They say it has to get worse before it gets better, right?

Day #2 at work pretty much sucked.  Today's entree choices were Taco Burger or Sub sandwich.  The guessing game on what the kids would want was in full effect again today.  Our count was 351 and the manager had us do 300 Taco burgers and 61 sandwichs (which was not enough).  Our 4th person in the kitchen is a sub because one of our regular employees (my mother) retired in April so needless to say the sub is not quite sure how things work in our kitchen yet.  She is on the tables this week because that is the easiest thing to do.  Well, my co worker thinks that she is too slow doing the tables.  I don't think she is too slow, I think that we just have a lot to do when working the line especially when we have to continuously make more food for the second entree choice because we also have to wash trays in this time.  The assumption is that we can not have kids help us or another worker come in during serving time because we already have 4 people.  That is just bull$h!t!  If this is going to be the case then we need more trays (which our manager is supposed to be getting) so we don't have to worry about washing them in between shifts.  I don't understand why the manager does not want to help make this kitchen run more smoothly.  Everything goes fine up until serving time, then it is total chaoticness.  My point is make enough food, if there is left overs, freeze them.  I understand that the manager has to worry about cost and inventory but the way this kitchen is run is pathetic.  She doesn't understand it because she runs the register everyday and if she chooses to serve and have someone else run the register it is ALWAYS on a friday which is sack day so we do not use trays therefore, we do not have to wash them in between shifts, we just have to make more food.  I am hoping that this craziness that is going on will settle down once we get further into the school year, but highly doubt it as this is the way it has been in the past also.  I guess you have to take the good with the bad!  I have weighed the pros and cons of this job and it does have great perks (off in the summertime and breaks at Christmas and Easter) but I am beginning to question if it is worth it.  I am also wondering if other schools are run like this?  I was a sub when I first started (that is a requirement, they hire FT from the sub list) and do not recall this much chaos in one kitchen.  This is the newest school in the district and has very nice equipment and plenty of room but the management is horrible.   Nothing is ever done the same, it all depends on the mood of the manager ie....if she's in a good mood the kids get condiments with their sandwich, if she is in a bad mood they don't get them.  There are also things that happened in the past between me and the manager that I am having a hard time letting go, in my review last year she put that she questions if this is what I want to do because I do not seem to like my job, well I had a major event happen in my life last year that I had to deal with, I had a heart attack at the age of 38 so yes, I kept to myself and didn't say much while I sorted through things.  She also wrote that I need to loosen up and have more fun, nothing like the pot calling the kettle black on that one, she is the moodiest most negative person I have ever met so far in my life.  I also had a grandmother (my moms mom) that was ill and dying, my mom was out on leave to help take care of her so things were tougher in the kitchen.  We were scheduled to be audited by the state on 02-10-10 and it just so happened that my grandmother passed away that morning at 6:15 so I called Karen and she was very upset that I was not going to be at work and told me to do what I have to do!  I thought that was extremely rude of her, I just lost a family member and that I did not have any control over.  Needless to say, they survived the audit and I returned to work after my 3 bereavement days and my mother returned that following week.  With that said, please forgive me for not socializing more with everyone.  When they do talk, it is usually negative things they are saying or talking about other people and I personally do not like to talk about people.  Everyone has their flaws and as the saying goes...be kind to all you meet as everyone is fighting some kind of battle.  I am seriously considering bidding on another school if any openings ever get posted.  I would like to be closer to home and be around more positive people.  I am leaving it at that for now.  Hopefully tomorrow will be better.