Unemployment, Day 9

Travis had the day off of school, so we decided to run around town and amass a few bits of cheese and a bottle (or 3) of wine to take with us on our Newport adventure. Before that I needed to get the oil changed, and opted to have the qwik-e-lube place flush and fill the radiator. Travis convinced me to go into the CrapDonalds with him, where he bought me a CrapGriddle sandwich for breakfast. Not horrible, but not something I think I'd eat ever again.

Then we made our way to lovely NW Portland to a wine shop that features cheeses. (Steve's Cheese Shop). Got some awesome cheese. Then we made our way to Zupan's and did some more cheese and wine shopping. All in all a pretty good haul.

Derek is having company for the next few days, so Travis and I opted to go out on our own for supper. We agreed on Olive Garden. Don't go there a lot, but they have decent food, and its affordable for an out of work guy like me. Plus, they have unlimited soup and salad. Wow you can fill up on that. As usual, we had a mishap that caused us to repeatedly get skipped over for a table. I tried my best to let the seething hatred and anger that was searing through my soul remain below the surface so as to not cause a huge scene. The wait staff did apologize for the hostess forgetting about it. The service was actually quite fantastic once we got a seat at the table. Food was good too. At the conclusion of the meal, the house manager came to the table to talk to us. The interact was remarkable in the fact that she apologized profusely to us, and said that the staff had just made her aware of the problem. When I suggested that sometimes technology (those stupid pager devices) fails, she said quite plainly that this wasn't technology, and that it was her people who had failed. We told her that we had had exceptional service and that they had done a good job at making us feel better. She told us that she had a gift for us and that we should meet her at the door on our way out. Then another of the waitstaff offered us some wine (after we'd finished our meals). After I had commented that I don't drink reds, he served Travis and I a nice glass of Riesling, one that I actually drink, and cook with. Since we were lollygagging around now, and finishing up our glasses of wine, Lisa (the manager) came back to our table and presented us with a $40 gift certificate. So, for all the aggravation, we have a free meal for us next time we want to go. I don't know if a lot of managers would have gone that far, but she did make us feel a lot better about our experience. Bribes work, we'll go back again.