Trisha Vincent
English 11
Ethnography
'10/20/09'
Annual bass tournament
For the past eleven years the restaurant the Back Eddy located in Westport, ma has had a striped bass fishing tournament for the local fisher men to see who can catch the biggest striped bass. I’ve worked at this restaurant for the past six years and this was my sixth fishing tournament that I have worked. Every year the set up is for the most part the same the fisher men have to buy badges the cost per fisher man is forty dollars that includes the chance to enter the weight of a fish they are confident that will make them a winner it also includes a T-shirt that says Back Eddy striped bass tournament 2009 and last it works as a ticket to attend the party that the restaurant throws for all the fisher men. The contestants can start to buy their badges a month in advance, but can’t start bringing in fish to be weighed until the weekend of Columbus Day. The final weigh in which is 2pm on Columbus Day, and is also the day of the party. Because the contestants are mainly the same men that enter every year, my female coworkers joke that men will always wait last minuet, because all month we sell maybe two badges and the week of we sell out. The space is limited only 200 fisher men are able to enter. For the party on Columbus Day we do allow guest passes to be bought for the cost of thirty dollars that only includes entrance and the all you can eat buffet, there is no limit to how many guest passes are to be sold.
The staff at the Back Eddy keeps track of who brought in fish and how much they weighed, if the fish is a weight that the fisher man knows isn't going to make him a winner they can either take it home or donate it to the restaurant and they will use it for the party on Columbus Day. There are five places, first place being the big winner and 500 cash prize a trophy and their name and weight of the winning fish inscribed above the restaurant bar with the previous winners from past years. 2nd place gets a 250 cash prize, 3rd place gets a 150 dollar gift certificate to the restaurant, 4th place gets a 100 dollar gift certificate to the restaurant, and 5th place gets a 50 dollar gift certificate to the restaurant. Fisher men can’t start bringing in fish until Friday at 10am. When you walk down the hall to enter the restaurants main dinning room there is a 15 foot cooler on wheels filled with ice and on the side of it is a scale to weigh the fish. On the other side of the scale is a table with a giant chalk bored that keeps the top five contestants names and weight of their fish there is also a binder on the table that keeps record of every fish that is weighed and left for donation. On the first day of the tournament Friday, October 9, 2009, 500 pounds were recorded, by Columbus Day the final number was 2010 pounds of striped bass. The restaurant is open for the public still during the weekend of fisher men bringing in fish and them laying in the iced down cooler. The cooler is always a big hit with the guest because they aren’t used to going into a restaurant with a cooler full of several 30-40 pound dead fish in it. The guest take pictures next to the fish and everyone insists on poking them, I pass on the poking of the dead slimy fish. Through out the weekend fisher men come walking through the restaurant with all there fishing attire on, big rubber boots that come up to there knees, overalls that are made out of a rain coat material, and their hand slimy and bloody from the fish that they carried in by the gills from the back of their pickup truck in the parking lot to the scale in the restaurant. The fisher man usually hang around the restaurant bar for a little while after they are done checking in their fish and cleaning up themselves in the rest room.
On the day of the final weigh in and the party to announce the winner is always on Columbus Day. The party doesn't start till 3pm and the restaurant is only open for the fisher men and the guest that bought a guest pass. At three there is usually already a line out the door, but they have to be checked in before they are allowed into the restaurant. Being checked in means you have to present your badge or guest pass given to you when you bought it and then your hand gets stamped to let the staff know you have already checked in cause there is more than one entrance to the restaurant, and there are occasions when people do go through another entrance and skipped the check in process.
Immediately at 3 the kitchen starts sending out appetizers for the staff to start passing to all the guests. The appetizers are simply finger foods that don't require much work to eat such as scallops wrapped in bacon, smoked blue fish pate, and bass cakes are throw on a crab cake. We do the passing for about two hours or until people start to turn away the food because they are saving room for the buffet. Around 4:30 the restaurant is completely packed with fisher men with their families and friends. As part of the staff, to get around in there you have to speak up and give a loud excuse me! Its tuff not to get bumped or even worse something spilt on you with all the people. At 5 is when the buffet is up and ready to go. The kitchen staff sets up the buffet in the front window of the open kitchen, the front window is where the servers usually pick up their food on a normal business day. The buffet contains many bass, bass tacos, smoked bass, grilled bass, cornbread stuffed bass, fried bass, and a quite a few sides like mixed vegetables a huge bowl of our house salad, French fries, and a few other things. The manager will ring a huge bell that the restaurant has hanging up as decoration near the bar, to get every ones attention that it is now time to eat. At this time in the party there is no organization, everyone gets up and rushes to the kitchen window located at the front of the restaurant where the fish cooler and giant chalk board are displayed. It takes about half an hour for all the guests to go through the buffet line, once everyone has gone through the kitchen leaves the food in the window in case anyone wants seconds, and only a few ever do go back up. Shortly after everyone has found a seat to eat my manager again rings the bell near the bar to get every ones attention. This time to announce the winner of the top five weigh ins of striped bass. While they are announcing the winners and handing them their prizes the staff tries to buss as much plates and cups as possible to set up a coffee and table. Because the chalk board has been updated everyone knew already that the winning fish was a fifty-three pound striped bass. The second largest fish to win the contest in the past eleven years. Once the announcements are made the guests are welcome to help themselves to the kitchen window again for some coffee and house made chocolate chip cookies. By seven guest start calling it a night and begin clearing out of the restaurant, and by eight o'clock the restaurant is back in its original set up and can’t wait for the 12th annual Back Eddy striped bass fishing tournament.

Disney were I made magic

January 10^th of 2007, my mom, uncle roger, and myself packed my 1998 Chevy Malibu of all my belongings and began our 24 hour drive down to Orlando Florida.

Once we arrived in Orlando we found the closes hotel to my new home. We spent the night in the hotel for some very much needed sleep. The next morning was move in day, and I was extremely nervous, this would be my first time away from home and living on my own, and taking on adult responsibilities. On our way down my new street were rows of identical condominiums all behind a tall cast iron fence. Once we reached the entrance of my gated community called Vista Way, there was a huge banner that read ‘’ Welcome Disney College Program Students of 2007”

In September of 2006 I decided to apply for the Disney college program for the spring semester of 2007. The Disney college program was a paid internship with free classes at the University of WDW, yes Walt Disney world has its own university! The internship also included housing. My job at Walt Disney world was determined by my college major restaurant management. I didn’t know where I would be working until I arrived at orientation, but in my acceptance letter that I received in November I was informed that I would be working in the food services industry. I remember praying from November when I received my letter till orientation in January that my job was not working in an ice cream cart selling chocolate covered Mickey Mouse ice cream bars.

Once I began checking in is when I found out who I’d be living with and where I would be working, and what classes I would be signing up for. The first step in the checking in process was where I’d be living. I was living in a three bedroom apartment with five other female roommates that I’d never met before. The second step in checking in was where I’d be working, luckily not in an ice cream cart. I worked in the MGM studios at a fine dining restaurant call the Hollywood Brown Derby. Were I was a hostess, when I wasn’t shadowing a manager. The last part of my checking in process was to pick out my classes. I chose a different route, where most students were taking credit classes I chose to take certificate classes.

After the check in process was over, I was allowed to start moving into my new apartment. I lived in building F which was in the very back of the gated community apartment number 135 on the first floor. Once inside my first look around was that it was fully furnished and with every appliance possible. There was only one of my roommates in the house at that time. Her name is Stacey Lee and with a little chatting we decided to share a room together. Stacey and I bonded quickly, she was from New Jersey, but went to school in Boston. Our other five roommates were each from a different state and from different cultures which was different and interesting at the same time to see how others live. We all surprisingly got along very well and adapted to each other’s ways of living. Stacey and I were the closes with each other and till this day are best of friends and keep in close contact.

I worked in MGM studios at a five star fine dining restaurant as a hostess. The restaurant was called the Hollywood brown derby a replica of the famous one in California. The restaurant I worked at wasn’t very Disney. It was very fancy and crystal everywhere and not much color. Our costumes were probably the most normal costumes in the whole MGM studios. It was a black dress a white tuxedo shirt and a black bow tie with a black vest, very professional looking. At my restaurant I was the only CP, which in Disney lingo meant college program student. I worked a lot there during spring break I remember working 14hour day for seven days straight, but I didn’t mind working crazy hours because I honestly loved my job and the people I worked with. My favorite shift was 3 till close, cause at three is when the parade was ending so I got to watch all the characters come back stage tearing their heads off because they just walked a good mile in 50lb costumes in 100 degree weather. I learned a lot from this job it made me realize that the hospitality industry is where I belong.

At the University of Disney I chose to take certification course, most of my roommates took credit courses to transfer with them when they went back to their college. The certificates actually helped me when I returned home with school and looking for employment. I took a tips certification class, and bartending class, and a sanitation class. All three of these classes I was required to take in my major of restaurant management but since I took them at the University of WDW I didn’t have to take them once I back at school. These three classes also helped finding a job easier. I was looking for a job in a restaurant, so when a restaurant noticed that I could tend bar and waitress from previous experience. Another requirement for most restaurant jobs handling money was to be tip certified. With my sanitation certificate the board of health requires at least one employee to be sanitation certified. I took one of these classes at 7am before the parks even opened, and took my other two at night. Since my park was never open past 11 it made it accessible to take night classes.

I lived in Disney for 6 months everyday was an adventure and every day I played a role as a character of my own and made a little kid feel like they were really in a magical world. I think about going back every now and then, but I’m not sure a round two could top off what I experienced for the first time. I made a true friend while I was down, I learned how to survive on my own without my mom and dad I learned how to keep track of my finances which I think can be a struggle for any 18 year old, I finally got the hang of it. I also learned from this experience that I really do want to work in the wacky world of tourism and hospitality.

On June 12^th of 2007 my mom and Uncle roger flew down to Orlando Florida, helped me pack my 1998 Chevy Malibu of all my belongings and headed out for out 24hr drive up to Tiverton Rhode Island. I took a big step that will last with me forever.

personal essay ideas??

trying to think of ideas for a personal essay
i thought about writing it on some thing i did over this summer
i thought about writing it on some thing dramatic that happened to me recently
i also wanted to write about my first experience out of the country
but it all came to me when i just recently got an email from my past employer asking how i was doing and when i was coming to visit, yep i had completely forgotten that i worked for Walt Disney world. and it was one of the best experience of my life!