Employees prepare thousands of baked goods for day’s sales; regulars know schedule well
“Sometimes I think they have doughnut alarm clocks.”
James Barry, an employee with Donut Country for 24 years, rolls dough thinner and thinner before cutting nugget-like shells to be filled with Bavarian cream and jelly.
After years of baking doughnuts, he has perfected the wrist flick with flour to keep dough from sticking to his work table.
Behind him a radio blares an eclectic techno rock song.
Donut Country opened about 25 years ago and now has two locations: Middle Tennessee Boulevard and Memorial Boulevard. The Memorial Boulevard store is open 24 hours during the week, and it has become a hangout spot for night owls.
Starting around 9 each evening, the bakers begin the process of making a variety of doughnuts, fritters, eclairs and cinnamon rolls.
“I used to cut these by hand one at a time,” Barry says. “Now we can do this faster.”
He is talking about a machine equipped with a giant roller line with cutouts of the doughnut and shell shapes. He can turn out dozens in a few minutes now.
Some things have changed in his more than 20 years, but “(t)he (dough) mix is still the same,” he says.
Once the dough is mixed, it is divided into batches. Barry and a team of two more then cut, proof, fry and finish hundreds of doughnuts each night.
“Monday and Tuesday are smaller nights, so we do about 2,000,” says Sarah Goodwin. “On a bigger night we’ll do double that.”
Known as the finisher, Goodwin’s quick-moving eyes roam the stacks of freshly fried cake doughnuts. She pulls out the “prettiest” ones, which will be left plain. The next best will be glazed, and the ones with any distortions or dents will be rolled into a Dutch mix.
“I’ve been working here on and off since 2001,” Goodwin says, constantly moving to pull symmetrical doughnuts into an awaiting container. “It’s a really good job. I’m the finisher. I fill and dip doughnuts. I also do apple fritters.”
The apple fritters aren’t just the run-of-the mill pastries. They are about the size of a salad plate.
“Those are giant apple fritters,” says one customer.
“They are, but around here, we just call them ‘regular’ fritters,” says Bruce Slovak, a Donut Country employee who serves customers.
Holding court like entertainers of yore, Slovak cracks jokes, breaks into song and makes a show of even the most mundane tasks.
“Sometimes it is slow, sometimes pretty steady,” he says stacking paper sacks for to-go doughnut orders. “We get a lot of college students. I’d say 60 to 70 percent of our customers are. We have some regulars.”
Regulars with doughnut alarm clocks wander in as soon as the first batch is ready. They grab some coffee and a few doughnuts and slip into a corner booth. Laptops, textbooks and ear-buds signal a late night study session.
“I love that this place is family-owned,” says Slovak, leaning against a glass display case. The warm aroma of frying dough wafts through the cracks of the open shelving behind him. “I love to interact with customers. You can be genuine, not fake, and shove sales down their throat.”
Slovak laughs and carries on with customers. Just through a rack of shelves the bakers keep the doughnuts coming in time with some classic rock tunes.
“It keeps us going,” Barry says. “We listen to everything from classic to country to techno.”
Sheets of cut doughnuts go into the “proofer” which allows the dough to rise. It must sit for an hour before they are ready to be fried and finished.
“You have to stay ahead of it,” he says.
Across the room Goodwin is packing up three dozen cake doughnuts for a veteran’s home.
Slovak’s infectious laugh echoes above the hum of the 80-degree kitchen.
For anyone who knows me my love of football is well understood. After the Super Bowl the only fix I can get is reruns of games, the NFL draft and combine coverage, and one of my favorites, the local Spring game.
For about seven or eight years I’ve been present for the MTSU Blue and White game. Not only does this give us fans a look at what to expect for the upcoming season, but it is all in good fun.
April 18 marked this year’s MTSU Spring game. The day includes a yard sale so fans can purchase team memorabilia and university gear as well as the actual football game. [I borrowed a great photo from Coach Stockstill because mine were just not close enough to the action!]
Blue Raider players are split into opposing teams, either upper and lower classmen, defense versus offense, or even playground style with captains selecting their own teams. The winning team gets to eat shrimp and steak while the defeated teammates dine on burgers and hotdogs.
This year the teams were simply offense versus defense. We saw some great passes from the blossoming QBs and nice picks from our defense as well.
While it isn’t exactly the same atmosphere as conference play or trying to tackle a real scheduled opponent, it does give me a little break from my routine and allow me to cheer to my heart’s content. And for anyone who does know me, and my love of football, you know I tend to get a bit loud and demonstrative when cheering on my alma mater.
After spending my evening cleaning I was going through my nightly routine to prep for bed with Jimmy Kimmel LIVE! on for background noise.
This is not typically what I would watch at night, but for some reason I did. It must have been divine intervention to lead me to enjoy the hilarity of what happened.
Kimmel had Wiz Khalifa sing “Black and Yellow” for a Sign Language Rap Battle. Yes, seriously. Three young ladies were challenged to sign while the rapper sang his lyrics, each taking turns.
Check it out.
So, why is this even a thing? I’m not sure where the concept came from, but I think it is very interesting. I mean, the few hearing disabled or impaired people I know tend to enjoy hip hop music because they can feel the beats even if they can’t hear the entire complexity of the song.
Why not have a display of people signing the lyrics for them to enjoy another aspect of the song. Okay, sure, they could read the lyrics on a subtitled video. Maybe no one else feels this way, and that’s alright.
I appreciated the challenge as it called to mind learning American sign language as a girl. Of course, we learned hymns and Girl Scout songs mostly, but hey, it still counts, right?
Sometimes it starts as a quick view of popular posts and other times it begins as a search for something in particular. Then, BAM! It’s been two hours and I’ve pinned 37 pins of cake decorations, motivational quotes, barbecue chicken recipes and how to clean grout with baking soda — and there is no grout in my apartment.
Perhaps it’s the visual stimulation of photo after photo. Or it could be the wealth of information at a lifelong scholar’s fingertips. Maybe it is the rush of possessing ALL the pins and hoarding them all in my own private cache of boards.
I have 26 personal boards that contain more than 6,500 pins and more than 1,000 more “likes” saved. And before you ask, yes, I review them regularly to make sure there are no duplicates, plan meals or craft projects or pick out outfits or new hairstyles.
But I have to temper when I click on my little red-and-white P icon, which is located in a primo spot to be easily selected with my thumb on the main page of my smartphone. I can’t just check my notifications, or look for the copycat recipe for Jim N Nick’s cheddar biscuits, oh, no, because I suddenly find a new orange (the fruit, not the color) wreath that would be a great summer hostess gift. That leads me to interesting ways to wrap gifts, ways to make hair bows, and now I’m planning a nursery for a daughter I’m nowhere near having.
Still, I can admit my obsession, and that is the first step in recovery, right? Maybe I should search for it on Pinterest.
“Samantha Donaldson has been an asset in a variety of projects and events over the years which include Uncle Dave Macon Days, Macon Music Education, and New Year’s Eve Night Watch, as well as many downtown Murfreesboro events.
Samantha’s friendliness and resourcefulness make her adept at implementing her high-level promotion and advertising skills (which includes all social and print media).
Her strong interpersonal skills will facilitate anyone looking for an innovative, creative mind who is sensitive to your particular ideas and brand awareness.
She can use her strong literary skills to convey and promote with the highest level of professionalism.“
— Gloria Christy, Uncle Dave Macon Days, Inc., Macon Music Education
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