Apply yourself

I'm working on the application for culinary school, and the last section involves writing a 150-word essay on why I want to go to culinary school. I have to support each reason with "logical arguments and appropriate examples." WTF are they talking about???? I want to give you my money so I can re-train myself to become a productive member of society and not be on the dole. (That's probably not a good sentence to include, is it?)

So, why do I want to go to culinary school? As many people have said, "it's something I would LOVE to do if I ever won the lottery, etc." Well, I sure as hell did not win the lottery, but I do realize that I am lucky because the opportunity to do something that is sort of dream of myself and other people doesn't roll around all that often.

I've always liked cooking...been doing it since I was about 12 or so...my mother hates cooking, so it was sort of a matter of survival. One cannot live completely on PBJ or bologna sandwiches. A hot dinner is a nice thing. The only things my mother would ever cook were beef stew and baked ham...which was essentially slapping some pineapple rings on a pre-cooked ham and heating it up for Christmas. The stew was throw some meat and a bag of frozen veggies in a slow cooker and let it rip...but it was a hot mea! The woman even made spaghetti with ketchup and garlic salt for heaven's sake. My dad (when he was around--another story, another entry) would grill stuff and make things like pinto beans (yuck when you are 12) or pickled eggs.

It's funny that Mom sort of puts me down for being able to cook and for liking to cook...considering that she likes to eat and eat good food, so it means somebody in this world has to cook, doesn't it? Although, she's got a point that going out to a restaurant means never having to do the dishes. (This is the woman who, when remodeling her house, was not going to put an oven in...she was just going to have a cooktop put in to heat up the occasional can of soup or something. She wasn't going to use the oven, so why put one in? Thankfully, the contractor pointed out that it might affect the resale value if the new owners had to put in an oven.)

She sort of does that backhanded compliment thing about not getting the love of cooking from her, and does it in a way that makes cooking seem like a bad thing. I also think that she thinks I'm not very good at it, but she won't come right out and say so...whatever. I get enough feedback from The Man and other people that I'm pretty secure in being able to turn out an edible meal that most people would enjoy.

I really do think I am adopted...my real parents are searching for me, and when they find me, we're going to live at Disney World.

Okay, I still haven't gotten to the heart of why I want to go to culinary school. I want to go because I want to do something with my life that will make me happy. I feel like I just fell into my previous career path, with no real clue as to what I really wanted to do or be when I grew up. This education will give me the opportunity to control my own destiny, and being a closet control freak, that sounds like a really good idea. I could either work for myself or still have the option to work for another company and let them take care of the paperwork. Plus, I might finally learn how to make decent sugar cookies.