"Lieutenant, you have the conn."
"I have the conn, aye."

"Sonar contact, port bow, range 2000 meters, closing. Enemy submarine."
Oh, crap. "Ensign, send for the Captain."
"Captain is incapacitated, sir."
"Fish in the water!"
"Where's the XO?!"
"Also incapacitated, sir."

Gaaaa!! "Helm, come left, 30 degrees, all ahead full! Launch countermeasures! Sound collision! Brace for impact!"
"It missed, sir!"
Whew!

"Radar contact, starboard bow, 5000 meters, closing. Enemy destroyer."
Great, what else? "Helm, come right, 20 degrees, all ahead full. Forward battery, put a shot across their bow. Ready torpedoes."
"Forward battery has a firing solution."
"Fire at will."
"Contact is moving away, sir."

"What just happened here, Lieutenant?"
"It's under control now, sir. Enemy dropped in to say, 'Hi'."
"Very good, Lieutenant. Carry on."
"Aye, sir. Thank you, sir. Captain has the conn."

¶ 1:03 AM 1 comments

What is it about nighttime fog that fascinates me so?

The peacefulness of the encroaching fog. Enveloping the night in a shroud of mystery. Street lights and headlamps cutting through the dense blindfold. The sense of aloneness, of solitude.

It's like the all-night session in the computer lab, hacking away at some code in a cubicle, completely unaware of one's surroundings, totally immersed in a sea of green letters and numbers and symbols on a black field, suspended in a world of sound comprised only of drum-and-bass mixes. Watching bits fly by on the network wire. Waiting for the compiler to chew through a million lines of code, only to produce a minute speck of a kernel binary image.

It's like driving home from a Friday night football game, still in band uniform. Driving through a sleepy suburb, not a single soul on the road. The city-wide curfew keeps the kids off the streets during the wee hours of the night. The letter jacket is the trophy of three years of toil in the academic trenches, and the colors are worn proudly, but there is no one to admire its bearer.

It's like sitting atop a mountain, the highest peak within 50 miles, overlooking a river that cuts through an affluent neighborhood. To one side the valley opens below, and to the other the city skyline soars high above the rooftops in the distance. Though there are other view-lookers all around, one feels completely alone, at peace with oneself, one's surroundings, and the Earth below. Quietly, thoughts come and go. The Moon and her twinkling entourage make their appearance high overhead.

It's like sneaking into the student center late at night, while the all-nighters use their textbooks and notes for pillows, finding a piano in an empty room at the far corner of the building. Letting the music float up and away from the hammers and strings, wafting gently into the three-story open foyer.

Beneath the night sky, beneath the street lights, beneath the fog, for what seems an eternity, the only thing that exists in the Universe is that which one is.

¶ 11:54 PM 1 comments

I had another one of those crazy dreams last night, but this one was way cooler.

I had this dream that I opened my own French bistro in an old Victorian-style house. Then a former employer (not any employer I've ever had in RealLife™, just a former one in the context of my dream) came in with several people, and sat down at a table. I was apparently very miffed at this guy for some reason.

Me: "What are you doing here? Are you going to order something?"
Him: "No, we just wanted to sit here."
Me: "Then get out."
Him: "What?"
Me: "Get out. As you can see, I'm very busy, and I can't afford to lose a table."
Him: "But--"
Me: "Get out. This is my restaurant, not yours. Get out."

He eventually got up and left with his entourage. I turned around and was very pleased.

¶ 10:34 AM 1 comments

How/Why is it that as soon as the sun goes away and stuff starts falling from the sky, people instantly forget how to drive?

Then again, a lot of people probably didn't know how to drive to begin with....

¶ 11:07 AM 1 comments

I just need to let some steam out.

1. My brand-spanking-new convection oven broke again. This is strike three. If it requires some huge part to be replaced, I'm going to demand we get a different one. And if I could drop kick it without seriously injuring myself, I would.


2. After Tuesday night, everything was out of place and disorganized. I spent a good amount of time today picking up the pieces.


3. And someone threw out my hot chocolate. I drank half of it, put it down to do stuff, then I turned around and it was gone. You can take my hat, and you can take my apron, but you don't mess with my hot chocolate.

Actually, I think I'm most upset about the hot chocolate.

I feel a little better now. Back to making muffins 6 at a time.... <sigh/>

¶ 2:31 PM 1 comments

That went well.

A couple of minor crises in the kitchen, and a couple of minor crises in the dining room, but all in all the dinner was a great success. I was coming up on my 15th hour at work before I finally got the kitchen secured and was able to go home. We had a total of 36 diners, 8 of them whom I know personally. I was very pleased that they could come.

As far as the food goes, everything turned out well, except (in my opinion) the chicken and potatoes. Dry they were. But that's OK. I only heard one complaint of dry chicken, so I assume everyone else loved it. People seemed to really enjoy the salmon, and the cucumber appetizer was well received, especially by one woman in particular, who asked for extra balsamic sauce (used for garnishing the plate), and who I would believe also asked for seconds. The chocolate crème brûlée was a big hit, but I personally think they missed out on the fruit cocktail.

We had a most awesome team working last night. Everyone was doing their job quickly and accurately, and there is no possible way the evening would have worked if any single person slacked off. The kitchen was a madhouse (if you've seen my kitchen you'd understand), but even with 5 of us back there, things ran very smoothly.

This gives me confidence in our ability to cater for weddings in the future. With the proper equipment and facilities, I think our team could easily handle a 150-guest reception.

¶ 12:14 PM 0 comments

Seems the question on everyone's mind is, "How's school?"

Well, I'll tell you. I haven't started classes yet. I haven't enrolled in classes yet. I haven't applied to culinary school yet. And I don't have a housemate yet.

"When???"

Not anytime soon. As it turns out, being head chef is a really tough job, especially since I really have no idea what I'm doing. Which means that until I figure this out, and until we hire more chefs, I'm working a lot of overtime just to keep up with my constantly growing to-do list. It generally leaves about 8 hours for sleeping (which isn't too bad actually), but between work and my other weekly commitments, I don't have a lot of time to myself except for Sunday nights, which I spend doing laundry and watching Grey's Anatomy.

I feel peaceful about not going to school yet, and I feel peaceful about not having a housemate yet. My place for some indeterminate length of time is at the coffee shop.

So there you have it. And that's the way it is.

Now, I have expressed to one close friend that if I turn 30, and I haven't gone to culinary school yet, he has my full permission and blessing to come to my house and kick my sorry bum for being a slacker. I am hereby extending this invitation to all you loyal readers.

¶ 2:16 PM 0 comments

Valentine's Day is in 9 days.

What is Valentine's Day anyway? Some say the modern incarnation was a marketing ploy by greeting card companies. Some link the holiday to pagan fertility festivals. Others trace the tradition all the way back to Ancient times, and all through the rise of the Catholic Church.

I personally believe it was created as a way to make all us single folk feel bad about being single.

But this year is different.

No, I don't have a hot date. This year, I have my kitchen to keep me company. I'm serving a four-course dinner to a lot of people for a pretty good chunk of change. Chicken and fish, chocolate and crème brûlée, strawberries and wine. Selections from French haute cuisine, Provençal classics, and a couple of creations of my own. Guaranteed to have that certain je ne sais pas.

I have my cooking to keep me company. Artistry meets science meets passion. A love affair with food? Yeah, pretty much. And even though I do cook a lot of savory dishes, deep down I'm still a pastry chef.

¶ 1:46 AM 4 comments

Since I left unnamed technology company, I've lost about 15 pounds.

That's all. :-)

¶ 10:29 AM 2 comments