Part One: My Julie & Julia Moment
When we moved to Chicago I started looking for jobs to continue my career in logistics. With each new job posting I looked at I could see my future more and more clearly: I would end up working at series of jobs that I didn’t actually care about, climbing the corporate ladder of companies that didn’t actually care about me. And in the end I would wonder WHY I wasted so many years doing something that ultimately made me into a pod person.
I didn’t (don’t) want to spend my life working for nothing more than a paycheck. Money is not that important. I mean really, let’s face it; who truly feels fulfilled sitting in a cubicle all day, working for a moron who is clearly less intelligent than a rutabaga and making the Big Boss lots of money? Worse, you have to deal with things like Hawaiian Shirt Day and powdered coffee creamer. Granted, if you are the Big Boss I’m sure life is much more interesting. But for me, and for those of you in similar situations, I could see a very taupe, very bland future.
You know, books and movies always make it seem so EASY to pursue the unconventional path that (of course) ultimately leads to a happy, fulfilled life. Meghan has a Quarter Life Crisis. Meghan feels lost and no longer wants to sell her soul to The Man. In a well-timed epiphany amidst a motivational soundtrack Meghan decides to pursue this crazy idea of completely changing her life. Meghan achieves wild success, proving that all those years of hard work and going against societies’ norms were totally worth it. Meghan lives happily ever after. My life is just like the movies, right???
So, as most of you know, I said “screw it” and signed up for culinary school. Why not? Life is too short for Hawaiian Shirt Days. I really enjoy just about everything in the culinary world and the desire to learn more is what drove me to pursue this path. The best thing about culinary is that you NEVER stop learning. There is always a new technique, fad or point of view to experience.
All that said, I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I started researching culinary schools. I am about to complete my first quarter and have already learned so, so much. And the best part is that I have been showered in nothing but support from my amazing husband, family and friends. I’m thrilled and honored that so many people are so interested in this culinary school experience and supporting me while I take the road less traveled. So I would like to share some interesting tidbits and observations with you. If you like, check them out in Part Two: Culinary School Isn’t What You Think.
I promise there isn’t any heartfelt, movie-of-the-week type stuff in that post.
