Hello Chefit, and thank you for the entertainment and inspiration.

Lowly dishie here, but my workplace may sponsor me through culinary school, so I have a few questions:

1: What is a staging? I've seen some postings about chefs having a staging at so and so, and I'm curious what that is, exactly.

2: What are some things you wish you knew when you were starting out?

3: Were you expecting your current position/actual work, or something like cocaine, travel, and a show on Food Network?

4: What has been the biggest surprise in your career?

5: Who inspired you to start?

I really love cooking, though I'm not currently anywhere near a professional level, and older than most as I had to make a career change from television production to restaurant work (great life reset button was hit). I have a great team in my kitchen, and I don't deal with people with inflated egos like so many stories I've heard. I've been pleasantly surprised by the support I've gotten from the entire crew, and even though I'm only washing dishes at the moment, the men and women I work with have been kind and gentle in answering my stupid questions.

It is a VERY different story from the cutthroat and "tear you down to build me up" world of TV. Considering the reputation kitchen work has, thanks to a few celebrity chefs that I now believe are the great exceptions (and not always great chefs), I've been amazed at the support I've gotten.

So thank you to my crew. You've made a huge difference in my life, and thank you to those willing to answer my (asinine) questions.

Edit: typos.