In
‘I recently worked in the kitchen of a nursing home. There you have a different target group than in the hospital. The people in care are older and stay longer at the location. I often cooked regional dishes for the elderly. They are recognizable, they like that.
“In the hospital it is of course never possible to cook completely to individual taste, but we cook fresh, and that is not common in every hospital. In addition, we offer a wide range of options to meet the wishes of patients as much as possible.
“I have worked as an institutional cook all my life. The social element in this work is much greater than when you cook for guests in a restaurant who are going out for an evening. The people who buy our meals are sometimes in the worst period of their lives. By serving something delicious I hope to contribute something positive to the quality of their lives.
“I lead, but luckily I also cook. This helps me to better meet the wishes of employees. If, for example, a new refrigerator is needed, I am better able to translate the reason to the organization. I don’t work full time, because I also have a family to support. With 28 hours a week and working days from eight to half past five, the work-life balance is okay in my opinion. When the children are older, I want to work more again.”
Out
‘I’m a good saver, I have a piggy bank for many things. For the children (11, 19 and 21 years old), for example, so that I can pay for their driver’s license and their studies. Those are gifts for life. But I also have two horses, and I have a jar for each. Suppose they get something, then the vet can be paid from that pot. For example, one of the horses once had an esophagus blockage, which cost me 300 euros. If the procedure turns out to be more expensive than what I have saved together, I have to consider whether it is worth the effort. I am the breadwinner at home and with three children – one of whom has already left home – I sometimes have to make strict choices.
“I have two cars, and there is also a fund for their maintenance. When my daughter got her driver’s license, she often wanted to borrow my car. I keep a lot of horse stuff in my car because the horses are always in the pasture, so a second car seemed useful to me. They are small cars, so they are not very expensive.
“I also have a jar for maintenance and a jar for the long term. I calculate about 2,500 euros per month for the fixed costs, but sometimes it is a bit more in practice. I divide about 600 euros per month over all jars. Because I’m on my own, I decide what happens with the money. That is easy.”