The Six P's

OK. ... I have been a little too laid back on these posts for too long. Well no longer. Now I am about to drop some info that I have known for sometime. What I am about to tell you is so simple, so well thought out, so user friendly, you may wonder why I have not given this information sooner. Was I holding out? Maybe I did not think you would be ready for this mind-blowing information. Did I hope some would figure it out for themselves? C'mon, who am I kidding. Do I reserve some shred of fair-play or think that this, in some form or fashion, is common sense. Again, I could keep this monologue up all day, but none of this is quite true.
I have held myself to the Six P's since college, when a Chef I worked for, Chef Ron, thank you very much, taught them to me. And over time I have pulled the S.P's out of the proverbial pocket to use as a teaching tool, and only in a teaching atmosphere does this come into play. Perhaps because that is how it was taught to me; perhaps it was something that is so ingrained into my very work ethic, I forget that maybe everyone else I am surrounded by, doesn't understand the very idiosyncrasies that make up its complex simplicity. Huh?
AAAANNNYYYYWWWWAAY.....
The Six P's. I will put them into verbal form, written here for all to read. If upon reading them, you find that they could be of no use, no matter what career, lifestyle, work place, pleasure procedures, you name it, then tell me how they are wrong.
The Six P's: Proper Planning, Prevents Piss Poor Performance. See, told ya it was simple.
Proper: to be true. Right, and expected
Planning: the act of being, or the honest attempt, at being proactive
Prevents: the process of stopping some act, or happening
Piss: slang : body liquid, most often used as a body of a punch line ie "I wouldn't piss down you back, if your butt was on fire". Or less than pure.
Poor: not rich, either in character, life, friendship, etc...
Performance: what ones work can be measured by.
With me so far. Good.
So taking into account the previous gospel, now put that into some perspective in the day to day life you lead now. Surely someone in your circle of work, play or other, has fallen short in some way or other, by not following this simple phrase to a T. Go on think about it.
Whether its a retail store, gas station, sports team, restaurant, grocery store, or enter item here. Hasn't their been a time when you witness something and your just like, "Idiot! How could you not have prevented that? How could you not have seen that coming? How could you not have prepped that? Bought that? Scheduled them? Cooked that? Fixed that? Anything other than standing their with that stargazing look of stupidity on your face. It would have been better had you not got out of bed, and laid around in your stained undies instead, then allow me to bear witness to your unworthiness!
Why such hostility you may ask? Well, are you asking?
OK, since you obviously want to know. I mentioned a couple of entries ago, that I work with some intellectually challenged individuals. The one who will get my angst today is the Kitchen Manager where I work. I have tried to be patient, I have tried to drop casual hints here and there. I have even attempted to push this individual into a direction where the percentage of success could almost be assured. But apparently the thickness of ones skull, is harder that the verbal pressure that I have applied.
Case 1: Saturday night, I close, run kitchen, sell the food, yada yada yada. I peruse the prep available to me for the night. I find that I am short in a number of areas. I ask him where this product is? His reply is the ol', " Did such and such not prep it?" Uh, were you not awake today? Wouldn't it be your job to ensure that the prep necessary for today's dining festivities to be done, properly, which would ultimately prevent any piss poor performance by this kitchen, and ultimately the restaurant, should we fall short in taking care of our patrons? Would that not be the Plan? See how that worked? Simple really. No thank you. No really.
Case 2: Tuesday morning. I open said kitchen. I have no dishwasher, nor do I have a bread maker. No dishwasher. Bread maker? you mean the individual who single-handidly controls whether or not we serve our hot, delicious yeast rolls to the hordes of people who come from Mooresville, to Hickory, Winston-Salem, and Wilksboro to enjoy there sweet Buttery goodness? The Dishwasher who ensures we have sanitary, clean dishes, silverware, and storage containers to serve up the tasty dishes on a person by person basis? How can this be. The schedule is done a week in advance. You were there 80% of the days leading up to this particular day when two of the most influential people in the kitchen are not present. Mistake? I think not. Scheduling staf-fu? Definitely. Total and complete lack of frontal lobe thinking, that results in numerous others suffering, due to the inability of one person making sure that all the i's are dotted and T's crossed. BINGO! And its no big deal. "I'm off today, so give him a call, to see where he is at. No the regular dishwasher is "On vacation" I asked Humberto to come in today. No I didn't write it down on the schedule, no I didn't leave it in the managers log, no I did not leave a paper trail to ensure that this would not, could not happen." "The bread lady, oh she's at court today, she will be here later on." (Never showed)
Case 3: Saturday night: I am in the dining room. Kitchen is running like a un-well greased machine. No direction being given by the KM. No audibles, in or out, of the pocket. No control. The kitchen is running him not the other way around. Result= Long ticket times, yours truly spends most of his time, putting out fires with dissatisfied guests as to why their food is late, steaks are burnt (literally) yet still served, or where their appetizer is. Not doing pleasant table checks, or chatting it up with guests. Just, "Run Forrest, Run".
Now, am I over-reacting? Put yourself in a similar situation, and now ask that question. It happens everyday, in every walk of life. It has happened to you, and countless others, and will happen again. That is why I live by this creed, the Six P's. To lessen, or avoid altogether this from ever happening to me. It happens, but by simply involving some planning is better than none.
I hope that I have touched some of you with this post. All four of you. If their are more, please forgive me, I have not had the pleasure of "meeting" you. I have not the following that Dhazy or Bhazy have. I am simply....here. Any and all responses to this are welcome. Perhaps you have a little "Sweetheart" that you use, and would like to share.
Until my next rant...
~R

September - a helluva month

So September is always a busy month for me it seems. First, it means the coming of my birthday...9/11/1975, yep, 9/11. After that day, obviously things changed, at one point I even considered not celebrating my birthday on 9/11 just so we could focus on that day and not my birthday. Then I realized that what happened that day strengthened this country, gave us a re-focus towards what we need to be watching for, and it was bad, but was, in its own way, good. So I got over the not celebrating bit, and although, I still don't feel like I used to about my Bday, I at least observe it and respect it. Also in Sept, there is another Bday that is important to me, and that is the Bday of my little nephew, KHazy. This little firecracker, is an absolute trip, and he is a little power house of love. His smile is infectious, his lung capacity for belting out a good scream is impressive, and like all Hazy men, he is quite strong for a little person.
The birthday party was a great time.
I got to meet the newest member of the Charlotte branch of Hazys', GHazy. When it comes to dogs, I have always had a close relationship with dogs. Had them all growing up, in college, after college, everywhere I go, I am always making friends with dogs. Now, that doesn't mean that I walk into every situation thinking that I am automatically going to become best buds with any dog I meet, but I definitely believe that if you act like you are afraid of dogs, think that you are afraid of dogs, and really are afraid of dogs, then the dog in question will be able to tell and will react appropriately. Its one thing to be wary of dog(s), and another to be afraid of dogs. Enter GHazy. Now I knew that she was a Rottie, but I didn't have any idea how big a Rottie she was. As I saw her sitting/laying on the ground, I was impressed on how big yet beautiful she was. Having to acknowledge her almost first, since anyone, not known, showing up, could find themselves under most severe scrutiny. So I made a B-line for her, so that I could let her smell me, acknowledge me as a "no Threat" and move on. And I would advise anyone, who is semi-afraid of dogs, to think about that. Greet the dog, let the dog smell you, pet the dog, and you are done. I had a great time petting and loving on GHazy. I was very close to having her role over for more direct tummy rubbing time. Next time GHazy, next time.
And as everyone knows, Football begins in September. Usually right around my BDay. Usually my younger brother KSHazy offers the opportunity to take me to a game, which he did, but I could not go, but plan on taking him up on it in the future. Wedding season is still in effect during September, and not to mention the finale of Top Chef, the beginning of a new season of HEROES, and the getting ready for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.
So as I begin to focus on my fantasy football league, you may begin to see less of me or more of me, it all depends on how well I am doing. But as I stated in a earlier post, I will still try and post.
~R

Soooooo, was I in rare form?, I even embrassed myself

So I got to meet my mothers new squeeze a week ago, this past Sunday. (again the tirades of me not doing this more often can begin now) Mike is a really good sport. And I say this because of a couple things...
1) He was put in a situation, somewhat aware of what he was about to face, but not really knowing until it happens.( think, you have to speak to somebody about something that you really don't want to discuss, but you have to, because you have to. example...firing somebody, telling a loved one you have anal leakage, that you experimented in college and it wasn't with drugs...) you get the idea.
2) He did it with dignity, courage, and finally CLASS. I can be a real sarcastic a$$ when I want to be. Whats that? Aww you know its true. But I appreciate you protecting my feelings. I found myself, trying to simply get information, but it ended up a lot different than that. (Spanish inquisition meets Meet the Parents/Fockers)
3) Now I said that my mom told ol Mike that I was probably going to try and embarrass him, and I think I succeeded in that by making him uncomfortable. And that's where the story really takes off.
After our meeting, I started to think: Man he was really a nice guy. He answered all my questions, without getting offended, he even started to joke around as I was asking the questions. Now a normal individual would have probably backed off a little, but not me. He even bought the entire meal we had, and boy did I feel like a jacka$$. I spent the rest of the day/night, and the better part of the week, thinking how much I could have ruined the day had I kept on going. I mean, if the boys Khazy(shout out to you my dog) and Hhazy(you my boy!!) hadn't needed to go beddybye, then their is no telling how far I would have gone.
All said and done, I am truly glad that Mike was a good sport, because I would have felt absolutely terrible had I scared him off. So Mike if you read this, I am sorry again if I offended you, or made you overly uncomfortable at our first meeting. Thank you for dinner, and I truly look forward to seeing you again in the future. Mom, well I am sorry a little bit for what I did, but hey, you admitted that I was going to do it, so since you expected it, then I can't really be blamed by you that much. But much, much love.
Now that I have gotten that out of the way, I can move on to other pressing matters....
So I work with idiots. Huh? Didn't see that coming? Well let me tell you. I work with a great GM. And I truly mean that. He's got a temper, but overall, his focus is on the prize, A well run restaurant. We are beginning a ying/yang relationship, which is beneficial for everyone. But the rest of the yahoos, well, lets just say that sometimes its hit or miss. Personally, if I am a manager in a restaurant, the last thing I would want to do, is stick around after my shift and get Poop-faced in the bar. I mean even after we have closed, still there. To me, it kind of defeats what you are trying to accomplish. That's one of them. Another likes to bring her children there when they are out of school and let them terrorize the place by making a mess all over the place. Yet another is a pot head, and I found this out while I was in training, and he liked to stay locked up in his room, getting smoked out. And finally, the KM is a fella that does not understand food, does not understand ordering, and does not understand how to run a line. All very frustrating things for me. But I keep my comment s to myself, and the staff sees these things, but I am behind my team 100%.
When coming from my background, and moving to a different restaurant, there are going to be subtle differences, but some things you can't ignore. Instead of smoking a cigarette, run some food, seat some guests, manage, anything!! But then again, maybe I am expecting too much from these folks, I mean I live where I live, and the workforce pool is a little shallow.
Finally, I would like to leave you with one thought. If you have a high bar cost (all your purchases for beer, liquor, wine - all bar stuff sold = bar cost) and you have managers that like to stay behind late, after the place is closed, don't you think there is a good chance that something fishy is going on. What do you think? The beer is just evaporating. Please!! And no one thinks its happening.