Freshman!!!!

Being a freshman in culinary school is like being any other freshman in college you’re excited and full of energy. Most kids are just excited that their finally out of their house. On the other hand I chose to commute, $8,000 a year for room and board was just a little too much money for me minus that tuition for school is $26,000. So living with my parents wasn’t something I considered bad so I decided to stay with them and be a commuter.

My first day of labs was nerve racking, I remember walking down the hallway with butterflies in my stomach wondering if I would make any friends. I finally found my way to class and entered it and saw kids just like me patiently waiting for the instructor to show up. Some playing with their knives others bragging about how they had already worked in kitchens and that culinary school was going to be a breeze for them. The kids in culinary school boil down to three kinds, the first one that knows what he's doing, the one who thinks he knows what he’s doing, and the one who is just completely lost and has no clue what he is doing. For me it was finding out which category I fell into.

As my first year progressed and we were exposed to cooking, learning classical French techniques, learning about stocks and sauces, it clearly became evident that I was one of those kids who knew what he was doing. Deep down though I felt just as lost as the rest of the kids in my class. I just didn’t show it. In your first year of school you are bombarded with so much knowledge that at times it can become overwhelming. To top that off you are slowly becoming covered with Knicks, cuts and scratches as you become acquainted with using a chef knife. As my first year of culinary school started to come to a finish I knew it was time to find a job, it was time to dip my toes in the water.

 Complete newbie. Notice the oven mit.