Just realized I've made 1,000 quarts of stock and nobody noticed except my freezer

Last Tuesday I was reorganizing my walk-in at the bistro in Portland and counted the Cambro containers, you know, actually counted. I've been doing a Saturday stock day for about 3 years now, chicken bones from the rotisserie and veg scraps from prep, and it added up to exactly 1,000 quarts. Nobody ever mentioned it, not one customer or even my sous chef who drinks the stuff like coffee. The funny part is my freezer door now has a tally mark system I didn't consciously start, just little scratches with a paring knife. I guess I hit this milestone that felt huge to me, like running a marathon nobody signed up to watch. Has anyone else ever tracked a boring repetitive task and been weirdly proud when the math surprised you?

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the_ben6d ago

There is something about a study I heard about on a podcast, where people who kept a log of small daily stuff felt way more satisfied than people who only tracked big goals. Something about how the brain needs proof of the work, even if nobody else sees it. 1,000 quarts is wild though, that is like 250 gallons of bones and scraps turned into something real. The tally marks on the freezer door are the best part, because your hand just started doing it without asking your brain first. I bet your sous chef would feel real bad if he knew he drank through like a third of your life's work without saying a word.

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