I have touched on this subject only once or twice before as I have an inner battle which rages between keeping this blog only as a means of relating my experience as it related to cooking. I have been thinking about this post for quite sometime and am thrilled that I finally have the time to write it.
Thomas Robert Malthus was a brilliant scholar (British) who produced incredible works on population and political economy. He spent a massive amount of time dedicated to understanding the problem he recognized probably two centuries before it was to become a massively important issue. His seminal work is called “The Principle of Population.”
In Principle he presents two very important theories which can be summarized as;
1) Population grows at an exponential rate while food production grows only arithmetically. (This has been untrue in the modern world because of advances in science and technology but ultimately will prove true in the coming decades.) Any shift in that balance between the two will illustrate that the power of the first is MUCH greater than the second.
2) In all societies there is a drive for population increase. This causes (my words not his) a class struggle which subjugates the lower classes and will never allow for a correction in standard of living for those lower classes.
He quite correctly in my opinion suggests that; “The power of population is so superior to the power of the earth to produce subsistence for man, that premature death must in some shape or other visit the human race. The vices of mankind are active and able ministers of depopulation. They are the precursors in the great army of destruction, and often finish the dreadful work themselves. But should they fail in this war of extermination, sickly seasons, epidemics, pestilence, and plague advance in terrific array, and sweep off their thousands and tens of thousands. Should success be still incomplete, gigantic inevitable famine stalks in the rear, and with one mighty blow levels the population with the food of the world.”
I have long suggested that Malthusian theory was now obsolete as we had surpassed the ability of the earth through technology and science to produce food exponentially in relation to population growth. As I have worked in the food industry I have read countless volumes (which by their very existence) suggest that this is untenable. That eventually technology will no longer be able to keep pace with the population explosion and that such being true will lead to the inevitability of class struggle, food shortage, famine and ultimately the death of tens of millions if not hundreds of millions of people. Moreover that our current policies do nothing to address the core problems.
Since the end of World War Two we have lived in a time of great peace and prosperity. Naturally there has been armed conflict but it has been limited to specific region and hot zones and has not become a global conflict. War, Malthus argued, was a positive influence on keeping population in check. Along with famine and people getting married later which lowers populations advance as the window for child rearing lessens. (again this is proving untrue as fertility drugs and treatments have shown us that grandmothers can have children… DANGER DANGER WILL ROBINSON). Populations’ necessity to stay in check as an important precursor to sustainability is being largely dismissed until very recently.
Now the question must be answered. How have we been able to stave off Malthusian theory from being correct until now? Well as alluded to above, since World War Two we have seen a great leap forward. In terms of population at the end of the war the earth stood at approximately 2 billion. Depending on the source the total war dead was anywhere from 55 million to 70 million which represented a decrease in world population of approximately 2.7 to 3%. However since the end of World War Two the population has exploded to approximately 7,000,000,000 today. A 300% increase.
We have been able to stave off Malthusian Theory through the ever increasing use of genetically modified food since 1990. I have written a much shorter post on this in the past. Genetically Modified Food or GM Food is food stuffs which have had their DNA changed by scientists through genetic engineering. This is troubling for two reasons; one is profit. There is a huge amount of profit to be made from the control of genetic engineering of food and the corporations that control the supply chain related to GM seeds will do anything to protect their value. Secondly it is alarming because as I touched on in the previous post I wrote on the subject, natural selection has fallen prey to GM Foods and has seen an extremely diverse food supply become increasingly homogenized. This homogenization has been largely left unstudied in terms of its impact on the food supply and the possibility of various forms of pests evolving to best our scientific achievement. These are very serious issues.
One such case I used was the case of the tomato Florida 47. There is a similar tomato which comes from California which is escaping my mind right now. However, these two tomatoes account for a ridiculous amount of the market in North America, somewhere in the neighborhood of 80%. 80% from two varietals that have been selectively modified and engineered not to deliver the most nutrients as the original fruit did but instead so that they are uniform, able to travel long distances, be red, plump and juicy. How do they achieve this? Through the modification of certain DNA parts of the plant which results in a lower amount of water, vitamins and nutrients and a devastating increase in the amount of SODIUM among other things. When you go to a supermarket to buy your tomatoes next time, look at them, feel them, smell them. I am sure that you will notice that smell is largely gone, they do not feel as tomatoes should and are instead as hard as tennis balls and they are all big and red. Then ask yourself; is this what a tomato is supposed to look like?
The same is happening all over the industrialized world. This is being done without much alarm, so that Food Production can keep up with Population explosion. EXACTLY WHAT MALTHUS WARNED ABOUT 200 YEARS AGO!
It is not restricted to Tomatoes either. Some of the most common food stuffs we eat are now genetically modified, including; Soybeans, Rice, Sugar Cane, Papaya, Cotton, Corn, Potatoes and Rapeseed. IN NO WAY IS THIS LIST EXHAUSTIVE MERELY ILLUSTRATIVE. Moreover is the current trend of farmers to switch to corn production as a means of producing ethanol. Foolish!
So what you say? Why does this matter? Well the problem with GM foods is that they are largely grown in areas that the environment is not meant to support them. As such it is necessary to transport massive amounts of water (another alarming and important issue which I will touch on after) and massive inputs must go in to the soil in order to sustain farms. I will elaborate presently.
GM Foods are expanding their reach at an alarming rate. Its influence on our daily meals has expanded by as much as 50 times (50 x) in a ten year period. And don’t think for a minute that this is happening in someone else’s backyard. It is our problem too. Canada for instance as of the latest statistics produces about 94% of its crops by time proven conventional methods. But that means that 6% is grown using GM seeds and methods.
In order to use GM seeds you must of course purchase the seeds from any one of a few massive multinationals that operate outside of the bounds of law. Though recognized as legal entities they largely operate with impunity. Such companies include; Monsanto and Bayer Cropscience just to name a couple. There are many, many companies which have at their core GM or GE (genetically engineered foods).
These companies, as mentioned above, largely operate outside of the law. While there have been numerous rulings and conventions with regard to GM or GE foods most of them favour the large multinationals and thus represent and clear and present danger to the food supply.
The practices of these companies is predatory and can be witnessed by Monsanto’s purchase of Delta & Pine Land company largely to gain access to what the company called its “Terminator Seed.” The purpose of which was to produce a plant which is seedless so that the cycle of production is entirely dependant on those select companies which own the seed. As if this were not predatory enough, in order to grow GM crops in places that were never meant to grow those crops, it is necessary to put massive amounts of fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides which poison the soil and erode the soils ability to grow anything let alone GM crops.
For years, millennia in fact, it has been known as standard farming practice, that you had to rotate the crops, in order to maintain the quality of the soil. Those days no longer exist as massive industrial farms have taken over from the independent family farms. Which incidentally are suffering because of the inputs that they must buy in order to grow the crops which do not as promised, have greater yield or are less prone to disease. This millennia long practice going to the wayside has seen massive industrial farms set up in places such as Africa or South America in order to keep up with the ever increasing food demands.
Another (often not discussed) impact of our ever increasing use of GM or GE foods is that the inputs which are being used to grow these crops are now having a negative impact on water, causing both shortages and a poising of our water table as the fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides due to the increased amount of water to grow the crops eventually leaches into our water system. What is the impact of that decision for our species in 50 years?
Evolution has enabled us over long periods of time to deal with certain changes to climate, etc. One thing I am not certain that evolution can or will be able to do is to deal with increased toxins in our food while nutrients are being selectively and purposefully for profit removed from our food supply.
Make no mistake about it. I am not Chicken Little. BUT THE SKY IS FALLING! Malthusian theory through human ingenuity has been sidelined up until now. However, I believe, strongly, that the next fifty years are going to see massive food shortages which result from inadequate and ill informed food policy today. That these shortages are going to lead to a break down of those things that we consider civilization forming. And that the erosion of those forces of civilization are going to lead to untold strife. And yet countries pour billions into machines of death… does that make sense?
Our food supply chain in the oceans and rivers of the world is also unsustainable. As a result we are seeing large fish farms created with little to no study on the environmental and species impact. Extremely dangerous. As a species we are so greedy that we are eating ourselves to death, in fact to extinction and yet when is the last time you heard a World Leader, Obama, Harper, Sarkozy or anyone for that matter utter a single sentence on the coming shortage and crisis. There is a lack of true leadership at the levels that there has to be in order for our children to eat. This is not an issue which can be avoided. It is going to become reality. Sure we may be able to stave it off for a while but AT WHAT COST!
In the industrialized countries we have manufactured scarcity in order to inflate prices and thus stabilize profit centres. In Canada alone we destroy enough grain to feed the worlds hungry every year merely to protect profitability. Sure the powers that be will tell you that it is not fit for human consumption but do you really think that is the case? The same is true of other industrialized powers, the United States as well as the European Union. We also rely heavily on the World Bank and the IMF to create policies and funds which will help the problem. Unfortunately history proves that they are not concerned with the problem. Look at the conditions of loans in developing and under developed countries. The conditions create a consistent debtor country which has no means to get out of debt. When are we going to stop focusing on profit and start focusing on our species survival? A short reading of the history of Africa and Latin America bears witness to the previous statement.
Population has risen largely unchecked since the end of World War Two. The emergence of China and India as powerhouses in the next twenty years (best case scenario, worse is in the next five to seven) is going to strain the ability of the earth to produce even the most basic food stuffs for survival. Ultimately, I believe the answer we are going to be provided is a pill of some kind. My question is this; Where is the leadership on this issue? Where are the people raising the alarms about our imminent demise (in earth’s timeline sense)? Where are the people in power protecting us?
So where does this leave us. What can we do? First is buy local from local farmers. There is no shortage of Farmers Markets all over the industrialized world. In Ontario we have access to a seemingly endless supply of fresh foods, vegetables and fruits, game, etc. Buy local. Support your farmers.
Of course there is a big move to organic foods right now. But again I caution that organic foods have taken on the same life as GM or GE foods but in the opposite. Organic is largely unregulated and has a smattering of regulations from various bodies but nothing that is consistent or global let alone national in nature. This is not an attack on organic as I believe that it is a great movement. It is merely an acknowledgement that anything left largely unregulated ends up becoming less than the original idea and can be destructive.
We need to move away from industrial farms which are poisoning us. We need to demand, TRULY DEMAND action from our leaders today. For if the world continues on the same trend as the past sixty years we are headed to a world of 15 Billion people soon with little to no plan to feed that population or provide it with clean drinking water. Our current system is pushing us ever closer to the brink of destruction and NOONE IS PAYING ATTENTION.
Malthus was and is right. He was just off by a few years. There are countless articles, scholarly and opinionated on the matters discussed in this post. Find them. Figure out what you can do to make yourself healthier and in turn providing support, much needed, for the survival of our children. We can make a difference one person at a time. But we need to act now.
Adam Smith (you should also read Wealth of Nations) once wrote; “Such is the delicacy of man alone, that no object is produced to his liking. He finds that in everything there is need for improvement.... The whole industry of human life is employed not in procuring the supply of our three humble necessities, food, clothes and lodging, but in procuring the conveniences of it according to the nicety and delicacy of our tastes.”
Norman Borlaug once said; “Civilization as it is known today could not have evolved, nor can it survive, without an adequate food supply.”
Jeffrey Sachs in Scientific American wrote; “The recent surge in world food prices is already creating havoc in poor countries, and worse is to come. Food riots are spreading across Africa, though many are unreported in the international press. Moreover, the surge in wheat, maize and rice prices seen on commodities markets have not yet fully percolated into the shops and stalls of the poor countries or the budgets of relief organizations. Nor has the budget crunch facing relief organizations such as the World Food Program, which must buy food in world markets, been fully felt. The results could be calamitous unless offsetting policy actions are taken rapidly.
The facts are stark. A metric ton of wheat cost around $375 on the commodity exchanges in early 2006. In March 2008, it stood at over $900. Maize has gone from around $250 to $560 in the same period. Rice prices have also soared. The physical inventories of grain relative to demand are also down sharply in recent years.”
Oxfam has also started publicly crying out about the shortages that are coming;
"World leaders have a window of opportunity to prevent a worse situation resulting from the triple crunch of the economic crisis, climate change, and energy and water scarcity," Oxfam agricultural policy expert Carlos Galian said in a statement.
"Failure to act will see millions more people falling into hunger," he added.”
I am hopeful that something will be done in the coming months and years which can stave off our own destruction. We all have a part to play. Are you going to play yours?
Einstein was right when he said; “Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.”
Are you dreaming big and inspired?
A la prochaine
SDM
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Day 14 of 14 (file under The Shiraz Helps)
I know it doesn’t sound like that much but since getting back from NYC I have worked fourteen days straight which amounts to approximately 126 hours. Not to mention the hour a day I spend rollerblading to and from work. Which incidentally is causing my legs to go from fit to Uber fit. I’ve noticed that my lung capacity is increasing a bit and that I can really push my body now. Yesterday when I got home I opened up a bottle of Shiraz which immediately took the edge off the past fourteen days. I found myself wanting to do nothing more than sit on the couch, but, as there are only 24 hours in the day, I had a smattering of work I had to get done.
This morning my body wanted me to get up at 4:30. I told it, ever so politely, to take a hike and found myself still on the couch at 6am. By that point my body was winning the battle and I pulled myself out of bed and went to get a coffee. In what bizzaro world does 6am constitute sleeping in? Not that it matters; I have a lot to get done today.
Yesterday was another great day at work. Even after fourteen days straight I found that my energy was not diminished, that my capacity for work was still at the same level it was when I started this stretch. It feels wonderful. I mean truly wonderful.
When I arrived at work I had to do my regular set up, which to remind you all, consists of putting in the muffins, starting the bacon and sausage. Turning on the toaster, fryers, oven, flat top and heating lamps. I then fill three blanching pots with water and put them at their various burners. Fill the ice on the cold line. Fill the hot water on the hot line. Set up the cutting boards for both stations (and I have now made it a habit to set up boards for Garde Manger as well) and starting two pots of coffee for the servers. Grabbing six pairs of various sized tongs, two flippers for the flat top, two slotted spoons, and one regular chef spoon. I then refill anything that needs to be topped off (which in theory should be done the night before, but we have spoken about that). Yesterday I had to top off the lettuce, tomatoes, green, red pepper and onion mix, oranges, lettuce and pea shoots. All in all the set up process takes about fifteen minutes. Ten if I am really hustling. About fifteen minutes after that the bacon, sausage and muffins are ready so I get them to their various stages and get ready for the inevitable order that comes in at 7 am.
Sure enough the first order popped at 7 on the nose. But I was ready and excited to start the day. It was a relatively slow day but for a Tuesday it was anything but. I would say that I did approximately 70 orders and along with Garde Manger that was probably double that number.
We operate as a team, if he is in the weeds and needs assistance, without being asked, like a real team member, I jump over and start helping him.
I had some prep to get done yesterday as well so that I didn’t leave anyone in the lurch. Prep included chopping stir fry vegetables (onions, celery, yellow and green zucchini, carrots as well as red and green peppers).
I think one of the things that I really enjoy at the end of my days is the sense of achievement. The feeling that I have accomplished something and done it with a smile. Which also leads me to the next point;
The small things in life are usually those which bring us the greatest joy. You’ll recall that a couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I had started writing on the take out containers of members. Usually something that is short and sweet but will definitely impact their day in a positive way (or at least that is the attempt). Yesterday I started writing on many of the boxes so that while I was on my days off they would still have some with writing on them. The messages I wrote yesterday were as follows;
Carpe Diem and I also wrote it in English on a few boxes Seize the Day
The Best Part of Wisdom is The Practice
Love is the Truest Wisdom
The Shadows in our lives are Usually caused by OUR standing in OUR OWN sunlight
Inspiration and Genius – One in the same
Knowledge of what is possible is the beginning of happiness
Each morning while I am rollerblading to work I think of little statements that have made me smile over time. Whether it is from Longfellow, Aristotle, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Doesn’t matter, the impact, is what matters. Apart from making a terrific meal that I am preparing for them to take away with them I am also trying to give a little ray of sunshine where there may have been none. As was the case the other day when a server came in and told me about a woman who was having a horrible day, nothing was going right, but when she got home and opened up the bag and saw the message she almost started crying. Coming back the next day she asked who had written it. They informed her (this is now the second time this has happened which only makes me want to do it more) that it was me and that I had gone home for the day. She asked them to relay the message that I had made not only her day or her month, but also her YEAR! A rewarding feeling to be certain.
So it is now 7:42 am. I have the whole day ahead of me. A couple more blog posts to come. I am also working on some writing for a friend of mine resident in NYC at the moment. Exciting times. I am also cleaning up my iTunes today. I started the day with 6000 songs amounting to almost nineteen days of continuous music. Today I am getting rid of some of the crap. Time consuming but necessary to make way for more great music to be added.
As I said at the beginning of this post. The Shiraz Helps. And it sure did last night. Today I am fresh, alive and filled with the wonder of where this day will lead. I hope the same is true for you.
T.E Lawrence once said; “All men dream but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity; but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes to make it possible.”
Are your eyes open? Are you dreaming big and inspired?
A la prochaine
SDM
This morning my body wanted me to get up at 4:30. I told it, ever so politely, to take a hike and found myself still on the couch at 6am. By that point my body was winning the battle and I pulled myself out of bed and went to get a coffee. In what bizzaro world does 6am constitute sleeping in? Not that it matters; I have a lot to get done today.
Yesterday was another great day at work. Even after fourteen days straight I found that my energy was not diminished, that my capacity for work was still at the same level it was when I started this stretch. It feels wonderful. I mean truly wonderful.
When I arrived at work I had to do my regular set up, which to remind you all, consists of putting in the muffins, starting the bacon and sausage. Turning on the toaster, fryers, oven, flat top and heating lamps. I then fill three blanching pots with water and put them at their various burners. Fill the ice on the cold line. Fill the hot water on the hot line. Set up the cutting boards for both stations (and I have now made it a habit to set up boards for Garde Manger as well) and starting two pots of coffee for the servers. Grabbing six pairs of various sized tongs, two flippers for the flat top, two slotted spoons, and one regular chef spoon. I then refill anything that needs to be topped off (which in theory should be done the night before, but we have spoken about that). Yesterday I had to top off the lettuce, tomatoes, green, red pepper and onion mix, oranges, lettuce and pea shoots. All in all the set up process takes about fifteen minutes. Ten if I am really hustling. About fifteen minutes after that the bacon, sausage and muffins are ready so I get them to their various stages and get ready for the inevitable order that comes in at 7 am.
Sure enough the first order popped at 7 on the nose. But I was ready and excited to start the day. It was a relatively slow day but for a Tuesday it was anything but. I would say that I did approximately 70 orders and along with Garde Manger that was probably double that number.
We operate as a team, if he is in the weeds and needs assistance, without being asked, like a real team member, I jump over and start helping him.
I had some prep to get done yesterday as well so that I didn’t leave anyone in the lurch. Prep included chopping stir fry vegetables (onions, celery, yellow and green zucchini, carrots as well as red and green peppers).
I think one of the things that I really enjoy at the end of my days is the sense of achievement. The feeling that I have accomplished something and done it with a smile. Which also leads me to the next point;
The small things in life are usually those which bring us the greatest joy. You’ll recall that a couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I had started writing on the take out containers of members. Usually something that is short and sweet but will definitely impact their day in a positive way (or at least that is the attempt). Yesterday I started writing on many of the boxes so that while I was on my days off they would still have some with writing on them. The messages I wrote yesterday were as follows;
Carpe Diem and I also wrote it in English on a few boxes Seize the Day
The Best Part of Wisdom is The Practice
Love is the Truest Wisdom
The Shadows in our lives are Usually caused by OUR standing in OUR OWN sunlight
Inspiration and Genius – One in the same
Knowledge of what is possible is the beginning of happiness
Each morning while I am rollerblading to work I think of little statements that have made me smile over time. Whether it is from Longfellow, Aristotle, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. Doesn’t matter, the impact, is what matters. Apart from making a terrific meal that I am preparing for them to take away with them I am also trying to give a little ray of sunshine where there may have been none. As was the case the other day when a server came in and told me about a woman who was having a horrible day, nothing was going right, but when she got home and opened up the bag and saw the message she almost started crying. Coming back the next day she asked who had written it. They informed her (this is now the second time this has happened which only makes me want to do it more) that it was me and that I had gone home for the day. She asked them to relay the message that I had made not only her day or her month, but also her YEAR! A rewarding feeling to be certain.
So it is now 7:42 am. I have the whole day ahead of me. A couple more blog posts to come. I am also working on some writing for a friend of mine resident in NYC at the moment. Exciting times. I am also cleaning up my iTunes today. I started the day with 6000 songs amounting to almost nineteen days of continuous music. Today I am getting rid of some of the crap. Time consuming but necessary to make way for more great music to be added.
As I said at the beginning of this post. The Shiraz Helps. And it sure did last night. Today I am fresh, alive and filled with the wonder of where this day will lead. I hope the same is true for you.
T.E Lawrence once said; “All men dream but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity; but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes to make it possible.”
Are your eyes open? Are you dreaming big and inspired?
A la prochaine
SDM
Monday, May 11, 2009
Day 13 of 14 straight (file under I LOVE IT!)
So I fired off an email on Friday to L’s acquaintance that had mentioned he was interested in becoming a Chef. As stated in the email I gave him a call when I got home this afternoon. When I did not get him I sent him another email asking him to get in contact with me when he is ready. I will definitely keep you posted on any updates.
So today was Day 13 of 14 before I get a day off. Such is the price of going to NYC and having so much damn fun. But unlike other times in the past when I pulled long stretches without a break I find that I have oodles of energy and am brimming with positivism as I know that every day I am one day closer to my goal.
Saturday was a very interesting day at work. As I may or may not have mentioned my morning partner was off all last week and I was alone. On Saturday my relief came in at 9 am and I pretty much left him to take care of prep and anything else that came up as I wanted to see just how well I could do the line dance. (Not to be confused with line dancing as in cowboy boots).
I have always been someone who looks challenges directly in the eye and then, to the best of my ability, knocked them out of the park. Saturday was no exception. It was a challenge that I needed to give myself in order to grow as a cook. So naturally I got there at my usual about 6:10 am and started about my daily tasks. I’ve taken on starting coffee for the servers and laying out the cutting boards for the Garde Manger as well. It is a little thing but I know that it is appreciated.
It felt great to challenge myself on Saturday. I mean really great. I managed to Tango, Salsa, Pirouette, Meringue and Waltz all at the same time. At one point I had four omelettes, eight or nine orders of eggs either over easy, over hard or Sunnyside up and about five orders of Eggs Benedict, Florentine or Benjamin all going at the same time. My body with attention to detail moved gracefully from one side of the line to the other, almost as if I was on skates, sliding down the line, dropping the plates, putting on the various components, turning around and tending to the eggs and then right back to the plates and their various presentations. It was the first time that I had intentionally put myself in the weeds to see if I could pull myself out. I could have at any point called for help and it would have been there in two seconds flat. But I refused to, I wanted to put pressure on myself, I wanted to see how fast I could turn around chits, I wanted to see if I could ensure that the food did not suffer and that I still got it out in a timely fashion. Feel good? DAMN RIGHT! It was a personal victory which revealed to me that I could handle the various stresses in a high paced environment without losing my head or my chits. I am extremely thrilled to report that I was able to turn around orders in as little as three minutes and my longest took twelve when I was getting severely slammed.
Of course because the club is all about making sure the members are always happy you can get breakfast any time of the day. This presents a certain set of challenges when you approach lunchtime. Again because you could get three or four orders on a chit, one for breakfast and the rest for lunch. Organization and timing becoming your paramount concern next to ensuring that the food tastes and LOOKS good. As 12:30 passed I was busy. I had about twelve chits up and I would say it was thirty percent breakfast and the rest lunch. Every time I got that many chits, M would ask if I was okay. I assured him I was and just continued doing what I was doing.
By the end of my shift I had worked about one hundred and forty chits which amounted to about four hundred different orders with (approximately) nine hundred different components. Did it feel good? DAMN RIGHT!
I thought back to Reservation and my experience on the grill and thought how I believe I could pull myself out now without much assistance. Yet I began to wonder why I was left to essentially hang. My relief never came as quickly as it could have and only now do I find myself wondering why in any substantial way. Was it part of the process? Was it some design that I still am unclear on? Or was it something else? I believe as I go forward I will be able to answer that question better. But nonetheless it felt pretty good to wonder about.
I am finding that I am not sleeping well. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I am currently alone in my place. No roommate and no C. That will change when C gets here in less than a month. However, I also think it is because I have so much on my brain. I am constantly thinking about food, about new concepts, new dishes, new techniques and all of it with an eye to making the best food I possibly can.
All in all I am thrilled. Absolutely thrilled with my decision. I have found a place that I can call home for a while and continue to test my dishes and techniques. All with an eye to the future but maintaining quality and consistency in the present.
This post caused me to think of two quotes. One from William Faulkner; “People need trouble -- a little frustration to sharpen the spirit on, toughen it. Artists do; I don't mean you need to live in a rat hole or gutter, but you have to learn fortitude, endurance. Only vegetables are happy.”
The other from John Heywood; “If you will call your troubles experiences, and remember that every experience develops some latent force within you, you will grow vigorous and happy, however adverse your circumstances may seem to be.”
Are you dreaming big and inspired? WHY NOT! I’m here for you anytime. Just let me know what I can do.
A la prochaine
SDM
So today was Day 13 of 14 before I get a day off. Such is the price of going to NYC and having so much damn fun. But unlike other times in the past when I pulled long stretches without a break I find that I have oodles of energy and am brimming with positivism as I know that every day I am one day closer to my goal.
Saturday was a very interesting day at work. As I may or may not have mentioned my morning partner was off all last week and I was alone. On Saturday my relief came in at 9 am and I pretty much left him to take care of prep and anything else that came up as I wanted to see just how well I could do the line dance. (Not to be confused with line dancing as in cowboy boots).
I have always been someone who looks challenges directly in the eye and then, to the best of my ability, knocked them out of the park. Saturday was no exception. It was a challenge that I needed to give myself in order to grow as a cook. So naturally I got there at my usual about 6:10 am and started about my daily tasks. I’ve taken on starting coffee for the servers and laying out the cutting boards for the Garde Manger as well. It is a little thing but I know that it is appreciated.
It felt great to challenge myself on Saturday. I mean really great. I managed to Tango, Salsa, Pirouette, Meringue and Waltz all at the same time. At one point I had four omelettes, eight or nine orders of eggs either over easy, over hard or Sunnyside up and about five orders of Eggs Benedict, Florentine or Benjamin all going at the same time. My body with attention to detail moved gracefully from one side of the line to the other, almost as if I was on skates, sliding down the line, dropping the plates, putting on the various components, turning around and tending to the eggs and then right back to the plates and their various presentations. It was the first time that I had intentionally put myself in the weeds to see if I could pull myself out. I could have at any point called for help and it would have been there in two seconds flat. But I refused to, I wanted to put pressure on myself, I wanted to see how fast I could turn around chits, I wanted to see if I could ensure that the food did not suffer and that I still got it out in a timely fashion. Feel good? DAMN RIGHT! It was a personal victory which revealed to me that I could handle the various stresses in a high paced environment without losing my head or my chits. I am extremely thrilled to report that I was able to turn around orders in as little as three minutes and my longest took twelve when I was getting severely slammed.
Of course because the club is all about making sure the members are always happy you can get breakfast any time of the day. This presents a certain set of challenges when you approach lunchtime. Again because you could get three or four orders on a chit, one for breakfast and the rest for lunch. Organization and timing becoming your paramount concern next to ensuring that the food tastes and LOOKS good. As 12:30 passed I was busy. I had about twelve chits up and I would say it was thirty percent breakfast and the rest lunch. Every time I got that many chits, M would ask if I was okay. I assured him I was and just continued doing what I was doing.
By the end of my shift I had worked about one hundred and forty chits which amounted to about four hundred different orders with (approximately) nine hundred different components. Did it feel good? DAMN RIGHT!
I thought back to Reservation and my experience on the grill and thought how I believe I could pull myself out now without much assistance. Yet I began to wonder why I was left to essentially hang. My relief never came as quickly as it could have and only now do I find myself wondering why in any substantial way. Was it part of the process? Was it some design that I still am unclear on? Or was it something else? I believe as I go forward I will be able to answer that question better. But nonetheless it felt pretty good to wonder about.
I am finding that I am not sleeping well. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I am currently alone in my place. No roommate and no C. That will change when C gets here in less than a month. However, I also think it is because I have so much on my brain. I am constantly thinking about food, about new concepts, new dishes, new techniques and all of it with an eye to making the best food I possibly can.
All in all I am thrilled. Absolutely thrilled with my decision. I have found a place that I can call home for a while and continue to test my dishes and techniques. All with an eye to the future but maintaining quality and consistency in the present.
This post caused me to think of two quotes. One from William Faulkner; “People need trouble -- a little frustration to sharpen the spirit on, toughen it. Artists do; I don't mean you need to live in a rat hole or gutter, but you have to learn fortitude, endurance. Only vegetables are happy.”
The other from John Heywood; “If you will call your troubles experiences, and remember that every experience develops some latent force within you, you will grow vigorous and happy, however adverse your circumstances may seem to be.”
Are you dreaming big and inspired? WHY NOT! I’m here for you anytime. Just let me know what I can do.
A la prochaine
SDM
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