Not so new, but new here

[Letrell]

Been a member for about 5 years; a quiet member. Just entered Culinary School. Not sure how much time I will have to be online, haven't had much time the past few years, but I think it will do me good to at least find the time to read what y'all have to say.

I'm happy to be a member and look forward to being at least a little involved.

 

[vitauta]

hi letrell, welcome to dc, and congrats for finally coming out (of the pantry). best of luck at school. you have exciting and challenging times ahead--work hard and keep your eye on the prize. besides having many knowledgeable cooks here, this is a great place for when you need moral support, encouragement, or just a sympathetic ear....

 

[Addie]

Welcome to DC Letrell and good morning. We all look forward to hearing about the adventure you are embarking on. I hope you are able to be here often and share what you are learning.

Some of our members who are in culinary school sort of use this forum as their daily diary and we really enjoy hearing about it. I hope you choose to do this also. Do stop by often and keep us informed.

 

[Hoot]

Howdy!
Welcome to D.C.!
I wish you every success at culinary school!

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Yeh, I'm both too old, and too broke to attend cullinary school. I often wish I had taken that path in my youth. But electronics has given me a decent enough pay to raise my kids. I just find cooking to be so much more rewarding. I'd like to teach cooking classes. I think that would be the ultimate job.

I ramble as I'm a bit envious of you. I hope you have a great time, and can put your skills to use in a way that enriches your life, and the lives of those you love.

Welcome to DC. You already have friends here. Get to know us by participating. You say you've been a quiet member for five years. So now, let us get to know you.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

 

[Letrell]

Yeh, I'm both too old, and too broke to attend cullinary school. I often wish I had taken that path in my youth. But electronics has given me a decent enough pay to raise my kids. I just find cooking to be so much more rewarding. I'd like to teach cooking classes. I think that would be the ultimate job.

I ramble as I'm a bit envious of you. I hope you have a great time, and can put your skills to use in a way that enriches your life, and the lives of those you love.

Welcome to DC. You already have friends here. Get to know us by participating. You say you've been a quiet member for five years. So now, let us get to know you.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

Oh, Darlin....I'm 55. All those reasons you have for not pursuing the dream were mine. I started having kids in my 30's and in 6 years my youngest goes off to college. I thought about all I gave up to be the good mom and housewife and decided life's too short. So here I go...the granny of the class. Ya know...LOL...I have 40 years experience on those kids. It'll be just fine. You should reconsider it. We only get one shot. Let's make it count.

 

[GotGarlic]

Hi, Letrell. Nice to meet you I started culinary school about a year ago at 49 but had to withdraw because of medical problems. I had a blast the two months I was there, though. Just wish I could have made it to the butchery class

Good luck and I hope you have time to tell us about your adventures

 

[Letrell]

I want to thank all of you for the kind welcome. Had a call today from the .... the.... hmmm.... not sure what to call him. Chef in charge of the culinary program? LOL. He was questioning if I really knew what I was getting into....said it was "like real college". I had to smile. I guess he hadn't looked at my 4.0 gpa that was transferring in..."real college". He was very nice...just wanted to make certain it was what I really wanted to do. I'll be away from home Sunday through Friday (like I'm going to complain?). Dang, it's a vacation for me! I look forward to it.

It's so hard to wrap my thoughts around the fact that it's time for "me", if that makes sense.

It's a nice feeling

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

I want to thank all of you for the kind welcome. Had a call today from the .... the.... hmmm.... not sure what to call him. Chef in charge of the culinary program? LOL. He was questioning if I really knew what I was getting into....said it was "like real college". I had to smile. I guess he hadn't looked at my 4.0 gpa that was transferring in..."real college". He was very nice...just wanted to make certain it was what I really wanted to do. I'll be away from home Sunday through Friday (like I'm going to complain?). Dang, it's a vacation for me! I look forward to it.

It's so hard to wrap my thoughts around the fact that it's time for "me", if that makes sense.

It's a nice feeling

Go get 'em. As you stated earlier, their will be surprises from the younger students who won't have the skills you already have developed. I started on my own B.S. in Electrical engineering, 13 years after graduating high-school, due to 10 years in the U.S Navy. The maturity gained during those years was a definite advantage. Even with a wife and four kids, I was able to complete in four years, something not every unmarried person was able to do. Something about self-discipline, and motivation had much to do with it, I think.

I regularly correspond with a professional chef I know. Sometimes he teaches me something, while much of the time, I'm introducing him to techniques and ideas he is unfamiliar with. Had I the time and resources to do what you are doing, I have no doubt that I would have an huge advantage over new, young students.

Go and learn. It's a great process, and a lot of fun. You will do well.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

 

[Hoot]

Having recently graduated with an AAS (4.0 GPA) at the age of 59, I can attest to the advantages that being an older student brings to the table. It was a great experience and as a matter of fact, I miss going to school. I am certain you will do well, and by all means, enjoy yourself.

 

[GotGarlic]

I want to thank all of you for the kind welcome. Had a call today from the .... the.... hmmm.... not sure what to call him. Chef in charge of the culinary program? LOL. He was questioning if I really knew what I was getting into....said it was "like real college". I had to smile. I guess he hadn't looked at my 4.0 gpa that was transferring in..."real college". He was very nice...just wanted to make certain it was what I really wanted to do. I'll be away from home Sunday through Friday (like I'm going to complain?). Dang, it's a vacation for me! I look forward to it.

It's so hard to wrap my thoughts around the fact that it's time for "me", if that makes sense.

It's a nice feeling

What is the program like? The one I was in had classroom classes twice a week and kitchen (lab) classes twice a week, Mon.-Thurs. and Fridays off. The curriculum was divided into five-week sessions, so every five weeks, we started two new classes. It's a 15-month program for an associate's in culinary arts.

The classroom part was easy for me (I have a BSBA and a certificate in professional writing) and I loved the kitchen classes, but they were physically grueling.

Being a mature student will have another advantage the kids don't have: discretionary income For the tourneed potatoes, I bought a bird's beak paring knife, which makes it easier to cut, and I practiced the knife cuts at home by making lots of soup broth (carrots, onions and celery cut into precise dice, brunoise, batonet, etc.; garlic paste; minced parsley, etc.). The kids mostly couldn't afford to buy these items.

A couple other tips: Add scissors and a ruler to your knife kit and bring a kitchen scale so you don't have to wait to use one.

 

[Addie]

Sounds like you got some excellent advice from Got Garlic.

One more word. There are those people in your life who don't want you to succeed. They are used to having you in one role in life. And that role has always been to serve them. Don't let them stand in your way. Remind yourself that if you were living in another country or another part of this country far away, they would have to solve their own problems. You are out of reach. You know the saying, "Either you are with me or your are not. If you are, lets take this journey together. If you are not, get out of my way." Everyone here is going to be taking that journey with you. (Some with a little bit of silent envy.) Good luck and remember, we are always here for you.

 

[Dawgluver]

What a wonderful opportunity, Letrell! Glad you are now posting amongst us! I'm excited to hear about your experiences!

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I started nursing school at 35, finished in 4 years...best thing I ever did. I do miss cooking, though.

Welcome and like others have said, we enjoy listening about your adventures.

 

[Letrell]

I'm overwhelmed by these bits of wisdom and encouragement. Thank you all so much. Today, I needed them.

The day started out well and went downhill as far as school. Nasty. I had this "feeling" I needed to make sure all was in place.

The school is 100 miles away, over the mountains...snow, SNOW and MORE SNOW during the winter months...usually starts in October. Classes are Mon-Friday, all day each day. They start on the 30th.

So...owing to experience, I called the school and asked where we stood on financial aide (loans). I was told they haven't seen anything yet. I freaked. Well why not? I did it months ago. No clue..we'll call you back. So I get a call back. I had made a mistake and instead of sending for transcripts from former colleges, sent for financial aide....so I am all set at 3 universities...LOL...just not the culinary school. Okay..I can fix that... I made changes and got the email from FAFSA stating all was well.

So the sec'y tells me it will take 8 weeks to get any funding. I nearly passed out. So where do I come up with the initial $4,200? I was not happy at all. She tells me it's okay, I just have to pay for the books and uniforms and the tuition will be paid out of the funding. Well great....who's got $700 for books? I work 11 hours a week at near minimum wage. So, I was stressed. I closed my office door, closed my eyes and yes, a few tears fell. I thought I had come so far...I couldn't let this happen.

Determination kicked in and I am having a garage sale in a few weeks. LOL. Time to clean it out and get rid of it. I asked my boss for a draw on my final check and voila...I get it. It's enough to pay for all the books.

Long and short of it. I have my first mandatory meeting on Monday night, then a week from, I have my final mandatory meeting...we'll get our final syllabus, we have the list of books, we get measured for our chef jackets, get a complete list of everything we need that has not already been mailed to us..then report for class on the 30th at 8am.

I'm excited again. I was ... WAS ... really upset. The lesson here, don't give up. Keep going and it will work out...may take a bit of fenagling, but it will always work out.

I would love to hear more about everyone else on here. What brought you here, why you cook, what you love about it, hate about it, etc. And...am I the only one that thinks Geoffrey Zacharian walks on water?

LOL

Letrell

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I love cooking, but wanted a better paying job for our future, I was just a cook, never a chef. Even in college I picked jobs in the cafeterias at school as my work study. Had a blast. Even taught the cafeteria manager how to do "to order steaks" for the students, we were serving hundreds at each meal.

Now that Shrek and I are much older, our diets have had to change and I don't get as much pleasure from cooking as I used to. I still love to eat though.