Restaurant Gal
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Ten Years Ago Today
Sept. 10, noon Credit card purchases: Hecht Company, misc. clothing; Hallmark store, cards; Nordstrom, cosmetics. Sept. 10, 5 p.m. I dropped Mr. Restaurant Gal off at Dulles Airport for a flight to Sweden. This was a perfectly normal part of our lives, saying goodbye every few weeks as Mr. RG took yet another flight to…
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Praying for More than a Jackpot
I had just about given up leaving messages. Some days, his mailbox was simply full. Did he know on those days that I had tried again to call for the zillionth-plus time? “Have you heard from Kevin?” everyone, from the bell hops to the room service staff, would ask me every day. “No, not yet,”…
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Alma Mater–Oh Dear!
Dad had on his Duke T-shirt. Mom sported an Ivy League someplace hoodie. Son wore his Ice Bowl hockey tee. Daughter and two other college-age kids chose to remain mysterious, wearing plain, logo-less tops. “Morning folks, how is everyone today?” I smiled at the handsome group of six, and not just because my gratuity was…
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Pigs Fly and Frisbees Do Walk
I wrote the previous post almost a week ago, let it sit, then finally posted it. When I went to work this morning, a miracle or two occurred: the mood was decidedly different–for the much better. My coworkers showed up on time, worked hard, helped me and each other, and even laughed with me. My…
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RG and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
With full credit to and incredible admiration for Judith Viorst for writing one of the best children’s books, ever: “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day”. I woke up two hours before my 5:02 a.m. alarm on Monday morning, after tossing and turning for hours and tossing some more, and, finally, never…
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Please Come Back, All is Forgiven
In a world in which SoFla hospitality ads demand that applicants be “sober” as well as have some “recent” experience–i.e., not 20 years ago when you were working part time while attending college and likely not sober–the professional server is a gem hidden among so much worthless rocks and sand particles. This server oozes gentility…
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Do They Still Make Cherry Bombs?
My dog Rouletta hasn’t done her business in two days. What business she has done has been done in a corner of her dog bed because she won’t step a paw outside. Thank you dear neighbors who have reduced my otherwise sweet and house-trained pup into a shaking, shivering and panting disaster in serious need…
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Princesses All
“I’ll be in Orlando for a day between business trips,” said RG Daughter during one of her daily calls a few days ago. “You have to come up.” I love it that RG Daughter calls me almost every day. It’s like she lives just over the fence and a shout away instead of 1000-plus miles…
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End of Season Reflections
I should have written this post a month ago, when season really ended, but for reasons that have no reason, I continue to work many hours, although my pay has diminished to half since Mother’s Day. Anyone who has worked the SoFla or Keys hospitality gig knows this season of riches/summertime slumber routine. I’ve been…
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ADD Post
Student Loan Madness For months and months, I have been in touch with SallieMae to straighten out my six-plus student loans taken out over the past 8 years so that my kids could attend the college of their dreams. When you have undiagnosed-but-surely-have adult ADD, SallieMae is not a realm in which to wallow. Because…
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