Flying High

I don't fly often, though I am lucky enough to do it more than most. And over the past few years,  I think I almost have the hang of it. I maneuver airports like a pro now. My travel shoes never include laces or clasps (though I am still nutty enough to wear these fierce "don't fuck with me" heels. And I finally began bringing my own freaking food, rather than relying on limp Au Bon Pain or Cinnabon. It occurred to me to finally do this after all of my food magazines ran essentially the same summer travel issue, and I decided to bring a little esoteric SoCal to my favorite SoEast hub. I've packed Cherimoya, an extremely perishable, ridiculously delicious fruit. I had frozen it prior to leaving, but I'm uncertain as to how well it's holding up. Hopefully when I make it to my hotel, I can re-freeze it.

That's the real beauty of cherimoya. It is a lush mix of flavors, all passionfruit, strawberry,  and vanilla custard; no preparation needed. In fact, the best way to eat it is frozen. It is such a delicate fruit, it is rarely seen outside of the areas it is grown in.  And that is why I'm attempting to bring it across the country. I want so bad to share it with my friends and family in Atlanta, it is a really incredible piece of produce! The reactions I anticipate and the 3 airplane bottles of liquor I have already consumed are what is made the tiny obnoxious child kicking my seat for the past 3 hours bearable.

I got stuck in Charlotte, North Carolina, waiting on my flight to Atlanta. It was delayed due to another flight being delayed,  so I managed to squeeze in an $18 (after tip) margarita.  Was it a good margarita? Not particularly. it was overly sweet and thin.  But for the temporary escape from "travel mode", and the fun bartender,  worth it. And I just found out the flight was delayed more. I think it is very safe to say that, while air travel is more convenient time-wise, I would much rather road trip any day. I've already had 5 vivid fantasies of hip checking grandma out of my freaking way, and elbowing small children in the teeth. In all reality, I love children and a select portion of the elderly population. But in all future travel endeavors,  it is probably safer for everyone concerned if I drive. Unless, you know, I pack 20 mini bottles. Those are WONDERFUL attitude adjusters.

Timing is Everything

I got reprimanded today. Just a small thing, but enough to make me feel like an idiot. Last night, I ended my shift believing I had plenty of pickled shrimp to get through tonight's shift. I made a note that none needed to be prepped. At 7pm tonight, I discovered that, while I still had quite a bit of shrimp, I had considerably less than I had last night. So I went to go prepare some mis-en-place (the ingredients necessary to prepare the dish), and asked the chef de cuisine and sous chef if there was more shrimp available to pickle. They shared a, "are you fucking kidding me?" look, and I explained I was prepping more to be on the safe side. The chef de cuisine let me know there was more, and added, "the next time you need shrimp, check yes on your prep sheet." The comment stung, as I hadn't realized lunch cooks were using my shrimp. But I do get why she was frustrated with me- I could have noticed the problem a lot sooner. Great for future reference on my part, though.

Timing has been one of the harder things for me to learn. I have very little patience, that usually bites me in the ass. Especially with relationships- I have yet to have a relationship last over 8 months, and usually sense the impending doom between 4-6 months. The end can be caused by a number of things- me, the boy involved, or outside influences; but I always end it. I know better, and find it easier to dismiss a problem relationship rather than try to change a person. When I think I've fallen in love, I fall for who I think that person is. I'm against trying to change people because I believe that if they truly wanted to change, they would do it. It is not, nor will it ever be, my place to play the mommy-figure in a relationship. So I've ended a lot of relationships.

I've also made the mistake of believing I was in love way before I could actually tell. Nine times out of 10, it wound up being extremely unrequited. Embarrassing, but I got over it. I'm still friends with those crushes, so it's worked out in the long run.

Which brings me to life as I know it these days. J and I have been seeing each other 6 months now. I still adore him, but I haven't told him the 'L' word specifically yet. That's not to say I haven't wanted to, I just choke every time I try. I'm scared I'll get rejected, even though logically, that is fucking dumb. I gotta get my timing right on this. Otherwise, I'm going to be shit out of luck. And shrimp.