StyroGyra

You stop at a McDonalds and order a coffee with your food. The server puts the lid on your cup and puts the cup on your tray. You notice something is wrong because there seems to be a lot of leakage.

I totally understand that in the blur of trying to serve customers in a timely manner, that something this small could easily be overlooked. It's no big deal really, except that I could not take my coffee with me, nor could I drink it because I was out of time.

I didn't say anything about it because it wasn't that important. I should have said something about it, for the benefit of servers in the future, being more aware of damaged coffee cups.

So now, instead of me making an issue out of a damaged coffee cup, someone else in the future, perhaps less in control of his or her temper, will become the Jerk.

Online Pizza Good Idea?

I used to have no problems ordering pizzas online. It was really convenient and I could even schedule a delivery time for later. Granted it's not much different than making a phone call, but when you send a message online, there is no room for misinterpretation, garbled pronunciation, poor speaking or poor hearing, its printed out in black and white. No excuses.

When you order online, there is a space for tips. I usually tipped five dollars electronically in advance, the pizza arrived on-time if not early every time.

But, one day I thought, "wait a minute, a tip is supposed to be a reward for good service, not a bribe for good service" so I did a little experiment. I ordered pizza online, but withheld the tip. It was going to be double the usual tip, but I was going to save it until the actual delivery.

As I suspected, what pizza delivery people interpret as a "tip" is really a bribe for good service.

My tip was going to start at ten dollars. For every minute early, I would have added a dollar. For every minute late, I subtracted a dollar. My pizza was forty minutes late and cold.

I sent a scathing email to the management about the experience, and in return was sent several coupons for free pizza which I promptly threw away.

The reward for the free coupons is not mentioning the name of the business, but that doesn't really matter, does it? "Tips" are actually bribes for good service in the online pizza delivery racket.

Smokey Bones

I must have ordered the wrong thing. They had some kind of chicken nachos as an appetizer. That sounded pretty good so I tried it. Way too sweet. I also ordered the All you can eat ribs special.

I was there by myself and my bill came to around $30.00. I only ate a single helping of the ribs too because I was so full from the appetizer. Unbelievable! Also, disgustingly sweet.

Late commentary

Yo! START BY REFILLING THIS VENDING MACHINE!

This machine carries orange juice, apple juice, but not for quite a while.

Aside from that annoyance, I've been very pleased with the service at most of Subways and Steak-n-Shakes in town, bravo.

Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Disaster

I decided to try some Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream, so I picked it up at County Market.
It was definitely frozen. Ice crystals had formed throughout the product making the texture very offensive. I can only guess that it had been either melted then refrozen, or frozen at a temperature so low that ice chunks formed.
The purchase of ice cream at the grocery store now ends, forever.

Smoking Ban Violation Reports

The smoking ban has become a convenient target of business owners who refuse to open their eyes and face the inconvenient economic truth. Having so few smoking ban violations reported is evidence that more people are quitting, not because of the ban, but because they simply cannot afford to smoke anymore. The ban merely served as the final straw in the minds of those motivated to quit.

There’s much more that people can no longer afford to do here, like eating out, going to movies, or signing up for their employers insurance plan which requires a deduction from a paycheck. So, when you hear someone complain about the smoking ban ruining his business, he’s probably just talking in his sleep.