30 September 2005
Leno
My dad recently emailed me this quote from Jay Leno. I thought it was funny, so:
"Barbra Streisand told Diane Sawyer that we're in a global warming crisis, and we can expect more and more intense storms, droughts, and dust bowls. But before they can act, weather experts say they're still waiting to hear from Celine Dion..."
"Barbra Streisand told Diane Sawyer that we're in a global warming crisis, and we can expect more and more intense storms, droughts, and dust bowls. But before they can act, weather experts say they're still waiting to hear from Celine Dion..."
27 September 2005
Donuts
I love donuts.
There's a grocery store between my bus stop and my house, so I usually do my grocery shopping on the way home from work. Since I often work till closing, I get to the grocery store late enough that their bakery has boxed up the leftover donuts and priced them at $2/box. I love these boxes. I love passing by the case and seeing that I'm there late enough that they've been put out. I love opening up the case and poring over each box, trying to decide which one has the best selection. I love having a variey of donuts to eat for the next couple of days. It's awesome.
However, a while back I realized there there was usually only a couple of donuts in the box that I really, really liked, and there were often one or two that I couldn't stand to eat. I decided to only buy a box if it was The Perfect (or Near-Perfect) Box of Donuts. Every time I go to the store, I pass by the case to see if the boxes are out. If they are, I pore over them, hoping to find The Perfect Box.
Tonight, I found that box. All but one were my favorites, and that last one was a variety I consider edible. I noticed that all the boxes were missing their "reduced bakery" sticker and was annoyed that the boxes weren't sealed up (the stickers hold the boxes closed). I was annoyed, but I was still going to buy it, because it was The Perfect Box.
Having found The Perfect Box, I put back my (on sale for $2.50) package of Pepperidge Farms Double Dark Chocolate Crispy Cookies, and headed to the check-out line. [And by "put back", I mean I put it back where I found it, with the other ones. I do follow my own customer rules, you know!]
When I got the the register, the clerk looked at my box, and then asked me how many I had. Confused, I explained that it was the discount box. She asked me again, so I said I didn't know. As she counted up the donuts, I told her that all the discount boxes were lacking stickers tonight, but that they're usually $2. (I think it's actually $1.99, but whatever.) She was all, "Without a bakery sticker, I have to charge for each donut." She said this without a single note of a apology in her tone of voice. I declined to purchase them, and suggested that she tell someone the boxes need stickers.
As I walked home, fuming about the loss of The Perfect Box, I tried to think about it from the clerk's perspective, and I still found myself pissed off. While I understand her desire to stick the rules (I'm a bit of a rule-stickler myself), I think she could have done something to fix this situation -- call a manager, do a computer search for the "reduced bakery" code, whatever -- or at least pretended to be sympathetic. Additionally, it makes no business sense. Those donuts are pratically day-old, and the bakery people box them up for quick sale. Selling them at the same price they charge for fresh donuts is just dumb.
By the time I got home, I had finished mourning my loss of The Perfect Box of Donuts, and decided the universe was telling me not to eat them.
But still..... :(
[Aside to Tofutti Cutie: The lack of stickers made me think that perhaps a certain donut-maker we know had relocated north and been put in charge of the end-of-night bakery price reductions. Doesn't that just sound like something he would do? ;) ]
There's a grocery store between my bus stop and my house, so I usually do my grocery shopping on the way home from work. Since I often work till closing, I get to the grocery store late enough that their bakery has boxed up the leftover donuts and priced them at $2/box. I love these boxes. I love passing by the case and seeing that I'm there late enough that they've been put out. I love opening up the case and poring over each box, trying to decide which one has the best selection. I love having a variey of donuts to eat for the next couple of days. It's awesome.
However, a while back I realized there there was usually only a couple of donuts in the box that I really, really liked, and there were often one or two that I couldn't stand to eat. I decided to only buy a box if it was The Perfect (or Near-Perfect) Box of Donuts. Every time I go to the store, I pass by the case to see if the boxes are out. If they are, I pore over them, hoping to find The Perfect Box.
Tonight, I found that box. All but one were my favorites, and that last one was a variety I consider edible. I noticed that all the boxes were missing their "reduced bakery" sticker and was annoyed that the boxes weren't sealed up (the stickers hold the boxes closed). I was annoyed, but I was still going to buy it, because it was The Perfect Box.
Having found The Perfect Box, I put back my (on sale for $2.50) package of Pepperidge Farms Double Dark Chocolate Crispy Cookies, and headed to the check-out line. [And by "put back", I mean I put it back where I found it, with the other ones. I do follow my own customer rules, you know!]
When I got the the register, the clerk looked at my box, and then asked me how many I had. Confused, I explained that it was the discount box. She asked me again, so I said I didn't know. As she counted up the donuts, I told her that all the discount boxes were lacking stickers tonight, but that they're usually $2. (I think it's actually $1.99, but whatever.) She was all, "Without a bakery sticker, I have to charge for each donut." She said this without a single note of a apology in her tone of voice. I declined to purchase them, and suggested that she tell someone the boxes need stickers.
As I walked home, fuming about the loss of The Perfect Box, I tried to think about it from the clerk's perspective, and I still found myself pissed off. While I understand her desire to stick the rules (I'm a bit of a rule-stickler myself), I think she could have done something to fix this situation -- call a manager, do a computer search for the "reduced bakery" code, whatever -- or at least pretended to be sympathetic. Additionally, it makes no business sense. Those donuts are pratically day-old, and the bakery people box them up for quick sale. Selling them at the same price they charge for fresh donuts is just dumb.
By the time I got home, I had finished mourning my loss of The Perfect Box of Donuts, and decided the universe was telling me not to eat them.
But still..... :(
[Aside to Tofutti Cutie: The lack of stickers made me think that perhaps a certain donut-maker we know had relocated north and been put in charge of the end-of-night bakery price reductions. Doesn't that just sound like something he would do? ;) ]
13 September 2005
Sad
At work yesterday, a teenaged girl came up to me, held up two items, and asked how much they would cost. I asked her if she knew how much each one was (they weren't individually labelled), and she said she thought they were $2 each. I checked to be sure she was right (she was), and then said, "Well, they'd be $4, plus tax." She still looked at me expectantly, so I said, "Tax is about 10%, so they should be $4.40."
I thought it was a little peculiar, but since I was in my 20's before I really had a handle on percentages (despite being very good at math) and since I didn't know the tax rate until I started working retail, I let it go.
A couple of minutes later she came up to me, held out two quarters and said, "Would four dollars plus these be enough?"
She didn't seem mentally disabled in any way, but I'm hoping she was, because otherwise....that's just really, really sad.
I thought it was a little peculiar, but since I was in my 20's before I really had a handle on percentages (despite being very good at math) and since I didn't know the tax rate until I started working retail, I let it go.
A couple of minutes later she came up to me, held out two quarters and said, "Would four dollars plus these be enough?"
She didn't seem mentally disabled in any way, but I'm hoping she was, because otherwise....that's just really, really sad.
