Author: Restaurant Gal
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Beyond Tired
Dear servers I managed in D.C. and Fort Lauderdale: I double and triple sat you all the time. Many apologies. I begged you to stay late and take the last table that, in the end, only left a 10 percent tip. Many thanks. I didn’t help pre-set and pre-bus tables enough. Many thanks, again, for…
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A Mentor’s Words
Annie was my aunt by marriage, a step-aunt in fact, but she and I were often as close as a mother and daughter, although we might go a year without seeing each other. We talked every week, however, sometimes for hours. She died almost four years ago, which seems impossible because it feels like a…
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First Day
“I could never be a waitress,” laughed a woman who watched me slop coffee and diet coke over the tray I was close to tipping over completely. “I mean look at her!” I was standing right there while she talked about me as if I was a pathetic creature who couldn’t possibly comprehend what she…
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A View For Healing
It is true, I am a mess. Yes, I am deeply hurt. I am reeling from my move and all I left behind, again. But…if this is the view a few steps away from my very cool new house, how bad can it be? Or, how good can it be? Very. Very, very good.
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Bye Bye 2008
A woman in my luxury apartment complex walks her dog every night at the same time. I know her. She is crazy. Certifiable. Insane. My day-at-a-time boy would tell you I am insane, but I would tell you it is not the same type of insanity. The woman in my complex is very alone. She…
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Boys to Men
A boy texts you everything you hope to hear. A man tells you what he thinks in person. A boy always has an excuse why he can’t see you, which he delivers via text. A man makes plans and keeps them. A boy tells you he is falling deeply for you and wants to live…
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The Princess and the Key to the House
I am a princess. I know this, and I am no longer ashamed to admit this annoying fact about myself. Upset Waitress thought she knew this, too, until she spent two days helping me look at places to live in the Keys. “Oh my God, you really are a princessa, aren’t you? A total, f—ing…
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Oranges for the Giving
Word of advice: Do not stop at a Florida Turnpike service center if you are hungry and thirsty and a fresh fruit stand is set up to resemble a pleasant farmers’ market–complete with samples of the sweetest oranges on the planet. If you do, you will end up with a cute netted bag of petit…
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Wine Service
I am at the Key West bar where I met and befriended the band a few weeks ago. RG Daughter is interviewing folks for her thesis, which gives me several hours to kill. It is quiet in Key West in the middle of this December week before the holiday season and the other “season” kicks…
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Friendly Advice
Friends are funny. My South Florida friends are hilarious. Just when you think you know one, she stirs up high school drama and, poof, said friend is a friend no more. My best guy friend is my rock. But last night, after too much Saturday night fun, he leveled a little too much with me.…