Week 6: Don't be a Chicken.

I'm not going to lie to you, after an intense first month and finals week, I had a bit of a let down. Last week, our first week with chicken and with new groups, was less than smooth and I found myself feeling more easily frustrated and discouraged. I also had my first day when I did not want to go to class and my first case of not being completely (and overly) prepared. I am happy to say that now, halfway into week 7, I'm feeling re-motivated and reengaged. And I still have a perfect attendance, despite my class skipping inclination.

But overall, the first week of chicken went well. I learned two ways to butcher a chicken, was amazed how much cheaper it is to buy whole chickens and even managed to make a decent consomme.

In my first class, in my first group, I felt like more assertive for some reason, often getting to produce the project or item that I wanted. In my new group, which I like just as much, I'm finding myself taking a backseat and filling in where needed. I'm not sure what to think about this as I definitely want to make sure I am learning all I need to learn. But maybe recognizing and filling needs is good at times, too? Trying to find a good balance on that.

The last thing that last week brought was a bunch (not enough in my case) of studying for our ServeSafe test (National Restaurant Association food safety test). We took it this week actually (Tuesday) and due to my super busy weekend and general procrastination, I didn't quite finish reading the book. Our pretests were based mostly on the chapters I had read, so I thought I'd be fine, but after taking the exam last night, I'm feeling a little worried. You only need a 70 to pass, and I'm going to be totally embarrassed if I don't.

It wasn't a perfect week, I guess you could say my "worst" yet, but I'm not going to let myself think that way. I'm back on track, re-motivated and still, weekly if not daily, realizing how incredibly blessed I am to be on this adventure.