March 21, 2010

I think waiters have the worst job in the whole world. The waiters at Applebees made that very apparent. My husband and son went out for lunch and the place was pretty busy. We were seated and our waiter was there in less than a minute. About 5 m inutes after he took our drink order the power went out. Thank goodness it was during the day so we were not all plunged into complete darkness. Some of the younger (and drunker) people cheered. A minute later the power came back on. Our waiter, along with all the other wait-staff, was crowded around the credit card/receipt machine with upset looks on their faces. My husband and I watched them for about 15 minutes until the manager went over and gave them all some orders. Our waiter came back and took our order. Not even 5 minutes after that the power went out again. Not as many cheers this time around. All employees are running around franatically and, overhearing a conversation between our waiter and another table, we found out what was wrong. Because of the power outage the machine that sends food orders to the kitchen was down, the credit card machine had to be reprogrammed, and all orders entered before the outage were lost. Remember, the place was packed and a lot of people hadn't gotten their food yet. About 40 minutes after we ordered our food we finally got our appetizer. Our waiter had to write our entrée order down on paper and give it to the cooks. While we waited (for a good 15 to 20 minutes) other patrons were expressing their unhappiness to their waiters/waitresses. It seemed they personally blamed the employees for losing their order and making them wait. The power outage was their fault as well. People were demanding free or reduced meals and not being the slightest sympathetic. My heart goes out to everyone on the floor that day. They handled the situation perfectly and kept their cool. Several customers walked out (one couple walked out and didn't even pay for their food even though they happily ate it all). I kept smiling at our waiter trying to keep his spirits up. He was obviously new and was getting the brunt of the anger. Before we got our meal the power went out again. Talk about a bad day for business. We did get our meal and even though it took around an hour I didn't mind that much. I was able to spend time with my husband and son and just enjoy the day. I wish pother people could have seen it the same way. Life doesn't always have to be go-go-go. Being forced to take a while to sit and breathe is good for you. I just hope that everyone who was working at Applebees today got a pat on the back by the manager.

March 20, 2010

When you work so hard for something and it all just seems to fall apart it really makes you question yourself. Where did I go wrong? Is it really worth it? What is the point? Is it my fault? Life throws you curve balls that you're not always ready for. It is your job to make the best of it and hope you don't lose yourself in the process.

March 19, 2010

As I was doing the dishes tonight I heard my mother with my kids in the living room. Chris would laugh and say "read it again" and Rori would chime in "read book, read book". I thought that it was sweet they were spending time with Grandma and wondered if they were reading Elmo's Find It, or maybe a Clifford story. As I was finishing up the dishes I heard my mother say "That's a biscotti. Can you say biscotti? Rori would say "scotti" then Chris would tell my mother to do the cookies. I walk in and low and behold they were reading a cookbook. :Sigh: If it eventually leads them cooking dinner ( and me being off the hook) I will overlook the strangeness. But my son telling me "I love Martha Stewart, Mama"...there's no getting past that. All I can do is pray he marries an interior decorator named David who will decorate our house for free. Here's to positive thinking.

March 17, 2010

This is a conversation I had with my mother earlier this evening.

ME: I had another person complain about their life to me today. Why does this keep happening to me?

MOM: It's because you look like a nice person.

ME: But I'm not.

MOM: Yes you are.

ME: No, I'm not. All I can think while they're talking is “When will you go away so I can concentrate on things I actually care about”?

MOM: And you want to be a psychologist?

ME: Well, if they're paying me then I care about them.

MOM: You have a true calling.

ME: Hey, if I'm busy and they come up to me complaining about their life I'm going to give them a solution.

MOM: Which is?

ME: Alcohol, drugs or suicide. They're all proven effective, pick one.

MOM: I'll help you find a good lawyer.

ME: I love you.