Tuesday 20 October 2009

Dough Girl

My first day at the commercial bakery today.  I had to report to Ray from Slicing. My job was to pack two million and forty six (??) loaves of bread into towers of bread pallets for dispatch around three states of Australia.  Each pallet held ten loaves which were stacked ten pallets high, two stacks per dolly.  In simpler terms, 200 loaves per load.

Because I am a Machinist's wife, I find most machinery fascinating. I don't understand the mechanical parts  or the technalities, nor do I care to, but watching How Things Work is always interesting to me. Including old bakery equipment.

Morning runs of bread included Multigrain, High Fibre, Wholemeal et al and the pace was pretty fast.  By the afternoon, the factory was almost 40 degrees and I was feeling pretty doughy myself - especially when Ray switched on the White bread run, which came hurtling down the conveyor belt at even greater speeds. It seems that most folk still prefer their white breads.

I am certainly not a shirker, but can honestly say - today's 7 hour shift was the hardest work I've ever done. It's 11pm and only now am I cooling down.  I ache from head to toe.  I don't know if I can do this.

Tomorrow, I have a shift at the hotel. That's somewhat relieving.  Nice and close to home. 

And the Machinist.  Gotta love coffee breaks with the Machinist!

3 comments:

Mrs. White said...

Lovely to hear....Keep writing when you have time. You have quite an audience!

hugs and love
Blessings
Mrs. White

Josephine Tale Peddler said...

I don't think I'll be able to look at my wholemeal ever again without thinking of you! It had never occurred to me to ponder where that bread came from. I thought it was born on the supermarket shelf. xx

willow said...

That is a LOT of bread!! My hat is off to you. Hope tomorrow's easier.

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