Really a Chef???

[panini]

quote
Chef M...what does your keyboard look like? I just have a hard time reading your posts. Maybe you need to have a spa day with cakerookie and brush up on your spelling a bit. Food4life...Touche my friend. I appreciate your "concern". No harm done, maybe only to the over sensitive and thin skinned. I can't say I'm aware of Ted Mac, but if he's got a reputation for a sharp wit and a no BS policy, then yeah, I might dig his style. I'm really surprised at how much attention, negative or otherwise, this post received in regards to others taking the time to say how much they didn't like some of my comments. (...scratching head and saying: "hmmm...") For what it's worth ya'll (The easily offended Quaker group), I didn't intend on this getting to lynch mob mentality level. Just take it easy and try to take some things with a grain of salt. Relax.

JR, thanks. I never wrote anything about my experience before. I just got through reading your posts. I just realized that you are all the chefs I fast tracked over when coming up in pastries. This is not an insult. I just couldn't place you. You've really helped here. There are many chefs in the industry just as you are. I'm not going to have to keep the spin about, you might encounter different personalities when your apprenticing and coming up through the ranks. I bookmarked a couple of threads. I'm ok with you now, and somehow you may be a asset of some kind. I mean considering I have not heard anything about real food.

Hi Jolly Roger ! Foddi4lif here again....

I would not want to keep this thread going any longer then humanely possible . I wouldn't want all of us to go through this past thread without gaining some understanding or it would all be for nothing and that part of it I can't live with. Unfortunately we can't get the poop back into the horse so to speak so I will try to move on with this so we all come out on top !

Mr Jolly Roger I'm afraid you're still not getting it . Some indivduals just take longer than others to see the light or at least get out of the dark .....It looks like you were at least trying to make amends but are still stumbling slightly in your path to greatness. What i'm getting from this is you don't apologize to too many people because you have no clue on how to do it . Some how I get the impression you still think your at the lunch table in high school.
First off when you make an apology you you just can't continue to insult the very same people your tryin to apologize to in the first place in the same sentence. That..... just makes no sense whatsoever. It's like shooting yourself in the foot my man . I mean why bother . You are just showing the aplolgees that there is no sincerity or heart felt feelings in your comment. You need to lose the prhases like lynch mob mentality,thinned skinned and ("the easily offended Quaker group"). You are just pouring more salt on the wounds you've already created. Ya gotta stop walking around like a pitbull who hasn't had dinner yet. If you do want to insist on maintaining your current attitudes you can but you will pay a price for it.
This whole thing is not about people being too sensitive or thinned skinned. It's about the masses here wanting to have a say and dictate exactly how the environment should be for the forum they choose to participate in. Call it a democratic part of the forum where people cast their vote one way or another by posting their feelings. Call it public sentement or natural selection.

We all can play the game and shoot daggers back n forth at each other but most simply choose not to in the interest of being tactful and polite. I think we all are trying to maintain some sense of civility in an otherwise arrogant,agressive and increasingly violent society we live in... You....on the other hand my friend currently possess the tact and conversational finesse of a fence post. Not to worry... there's still hope.
When you want to engage in a little ribbing (Fun as you call it) . You must learn to inject a little sugar or honey as it were along with the negative part of the comment or it simply just comes off as an insensitive comment or insult . For instance ....Hey cakerookie and chefM....i always enjoy your posts but sooner or later the spelling police are comin ta getcha...lol or maybe just a :-). Now ....in this instance you have voiced your opinion,got your point across and your relationship or rapport with those people is still intact. You just can't burn every bridge you cross in life with resentment and ill feelings left behind in your wake !

You just can't escape that you are in a people business and it would be impossible for you to go through the whole day without interacting with those around you . Why not make the results of those interactions positive ? Like I said before ...like it or not.it will end up in your personnel file one way or another eventually and directly or indirectly affect your income! Reputation does carry considerable weight in this industry!

The dynamics of an apology involve humility. First you have to admit to your self that maybe you screwed up a little and give a small chunk of yourself as part of the apology. You have to look the other person in the eye and make them believe you mean it ! (not an easy thing to do for any of us) Or ....to use your words "For what it's worth y'all" will be worth not much. Sometimes when you do this you might feel like less of a person for exposing your flaws to all but in reality(we all have them) you are acomplishing the exact oppisite ! They will respect you more because they also know (being human) how hard that is to pull off .
Another thing that some people struggle with is the fact that we just can't transfer all of our emotions into text on a screen without somone misinterpiting our thoughts We need the small help of some embellishments....namely lol and all the smileys available to us to name a few.

I think that being polite and tactful with others takes a little effort and thought and I think that none of us is immune from having to execute this practice. Speaking of practice you could start off by mending things with Cakerookie! Every time you post check to see if there are any potential insults before you click submit and work on the embellishments ! None of us are perfect ya know not even you! My last post on this !

Tomorrow is going to be a better day ! Foodi4lif

Quote: He didn't even know enough to know that he didn't know....

P.S. I didn't cook anything today because I have no more room in the freezer or the fridge....so I will have to eat some of this stuff or have a sale in the neighborhood ! ....lol

[ogreplate]

I'm confused?

[Botanique]

Yeah honey, so am I, and I normally like to think of myself as a pretty smart chicki with a good head on my shoulders. Time to put this puppy to bed.

[Jolly Roger]

Panini...Hey, wow! I saw your spine in that post. I was begining to think you may haven't been in posession of one. Whatever, dude. I'm now currently and painfully aware that the users here are quite sensitive. As for fast tracking chefs like me, Um, I wasn't a pastry boy. Not my cup 'O fudge. I'm good with food and making my numbers look good and I teach culinary courses locally. So, you got me on the dolce. I think I'll manage.

Food4life..you are a man/woman (I forgot what gender you were. I made that mistake with cakerookie and now he's confused and hurt.) of many words, most of which you delivered in quite the sarcastic tone. I learned in this forum, Cheftalk, that sarcasm is an indication of the presence of deep seated anger. Maybe you and I need to go to anger management sessions. And it sounds Panini has flipped his noodle too! Hey BTW, Food4life, thanks for suggestions on how to rib someone ina polite and respectful fashion. I never would have guessed you could be so witty. And you get a gold star for not using any profanity no matter how much you may have wanted to. It's really hard for not f*ckin' cuss even when I'm just thinking something! I had some good laughs, but I think I'd better split. It's kind of a waste of time and Man, I just got hooked! Oh d*mn! I forgot to post read this post to make sure there were no potential insulting remarks! Panini, Food4life, can you fellows look to see if I let any insulting remarks slip through?

[Peachcreek]

No. Not really.

[Peachcreek]

I'm more like a misdirected geologist who after 30 years still hasn't found his way out of the kitchen. But aren't we all.

[Botanique]

LOL Peaches. Gastronomic laboratory divergents of the world unite.

[momoreg]

Foodi4lif, you're great!!!

[cakerookie]

Foodi4lif thanks for the support but sometimes you just have to ignore what does not matter. Its like the old saying "All a question of mind over matter, I don't mind cause it don't matter. Besides thats what the ignore list is for and I use it. Old saying what you can't see can't hurt you, well what you can't read won't tick you off.

Well I don't think I've ever seen anyone as bad as him. I really did try to ignore him but couldn't.. I had that empty feeling one gets when you've lost your car keys or wallet and was pacing around the room so I had to speak up!

So I am great huh! My "Chef" hat suddenly doesn't fit any longer ...
Can I add you guys to my buddy list ???? well cakerookie the very reason that I spoke up was that you guys do matter !
here's a tiny excerpt from my posts which is all I probably should've said but it does bare repeating and is why I stood up and said something! This long winded thing I have ...I think I was a free diver in my last life...lol

"This whole thing is not about people being too sensitive or thinned skinned. It's about the masses here wanting to have a say and dictate exactly how the environment should be for the forum they choose to participate in."
Any way all I can say is hooray for all things "Pastry "and the people the in the industry who make it happen and inspire the young to join in on the fun ! What a great profession! I've been cooking on a hot flat top all my life and now for some reason I'm being drawn to this pastry thing.

I was almost not with you guys any longer about 2 years ago and spent 4 days in ICU . When they served me my first meal of solid food in over a month(I had acute ketoeacidosis) there was this wonderful thing nestled over in the corner of my tray hiding behind my milk cartyon called a "Baking Powder Biscuit" !! I've lived in South Florida for almost 25 years and have heard of them but never rustled up the courage to eat one ...As they say down here you can't swing a cat without hitting a biscuit in the south ... So with my new found philosophy on life I just jumped right in and devoured it .

Let me tell you folks when you eat for the first time in over a month everthing tastes like a million dollars! I do have quite the sense of humour and when I started eating the biscuit I was so over the top in expressing my amazement at this small culinary wonder that it sounded like I was having sex to the nurses out in the hall.lol Yea I know ...TMI...any way my interest in all things baking at that moment just flew off the charts ! and I've been going crazy ever since. Go figure ? I can't say too much about it but I'm in the middle of a recipe testing program for a new book coming out by a chef /baking instructor/author at one of the premier chef schools in the country and am very excited about that.
Cakerookie ....I have a sixteen lb (scales of justice type)bakers scale,turn table and KA stand mixer with all the combs,tubes,palate knives and pastry bags I need ! I haven't gotten into working with marzipan or making roses and flowers just yet . Still working on the layers,fillings and icings right now but having a ball. I'm also baking bread and rolls too and in the process of wearing out my breadman bread machine. I use it to just knead the dough then bake the bread in the oven. Ah yes ....to have all this passion at 52 is very refreshing !
Momoreg ....You say you like to work out well I'm going to make you jealous ! I just purchased the top of the line Bowflex Ultimate...have it all put together(a major accomplishment)except for playing with all those cables.....yuk I will send you a photo when I'm able to proudly wear a bathing suit ....gotta few years to go for that tho ...lol

I guess the word of the day is BE NICE WHEN YOU COME INTO OUR HOUSE!

Talk to y'all soon !
P.S. Hay Tony Soprano got shot ....holy schnieke Can ya buleeve it ????

[Chef M]

wats rong wit my spelling nice point made.

[Botanique]

Foodi -- narcistic part of me is wondering why you didn't mention me in any of your posts????

I got a a super duper Bowflex too! Hoping to tone up and get back into shape. There's no where I can hang my kickboxing punching bag in this place! LOL

Can't believe Tony got shot either!!!! BUT we know that he's gonna recover.

[Chef M]

Now that the dinner rush is over and the air is cleared, what is really a chef? I know regardless a piece of paper or full tours no one is a chef unless they have the heart to be one. We are all one, in our own ways, A chef will not walk out like some people we seen do. As i say in the kitchen to the ones that can not fill the boots, just say" BYE,BYE" jr.

[momoreg]

Wow, foodi4lif, that's quite a story. Good luck w/ the bowflex. It's one of the few TV exercise products that actually works. I am so inspired by your story, I think I'll throw together some biscuits for breakfast.

Pastry is such fun. You prove that even the simplest things can seem miraculous, and in all the years I've been doing pastry, I am still amazed at how much you can do with the same basic handful of ingredients.