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I have spent most of my working career in retail shops and very hands on with customer service. I was never into cooking or baking and never had much of an artistic side. Though my mother tried to teach me to cook and help me find some happiness in the kitchen, I fought with her the entire way. I never wanted to be stuck in the kitchen for hours on end working on anything that could be gone in moments and I felt as though my time was best used for other things; I had a plan for my future and the kitchen had nothing to do with it.One day, some time towards the end of high school, a cooking show finally caught my attention. There was an angry chef shouting profanities at his brigade as they tried to beat each other out for a grand prize. The beautiful foods that they were making found a crack in my walls against cooking and made me want to try them, even if I had to make them myself! I still never thought of doing it for a career (especially not if I was going to be shouted at by an angry chef), I just had a spark lit for a minor interest to get into the kitchen and try my hand at a few new things. As well, I found myself searching for new cooking shows to see what else I had been missing in the culinary world.For years, that was as far as my interest went: watching shows that highlighted different aspects of food. From where to find the best foods, to "How To " shows, to competitions. The last of which pulled more attention than the rest. I ran across one where they had to make elaborate holiday themed cakes and was mesmerized by the extent that the teams went to! I could not believe that what they were doing was edible! After that, I began hunting for more baking shows just to see the beauty that was this world of desserts.At some point, I found that I had fully fallen in love with the idea of beautiful pastries and cakes full of wonder and artistry and wanted to be a part of it. With this, I found myself applying for a back-up cake decorator position at a large chain grocery store. Upon starting this job, I learned very quickly about how much I didn't know about any of this stuff, but I did have an artistic side after all! I soaked up what they could (or would) teach me and I quickly outgrew those boundaries; I wanted - I needed - more!Learning how to decorate cakes was a hard and arduous task, made only better by my yearning to do the best that I possibly could. I supplemented what the grocery store taught me with classes taught at the craft store. Some of these things helped me in my daily life, but again, it left me wondering what else was out there. After a relatively short amount of time, I felt stuck and stagnant in my education and, although I was trying every new technique I could find online, I needed more still.That is when I found Lake Washington Technical Institute and their Pastry Arts program. I had heard of culinary school and was blown away to find a baking option as well. With everything I had, I jumped head first into this new world. I even asked for less hours at work so I had time to make this new world my whole life. Since starting at this amazing school, I have found that I love to be in the kitchen for hours, making things that will be comsumed in mere moments. Also, I find that the days spent on perfecting a single cake for an event, big or small, is no longer a dreaded task and is happily done.I finished my schooling in the Spring of 2018 with honors and a degree in Baking Arts. I am only two classes from getting my Culinary Arts degree as well, only postponed for a short time as I started a family, and look forward to achieving that degree as well. The world is now my oyster! I know that there is still more to learn and a lot more to practice and I look forward to my unknown future. I love the idea of teaching others and sharing all that I have learned. Now, my favorite thing is when I make something new for someone - or make it better than I did last time - and their faces turn and brighten. Those smiles push me to do more and do better every day. And I aim to do exactly that.