public diary number one

taking the bear personally and living to journal about it

[dearnotthebear]

hey! @notthebear here

I thought it would be a fun idea to create a sort of public diary, reflecting on my time working in kitchens and having a story time about how I see The Bear in my daily life.

I’m going to be rewatching the series and episode by episode sharing my perspective on the themes I see.

Just a note to say hello! And thanks for reading along!

[dearnotthebear]

someone took a picture of me and i look atrocious. i thought i was an average sized person? curvy. fine. but? i had an image of myself in my head that had me at at least half the size i photograph. i’ll be spiraling until further notice.

[dearnotthebear]

ive had some major award winners and nominees compliment my work. like …big people. and i was thinking - it’s so crazy because i still just want to be an accountant. like doesn’t that mean anything to hear them call me chef and to hear them compliment my food and my work?? lmfao and then two things happened: i got a raise. and i thought oh no they’re about to work us to the BONE. (im already juggling permanent nerve damage in my feet.) and two: we just got the heads up that we could be working the next two weeks without days off.

and? i’d like to find a little desk job asap i’m sorry

[gaysie]

it takes great bravery to spend my life on shit no one cares about but i do it. i do it

[itssjanedoe]

[dearnotthebear]

if those people from the cruise really are in the u.s. right now, it’s so fucking over

[notlayingroses]

Everything I read about recovering from burnout is like “it takes months or even years to fully recover” and it’s like okay…. I have a weekend before I gotta clock in on Monday

[dearnotthebear]

[cilantrhoes]

[hamletthedane]

GUYS. THIS IS A REAL PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BY A HUMAN. HOLY SHIT.

[oncce-againn]

My alone time is for everyone’s safety

[syring3]

I am in a really weird point in my life if U can't tell

[ofpoetryproseandinspiration]

"We can't operate at a higher level without consistency."

~ Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) in The Bear, season 1, "Hands"; written by Christopher Storer, Sofya Levitsky-Weitz, and Karen Joseph Adcock

[soothenerves]

find myself listening to music i loved years ago and i realize i still am her

[harleyglenn]

I’m thinking of Beginning it all

[dearnotthebear]

I'M WORKING HALF DAYS THIS WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!! 8 HOUR WORK DAYS I'VE MISSED YOU

[dearnotthebear]

I will say, with the news of Rene Redzepi, even as extreme an example as that is of how a kitchen of that stature can run, there will still be people who would want to be there. and a lot of them. noma will always be legendary. i'm willing to bet the sales of their cookbooks is surging right now actually.

because the dream is, even as abusive as Chef Rene can be, even as much of a pressure cooker as that environment is, there are people hoping against all odds that they're so special that none of it matters. the dream is to survive in that environment, to be untouchable because chef sees that you're talented, and special, and they can't help but take you under their wing while others fall by the wayside. there are a ton of wide eyed people at the start of their career, that hope they'll look back and say something like: 'yeah some people got abused, but, not me. i was so special that i survived the biggest and baddest kitchens. and everyone just HAS to recognize what that means about my talent.'

that's how we get half of the major names that we associate with fine dining- they came through those systems and did in fact rise to the top. (read eric ripert's memoir for an excellent example)

and that's where the character of carmy gets carved out- against all odds, someone makes it, and then there's a legion of people who think shit maybe i can too