Sunday I went into work at the grocery store bakery expecting a quiet day to catch up on making cakes and cream pies. The baker gave me a grim ‘hello’ and our part-time student gave me a wide eyed, ominous look. As I walked toward the hand-washing sink I saw a rack of exploded bread dough. They had over-risen, blown up and dough was dripping all down the rack. It looked like a cartoon.
I started to laugh but the baker came over…..not laughing. I grabbed my cheeks, “HO, ho, oh,no!”
“I couldn’t get in this morning, [employee X] didn’t leave me a key!” She was fit to be tied. I had to chew on my lips to not laugh.
We can’t have our cell phones on the floor but my co-worker often sneaks hers in. I really wanted to go get my phone and take a photo.
“Don’t you dare!” she said, “I’ll kill you! I don’t want anyone to see this!” She feverishly started cleaning it up; worried I would.
I didn’t think it was dying over at the time but I wish I had a photo. I tried to Google it and nothing was even close to the sight of a six-foot rack of exploded breads. I can only hope it will happen again.
She already had a second batch of breads coming out of the oven but they were not risen well. I sliced a rack of breads that felt too doughy and they went into plastic too warm. I helped to get everything out on the floor, nervous that anyone would want pastries that I knew were expired. I sold a five-day old cannelloni; it made me hot flash. I almost said, “no, sir, you don’t want that”
We were just getting it all out when the phone rang. It was our night student she couldn’t come in. The manager asked how late we would stay…… not until 9:00, maybe 6:00 or 7:00. He said, “OK, girls, see what you can do and close the bakery early.”
I still had cakes to make that weren’t even in the display. Our big boss would walk by and look at the empty spaces. I told the baker I had to break off and get my own stuff done. Her shift was over at 2:00 and she was exhausted.
Long story, short. I got the bare necessities done, spaces filled, the student did all the break-outs for the next day, then we both did everything we do on the night shift and closed the bakery at 6:00.
It all went wrong but we rose to the challenge. I still regret not getting my phone and taking a photo of that rack. It was so damn funny!
In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Comedy of Errors (and bonus assignment!).”
I hope I remember tomorrow’s assignment.
Murphy’s Law says, “Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” Write about a time everything did — fiction encouraged here, too!
Bonus assignment: do you keep a notebook next to your bed? Good. Tomorrow morning, jot down the first thought you have upon waking, whether or not it’s coherent.
monicle's chronicles 