Graduated

For those of you have been wondering the burning question, did I graduate? The answer is a big fat YES! There will be no photo shoot of me walking across a stage though. To some people's dismay, I am not walking for this degree for many reasons. First, they have graduation scheduled on Passover, first day Passover. Now I know I am a gray-area Jew, sometimes I feel I am right when a rabbi might say I am in the wrong, but I do like to observe Pesach with my family and community. I actually had to fight Sullivan to get my diploma and honors mailed, even for a federally recognized religious holiday. Guess that's what I get for living in the south. Second I already walked for a really big degree in my life, my BFA from UC. I still don't know why, as valuable as my pastry degree is to me, walking for it didn't have the same spark that walking for my fine arts degree meant. I never believed I could graduate from college, that I was supposed to be part of this sea of people that will always attend classes, but never graduate. The amount of confidence I found in myself after completing college is awe-inspiring. Now that I know I can conquer a prestigious art school, I could take on the world. Making the same deal out of this degree felt like a mockery. I know who I am and who I want to be, this isn't discovering something about myself, its more of a logical step forward to become the best I can be in my industry.

A week before my schooling formally ended, I had two job offers. I now work full time at the Comfy Cow's main kitchen. All of their ice creams are made mostly from organic ingredients, and the bases, and bits added are all made from scratch. I work mostly on the bakery side, but am crossed-trained to make the ice cream too. It's very different from what I have been accustomed to when it come's to food industry related occupations. Instead of making what you need according to a customer's order, its bigger. You are taking stores orders, groceries orders, and so on. Comfy Cow challenges my skills and will help me grow as a pastry chef.

Please check out my portfolio: http://mariambeloff.wix.com/showcase-portfolio