Just when I want to say there's a boring pattern in the Sunday kitchen, circumstances prove me wrong. Who wants a boring pattern, anyway?
Joey's work on his two-times table has not come very far, but I could see that some thought had been put into it. "Next week," he promised.
I'd get disheartened, except "next week" actually comes around once in awhile—you'd think Joey had studied Pavlov's dogs. He's paying attention to the world and knows which continent we live on. Having to think about it before answering is okay.
The 36 sack lunches were underway when Joey announced, almost as a question, that he thought he might make some soup. It was one hour until serving time and the only evidence of a gallon of soup was four little cans of Campbell's that Joey had dug out of the supply box—less than a quart. So I asked him to help with the sandwiches (and open the cans, of course), and I started a huge pot of stone soup. I found two more cans of Campbell's in the supply box, several cans of tomatoes, a can of corn, and some elbow macaroni. After a generous sprinkle of parsley, we declared that it was soup and let it go about the business of simmering. Neither of us thought the soup would serve both crowds, but in the end, there was some left over.
All through this early prep time, Joey complained over and over that he'd just mopped that floor, and it was sticky again. He couldn't find the cause and had decided to just blame his shoes when I stepped into the walk-in cooler and sloshed through a sticky puddle. "Joey! I found it!"
We planned for 16 pre-release folks for lunch, but only four showed up. It is a holiday, and many of them have family they can visit, or who visit them. The whole place was quiet and lonesome.
We did have a larger crowd of homeless, and there wasn't so much food remaining when all was said and done. Happily, there were no children today.
I want to SAY AGAIN, in case anybody missed it: This shelter kitchen NEEDS a functional can opener—a $550 can opener. If you—or anyone you know—can cough one up, please do!
"One" was on duty—always puts a candle on my cake. He wandered back to the kitchen for a cracker, and kept me company while I packed the last two dozen sacks. I warned him, "Be careful what you eat; everything in here has expired, and I'm going to expire soon too."
"Oh, no," he assured me, "you're going to live a long, long time."
"I am? How can you tell?"
"You're a volunteer, and you're cheerful. That adds years to your life. And you don't do drugs or drink."
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Sunday, May 22, 2011
10 POUNDS OF TUNA SALAD
I never know what Joey will be rustling up when I hit the kitchen door on Sundays. Today he was in the process of opening about 20 large cans of tuna. The $550 can opener is still there, and it's still old and dysfunctional. Joey said a man put a new blade on it while I was away in the winter, but the can opener doesn't work any better. It opens half the can, skips a space, then opens most of the rest of the can. We are left with having to use a hand-held opener for the skipped space (and as I said last week, that poor thing is already on its last legs). But 20 cans! I mean: we spent half an hour doing something that should have taken 5 minutes at most! SUGGESTIONS for getting a new $550 can opener welcome!
Joey had floors to mop and potatoes to fry, so I took on the tuna salad. I mixed it in one of those way-deep cooking pots, adding spices, chopped onions, relish, and mayo. Shelter kitchens don't usually have such delicacies as celery, so don't give me any credit for the recipe. Again, the dearth of sharp knives was most irritating!
"One" was minding the door today. He didn't have any new stories for me, but we had time to talk about higher learning.
Speaking of learning, Joey has vaguely familiarized himself with his two-times table. He took his math book to school and left it there so he could work on it when he is there. He says his teacher is pleased that he is working on math. He says he talks about me a lot in class—WHY can I never be a fly on a wall?
C&W—we had that, of course. They played a song about "cheatin'" and Joey allowed as how "back in the day" when that oldie was first recorded, cheatin' was something people hid. He added that nowadays they don't hide it. I think he has cheatin' mixed up with playing the field.
We needed three dozen sack lunches for the fridge. Sometimes I think I might need to be buried with one of those, so they'll recognize me in the next life. And those cookies from Hell that expired last December? They're still giving those out! So I held up a package of them and asked my people, "I'm taking a survey, y'all: Do you like these cookies?"
They do. They like them. The same cookies I spat into the trash can last week...
It was me or the cookies. I opened every pack of those cookies we had and put them in lunch sacks until they were all gone. At least I feel better.
I stayed more than 3 hours. If I could have put on some new legs, I'd probably still be there. Oh! and Joey was asking about piranha today. One said they really don't literally eat people nor were there any in the US. Joey asked where they were, then wanted to know if the Amazon was in Africa. So I told him it was in South America and asked him where is South America. Of course, One was doing his "irritate the teacher" dance, so he had to chime in with the answer, but when I said, "and, Joey, South America is one of the 7 __________," he got it!
Joey had floors to mop and potatoes to fry, so I took on the tuna salad. I mixed it in one of those way-deep cooking pots, adding spices, chopped onions, relish, and mayo. Shelter kitchens don't usually have such delicacies as celery, so don't give me any credit for the recipe. Again, the dearth of sharp knives was most irritating!
"One" was minding the door today. He didn't have any new stories for me, but we had time to talk about higher learning.
Speaking of learning, Joey has vaguely familiarized himself with his two-times table. He took his math book to school and left it there so he could work on it when he is there. He says his teacher is pleased that he is working on math. He says he talks about me a lot in class—WHY can I never be a fly on a wall?
C&W—we had that, of course. They played a song about "cheatin'" and Joey allowed as how "back in the day" when that oldie was first recorded, cheatin' was something people hid. He added that nowadays they don't hide it. I think he has cheatin' mixed up with playing the field.
We needed three dozen sack lunches for the fridge. Sometimes I think I might need to be buried with one of those, so they'll recognize me in the next life. And those cookies from Hell that expired last December? They're still giving those out! So I held up a package of them and asked my people, "I'm taking a survey, y'all: Do you like these cookies?"
They do. They like them. The same cookies I spat into the trash can last week...
It was me or the cookies. I opened every pack of those cookies we had and put them in lunch sacks until they were all gone. At least I feel better.
I stayed more than 3 hours. If I could have put on some new legs, I'd probably still be there. Oh! and Joey was asking about piranha today. One said they really don't literally eat people nor were there any in the US. Joey asked where they were, then wanted to know if the Amazon was in Africa. So I told him it was in South America and asked him where is South America. Of course, One was doing his "irritate the teacher" dance, so he had to chime in with the answer, but when I said, "and, Joey, South America is one of the 7 __________," he got it!
Sunday, May 15, 2011
76 SANDWICHES
Now you know what I did with my first 90 minutes at the shelter kitchen. When I got down to the last five sacks, Joey offered to help me by putting some chips in them—bless his sweet heart. He'd spent most of the morning mopping, so my little sandwiches weren't a big deal by comparison, but one does tire of rote.
We had a crowd today! While the pre-release group was just average, the resident group was larger than usual, and there were FIVE children ranging in age from 1 to 13 years. I hope the children are gone soon—it's really sad when they must live in a shelter for months. You know the older ones are suffering along with their parent(s).
My "favorite" greeted me with a warm hug. He's outward bound! He's working his job and preparing to get back out in the real world—and most impressive, this young man appreciates every single day as if it were perfect in every way. "Every day is beautiful," he says. I hope he takes that with him… I wish I had his attitude…
Joey and I enjoyed our music more than usual today. Because he wasn't using the deep fryer and because the fans and ice maker weren't running, we could hear the music very well. We often ask, "Who's singing that?" And our diners are always anxious to suggest the answer. In the long run, it is Joey who knows celeb names better than the rest of us.
So I started Joey on his times tables today. He's been assigned to recite the two-times table next Sunday. I gave him a little elementary-math workbook and a bag of pennies, and we talked about the assignment several times. I SO hope it's not too late for him to memorize the tables and always "have" them. He is approaching 30, and I don't know when that "learn it young" thing wears off. Do you?
At his present level, Joey must give a lot of thought to "what is 2 times 4?" He thinks and thinks. He gets it, but he must count it out in his mind because he doesn't have it. I tell him that if he'll memorize the tables he'll always have them, the same way that he has "Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall."
I left after 3 hours. Leaving is hard; my legs love it, but my heart wants to stay. I did bring home some concerns, and sadly, they are not new. That kitchen needs a new can opener. I know they cost $550, but come on, people! It's feeding four dozen souls three times a day, seven days a week… and those cookies I tried today—hello!—EW!—those things EXPIRED last December! There's a reason for expiration dates, in spite of what your conservative friends might say.
While we do appreciate donations, shouldn't there be a limit to what is "okay?" I had to spit that cookie into the big trash can. Joey was saying, "Oh, Miss Joy, those aren't good, are they?"
No, they're not good. They're not even tolerable. Worst of all, I put them in a bunch of lunch sacks. It was too late for a recall. Oooh... maybe I should taste-test more of the things I'm sacking up. You think?
We had a crowd today! While the pre-release group was just average, the resident group was larger than usual, and there were FIVE children ranging in age from 1 to 13 years. I hope the children are gone soon—it's really sad when they must live in a shelter for months. You know the older ones are suffering along with their parent(s).
My "favorite" greeted me with a warm hug. He's outward bound! He's working his job and preparing to get back out in the real world—and most impressive, this young man appreciates every single day as if it were perfect in every way. "Every day is beautiful," he says. I hope he takes that with him… I wish I had his attitude…
Joey and I enjoyed our music more than usual today. Because he wasn't using the deep fryer and because the fans and ice maker weren't running, we could hear the music very well. We often ask, "Who's singing that?" And our diners are always anxious to suggest the answer. In the long run, it is Joey who knows celeb names better than the rest of us.
So I started Joey on his times tables today. He's been assigned to recite the two-times table next Sunday. I gave him a little elementary-math workbook and a bag of pennies, and we talked about the assignment several times. I SO hope it's not too late for him to memorize the tables and always "have" them. He is approaching 30, and I don't know when that "learn it young" thing wears off. Do you?
At his present level, Joey must give a lot of thought to "what is 2 times 4?" He thinks and thinks. He gets it, but he must count it out in his mind because he doesn't have it. I tell him that if he'll memorize the tables he'll always have them, the same way that he has "Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall."
I left after 3 hours. Leaving is hard; my legs love it, but my heart wants to stay. I did bring home some concerns, and sadly, they are not new. That kitchen needs a new can opener. I know they cost $550, but come on, people! It's feeding four dozen souls three times a day, seven days a week… and those cookies I tried today—hello!—EW!—those things EXPIRED last December! There's a reason for expiration dates, in spite of what your conservative friends might say.
While we do appreciate donations, shouldn't there be a limit to what is "okay?" I had to spit that cookie into the big trash can. Joey was saying, "Oh, Miss Joy, those aren't good, are they?"
No, they're not good. They're not even tolerable. Worst of all, I put them in a bunch of lunch sacks. It was too late for a recall. Oooh... maybe I should taste-test more of the things I'm sacking up. You think?
Sunday, May 8, 2011
MOTHER's DAY (again)
It's hard to comprehend a full year at the kitchen—even having been away for the winter.
Our pre-release crowd was small today, but the resident crowd was larger than usual. I've no clue why these numbers panned out as they did or what causes them to fluctuate. We might suppose the pre-release have more support from family.
Joey had the beginnings of "the soup" on the stove when I arrived and a dozen cans of vegetables for me to add. "Should we made sandwiches? Maybe we should serve some fruit? What do you think, Miss Joy?"
Our C&W oldies were louder than usual, lunch came together eventually, and I made 25 sack lunches for tomorrow. Missing today was the exuberance over Mother's Day that was there last year. One young fellow called Happy Mother's Day to me on leaving the dining room. There were two small bowls of soup left over (talk about perfect planning), and a punch bowl full of my applesauce/blueberry/sugar & cinnamon concoction. Joey's serving it again tonight, along with pork ribs. There were several inquiries about the upcoming ribs.
Joey and I had literally hours to visit uninterrupted as we worked today. He has questions about Mother's Day, to wit: "Miss Joy, why don't people do as much for Father's Day? It seems to me that Father's Day would come first and be more important." He's given it a lot of thought.
Neither of us understands why this shelter kitchen doesn't have a fully functional can opener. The little one I donated is no longer working. The knives are all dull. I've lost interest in providing more than my willing hands.
Joey begins his end-of-term exams tomorrow. He's been studying poetry this term, and sociology. Next term he'll get geography and math. I took him some little maps I printed from the computer today. One is of the seven continents spread on a globe shape; the other is a world map. I put a red dot where our town is, writing, "you live here," above it. I outlined France in red and put a dot on the town where I spent winter, and I pointed out England (writing "the royal wedding" there), and the English Channel (Joey's heard about people swimming it, so he has a point of reference). Then I showed him Africa, Libya, Egypt and Pakistan, and made little notes on their recent significance. Maybe now he will be able to explore his big poster-size world map, having seen it scaled down and less imposing. I told him that his assignment for next week is to know where he is!
About math: Joey does not know his multiplication tables. Three times five is as foreign to him as calculus. I figure we'll start with the two-times table next week, do one number a week, and work our way up. If only we didn't have all those hungry people interrupting us!
I put together 30 PB&J sacks for the street folks before I left. There were cases of Slim Jims in the pantry, and I made the executive decision to give those things to those who needed them most. I've never actually seen the folks who take those sacks from the bin on the street, but they live outside, and I must assume their food intake is limited in many ways.
Okay. I'm really, really tired, and I'm becoming irritable with my family. Hope your Mother's Day was great. Got nothing to complain about here!
Our pre-release crowd was small today, but the resident crowd was larger than usual. I've no clue why these numbers panned out as they did or what causes them to fluctuate. We might suppose the pre-release have more support from family.
Joey had the beginnings of "the soup" on the stove when I arrived and a dozen cans of vegetables for me to add. "Should we made sandwiches? Maybe we should serve some fruit? What do you think, Miss Joy?"
Our C&W oldies were louder than usual, lunch came together eventually, and I made 25 sack lunches for tomorrow. Missing today was the exuberance over Mother's Day that was there last year. One young fellow called Happy Mother's Day to me on leaving the dining room. There were two small bowls of soup left over (talk about perfect planning), and a punch bowl full of my applesauce/blueberry/sugar & cinnamon concoction. Joey's serving it again tonight, along with pork ribs. There were several inquiries about the upcoming ribs.
Joey and I had literally hours to visit uninterrupted as we worked today. He has questions about Mother's Day, to wit: "Miss Joy, why don't people do as much for Father's Day? It seems to me that Father's Day would come first and be more important." He's given it a lot of thought.
Neither of us understands why this shelter kitchen doesn't have a fully functional can opener. The little one I donated is no longer working. The knives are all dull. I've lost interest in providing more than my willing hands.
Joey begins his end-of-term exams tomorrow. He's been studying poetry this term, and sociology. Next term he'll get geography and math. I took him some little maps I printed from the computer today. One is of the seven continents spread on a globe shape; the other is a world map. I put a red dot where our town is, writing, "you live here," above it. I outlined France in red and put a dot on the town where I spent winter, and I pointed out England (writing "the royal wedding" there), and the English Channel (Joey's heard about people swimming it, so he has a point of reference). Then I showed him Africa, Libya, Egypt and Pakistan, and made little notes on their recent significance. Maybe now he will be able to explore his big poster-size world map, having seen it scaled down and less imposing. I told him that his assignment for next week is to know where he is!
About math: Joey does not know his multiplication tables. Three times five is as foreign to him as calculus. I figure we'll start with the two-times table next week, do one number a week, and work our way up. If only we didn't have all those hungry people interrupting us!
I put together 30 PB&J sacks for the street folks before I left. There were cases of Slim Jims in the pantry, and I made the executive decision to give those things to those who needed them most. I've never actually seen the folks who take those sacks from the bin on the street, but they live outside, and I must assume their food intake is limited in many ways.
Okay. I'm really, really tired, and I'm becoming irritable with my family. Hope your Mother's Day was great. Got nothing to complain about here!
Sunday, May 1, 2011
HONEY, I'M HOME!
Driving into town this morning, Map wondered (as did I) what sort of circumstances I would find at the shelter kitchen—was there still a place for me; would everything be changed?
To my delight, the only things changed were some of the faces (and we wanted those to change because it meant people had found jobs and moved on).
Joey let me in, and what a hug we had! "Welcome back, Miss Joy!"
Within 5 minutes he had named all the people there who told him to tell me "hey" for them, said I had quite a following, and gave me the scoop on school. Guess what? Joey is scheduled to graduate this fall! THIS FALL! As in "by Christmas."
And then he wants to take a theater class at community college! College!
He had a million questions about France. He said he'd been using the globe and world map I gave him for Christmas, but he admitted he doesn't have a clue where France is. He has no concept of what France is. Did we see the Eiffel Tower? Is it really leaning? Do they have towns in France? Did you go to any places where there were poor people? How much does it cost to ride the train?
Maybe Joey needs to bring his world map to the kitchen where we can look at it together.
My special fellow was there, waiting for a huge hug! We've been writing while I was away, and his life is seeing a lot of positive growth.
My life, on the other hand, doesn't seem changed at all. I counted sack lunches in the refrigerator, did the math on what we needed, and set about making 29 more as if I'd just done it yesterday. Joey had our C&W station pumping out the oldies. Other than not having to put away a coat, scarf, and gloves, I never felt the re-entry.
The door-opener girl is pregnant. She came to the kitchen rubbing her belly and talking about hunger. Joey reminded her that she'd been a little sick yesterday, then gave her every piece of motherly advice about her "condition" that he had: "Don't eat anything greasy. Eat some soda crackers. Don't put anything heavy on your stomach. Have some crackers." Somewhere down in that child's soul is a grandmother just doing her job.
Well, my body thinks it's 7:30 p.m., but I expect to be cured of jet lag in another few days. Still, going "to work" this morning was a stretch, but I wouldn't have missed it for the world. I hope you haven't forgotten the kitchen—apparently it's like the poor… it will always be with us.
To my delight, the only things changed were some of the faces (and we wanted those to change because it meant people had found jobs and moved on).
Joey let me in, and what a hug we had! "Welcome back, Miss Joy!"
Within 5 minutes he had named all the people there who told him to tell me "hey" for them, said I had quite a following, and gave me the scoop on school. Guess what? Joey is scheduled to graduate this fall! THIS FALL! As in "by Christmas."
And then he wants to take a theater class at community college! College!
He had a million questions about France. He said he'd been using the globe and world map I gave him for Christmas, but he admitted he doesn't have a clue where France is. He has no concept of what France is. Did we see the Eiffel Tower? Is it really leaning? Do they have towns in France? Did you go to any places where there were poor people? How much does it cost to ride the train?
Maybe Joey needs to bring his world map to the kitchen where we can look at it together.
My special fellow was there, waiting for a huge hug! We've been writing while I was away, and his life is seeing a lot of positive growth.
My life, on the other hand, doesn't seem changed at all. I counted sack lunches in the refrigerator, did the math on what we needed, and set about making 29 more as if I'd just done it yesterday. Joey had our C&W station pumping out the oldies. Other than not having to put away a coat, scarf, and gloves, I never felt the re-entry.
The door-opener girl is pregnant. She came to the kitchen rubbing her belly and talking about hunger. Joey reminded her that she'd been a little sick yesterday, then gave her every piece of motherly advice about her "condition" that he had: "Don't eat anything greasy. Eat some soda crackers. Don't put anything heavy on your stomach. Have some crackers." Somewhere down in that child's soul is a grandmother just doing her job.
Well, my body thinks it's 7:30 p.m., but I expect to be cured of jet lag in another few days. Still, going "to work" this morning was a stretch, but I wouldn't have missed it for the world. I hope you haven't forgotten the kitchen—apparently it's like the poor… it will always be with us.
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