2nd degree SADNESS.

burned my hand reaaaaal' bad on some stupid espresso machine. I have a blister the size of a small animal on my left hand, but I'm not allowed to pop it.

SIGH.

my job in pictures, I.

this might as well be my hand in the picture... hahahaha. (They actually DID do a photo shoot yesterday, so who knows, maybe you WILL see my hand in a picture in the future...)

Also, does it gross anyone out that my hand touches every single petit four that goes on each plate? ahahahaha....

movin' on up(stairs)

Starting Monday, I will be officially single-handedly manning the petit four station upstairs... This includes plating and preparing all 6 different kinds of petit fours for the 220+ people who come in every day, piping and baking off madeleines fresh for each guest, baking off the coulant (molten cake), and plating the jivara coffee dessert. All at the freaking same time. Call that multi-tasking!

One of my coworkers told me that she lost 15 pounds over a period of 3 months working that station because of stress and because she never wanted to sacrifice 5 minutes of prep-time to eat dinner... My sous-chef told me that our chocolate room would be a good place to cry, and when I laughed at his comment, he only replied back with "it's true...". If something that I prepare doesn't look perfect, it'll be my fault, and I'll probably get yelled at by 3 different chefs. If I can't plate things quick enough, I'll slow down the whole team and it'll just be disaster..

Even though I'm supperrrr nervous about starting this 2pm-2am shift, especially in the height of busy season and new desserts, I'm also strangely excited for this challenge. I will probably cry at least once, might end up dropping some f-bombs (though I'm going to try my absolute hardest not to swear at all!!!), and may even lose a bit of weight... but I know that I'll only be a stronger, quicker, and more efficient worker by the end of this. ALSO, I get to take home whatever leftovers we have at the end of the night!!! :D

But yeah. T-minus 3 days till all craziness ensues. Please pray for me... I'll need every bit of God's grace to get through each day!

asian autumns

2 out of my last 3 autumns have been spent in Asia, so now that this weather is showing full signs of autumn smells, gusts of wind, and wardrobe choices, I can't help but sometimes feel like I'm still in Asia...

edit.

I gotta believe that this is where God wants me to be right now, therefore I will trust in His will for me and obey joyfully.

⁷ "But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose confidence is in him.

⁸ He will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit."

⁹ The heart is deceitful above all things
and beyond cure.
Who can understand it?

¹⁰ "I the LORD search the heart
and examine the mind,
to reward a man according to his conduct,
according to what his deeds deserve."

Jeremiah 17: 7-10