Funny How Things Change

For so long I thought I was living the best life ever and I was, or so I thought...

I was no longer working and didn't need to. I was having a great time doing just what I wanted, when I wanted to. I created a beautiful flower garden that I tended daily. I put in an amazing vegetable garden that provided food for years. I learned how to cut the grass (even on the hillside - not like Florida!) and how to use a weed-eater (some call a string trimmer?) and how to ride a four-wheeler.

I canned vegetables all summer long and put them up for winter. I harvested deer and learned how to process the meat by myself. I'm proud of that. It wasn't easy nor was I quick at it but I got the job done and had that meat in the freezer for no more than the cost of a bullet.

I learned how to make laundry detergent, homemade soap and eventually learned how to use facebook, to a certain extent.

For six years this was my life.

Then one day, a little message appeared on facebook from my friend Nicole. It said simply, "I have a job for you. Come see me if you're interested."

I've been working at The Pinewood Store and Kitchen since February, 2016.
NOW I'm truly living the best life ever.

In addition to all my other interests, I have this wonderful place to be where the people are absolutely wonderful, the food is beyond delicious and the philosophy is everything I've believed in for a quite some time.

You probably got sick of reading about growing healthy food, eating healthy food, making your body well with good food and above all, getting rid of the junk in your body. No apologies folks, I still feel the same way and this restaurant is the epitome of my rant!

When taking the job, I thought to myself, 'what am I, crazy?' I've never been a server, I've never touched a cash register. I've never rolled silverware, I've never made coffee. I've never used an ipad or a touchscreen 'anything' and yet, here I was.

Those first few weeks were daunting. My feet hurt, they hurt bad. My old hips ached, literally! I doubted myself and I'm pretty sure the boss had her doubts as well. But I hung in there and she believed in me and together we found the hidden stash of possibilities that existed within.

These days I am a server and a pretty darned good one! I use the touchscreen order system and the touchscreen cash register. I roll silverware with the best of them and I even learned how to make coffee!

You know how I love things to be organized, well they just let me go for it here. The pantry, the walk-in cooler, every shelf I can get my hands on - gets organized. It's heaven.

I can't say enough good things about the people I work with. Mee is the fearless leader of the pack and she has motivational skills like no other! The cooks on the line bring to life the prettiest, healthiest, tastiest food I've ever seen or eaten. The servers run marathons taking orders, filling drinks, delivering food and teaching our customers about our food and our philosophy.

The people who perform the task of dish washing have the single hardest job in the restaurant. Rinsing, washing, sanitizing, re-stacking, repeat, repeat, repeat all morning, all afternoon, all evening. Amazing. Think about it, a pile of dirty dishes is actually a sign of success, wow!

There are many hats to be worn here and we get a chance to wear them all at some time or another. We all make pizzas, we all clean tables and sweep floors. We all work at the register and we all wash dishes. We work as a real team and we somehow have a great time doing it. I never have a day where I don't laugh whole heartedly!

One of the first things I heard someone say during my training was this, "if it needs filling, fill it. If you use the last one, stock more." In a restaurant, this couldn't be more true.

To say that our customers love us is an understatement. They come for the whole package. The healthy food, the atmosphere, the friendly staff and feeling that you're right at home here. We have our regulars who keep the wheels rolling and we have new customers who come from near and far.

Our customers are always fascinated with the interior design, they are eager to learn more about the food and when they leave us, they go with a full belly knowing they ate well and were nourished. Nourished not only by the food but by our endearing commitment to healthy eating and feeding the community.

The experience is like no other. Come see us, you'll agree!

"The food you eat can be either the safest and most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison." ~Ann Wigmore