Rainbow Cake and Others

She had a sweet tooth so working in a cake shop suited her very well. She loved her work as she was a gregarious person and was not the sort who was happy to stay home to do housework. Housework, to her, was a boring job. Her husband however, was not really happy about her working in the cake shop as he felt that his family and friends would be critical of him as a provider. Nevertheless, he did not protest too much as he reasoned she would not last in the job. She would either find the job tiring or get sick of it. He was proved wrong on both counts as she stayed working until he retired.

She was a stay-at-home wife and mother when a new cake shop was opened in the main street of Port Kembla. This shop was directly behind her house, separated only by a small back laneway. Because of her love of cakes and sweets, she frequented the cake shop and became friendly with Mrs. Johnson, the shop assistant. They exchanged niceties for several weeks and when Mrs Johnson’s husband became sick, she offered to fill in for a few weeks. When Mr. Campbell, the owner, approved of her appointment, she quickly made herself a couple of aprons and broke the news to her husband. She was a very good worker and was always helpful to and popular with the customers. She had worked only for a few weeks when she was asked to work full time as Mrs Johnson had to resign because of her husband’s illness.

She was a quick learner, a very good organiser, enjoyed sampling the cakes and, most of all, liked the money. Each morning fresh cakes were delivered and she would organise the display cabinet, fresh cakes at the front and yesterday’s cakes at the back, ready for sale. The shop window was arranged artistically with different cakes, buns and bread around fruit cakes decorated in royal icing. Orders were taken for Christmas, birthday and wedding cakes. Ornaments for cakes occupied a small shelf above the till. Every evening she would count the day’s takings in the till and enter the amount in the account books and then ring the next day’s shop order through to the bakery as well as orders for decorated festive cakes such as Christmas, christenings, birthdays or weddings. Stale cakes and bread would be arranged on steel trays ready to be taken back to the bakery. Cleaning and washing the cakes shelves, sweeping and mopping the floors, were the last duties to be undertaken before she closed the shop to go home.

She loved her job and customers but most of all she loved cakes. Cakes and sponges that were iced and filled with jam and cream were her favourites. She didn’t like buns of any kind. She was not a great bread eater so in her mind, buns were delegated to the realms of bread. She would always say that Mr Campbell made the best cakes in the Wollongong area. Occasionally, as a treat for the family, she would bring home a slice of rainbow, marble or Battenberg cake as her children loved the three colours. Vanilla, chocolate and pink layers were iced in pink and sandwiched together with jam and cream but more often than not she would bring home a cake that was not the freshest and would not sell. Her children did not mind as they were happy to eat any sort of cake, fresh or otherwise, as long as it was sweet and gooey.

After four or five years, Mr Campbell decided to move the business to new premises nearer to the centre of the main street. She was promoted to manager of the new shop and two young girls were hired. The cakes occupied the front of the shop and just behind the cakes, a sandwich bar and pie heater made a welcome appearance for lunchtime customers. Lunch, morning and afternoon tea or coffee was served at the far end of the shop on chrome and red laminated tables covered by white tablecloths upon which stood white serviettes folded into the shape of a crown. These she took home each night for laundering. A little vase of artificial flowers donned the centre of each table which was her idea of gracious dining.

The refrigerator was well stocked with the meats and vegetables for the sandwich bar and she kept a close watch on the staff, training them to give a service to customers with a smile. She was in her glory organising.

Each morning, she would boil a huge saucepan of dried peas for those customers wanting pie and peas. Cooked peas were placed under the pie lid accompanied usually with a dollop of tomato sauce. The coffee was boiled on the stove in a saucepan of water or milk and then strained into the cup. Tea was served in a teapot with strainer fitting neatly over the cup. Devonshire teas, sandwiches and meat pies were popular lunches for shoppers and business people. She had one girl serving at the cake counter while another manned the sandwich bar. This left her to wait on the tables which she enjoyed as she was personable with the customers. When she was not waiting on the tables, she divided her time between the cake or sandwich bar depending on which section was most busy.

Salesmen selling cake decorating products, sweets or ice creams, would often come into the shop to tempt her to stock their products. She did stock a few sweets and cake decorating products. Occasionally she would buy a whole box of liquorice allsorts or chocolates for herself and bring them home. She always tried to limit herself to two or threes lollies at a sitting but unfortunately, no matter how hard she tried she would consume far too many lollies. Right into old age she loved sweets and cakes, even when her health told her to cut them out.

She stayed in this job that she loved so much until she was well into her late fifties and then sadly retired when her husband retired.

She was sugar and spice,

And all things nice.

She was my cake and lolly eating mother.