Show and Tell

Okay class, little Johnny is going to tell you about his first day at work in the kitchen:
I went to work at 2:00. Nobody was expecting me or knew who I was. The security officer led me to the kitchen. Eventually, they found the man who knows me and was expecting me. He said, "Here is your ID card. Swipe it through the card reader to sign on and off. But I also want you to sign on and off on this sheet of paper in case there are any questions about your hours." Huh?
"Now, let's find a uniform that fits you." Uniform? Wow! I was going to look like a chef! He led me through an unmarked door that led to a stairway which led to a door marked, MEN. Inside was a rack filled with other employees' uniforms. He took someone named ZAHN's jacket and pants off the rack and told me to try them on. I did. They fit. He said, "You can wear these until I order uniforms for you. Just take the jacket home each night and wash it."
I wonder if ZAHN will notice that one of his uniforms is missing?
The MEN's room was lined with lockers, but HR still needs to assign one to me. I folded my street clothes, carried them down to the chef's office and put them on a chair.
We went back to the main kitchen where the day shift was getting ready to leave. The dish washer was a nice lady. She started to tell me about her work station but we were interrupted almost immediately by somebody named Mohammad. Mohammad took over and proceeded to show me around the kitchen and storage rooms. I didn't understand much of what Mohammed was saying because of his strong Arabic accent. By the time he finished giving me a tour, it was time for the day shift to leave. So they left.
There I was, standing alone at the dishwasher station, completely clueless.
By 3:00 the rest of the evening shift had arrived. Four people came to work in the main kitchen (where I work) and three in the restaurant kitchen. The four people in the main kitchen were Marco, Gonzo, Ramon, and Philippe. Marco is from Peru, Gonzo and Ramon from Mexico and Philippe from Cuba. (English ees no their native languish.) Somebody popped in a Mexican music CD, cranked up the volume, and they were off! Shouting and laughing and chopping and cooking and dirtying a lot of pots and pans.
I waited a bit for someone to come over and provide some OJT but it soon became obvious that it wasn't going to happen. So I decided to just start spraying and loading and washing and stacking until I ran out of room or until I broke something. Ole!
Every once-in-awhile someone would stop by and introduce themselves, including waitresses, bar tenders, banquet servers, and the cooks/chefs. Everyone was very nice and the ones who spoke English were ready to answer my questions. I guess that's is how they administer OJT. Ramon and I quickly established a routine where I would hold up something I needed help finding a place for, and he would show me where to put it. It was both silent and efficient.
Periodically, someone would roll in a big cart-full of dirty dishes and pans from somewhere. When Ramon and Philippe saw it, they came over. Without saying a word, they pitched in and helped fill the racks and stack the clean dishes. Together, we made short work of each pile. At that point I began to realize that we were all considered "general kitchen helpers". If something needed to be done, we did it. They have been there longer, obviously, so they spend a large part of their time helping the chefs prepare food. But they also swept the floors, scrubbed the counter tops, and helped me with the dishes. I like that!
By 8:30, the evening's dining activity had ground to a halt. The kitchen was clean and there wasn't much to do.
Marco, the head chef, asked me if I wanted to go home. I said, "Sure!" He turned to Ramon and said, "Ramon! Gobbledegook gobbledegook su casa!"
I grabbed my pile of clothes from the chef's office and went back to the MEN's room to change. On the way out, I swiped my ID card and left.
This morning I remembered that I was supposed to also sign out on the sheet of paper. Dang it.
I'm sure glad I have one day of experience under my belt because tonight they are serving a banquet for 800! Aiy yi yi!