Big Kitchen calling...

Those words are music to my ears, especially on a Friday afternoon.

Let me share with you one of the many joys of working for the company I do. On the other side of my cubicle wall, there live two professional chefs. In the basement right below my cubicle, there lives a big kitchen. On really, really happy days, the two get together.

So on mornings like today when I wake up late, forget breakfast, stumble into the office without my first cup of coffee and then realize I forgot to put socks on, a call from Big Kitchen is truly a blessing. The afternoon went something like this:

At 1:30 my tummy was grumbling, but I had become completely engulfed in digging through our writing archives to find the perfect stories to include in an upcoming publication. I got completely sucked in. I could get lost reading our archives for days. Seriously, check it out.

My phone rings. Caller ID reads "Big Kitchen." Hhmmmmm... I wonder who's down in the basement and wants to talk to me?

"Hello, this is Laura."

"Hello, Laura, This is Big Kitchen calling."

"Well, hello Big Kitchen. What's going on down there?"

"I'm cookin'. Wanna sandwich?"

"YES."

Aren't inter-company calls enthralling?

Chef Michael made me a Certified Angus Beef® Philly cheese steak sandwich. He popped it in this enormous toaster oven they call the salamander. I don't know why they call it that, but this baby could broil a steel post in about two seconds. 

Luckily, it also perfectly toasts steak sandwiches: 

I found this apple in my drawer and thought it would make my little desk-side meal look more complete and healthy. I was pretty sure it had only been in there a few days.

Unfortunately, an apple didn't really sound that appetizing with a tender, juicy steak sandwich. The vending machine downstairs had a much better option:

Life was looking up. With a full belly and renewed strength, things were really hummin' along on my Friday afternoon.

A couple hours later, Ms. M took it to a whole new level. She poked her head around the cubicle wall. "Pssstt. We're making a DQ run. It's almost spring, you know." It snowed this morning, but we're really trying hard to pretend like that didn't happen.

Chocolate cookie dough + Health bar blizzard = summertime in my dreams:

Oh, and that apple I had such good intentions of eating? I ended up using it for more of a stress ball for the rest of the afternoon as I mulled over new story ideas.

Turns out, you can all but smash up some apple sauce without breaking the skin on a hearty, desk-cured Gala apple.

Yes, that is complete mush under the skin. Weird, I know.

Are you wondering what the point of today's post is yet?

Quite frankly, there isn't one. I was just really pleased with how a bad morning turned into a fine afternoon, thanks to one little phone call from "Big Kitchen."