Happy Anniversary To ME.

Today is my work anniversary! I started working at Byler's in 2001, while I was still working in the 13th circle of hell (Sam's Club). The only other place I've worked as long was for my dad, which was 9 years and 4 months.

The bakery actually opened the day I started working there. The store was expanded in August I think, but the bakery wasn't finished until November. We opened on the Monday before Thanksgiving, which I really tried to talk them out of. We had what seemed like a huge space back then, and it was me, my supervisor, her husband, and another woman who made up the bakery. We started at 7 in the morning, which was horrible because it was so late (I convinced them to start at 4 the following week). We didn't really have a plan, we just baked stuff and put it out for sale. We did have a few pie orders for Wednesday, because they had advance notice throughout the store that the bakery was coming.

That first week made Sam's Club look really good. None of us knew what the hell was going on, the ovens weren't working right, and we were using expired closeout crap for some of the ingredients. But it was kind of exciting too, because as the weeks went on, I could see that I could really make a difference and help make the bakery into something special, which I think I have accomplished.

Over the years there have been so many changes in the bakery, and it's gotten bigger (and smaller, if that makes any sense) and a lot busier. I'm the only one left of the original four people who is still in the bakery (my supervisor went back to her office upstairs a few months after we opened), and I hope that will be the case for many years to come, as I don't know how to do anything else.