Wednesday, September 26, 2008~Evening

A pile of men’s new all-cotton oversized white oxford cloth shirts sat on a corner of the coffee table.  Bette had purchased a dozen on the internet after everyone ignored the instructions to bring an apron to Tina’s prior communal cooking session.  Between the assertions that participation was impossible because of the potential clothes damage and the post-mortem whinings about ruined clothes, Tina thought she would never again hold the open kitchens she loved and remembered from childhood.  Bette had solved the problem with the shirts that sat on the table. 

She, Jenny, Helena, and Alice each wore one. Shane had been a worker and not a whiner, so she was permitted to make her own choice.  She declined a shirt. Kit scoffed at the need for protective gear and Tina wore an apron she had had since she was a teen Angelica wore a chef’s jacket that Kit had had custom made—under The Planet logo, on the front below the left shoulder, was stitched  “Chef Angelica Kennard-Porter.”  The little girl wore her chef’s jacket every time she helped her mommies cook. She also insisted that she wear one whenever she “helped” at The Planet, so a second jacket was kept in Kit’s office.  The one at home was a replacement for an earlier jacket. Kit, having learned her lesson that not all stains can be removed, had ordered six more jackets that were hidden in a file cabinet in her office at The Planet. 

Tina had mandated attendance, though Tina accepted Tasha’s request to be excused because she was on duty.  Tina rejected Alice’s request to be excused because she was on her ‘monthlies.’ 

Bette had reported for duty.  She did not enjoy cooking, though she could so it if necessary.  As she had hoped, though, she was placed on call and given alternate duty.  She was in charge of Angie, of keeping the chefs fed and hydrated by their beverages of choice, and of occasional washing of utensils.

Tina and Kit were the chief cooks and used everyone else as occasional helpers.  Pulsing the blender and stirring, though, were tasks reserved for Angelica, who would run into the kitchen whenever she was called to perform her tasks. She climbed on a chair and Bette held her in place while she performed her appointed task.  When done, she would run off to play.