Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Updates and happenings

Its been a month since my last post. Time flies and I have not come here with a post in my head several times a week. Infact for a brief while I forgot about this blog completely. 

Life has a way of taking over when you feel you can't even move. The momentum of things in general will push you forward and compel you to go through the motions. I went through a few weeks of utter immobility. And gradually, without even my noticing, tasks piled up and I just had to come back to my reality. Dog had to be walked, fed and taken care of, meals had to be cooked, baths had to be taken, classes had to be taught and bills had to be paid. 

A couple of things happened that shook me hard and real! Forced me out of my stupor. A messed up order, which I had planned for, but on the wrong date. Lounging one morning after a particularly hectic weekend of classes, I pondered over doing half the work for the order which was due the next day. Telling myself that I deserved the slow lane for a bit more, I lounged some more. A casual call at lunch time to the client and a bomb was dropped on me. She wanted the order of 400 cupcakes on monday and not tuesday that was mentioned earlier. We had somehow, mixed the "days" up! And what was more, the order was needed at 4 pm, it was 1 pm when I called her. I initially told her to cancel, that there was no way I could finish baking, frosting and packing 400 cupcakes and reach them to the venue by 4 pm. The client told me she had no other back up plans and I had to wing what I could. 

After 15 minutes of cold sweat and panic, I rushed into action mode. Bungled my sleeping dog into the car, I instructed Amma to finish her lunch and come to the studio to help. Made an SOS to a baker friend, and called for our driver from K's office. Together, with me baking, amma assembling the packing boxes, my friend S frosting and the driver generally doing what was asked of him, with the timer sounding like a death knell, we managed to bake, frost and pack 400 cupcakes by 4. We got them delivered by 4.30 and then finally I breathed easy.

Why am I recording this story? I am firstly not proud of what I did. I need to have a more effective system of tracking my work. What I am proud of is working my way through this problem. Finding a solution and not shutting my brains down was the plus for me. A few years ago, a crisis, however big or small would make me shut down completely and not needing to be rescued.

That reinforcement was the biggest gain for me. That i can face a problem head on, even if it is self created, work through it and try and find a solution.

At the end of the day, I did two things, began updating my work immediately as it came in on the phone reminder, and painted one of the walls in my home kitchen with black board paint to write down assignments.