Money, money, money

     After having settled into a routine of class, homework, and extracurricular activities, I decided it was time to find a job. Just paying for food on the weekends and gas can get quite expensive. I had tried a dozen times to find a job on campus, but none that I wanted were available. I was dreading having to settle with working dining services but I thought I might just have to suck it up. However, my friend suggested I apply to the local Cold Stone being I had worked at one in Michigan last year. I thought that was a good plan, I remembered all the stuff and figured they wouldn't have to spend the time to retrain me. So I applied around the middle of March. 
     A few days later I received a call from the manager asking if I could come in and talk, we talked, and I was hired. My availability was a bit of an issue because I was only available on the weekends due to my class schedule. Nonetheless, he said as long as I understood I couldn't really request a whole bunch of time off, and my hours would be minimal, he didn't have a problem having me there. I remembered more than I thought I would and was a big help to the other employees. My boss raved about how much everyone liked me and how efficient and good I was at serving customers. He offered me a raise within a few weeks of working and said that if only I were able to put in more hours he'd already make me a manager. That was fantastic to hear! Of course I can't really do anything about the hours situation because of my classes, but right now I'm able to work during the week too because, for now, my classes are shorter. All in all it's a great experience and I'm happy to have a job, but more importantly one that's fun and has some delicious perks(;

All My Visitors

So far I've had my boyfriend and my best friend come visit me. On separate occasions. And this up coming weekend my Mom and sister Em are coming!

James surprised me by coming a few weeks earlier than I expected. We were together for his 20th birthday which was exciting. He met all my friends and thinks they're awesome(they think he's pretty awesome too). And, there was a dance here at school that weekend so we got to dress up and have a nice night out. We were even able to visit the city before he left.

My best friend Nans came over her spring break. That was so much fun. We also went to the city and hung out with my friends and just did friend stuff. 

As nice as it is having made new friends, it's double nice having friends from back home visit and see my life here. 

Extern, D.C, and Staging

So I last left you having settled in, made friends, visited the city, met Buddy, etc. What happened next...

     One thing that I know should be added to this timeline of my life here at the CIA would include being the first in my class to secure my externship. Weeeee!
(note: please see "The Baking and Pastry Program" if you need a refresher as to what an externship is)

     Every couple of months the CIA hosts a career fair in which numerous employers come looking for potential externs and graduates. It's quite a big event that lasts two or three days if you're lucky enough to land an interview. Well, I went with my good friend and being as we were still new to the whole program, we didn't take it too seriously, and by too seriously I mean not at all. Yes, we looked nice in our clean pressed chef whites, and I even brought what I thought was a half-decent resume, but we were going more for the experience than to land an extern. But land an extern I did! 
     As we were skipping along with our swag bag of free goodies(which we were advised was unprofessional) we came across a booth with big fancy posters displaying a breathtaking view of a resort on the James river. There was also a slide show playing with beautiful plated desserts. I was sold. The chef approached my friend, who is in the Culinary program, and talked with her for a bit and then told me that the pastry chef had just stepped away and would be back if I wanted to stop by later. We left, continuing up and down the rows of booths and I didn't think much of it. However, right before we were going to leave, I thought I might just swing past again. Sure enough, the pastry chef was there and the other chef remembered me. The pastry chef and I began talking about the work he does and what the extern would be like, then he suggested that I come back for an interview the following day. I wasn't planning on securing an extern or interviewing or anything really, but I felt I couldn't say no. 
     I reevaluated my resume and wrote a cover letter that evening in preparation for the interview. It was short and sweet, more me asking him questions than anything. The chef said he would let me know in the next couple of days. Well two days later, he called officially offering me the externship. I was excited and didn't really know what to do next. Now all the paperwork is about to be set and I will be spending next August through December in Williamsburg, VA!

     Although I had committed to Williamsburg, part of me felt I had made the wrong decision. Prior to going to the career fair, I had found a catering company based in D.C. Anyone who knows me knows how much I adore D.C. Their website was packed full of pictures of desserts, cakes, etc and it looked so cool. I felt like I needed to try for it just to see if they would take me. With help from my seminar instructor I sent in a new cover letter and resume. Right away I received a response from the pastry chef there asking if I could come in and stage. That means to basically intern for the day. I conveniently had a Monday off of school and said I could come. At first I was just going to drive down myself, but I casually suggested to my friends that if they wanted to come with, they could. One of my friends was super excited and said he would love to go, so we drove down on a Sunday afternoon(6 hours) and spent the evening walking around town. 
     Monday morning I meet with the chef at the company and spent the morning touring the facilities and helping out with little odd jobs. I have to say, it was a great experience and there is absolutely nothing wrong with the company, but it just wasn't for me. I felt much better in choosing Williamsburg after knowing that I wouldn't have made a huge mistake in not going to D.C. After it was over, I met up with my friend and we spent the rest of the day going to the aquarium and seeing the museums and such. We drove home that evening. It was a nice little get-away, and they ended up paying me for my few hours of work!

Wait, I have a blog?

Oh-my-lanta!

     I realized that it has been exactly 3 months(to the day) since my last post! Where has the time gone? I am very bad at this stuff; I don't know why it's so difficult for me to keep up with this blog. I mean I am busy with class and work(yes work!) but still I somehow manage to nap almost daily, yet cannot stay faithful to this blog. Well here I am, back again. On a whim I decided that a change was in order so I changed the color scheme of my blog, like it? Then I thought to myself, "Self, since you're already here, why not write a wee bit?" so that is precisely what I am doing. 
     Now comes the fun part. Trying to recall 3 months of stuff that has happened without boring everyone to tears. 

Here it goes...

Extracirriculars

Hyde Park is a pretty tiny town with not much to do. The neighboring town of Poughkeepsie is a little more populated: it has shopping centers, a movie theater, restaurants, and a mall. You might wonder what a culinary student up here does in their free time. Well I've made a pretty great group of friends, all of whom are in my start date. There's roughly 10 of us give or take a few. We pretty much do everything together. All but a couple live in the same building which makes it nice and easy to hang out. And on top of that we're mixed between culinary and baking&pastry. Our varying schedules means that there's time when we're not all together, it's nice to have alone time now and then. 

So we manage to do quite a bit when we're not in class.
-we've gone to the mall
-saw a movie
-went out to eat(we do this alot)
-went to buy some fish
-went to a dog/cat breeder and played with puppies for an afternoon
-grocery shopping
-church on Sunday
-we have family meal on the weekend in our community kitchen
-and of course we took a trip to NYC

Sometimes it's actually nice to just hang out in the library and do homework: sit by the fireplace and relax.

There's also different activities to do on campus. We've gone to a basketball game, we all work out a bunch, hang out in the rec center lounge, etc. No matter what I do, when I'm with my friends it's a good time.

The Truth of the Matter

I frequently get asked the question: so why culinary school? For the longest time I didn't really know, until I started putting all the pieces together. Now it makes perfect sense and I'm actually surprised I didn't figure it out sooner. So here it is:

Some of my earliest memories are those helping my dad either baking or making dinner. I would don an apron, drag my chair to the counter, and help him with whatever he was making. I got to read the recipes, crack eggs, pour in the liquids, whatever the case may be. 

Then came the time we finally had cable t.v. I probably spent the majority of that summer watching the Food Network. It was all I cared about, even more so than the Disney Channel(which for my 12 year old self was a big deal). I loved not only baking shows, but culinary ones as well.

Next came my business. After watching the Food Network I started to collect cookbooks, and most of them were cookie cook books(this was pre- cupcake obsession). I thought it would be really neat to bake different cookies, package them real nice, and sell them in gift baskets. I went to tell my Mom my great idea half expecting her to say no. To my absolute surprise she said it was a great idea! So there I was, in eighth grade about to start my own business. Initially I had wanted to rent a commercial kitchen to do all the baking, but that would have been quite expensive. Instead, with the help of Mom and Dad, we made it work in our tiny home kitchen. I ordered really cute Christmas packaging and started working on order forms. I half expected my Mom to even let me start a project of this size, but let me tell you never in my wildest imagination did I ever think anyone would want to buy them. Then the orders started coming in. I had people that I never met before calling because they had heard from someone who had heard from someone else. It was insane! To say I was overwhelmed would be a giant understatement. It ended up being a great experience though and I continued with it all the way through high school. I even had orders throughout the year, not just at Christmas time. 

Around the same time, I received cake decorating lessons for Christmas. They were for the Wilton program at Michael's. So every Monday after school my Mom would drive me up to Michael's for a couple hours. I completed all three sessions that they had available. It was probably the best and most rewarding Christmas present I have ever received.  

At this point in my life, 8th grade, I seriously considered going to culinary school. However, as I worked my way through high school and developed friendships with new people it wasn't so much a priority anymore. I didn't think of it as a career, just more of a hobby. I wanted to go to "real" college with the whole "college experience" meaning a football team with Friday night games, a big campus, dorm living, etc. I didn't even know what I wanted to major in. All through high school I would jump back and forth between different possibilities. In fact, I even changed my major the same day I registered for classes at Grand Valley. I eventually decided to be a Bio Medical Sciences major with an emphasis in nutrition.

It was at GV that I realized I was in the wrong place. I was taking a class for the Honors program called Live, Learn, Lead. We were doing a segment on our strengths and weaknesses. One of the assignments was to map out our strengths not according to how good we were, or what other people have said to us, but about what we truly love to do. I couldn't really come up with anything significant besides soccer and it upset me. Then, on the strangest of occasions it hit me like a ton of bricks. BAM! I had an epiphany in the car driving home from Chicago Thanksgiving weekend. I thought to myself, self what about culinary school? It came out of nowhere, and I mean nowhere. I was so confused about what I was doing with my life and I felt as though I was wasting my time at Grand Valley. After that moment, the idea stuck and grew until I knew that I had to leave. 

Initially I was worried what people might think. I didn't want them to think I failed out of college(although it's a running joke among my friends that I was too dumb for college) or that I was just going to be lazy and live at home forever. My parents and friends convinced me that it really didn't matter what other people thought, and that I needed to do what made me happy. 

And there you have it, my complete journey leading me to culinary school. I don't regret going to GV, in fact it's because of the class I took there that I discovered what I'm truly passionate about. I enjoyed my time at "real" college and made some amazing friends in the process. But I'm enjoying my time here even more. It's definitely where I belong(:

NYC & Jersey

So this past weekend my friends and I decided to take a trip to the city. A few of my friends took the train: the station's right in Poughkeepsie, it's about $30 round trip, and takes about 1h45min. I decided to drive my car because after hanging with them in the city, I drove to New Jersey to see my uncle and his family. I drove two of my friends which was nice so I wasn't lonely (:

I've been to the city before but it was still a real nice time being off campus with my friends. However, I have to say the coolest part of the trip was meeting Buddy Valastro from the show Cake Boss. Yes, you read that right, I met him! And not only that, he personally told me to come extern at his bakery! Wait what?! I'll repeat: Buddy Valastro told me to come work for him! Here's how it basically happened:

*Friends and I walking past Port Authority, see the Cake Boss Cafe*
"Oh my goodness, we have to go in!"
"OH MY GOODNESS! BUDDY'S HERE!"
"WHAT?!?!"
*There's half a glass wall separating the public from where they make the pastries so you can watch. Buddy was there piping some cupcakes with his son. There were quite a few people taking pictures of him, but not too many*
*Me thinking to myself: self you have to let him know you're in culinary school, otherwise you're just another average tourist/fan*
"Guys, we have to tell him about school"
*They weren't gonna do it, so I mustered up all the courage I had*
"Hey, Buddy"
B-"Yes"
"My friends and I are going to culinary school for baking and pastry"
B-"That's real cool. Where are you going?"
"The Culinary Institute of America"
B-"Wow, that's a great school. How long have you been there? How do you like it?"
"We just started two weeks ago. And we love it! It's absolutely amazing!"
B-"Yeah, you guys should come do your extern here. We're always looking for people who love the industry and want to learn more"
"Oh my goodness that would be amazing!"
B-"Seriously you guys should come here to do it. We'd love to have you"

So when Buddy offers you a job, do you accept? OBVIOUSLY!
It was a really cool experience. I didn't give him my name since he was working and what not, however when I apply for the extern I'll make sure and remind him that I came and talked to him. I usually hate talking to strangers, especially famous ones(as if that happens often) but I'm so glad I said something!

Whew! And my trip didn't even end there! I had a great day going to Chinatown, the 9/11 Memorial, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, etc. 

I picked up my cousin, who was conveniently in the city too, and we drove down to Jersey. It was so nice being in a house with family just hanging out with no schedule. I slept in a super comfortable bed, took a hot shower in a real bathroom and just had an incredible time! I was able to stay the whole weekend into Monday because I didn't have class. 

So yeah, I'd say I had a great time. How was your weekend? (:

Books & Classes

Unlike most schools in which you receive your course guide then go buy the right books accordingly, here at the CIA books are included in tuition. Since everyone is taking the same classes, at the same time, we all have the same books. The only difference is whether you're B&P or Culinary. You might think to yourself, "Wow, that's great!" however, the only downside is that I have books that I paid for, for classes I'm not taking. Probably I'll try to sell them or something, so it's alright

My books include: 1. How Baking Works 2. Baking& Pastry: Mastering the Art and Craft 3.The Professional Chef 4. Principles of Design 5. Supervision in the Hospitality Industry 6. Thriving at the CIA 7. ServSafe 8. The Book of Yields 9. Math for the Professional Kitchen 10. Bread: a Baker's Book of Techniques and Recipes 11. On Food and Cooking: The science and Lore of the Kitchen, 12. Gastronomy 13. Produce: Product Identification 14. Nutrition and You 15. A Writer's Reference  16.Backpack Literature

Right now during my first 15 weeks I have the following classes:
-Baking Ingredients and Equipment Technology
-Freshman Seminar
-Baking & Pastry Techniques

All my friends also have a culinary math class that I tested out of, as well as a Food Safety class. I am already ServSafe Certified and took that course while I was taking classes at Oakland Community College. So I have quite a bit of free time. In fact I only have one class a day Tuesday-Friday. So I'm going to try and find a job. A work-study was included in my financial aid meaning I can work on campus and earn up to the amount provided. However, I'm also looking at working off campus. It'll depend on what the hours are and how much I'll be making.

After the 15 weeks are up I'll start a new round of classes and start using all of the books. Right now I just use How Baking Works, Baking&Pastry, and Thriving at the CIA.

All of the books I have are available to the public in the CIA bookstore.

Meal Time

The first thing you think when you hear "culinary school" is food, obviously. So you might ask yourself, does Sarah eat the food they make there? Does it all go to waste? What's the meal plan like? Well I am here to clarify any questions you have.

Yes, in fact I do eat the food that is made during the culinary classes. There are kitchens all throughout Roth Hall(our main building; it used to be a Jesuit Seminary) and at different times during the day they serve food. There's a kitchen specifically dedicated to Asian cuisine, one for American Cuisine, etc. The food that they learn about then prepare as part of their class is what is served to the rest of the student body. The basic meal plan includes two meals a day. There's also a complimentary salad bar, drinks, bread, and desserts(from the baking classes) set up. There are two main dining halls located in Roth. 

There's also the Courtside Cafe located in our Student Rec Center that serves sub sandwiches, burgers, chicken tenders and the like. However that isn't included on the basic meal plan so you have to pay cash. Also there are five restaurants that are open to the public, but again those aren't included on my plan. 

On Saturdays and Sundays it's up to myself to find food. There are plenty of restaurants and fast food places right in town, and I keep some snacks in my room.

Here are some pictures of the food I eat:

Beef Stew with Vegetables, Mashed Potatoes with Potato Chips

Grilled Salmon, Basmati Rice, Grilled Vegetables, Spinach, Cream Sauce

Beef Short Ribs, Stewed Vegetables, Fried Onions

Sometimes by the end of the week I just want a big bowl of chili, or mac&cheese, or a cheeseburger or pizza. Although this food is really good and gourmet, I miss homemade comfort food for sure!

The Baking & Pastry Program

So here's how the program works(I think, sometimes it's still unclear): Right now I'm in the associates(AOS) program. That takes 21 months to complete with a semester being about 15 weeks long. I'll finish up the first semester of my first year in April, then instead of coming home for summer break like most colleges, I'll start my second semester right away. Then I'll be home for about 3 weeks in July. (Right before my 20th birthday, actually. Surprise welcome home/birthday party? *hint hint*  ;) ) That'll conclude my first year in the program.

Then I'll come back to school for just about 3 weeks in August then go on my externship. Part of the AOS program includes an 18 week externship. We go through a couple seminars on how to write resumes, covers letters, interview skills, etc. Then we pick a place, usually a restaurant/bakery of some sort, apply like you would a normal job, and see if you get hired. Then you must make living arrangements unless provided, and off you go. A lot of people go to very high class, well known, restaurants. Right now I'm thinking of going to Disney World, Charm City Cakes(from the show Ace of Cakes on the FoodNetwork), or working for Godiva Chocolates. Most of the externships are paid, some aren't. I'll keep y'all updated with all my externship stuff as I progress through the semester. It's like a huge deal here.

After extern begins year two which will be roughly 9 months. Much more is expected of you after extern because you have that real-world experience. So after my next two semesters I'll graduate with an associates  degree in Baking & Pastry. From there I can either continue right into the Bachelors program or if possible take time and work. People quite frequently stop after the associates and go back to work where they externed. That's why it's real important to choose a good place.

It's pretty crazy, but that's the just of it I think. Like I said so many different people have told me so many different things, but I think that's how it all plays out.

After Orientation

January 5th was technically my "first" day of class. It was on a Saturday(yup crazy but that happens here occasionally). Really it was just kitchen orientation, meaning we received our tool kits, back packs, and spent some time touring the kitchen(or rather bakeshop for me). 

     Quick sidenote: I skipped out on part of orientation on Thursday to take my dad to the train station. That's how he got home.

It was like Christmas when we got our tool kits. The tools are industry grade with a life time warranty.

They're all labeled with pink and white tape so people know they're mine.

So Saturday at 8:00 pm orientation was finally over. I spent Sunday organizing my room, went to church, ran a couple errands. I didn't have any class on Monday so I started working on homework. 

New Year, New York!

     So on the 1st of the year, my dad and I made the long trek out to New York. We left about 1:30 pm and arrived in Poughkeepsie close to 1 am on Jan.2nd. We took turns driving and napping, plus a few stops for dinner and gas. We spent that night in a hotel. Later then that morning, we got ready and went to go get lunch. I found this sandwich shop using my phone called Rossi's Deli. Let me tell you it is absolutely delicious! My dad and I went back the very next day and then I went back again the following Monday. It's a little family owned Italian deli. their sandwiches are hugeeee and just utterly amazing. Like words can't describe...so anyways we had some time to kill before move in so dad and I went to walk around the Vanderbilt Mansion. It's pretty neat. 

      2:30 rolled around, and there was no more putting it off, t'was time to move in. We parked the car near my building, and started unloading. They checked me in, gave me my room and bathroom keys and a cart to move my stuff. I live in a two-person room with communal bathrooms down the hall. My room mate is a current student who started the culinary program back in October. So her stuff was already moved in. 

Here are some pictures of my room once it was all set up:

Later that evening I had a building meeting with all the RAs (resident assistants) and the RD(resident director). They took us on a quick tour of campus while the parents had a meeting then we had a pizza dinner. I decided I wanted to stay back at the hotel one more night so I packed up some clothes and went back with my dad. We stopped for a quick bite on the way back since he hadn't eaten. 

     The next morning I had to be at registration by 7:30 So my dad dropped me off. Okay, so if I told you every detail about my orientation I'd bore you to tears, or worse you might throw your computer across the room and never read my blog again. It was essentially two straight days of being shuffled around from speaker to speaker while they threw a huge ton of information at us. It probably took a good 24 hours for my mind to sort through and organize everything they said.

Welcome!

Hey, friends!

I have officially joined the Blogging community! As most of you know I have left Michigan and am currently studying at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. So many people have asked about my time here, and I have so many people to keep updated, so I decided I will share all my experiences in one place for everyone to see. But wait! That doesn't mean I won't keep in touch with you individually. I love writing letters and I definitely love receiving them as well...and phone calls, text messages, emails, skype dates, etc. :)

So I'll be posting as often as I can; these first few posts will be backtracking a bit to cover the week I moved in and my first week of classes. But hopefully every post after that will be relatively up to date. There will also be posts about other stuff too, probably. Like recipes I find and/or cool videos, all pertaining to Baking&Pastry or my time here at the CIA. 

If you want my school mailing address feel free to email or call me, as I don't want to post it on this public blog :)

Thanks so much in advance for reading and happy blogging! Weeeeee!