Resume of Chris Murray

Introduction

First of all, thank you for taking the time to visit and read my resume; it is currently an ongoing work in progress. My name is Chris and I am seeking to make the jump from the industry I have worked in for over 2 decades, to the field of tech and IT. I understand this is a potentially difficuly feat, which is why I am working on my skills and knowledge in my free time. While I have a history of cooking, and to be honest, I am quite good at that, my interests have always lied in the digital realm. I have enjoyed using computers since childhood, when one exciting day in 1986 my parents surprised us with a Commodore 64. As a child I enjoyed learning Commodore BASIC, as well as playing many many games. Learning to use a holepunch to turn a cheap single-sided floppy into a double-sided disc, and to fill it with cracked software using Quick-Copy introduced me to just how capable computers could be when the user knew how they worked.

As time and technology marched forward, I found myself obsessed with the world of dial-up BBS's. I spent countless hours joinging in on coversations about bands I liked in FIDOnet and playing door games. I also enjoyed downloading the host software and learning the ins and outs of it, briefly hosting a part time board myself. I had the privledge of using the Internet early on, thanks to my mother's workplace at the McLaughlin Library at University of Guelph. This was in the days of USEnet, gopher, and Lynx. Later I would be a regular on many IRC channels and, like many people at the time, had my own Geocities and Angelfire pages. I studied programing at school at the time, but unfortunately I was young and found myself enjoying exporing the LAN more than focusing on coding. I didn't stick with it at the time.

Around 2012 I decided to try a Linux based OS, starting with Ubuntu. This changed everything for me. I rid myself of Windows, favouring the speed, stability, and customization that Linux distros offer. I also wasn't content to stay with the stock Ubuntu interface and be an average end-user. I forced myself to learn to do things the harder [or easier, if you ask me!] way. I liked that I was forced to learn more about how my OS works in order to get the most out of it, and to navigate problems when they arose. This is where the idea of getting into IT came back into my life, and what leads me here, telling you my story. I dream of a job where I can work with computers. I am currently taking a web development course in the hopes of making some of my living creating web pages for people or companies. I am also attempting to learn python. I hope to achieve a future as a sysadmin, support, cybersecurity, or penetration tester. I am willing to start where I can, as I am aware I have a lot to learn.

I shall continue now with my resume, keeping in mind my experience does not match my goals. It is with that in mind that I focus on transferable skills.

Employment History

Camp Conewango 2019-2020

Cook/General Labour

Cooked during the winter season
Landscaping
Maintaining facilities

Cosmic Treats 2015-2019

Head Cook

Helped build the menu
Organized specials
Specialized in vegan comfort dishes

Fresh on Eglinton 2015

Prep/Line Cook

Prepped food for line
Assembled dishes on line

Sadie's Diner 2014-2015

Cook

Cooked wonderful vegan greasy spoon fare
Organized specials

The Bristol Yard 2013-2014

Brunch Cook

Cooked British breakfast fare
NOW Magazine Best Brunch in Toronto

Ein-Stein Cafe & Bierhalle 2006-2013

Kitchen Manager

Constantly developed new menu items and specials
Inventory and ordering
Scheduling and hiring
Dedicated myself to lowering food costs while increasing food quality

etc...

Transferable Skills

Problem solving: Running a kitchen or running into problems while working requires a lot of resourcefulness and quick thinking. An example might be someone with very strict dietary restrictions finding nothing on the menu that they can eat. I always made it work. Working in a kitchen that uses a lot of garlic and onion, I would sometimes concoct an alternate recipe on the fly for a Jain or Bhuddist. Scheduling was also an exercise in problem solving using math and logic.
Innovative thinking: Working in several vegan restaurants, I was always looking to come up with something new. I would experiment to make new dishes, as well as study non-vegan recipes and invent ways to recreate them as vegan food while maintaining deliciousness.
Diplomacy: As kitchen manager especially, but also in the interest of working in a pleasant work environment, I always take as diplomatic as a position as possible. This is not to say I have avoided all conflict, as sometimes if a coworker is being problematic the matter has to be addressed. I get along well with people and I enjoy having a pleasant atmosphere for myself and my coworkers. I will also stand up for my coworkers if someone is being inappropriate. I can't imagine such scenarios come up as often in IT as they do in kitchens.
Learning: While I am always eager to learn tech skills, I have recently had to learn a lot of skills that I was coming in fresh to. After Cosmic Treats closed down suddenly, I moved up north and worked at Camp Conewango to get myself back on my feet (at least until COVID became our reality). I found myself learning a lot of skills, such as some carpentry and shop work (I aided in building a deck), using lawn-care machinery, testing water quality, maintaining a beach, sanitizing rental units, etc.
Logistics magic: As kitchen manager, I was able to throw away the existing formula for running the kitchen by cutting costs while also improving quality. I learned to shop around for suppliers with the best price to quality ratio, make things from scratch instead of prefab frozen, and pit suppliers against each other in discount wars. Sometimes it was a bit more work, but the end result was worth it. Always look for new and better ways.