Decorate This

When it seems that money is tight, I've always been taught to find a way to make ends meet. Spend less, budget, or get another job.

And that is how I met Dusty. I got another job (one of many extra jobs I've had over the years). I worked at the Sinclair Gas/Car Shop that I could literally see from the window of my apartment every Saturday morning for over 6 years. Dusty also happened to have a second job. Between the two of us, we shared a co-worker: John. That's how we met.

Dusty & John

After the owner of Sinclair passed away, I was in the process of getting married and buying a house and all that jazz, so the extra job seemed to be a thing in the past. I was financially stable with my teaching job and once we bought a house pretty far out of town, I didn't want to drive anywhere for an extra job. Besides, being married and living together is supposed to save money, right?

Well, lately things have gotten tight. So, I spent less. That didn't seem to help much, so I began half-heartedly looked for another job. Finally, a few weeks ago, something caught my eye. A Cake Decorator was needed at a grocery store that I drive past EVERY DAY on the way to and from work. I couldn't ignore it and set up a time to meet for a "hands on" interview. I figured the worst thing that would happen is that I wouldn't cut it and I wouldn't have a second job. I could handle that.

Today, was my "interview." After given a brief tour of the bakery department (also shared with the deli and rotisserie chickens), I was shown a cart of blank cakes and was told to go at it. "Is there a theme you want me to do?" Nope. I just needed to decorate whatever I wanted to decorate to see if I was trainable, creative, or even a possibility.

I had been introduced to the air brush for decorating and figured I'd give that a go. I made a huge smiling sun with a blue air-brushed background. Eh. Once it was done I knew what I'd do differently in the future. On the second cake I decided to use a LOT of color... A little too much color. It almost looked like a gay pride cake with rainbow colors, stars, sprinkles- the works. On the third cake I tried to tone it back a little and make some balloons using the new balloon technique that I had been quickly shown that day. A few balloons turned into a group of balloons- one balloon "blew up" due to an air pocket in the frosting and I tried to salvage it the best that I could. My critical eye told me to try and scrape it off and start over, but that wasn't an option. The lesson I learned today, is that LESS is MORE when it comes to decorating cakes.

Expecting to get a chance to taste one of my decorated cakes, or share them with the store employees, I was shocked to find out where they were going: ON THE SHELVES in the store to be sold. WHAT? "Decorate these" and "decorate these to be sold" are two very different things! But, alas, that's where they are- on the refrigerated shelves waiting for some child to look up and say, I want that color explosion of a cake!

Being prepared to thank her for her time and the opportunity to play with decorating items, she asked if I could come back on Monday to do some sheet cakes. Ohhhh, extended opportunity. Maybe I didn't do so bad afterall. Then she said, "I'll see if we can get you on payroll so you get paid next time." WHAT? I think I just got a second job. I'm pretty sure I did. 10-20 hours a week. I don't even know what the pay is. I don't even know what to think. But, I guess I'm trainable, creative, and possibly a nice addition to their bakery. Sweeeeet! New opportunities are on the horizon!