I have 20 minutes left in my staycation and it's looking even more bleak that I'll accomplish the following crucial tasks:
- Launder everything
- Get in shape
- Vacuum
- Write memoir
- Nap
- Establish meditation routine
- Touch up roots
- Finish signs for craft booth
- Decide on business plan/purpose
- Write will
- Ready packages for post office
- Redo personal website in Drupal
- Learn Drupal
- Go foodshopping
- Touch up rust spots on car
- Finish indignant blog post about restaurant visit fail
- Get packages ready for post office
However, I have organized the bookshelves and watered the plants so yay?
About the restaurant visit fail:
I neglected to implement any of my standard protocols for saving time by ordering ahead and instead waltzed into a place right at lunch hour. FAIL! Duh! Hubby and I swung open the door, saw the line, whirled and exited immediately.
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| (This makes a fine teeshirt.) |
I suggested we sneak into the place next door instead. The dining room was busy but I felt confident we could get take-out pretty fast. I worked in the restaurant industry in a previous life and a little-known fact is dine-in food can take the same amount of time as "faster food" restaurants like Panera. I was sure we'd have a nice bag of food ready to go in the same period of time we'd still be waiting in that other awful line.
The first fail was giving our order to Slackjaw #1 and trusting that the order was indeed taken.
I watched him scrawl the order out slowly wondering why he wrote the same exact thing twice but figured he had his system and we left to run another errand.
We got back when they said it'd be ready but it wasn't out yet. "Just a few more minutes," drawled Slackjaw 2.
A few minutes crawled into 10 minutes, 15, 20, 25 and 30 minutes. I kept asking and Slackjaws 1 & 2 both got slacker, kicking the floor and mumbling "just a few more minutes."
At one point I asked, "Can you go check? It's been a while."
"A few more minutes," he said.
I wanted to say, "You never went in the back to check, how do you KNOW it's only a few more minutes? You've been saying that for a half hour!"
But I was trying not to cause trouble. Yet.
After a half hour inched to 35 minutes, something in me snapped.
"Can you please explain what's happening? It's been 50 minutes now and I don't understand what's going on."
Slackjaw 2's eyes widened. He shrugged.
I thought maybe he didn't hear me and thought I was complaining about 15 minutes.
"It's been 50 minutes. Five zero."
He stared blankly, a deer in headlights.
"You've said it will be a few more minutes every few minutes for the past half hour. Isn't there something you can do? Or find out?"
He looked terrified.
I tried again, gently but firmly, the way I would have if I'd been training him. "I used to work at this chain. I know the kitchen times aren't that long. Seeing that it's been taking this long is a customer service opportunity. You shouldn't wait for me to come ask. Go find out what's happening or get the manager."
He seemed paralyzed. Slackjaw #1 saw this from several feet away and came over.
"Um, I guess I could ask the manager?"
YES please go get the manager, I thought. It's been almost an hour, a manager should have been called a half hour ago. What is wrong with you??
I nodded. "Yes, that would be good." (GO! Sheesh! Don't they train you folks??)
We waited almost 10 more minutes to see a manager and I turned to leave. "Forget this, forget the food, I'm never coming back." I went into the foyer and took a picture of the customer service line. "I'm calling this as soon as we get home."
The manager suddenly appeared. I was full-blown indignant but she apologized profusely, diffusing my rage. "We're going to comp this so it's 100% free. I'm so sorry. This should have taken 12 minutes to make, you shouldn't have waited this long."
"Thank you!! This has been terribly inconvenient," I said, drawing out how long we suffered, foodless and weak. Even though I was wearing the below, I drew upon bold NJ roots. What if I was an attorney needing to get back to my important office? How dare they!
I graciously accepted the free order and we sauntered back to the car, dignity restored by the justice bequeathed to us by the sympathetic supervisor.
In the car, hubby noticed me looking funny at the bag on my lap.
"Wait!! I saw them write this when they took our order. I could tell they didn't hear my name. Rhymes with 'Mitch' I guess? They didn't write this when we complained!"
Good thing because...!!!
The first fail was giving our order to Slackjaw #1 and trusting that the order was indeed taken.
I watched him scrawl the order out slowly wondering why he wrote the same exact thing twice but figured he had his system and we left to run another errand.
We got back when they said it'd be ready but it wasn't out yet. "Just a few more minutes," drawled Slackjaw 2.
A few minutes crawled into 10 minutes, 15, 20, 25 and 30 minutes. I kept asking and Slackjaws 1 & 2 both got slacker, kicking the floor and mumbling "just a few more minutes."
At one point I asked, "Can you go check? It's been a while."
"A few more minutes," he said.
I wanted to say, "You never went in the back to check, how do you KNOW it's only a few more minutes? You've been saying that for a half hour!"
But I was trying not to cause trouble. Yet.
After a half hour inched to 35 minutes, something in me snapped.
"Can you please explain what's happening? It's been 50 minutes now and I don't understand what's going on."
Slackjaw 2's eyes widened. He shrugged.
I thought maybe he didn't hear me and thought I was complaining about 15 minutes.
"It's been 50 minutes. Five zero."
He stared blankly, a deer in headlights.
"You've said it will be a few more minutes every few minutes for the past half hour. Isn't there something you can do? Or find out?"
He looked terrified.
I tried again, gently but firmly, the way I would have if I'd been training him. "I used to work at this chain. I know the kitchen times aren't that long. Seeing that it's been taking this long is a customer service opportunity. You shouldn't wait for me to come ask. Go find out what's happening or get the manager."
He seemed paralyzed. Slackjaw #1 saw this from several feet away and came over.
"Um, I guess I could ask the manager?"
YES please go get the manager, I thought. It's been almost an hour, a manager should have been called a half hour ago. What is wrong with you??
I nodded. "Yes, that would be good." (GO! Sheesh! Don't they train you folks??)
We waited almost 10 more minutes to see a manager and I turned to leave. "Forget this, forget the food, I'm never coming back." I went into the foyer and took a picture of the customer service line. "I'm calling this as soon as we get home."
The manager suddenly appeared. I was full-blown indignant but she apologized profusely, diffusing my rage. "We're going to comp this so it's 100% free. I'm so sorry. This should have taken 12 minutes to make, you shouldn't have waited this long."
"Thank you!! This has been terribly inconvenient," I said, drawing out how long we suffered, foodless and weak. Even though I was wearing the below, I drew upon bold NJ roots. What if I was an attorney needing to get back to my important office? How dare they!
 |
| "Can't you see I'm late for my high-powered job??" |
I graciously accepted the free order and we sauntered back to the car, dignity restored by the justice bequeathed to us by the sympathetic supervisor.
In the car, hubby noticed me looking funny at the bag on my lap.
"Wait!! I saw them write this when they took our order. I could tell they didn't hear my name. Rhymes with 'Mitch' I guess? They didn't write this when we complained!"
 |
| Wow. But it does rhyme with "Mitch" so.... |
