Even before reaching the shores of my new home, I had a job lined up at one of the famed dining halls of UMass. What was supposed to be a way to pay my rent and living expenses, turned out to be an integral part of my experience and a lifelong lesson. I was excited to peek behind the curtains of a large kitchen, even if that meant doing manual labour. Nonethless, as soon as I set foot behind the counter, I embraced the work and enjoyed my next year working at the kitchen thoroughly.
Every day I would don my dining t-shirt, a cap, and tight gloves before stepping in front of a blazing hot wok to prepare the next stir-fry order. The humdrum of repetition, monotony of muscle memory was only broken when someone ordered the tofu instead of the usual chicken. Yet, I was happy. Putting my brain to rest at the night shift after a full day of classes always transitioned into a good sleep and a better morning.
While working at the dining hall, I ate college food, met college students, and made college friends. But I also made friends with the other minimum wage workers who came from a diverse set of backgrounds. I met Americas who had never left the state, I met immigrants from Korea and Thailand who were trying to raise a family by cooking food, and I met a chill dude who taught me everything I know about stir-frying vegetables in a wok. I met a passionate actor while cutting vegetables, who invited me to a wonderful community production of Macbeth. I also met a fellow countryman aspiring to be the general manager of the dining hall, and more. These weren’t the kind of people I would have ever met in my academic circles, and I will always be indebted to these interactions for shaping my current worldview.
In my school, I studied an essay which extolled the virtues of manual labour in a world which values mental labour disproportionately more. This was probably my best chance to experience those ideas for myself and truly understand the differences. Eventually though, I moved on to other part-time opportunities like tutoring and website design; hopefully not leaving behind the kitchen for the rest of my life.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Dining
- Amherst (available May 2025)
- University of Massachusetts (available June 2025)
- Academics (available July 2025)
- Research (available July 2025)