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Likes and dislikes
Feb. 22nd, 2009 10:46 amLife up here on the ranch, and working as a caterer, has brought a lot of things I like and a few that I don't. Curiously, they aren't what I had expected.
Likes:
- It's very eventful up here. I thought it might be a little boring, but in fact there is always SO much going on all the time that I wish it would slow down a little. Simple things, like all the stuff associated with running a wood stove, or landscaping, are endlessly interesting. Even if we had TV I'd have no time to watch it - our Netflix movies, sometimes I can't get to them for weeks at a time. And the neighbors? I love them, but I find myself actually avoiding them because merely running into someone on the road can eat up an hour with no effort whatsoever.
- Industrial shopping. This is very different from retail shopping, which I hate with a passion. Retail treats you like a chump; it spins up a fantasy and then sells you a fake product that doesn't deliver on the promise. Take boots, a pet peeve of mine. Every bourgeois bohemian wants to be a hard-stomping mountain man, but go buy yourself a pair of "Caterpillar" boots and see just how long they last. They're crap. Even the Danners I last bought fail in the details - the rivets have sharp edges that eat up a pair of laces inside of a month.
Shopping as an industry worker is totally different. Service is unobtrusive and sometimes hard to flag down, but when you get it, it's extraordinary. Products are often shockingly expensive, but they work perfectly and last forever. There is only ONE kind of each thing to buy; one kind of food pan, one kind of baking tray, one kind of meat slicer, making "overchoice" almost nonexistent, and ensuring that everything interoperates. Appliances are a very different experience; the dishwasher, for example, isn't the sealed box of the domestic model, but something more akin to a hobby kit. Taking it apart and screwing with the guts is a necessary part of operation and maintenance. It's sort of like an old Harley in that regard.
- Hard work. I feel much better when I'm doing stuff with my hands. Being idle is depressing. Software work drags on forever and ever and is almost painful because you know that any given line of code you write has only about a 10% of actually mattering to anyone. Catering, in contrast, is a 100% operation. Everything must be necessary and everything must succeed, no exceptions. The mindset is wholly different, and I like it very much.
- Schmoozing. I am still in shock over the idea that a seven-course dinner constitutes a wise business investment. Pinch me, I must be dreaming.
Dislikes:
- Clanging and banging. Many things in the kitchen are slippery and they slide everywhere on all the metal surfaces. The absolute worst: I bought a whole set of hanging plastic cutting boards that simply cannot be used without putting a wet towel under them, or they'll fly right out from under your hands. And dishwashing is a pain because nothing will stay put. Much breakage ensues. I suppose I'll get used to it, but wow is it annoying.
- Time flies! I can't believe, for example, that it's nearly 11 AM. I've already put in about three hours of work and have not accomplished much. Days disappear so quickly that it's kind of disturbing - I feel as if my life is vanishing. I hope this effect decreases as we get more accustomed to the new environment.
Must get back to work now before the day is entirely gone.
Likes:
- It's very eventful up here. I thought it might be a little boring, but in fact there is always SO much going on all the time that I wish it would slow down a little. Simple things, like all the stuff associated with running a wood stove, or landscaping, are endlessly interesting. Even if we had TV I'd have no time to watch it - our Netflix movies, sometimes I can't get to them for weeks at a time. And the neighbors? I love them, but I find myself actually avoiding them because merely running into someone on the road can eat up an hour with no effort whatsoever.
- Industrial shopping. This is very different from retail shopping, which I hate with a passion. Retail treats you like a chump; it spins up a fantasy and then sells you a fake product that doesn't deliver on the promise. Take boots, a pet peeve of mine. Every bourgeois bohemian wants to be a hard-stomping mountain man, but go buy yourself a pair of "Caterpillar" boots and see just how long they last. They're crap. Even the Danners I last bought fail in the details - the rivets have sharp edges that eat up a pair of laces inside of a month.
Shopping as an industry worker is totally different. Service is unobtrusive and sometimes hard to flag down, but when you get it, it's extraordinary. Products are often shockingly expensive, but they work perfectly and last forever. There is only ONE kind of each thing to buy; one kind of food pan, one kind of baking tray, one kind of meat slicer, making "overchoice" almost nonexistent, and ensuring that everything interoperates. Appliances are a very different experience; the dishwasher, for example, isn't the sealed box of the domestic model, but something more akin to a hobby kit. Taking it apart and screwing with the guts is a necessary part of operation and maintenance. It's sort of like an old Harley in that regard.
- Hard work. I feel much better when I'm doing stuff with my hands. Being idle is depressing. Software work drags on forever and ever and is almost painful because you know that any given line of code you write has only about a 10% of actually mattering to anyone. Catering, in contrast, is a 100% operation. Everything must be necessary and everything must succeed, no exceptions. The mindset is wholly different, and I like it very much.
- Schmoozing. I am still in shock over the idea that a seven-course dinner constitutes a wise business investment. Pinch me, I must be dreaming.
Dislikes:
- Clanging and banging. Many things in the kitchen are slippery and they slide everywhere on all the metal surfaces. The absolute worst: I bought a whole set of hanging plastic cutting boards that simply cannot be used without putting a wet towel under them, or they'll fly right out from under your hands. And dishwashing is a pain because nothing will stay put. Much breakage ensues. I suppose I'll get used to it, but wow is it annoying.
- Time flies! I can't believe, for example, that it's nearly 11 AM. I've already put in about three hours of work and have not accomplished much. Days disappear so quickly that it's kind of disturbing - I feel as if my life is vanishing. I hope this effect decreases as we get more accustomed to the new environment.
Must get back to work now before the day is entirely gone.
