saw everyone else. The Level III instructors, the Chairperson, and all my regular Instructors, including the grumpy grandfather who hates me. They were sitting behind a big table that had all our food on it.

I couldn't stop looking at my crepes. They were like a horrible, bloody, car accident that you can't look away from.

"You can have a seat." Said someone. I sat. Like...right on the edge of the chair. Fidgeting. Holding my breath.

"Well, you passed." Said Mr. Clean.

Exhale.

"But only just." He said. "Only just."

I nodded. I know.

"How do you think your day went?"

I hate these questions. Obviously according to them, it wasn't so great. But they also want you to show confidence in your cooking. Its lose, lose.

"It was hard." I squeaked. "I stuck to my work plan, but there were a couple things that threw me off...but I did get back on track, mostly!" Breeeeathe. Keep it short. To the point. "At service things kind of fell apart. My crepes...are awful."

The instrucors chuckled, but with little humor.

"Yes, they are. They're just..." He shook his head, "Not good."

I nodded again. I know! I know!

"Your soup is bland, and needs more seasoning, your crepes...well you, know...your main course was good. I think it probably saved you."

I was handed a piece of paper with the date and time of the first day in Level III.

"You can take your plates up now." I was told. I gathered them in my arms, crushing the paper. They all laughed at me, and Ramsey said,

"You can take a deep breath now, Jill." and laughed again.

Some of the girls were crying when I came up the stairs.

"Oh Jill I'm so glad you made it!!" sobbed one.

I wasn't feeling very celebratory. I felt sick. I didn't want to squeak in. I wanted to triumph mightily. I wanted to earn my place in the class, not slither in just as the door was closing.
But that's just the way I am.

Now I had to wait anxiously to see who else would be in my class.

Lin went down, and remained there for a long time. I knew deep down that this meant she hadn't passed, but I didn't want to believe it. I couldn't help it-- the waterworks started again.
And then she came up the stairs and shook her head with her usual smile, and I blubbered, "Lin this suuuuucckkkssss," and she laughed.
School is so fun with Lin. I can harldy imagine what it will be like without her.

That was huge mood dampener. We were all crying agian, except Lin who was wondering what is wrong with all these emotional Canadians.

Of the seven in my group, four of us passed, and we were all greeted and encouraged by our other classmates outside.

I emptied out my locker, and bade my farewells to everyone.
It was actually kind of a depressing day, even though I passed. I hate that not everyone made it through, especially when I think that they deserve to! I guess that's life.

I do appreciate all the encouragement and support you guys have given me here on PJ, through Facebook, and email, and all that jazz. Its great to know I have such an awesome team rooting for me, cheering me all the way :)

Exam Results

So, I did it.
And what's even more important: I passed.
Squeaked by, really. It was a hard day, and I'm not going to lie to you: there were some tears shed.
Especially when I found out that my best little buddy, Lin, did not pass. She was her usual calm and composed self, and took the news well, but I was pretty upset. She laughed at me. "Why are YOU crying? I'm the one that failed!" She said.
I will have more details for you at a later date, but I'm falling asleep as I type. I am physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted.

Also, I would like to point out that this is my 25th post of the month, breaking the record of 24 posts in November '06. I am on a roll!

Epiphany

I think that's the right word...

Today has been strange.
The day before my BIG SCARY EXAM.
I've been able to kinda avoid thinking about the exam this past week. "Its a week away"
But these last couple mornings, I've actually woken up early, my heart racing, and my imagination chasing after it. All the "what if's" haunt me.
Today...I basically had nothing to do but think about the exam. I get so panicky!! And then a second later, I'm like, "You know what? I don't even care. Whatever".

It finally struck me, that maybe that is true.
I am actually pretty fine with the thought that I won't be going into the 3rd semester. Shhh, don't tell anyone, ok? It intimidates me, and since I'm already not 100% sold on the idea of being a cook for the rest of my life, I sometimes wonder if it wouldn't be a waste of time. Maybe I don't need to take the third semester...maybe I just want this to be a hobby, and I can just keep on learning as I go along my merry way, in my own time.

Anyway, getting back to the point:

I think that I'm not scared of passing or failing. Sure its nice to pass. And you never feel great when you fail. But I can deal with either scenario, and its not the end of the world.

I think I'm scared of the actual test. The challenge, the preassure, the watching eyes, measuring my every move. I always second guess myself. I dont' like when people can see my insecurity.
I'm scared of what they will think when I make a mistake.

Really, I just want it to be Friday night right now. Pass or Fail, I don't really care at this point. I just don't want to experience that gut-wrenching, heart-stopping, mind-numbing panic that I know will knock me to the ground when I am handed my menu tomorrow morning.

Peppy's New Look

What a stylin' little dude.
I think I might try to find some kind of stripe or decal to go on the hood, and the windshield will be replaced soon. Also...great news! The little green "N" on the back no longer cramps his style.
I took my road test today, and I'll never have to bother about those "one passenger" rules again! PAR-TAY!

Accident Prone

I'm beginning to think maybe I should just not get into cars anymore.
Something always goes wrong.
Remember Peppy, my beautiful shining specimen of a Honda Civic?

September '08- Day of Purchase

He shines no more.
Now he is bumped and bruised, and today something awful happened to him.
I was just merging onto the highway from Dallas, and as I picked up speed suddenly the hood flew up, smashing into the windshield!

Mike sympathizes with poor Peppy

Luckily someone pulled over and helped me tie it down so I could drive home.

There are some glass shards on my dashboard

The hood latch has always been a little "off", but I guess the last time I opened it up, it didn't close properly and it broke loose today.
Now I have to get a new hood, which probably won't be the same color as the rest of the car, a new side mirror, and a new windshield. A week before I leave.

Siiiiiiigh.

Oh ya! I forgot...

A week or two ago a few big cardboard boxes arrived at our doorstep...


filled with goodies...

it was like Christmas morning.

My delight was found in a springform pan (translation: CHEESECAKE!!!), a set of six prep bowls...

and a delightful large bamboo cutting board :)

I am truly pampered.

Stagette

Poor Rishelle...
She didn't suspect that when we made her wear an ugly sweater and plaid pajama pants in public, it was only the beginning of the embarrassment.
Andrew G. watches from the safety of Starbucks, probably very glad he is male.
The beauty treatment begins...back-combing, hairspray, makeup....
Dang, she still looks good :)
But she's not too happy with her new style...or her assignment.
A shopping list of about 10 veeerrrrry embarassing items.
The "M.O.H", Kelsey is enjoying this a little too much. Does she realize this is all going to come back and bite her in the-
"But I can't do that!"

In her own words.
Haha! Your friends will always honk for you.
Party afterwards! Great gifts, like this pair of used Granny Panties from Value Village!

Liz, consider yourself lucky we were unprepared for yours! You got off waaaay too easy :)

Not for the Faint-Hearted!

The following images are disturbing to the extreme, especially if you are squeamish about WARTS!
However, I polled you guys last week to see if a post of this nature would be welcome, and I discovered that almost all of you are as sick as I am! What can I say, warts are so weirdly fascinating. Just don't youtube them, ok? Cuz Katie and I did that, and I threw up a little bit in my mouth. I'm just partial to my own warts, I guess.

Ok, so when last I documented the Warty War in November, I was using a bottle of stuff called Compound W. I would soak my foot and then apply this white liquid. It was pretty harsh, but it certainly reduced the size of the warts, even though it did take a lot of skin with it! Seriously...it was disgusting. My toes were peeling, red, and raw, and they would really hurt after being on my feet all day at school. This isn't even the worst picture of it. I didn't want to gross you guys out too bad.
At one point my smallest wart on one of my toes was sticking out, and all the skin around it had peeled off, so I picked and picked, until the wart came off.
Eventually my Compound W dried up, and my warts were still there. Even the one I picked off came back.
It was a time of deep despair.
I left them alone for a while, thinking maybe there would be a delayed result from the medication.
No such luck.

They started growing again, and I reeeeally don't want more than 3 warts, so when my mom brought home a little bottle of Oil of Oregano (which apparently cures everything from sore throats, to warts, to cancer...ok, that last one has not been confirmed....) I decided to give it a go.
The process is basically the same as before: soak the foot for 10 minutes, the wart will open up (it really does...like a flower. Gross!) and then put a little drop of the oil on.
It doesn't hurt, and it doesn't kill the skin around the wart, so its an improvement I think!
I was doing it regularly for about a week or two, and I noticed the wart started getting little dark specks in it. Naturally, I got the camera out and zoomed in. And then cropped and zoomed some more! Here is what I saw...prepare yourselves.
EEEWWWWWWWW!!! See all those little strands? Yuck!! Some are dark, and some are still white. I think its a good sign when they go dark.
There hasn't been much progress since this pic was taken, and one of the warts on my toes is getting pretty hefty, so it might be time to switch to a new treatment.

I hear apple cider vinegar works. And covering it with clear nail polish is supposed to suffocate it.

Hey, its worth a try!

Finding a fail-proof wart cure might be my life calling.

Camera Jealousy

I love putting lots of pictures up on my blog. It just makes blogging so much more fun!
It does sometimes present a problem for me though.
Sometimes I like my photos...and then a lot of the time I don't.

A lot of the time I take hundreds of pics, and then when I'm going through them on the computer I want to throw my camera across the room because none of them turned out! Either they're not as sharp as I would like, or the angle is a little wrong, or it didn't focus quite right...or at all.
I have shaky hands, and I don't know anything technical about photography at ALL, so 99% of the time I am the one at fault, not my camera...

Actually, my camera is pretty good, as far as point-and-shoot goes. I think I did a little damage to it, in Ireland though. Some adventures got pretty damp, and there are spots on the lens now. I guess I should get it cleaned. The point of the matter being, maybe its not in its best condition right now.

So when Mike, Katie, and I went for day trip to Wells Gray Park on Wednesday and Mike's gorgeous (10,000 ton) SLR camera brought home the goods, and I only got a few not-perfectly-clear snaps, I became a little camera jealous.

And now I don't want to post any pictures because they are not good enough.
I'm throwing a little pity party now.
Bye.