'We have a PHD' We are 'Philosophers - a House Mom - and Dad or 'Our College Years'

Well it's now August of 2004 and Ella Mae is cooking at ATO and I am in my second year as the cook at Pi Beta Phi.  I am, however having a difficult time with the 'house mom' who began to work there that previous semester after replacing the live-in grad student I originally started with.  We seem to clash more with every passing day and the fun of this job seems to be fading with each conflict.  I do however continue to work well with Donna who is the 'housekeeper'.  She and I seem to have hit it off immediately and we always try to assist one another whenever needed.  I would always have the radio on and sometimes we could be heard breaking out in song for which the 'girls' must have thought someone was in their final moments of a horrible and agonizing death and those sounds were coming from the kitchen no less!  This association and our occasional laughing spells helped to relieve the stress of the continuing battles, which now seemed to be heading to a 'train wreck' ending.  Meanwhile the positive interaction with the girls was having a calming effect and that was helping to keep me grounded.  When the 'house mom' really got to me, I would only need to walk the few steps out my kitchen door to my understanding and sensible counselor, Ella Mae.  This really allowed me to continue and eventually make it through that 1st year and 1/2.  Thankfully that time was not all limited to this situation and I was really beginning enjoy myself again.  From here on out, I will leave out any names, my purpose is to tell a story and I have no desire to inadvertently harm anyone or abuse any trust.  There was quite the assortment of young ladies residing at Pi Phi.  Most were from the big city of New York and the nearby states of New Jersey, Massachusetts and Connecticut but some from as far away as Washington, California and even Hawaii!   I will say for the most part these girls were here for an education first and party life secondary.  There were future doctors, designers, attorneys, business women and artists in this group.  I felt like a tadpole swimming in the Atlantic.  I had a high school education and was a cook, how inferior was that?  My advantage was I was the one who fed them so this certainly helped me feel needed and necessary to their well being.  Don't get me wrong I always felt at home and my feelings of inferiority were of my own making and the longer I was employed the more that thought completely faded.  These girls were as awesome a bunch as you could pick.  In the next post I will get into some memories that stand out because they and the participants had some effect on me.....My day would begin in the kitchen each morning at about 7 and I would prep for lunch and than dinner.  I was usually their first contact of the day and always tried to smile and inquire about their upcoming agenda. They could be seen scurrying around making toast or a bagel or trying to select from the many cereal choices provided.  I tried to always take them their lunch selection to the dinning room whenever possible, after all this was their home and I wanted them to enjoy this down time.  Lunch could be the always welcomed and comforting toasted cheese sandwich with tomato soup or a grilled portobello mushroom burger with a salad.  Dinner was served buffet style and out at 5 p.m everyday except Friday, when I would make breakfast to order from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m.  The hands down house favorite was chocolate chip pancakes.  Anything chicken worked well for dinner for a while but even that became, enough is enough!  Most all were very appreciative of my menu but there also were some vegans in the mix and I tried my best to satisfy them.  I did quickly learn some creative ways to use tofu.   I would also put a brown bagged lunch together for some of the girls who worked out or interned.  Anyone could request a late plate for any meal for which I would place in the 'fridge' with their name attached.  I also made dessert for every dinner and once again chocolate chips won out, this time in cookies!  Meanwhile the battle was raging with my nemesis about every ridiculous food criticism she could come up with.  She was trying to make this all about her and her desires instead of what the girls wanted and enjoyed.  This continued until the Christmas break and as fate would have it Ella Mae was offered the job to become the new 'house mom'.  It was now apparent that I was not the only one who had been doubting her allegiance to this job.  So mid- January of 2006 EM would technically become my  boss!  She did however give me grace and I pretty much continued doing my own thing.   She now lived in the house that I cooked for, how cool was that....She also retained her cooking duties at ATO.  I had a doorbell installed outside our door so they could always ring EM and we had a board where messages and even some greetings could be left.  The house was equipped with an alarm which was set every weeknight at 11 PM and weekend at 2:30 AM.  There was many a night when someone would either enter or exit without entering the necessary code and EM would be flying down the stairs resetting it.  The sound from this could be heard a block away, it was loud!....Prior to EM being on board into only my first week of my job, I entered my kitchen using my key and since I was not up to speed yet on the alarm or it's workings, I set it off!  The grad student who as I said was the 'house mom' at that time never responded and I was left to my own resources to quiet this raging siren.  I didn't do so well and in my eagerness to quiet this thing I hit a button which now sent a signal that the house was on fire!  So I got to meet the Syracuse Fire Department at the front door, I wasn't sure that they might use hatchets to smash it in otherwise.  To say I was embarrassed was putting it mildly as the entire house was now up whether they liked it or not.  When later I saw the 'house mom' and asked why she did not come to my aid she nonchalantly said, "I had a terrible headache".   Not any less than I and most of the 'house' now were enduring for sure.....More detail about our heart felt life on 'the hill' coming next.....Please return for our continuation of 'Our College Years' or 'When Do We Graduate?'....Thanks to all.....