Oh my oh my oh my

I just finished hell week as it is called on this ship. what's that you ask, well they fill the ship . This time with 38 persons at one time. Teachers, scientists and the crew. 3 meals a day and all the scientists and teachers eat every meal. I am telling you that was a hard week. lets do breakfast for example. Six dozen scrambled eggs. 2 full sheet pans of bacon, full sheet pan of sausage, grits, oatmeal, ham, juices, fruit. every day for a week
lunch and dinner were just as full. ad salad bar to top it all off. I had to buy cheesecake and chocolate torts because I don't have the room to bake anything tat week. it was a true test for the crew and for me.
The a few days of just 18 on board, then tomorrow I get 15 scientists for 4 mre days. they say this is the hardest month, now I know why.

till next time
May you eggs never curdle and your meat always be fresh

4th of July

Well it's the 4th and we are in Cleveland, we are waiting till Friday to leave for Lake Ontario 

One thing I haven't covered in my blog is dealing with co workers on ship. As head chef you will supervise at least one person. Working and supervising others isent easy all the time. You have to work with them 24/7 and if there is a problem you have to deal with it. Sometimes you can just have a talk or correction and its all done. Sometimes you will have to take more action such as writing the person up and then you have to deal with the whiplash of reporting someone. If they are not in a union you might be able to dismiss the person with out much problem. But if they are in a union that problem is multiplied because it will take more than one write up unless there is violence involved. 

So if it take more than one report you will have to deal with that persons anger and resentment. Now hopefully they will come around and it will all be great. If not be prepared for a month or more of aggravation.

Another thing to deal with is depression, it effects everyone in some way or another. You have to find ways to work it out, some exercise, some pray some keep it bottled up till shore time and then drink. However you deal with it, it will have to be done.

Well to next time may your meat never get freezer burn and your crust always flake 

Time goes by

It's near the end of June and we are heading to Cleveland for a few days. We will do a couple days of surveys on Lake Erie and then a break for the holiday.

Then comes a very busy week, we have a full load of scientist on board. Somewhere around 35 to 39 persons for every meal. It's going to be very busy in my galley. Remember I have a 2 burner stove, griddle and one oven. Planning the menu this week. 

I wish I could get more of my alumni to go to the lakes. The pay and insurance is worth it and helps pay those pesky student loans back.

I still love the job, serving others is a great occupation and when you get tat pat on the  back now and then it feels great

Well till next time

May your meringue always stay risen and your rice never stick

Time off

Hello all, as I write tis I'm home! On this ship I am allowed to set my own relief setup. So I was lucky enough to have a great friend and chef called Craig Sweeny to be my relief. He came on about a week ago in rochester ny. He is qualified and very good at what he does. I am very happy he is able to do this because everyone needs time off the ship to be home with loved ones. After all the reason we do this job is to support our loved ones and we need to be with them too. 

He will be on 2 weeks at a time and also will relive the second cook. Good for him and good for me. I really appreciate him doing this.

Till next time

May your pork always be moist and your fish always flake

What does unlimited budget mean, and what can you do with it.

I remember back in GLCI my first culinary class was menu planning with Chef Lucy House.
Part of that class was "building a restaurant" from the ground up. I asked Chef what the budget would be, and she said it dident matter, but in the real world that won't happen.

Fast forward to now, the budget for food here is very large, I can get almost anything I want except alcohol. So with that in mind what ideas would you come up with for menu ideas.
Mind you I have a 2 burner stove, a flat top griddle and 1 oven. Each meal Must have two entrees one of most be a meat and hot. Plus two veggies and a starch.

So I'm asking for your ideas, wishes or thoughts.

Till next time
May your eggs never spoil and your gravy never clump

Big changes

Well I've been onboard the R/V Lake guardian for about two weeks.
Such a big change from the freighters, much more movement, she's only 180' long. So we feel the seas more. But we also take refuge more because if the seas are to big the scientists can't do there work. Smaller crew but also scientist come and go so complement changes more.
Some things are the same, must have a menu plan. At least for me, going into the freezer each day and winging it, doesn't work. I want a plan to follow.
Now when I've been here for a month I can start a standard menu with changes without a problem. That will be nice to.
Food suplies is something different to, I have gone to local stores twice so get suplies. Because the was not a gfs nearby. That's ok, just not what I'm used to. Now when we reach our home port I will get food deliveries.
It's a learning curve, but isent this job always a learning experience? At least for me it is.

Till next time
May your sugar never clump and your pasta never stick

At sea

I received a call again, I'm the head cook in the R/V Lake Guardian. 180 science vessel.
Interesting boat, run b the EPA, have a 14 member crew and varied amount of scientist on board.
The great part is the food budget, it's is real high. I can order really good foods and not bust the budget. Still learning the boat and crew but seems like a good job.

Till next time
May your steak never burn and your milk always stay fresh

Tragedy

Sorry for the long time in between posts. My father was murdered in a attack , on January 27th, though he dident pass away till Feb 7th. So at the present time I'm not working and trying to see what path I should take now.

If you want to find out what happened follow the link.

http://www.freep.com/article/20130209/NEWS04/302090050/Chesterfield-Township-retiree-80-dies-after-beating-by-patient-at-Warren-facility?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE%7Cs

End of season 2

Well to continue my last post,I would like to say that this life is not for everybody. It is very hard at times. Time away from loved ones, time missed that you can't get back, also when things at home happen you can't be there to help. Emergencies happen, and the companies will get you home as soon as they can, but it might be a few days. Also as the cook you are friend, consular, beating post, and moral helper. All this comes with the job. One day a crew member might bite your head off for his eggs being to soft and the next telling you his feelings of loneliness for his wife. You have to be able to handle this with all the other job duties.

It isn't always easy or even fun, but if you have passion for food and care for your crew it can be a great time. Some of the things you see and experience can only happen at sea. I would like to be able to bring others on and have them experience it.

Now on to my next quest, looking for work in between layup and next season, I'm just a relief so I don't have a call back date. I'm going to look for work in the gulf and see what comes out of it.

Something else to know, you are the gatekeeper of "good things" the crew will ask you for many things not food related. Try your best to get what they need. I'm not saying you have to buy them but talk to the others on the ship that may have them, be a go between. I always have cold meds and aspirin on hand, band aids and candy. By having these things I can better serve my crew.

Next post ill try to list the duties and jobs as chef on a ship

Till next time, may your wine never spoil and your cookies always spread.

End of season, thoughts and impressions.

Well as I said before, the ship is docked at its layup berth and the deck crew has just left the ship for the season. They spent 2 days getting all thier work done and are on the way to thier homes.
The engineers have a lot more work to do. They have to drain all the water from pipes and the engines have to be prepped for the winter.
Remember the ship is all steel and that steel is sitting in freezing cold water, so any water or freezable liquids must me removed or flushed from the systems.

As for the galley we have to do a complete cleaning and remove all food left over before we leave. That means every surface outside and inside including cabinets and coolers must be cleaned. But we also must still feed the remaining crew till they are done. The whole process takes between 10 and 14 days.

It has been such a experience this year for me, learning how to cook for a crew and trying to convert my book knowledge to practical use. At first it was a daunting task, it was a shock to the system going from a restaurant to a ship.

Doing all your own prep and also all the cooking, including deserts and cookies, it wasn't easy at first. I made my share of mistakes and foul-ups. But I started to get the hang of it.

I think I'll continue this post in a few days, it takes time to really consolidate all the experiences and happenings so they make sense.

So till next time
May your cookie never crumble and your chocolate never seize.

Layup time is here

Well the ships are heading on their last runs and heading to the layup berths all around the lakes.
It's time to let the ice rule the lakes for a few months.
My ship just docked at its berth last night, and I will write more about this process and my life at sea these last few months in a day or so.