Careful Reading Those Labels

So after a nine hour drive through storm-induced traffic, we stopped for dinner at this Applebee's in Marietta, Georgia.

We were seated quite quickly.  We mulled over the order.  Chicken or steak?  Steak or shrimp?  Or should we get a burger.  Or a salad.  Or a burger.  Or a steak.  But eventually, we settled on a steak for me, and a turkey bacon club for my companion.  Something simple that would come out quickly.

Our server came and took our order. And then we sipped our Sweet Tea and waited for dinner to arrive.  And waited.

And waited.

 A long while later, my dinner companion asked the waitress about our order, and she promised to check it out.

About 15 minutes later, we asked again.  She apologized, and went back to the kitchen.  Five minutes went by.  Ten.

She finally came back to report that the kitchen was out of turkey, a required ingredient of the Turkey Club Sandwich that was half of our order.  "Would you like to order something else?"   My companion stared at her blankly.  It had taken 15 minutes to choose the damned sandwich.  And now she had to pick something else out of the air? 

It took our server a moment to realize that we didn't have a menu.  "Oh," she stammered, "Shall I get you a menu?"

"No," my dinner companion said, "just get me a burger.  You have burgers, right?  Do you still have hamburger back there?"  Hunger can make you cranky.  Very cranky.

Our waitress- sorry, server - ran our order back to the kitchen, and immediately returned to let us know it would be right out.  We inquired about the status of the other half of our order; would an ice-cold steak show up with a hot burger?  We were assured that both entrees would be hot.

The manager did come by to apologize, and explained that the kitchen staff really hadn't told our server that they were unable to complete the order.  It didn't sound like he went all Gordon Ramsay over anyone back there, but at least he tried to deflect blame from the server. Save that tip!

Actually, he'd have chewed US out:
"Applebees?  Are you fucking kidding me?
What did you fucking expect?"

It puts a whole new spin on the motto they proudly display out front, which we hadn't really paid attention to going in, but when I read it coming out the door, the irony was apparent:

The actual sign out front.

To be fair, that did feel about how long it took for dinner to arrive.  Order today, and you'll get it tomorrow.

Jeremy Irony

Jeremy Irons claims gay marriage laws could lead to a father marrying his son

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9972011/Jeremy-Irons-claims-gay-marriage-laws-could-lead-to-a-father-marrying-his-son.html

Just like current laws could lead to a father marrying his daughter.

Ahh, Jeremy, you're a pretty good actor, but a fairly stupid man.

posted from Bloggeroid

Loos Change

http://m.nbcnews.com/travel/some-delta-onboard-loos-getting-little-smaller-1C9184100

So airlines want to make the facilities smaller for patrons who are generally getting larger. Just another indifferent slap in the face to the increasingly obese population.

OK, we know how to turn this around; let's mandate that airlines must divulge the size of their necessaries. We'll create a classification system based on the volume of the accommodations, so you can choose your flights accordingly.

Frankly, we should have done this when they started trying to cram more passengers on each plane. A for adequate, B for barely fit, and C for cattle-car. Force a little truth in advertising on the industry.

posted from Bloggeroid

They Don't Give A Damn About Bad Sequestration

It's funny how everyone seems to have forgotten how sequestration came into our lives. And by "everyone," of course, I mean members of the Republican party.

It started with a bill to lift the nation's debt ceiling. Now, the debt ceiling was lifted a couple of dozen times during the administration of George W. Bush without incident. But once we elected a black man into office, it suddenly becomes a huge issue. Suddenly, the president who has actually spent the least amount of any president in recent history is "spending way too much" and our debt is "out of control." This, despite the fact that the prior administration spent way more and increased the national debt by far greater orders of magnitude than the current officeholder.

House Republicans threatened to vote against raising the debt limit; effectively arguing that the United States would not pay for the spending of the previous (Republican) administration, which predictably caused a drop in our national credit rating. Which House Republicans predictably blamed on the current (Democratic) administration. At the same time, the House failed to produce a budget that included a balance of spending cuts and revenue increases - an approach preferred by the the majority of U.S. voters.

So two major problems faced the nation; we were on the verge of defaulting on paying debt we had already incurred, and we were about to start the fiscal year without a budget.

A solution was offered; approve the debt ceiling, and as part of that approval, Congress would mandate a deadline with consequences: the Sequestration.

The consequences for the Democrats; spending would be cut from programs they supported, and no new revenues would be added. The consequences for Republicans; the spnding cuts would be across the board, equally, from every sector of the budget, including defense, long the sacred cow of the GOP.

Turns out that House Republicans don't give a shit about the consequences for the entire nation; economic collapse that will undermine what recovery we've made since the original collapse that occurred at the end of the Bush administration.

I'm reminded of The Mummy movies; the living mummy was cursed; he would be mummified alive, and remain conscious forever in his dessicated body. HOWEVER, it included a catch; if anyone ever freed the mummy for any reason (even unwittingly), he would gain the power of a god with the ability to destroy the entire planet. Which just goes to show that not only was Pharoah a vengeful tyrant, he was also a dumbass.

Which, when you think about it, is not unlike what we're getting; a penultimate punishment for Congress which does little harm to the members of Congress, but is now a threat to the livelihood of almost everyone in the nation.

What dumbass thought THAT was a good idea?

Why hasn't 50 State been fired yet?

For the umpteenth time, 50 State Security has erroneously decided that it must stop photography in and around Miami MetroRail stations, even though the county has very clearly written policy that permits it.  Worse, the idiots in uniform assaulted photographer and civil rights activist Carlos Miller, according the Miami New Times.

Make no mistake; in the United States, photography is permitted in public places, and that specifically includes train stations.  There are no laws that restrict one's right to take photos in or around train stations.  Not one law.  The county has confirmed this on numerous occasions. You can even access the law online, and it's very clear that photography is permitted.

Worse, 50 State Security knows this.  They should have gotten the message in the wake of the incident where they illegally seized private property.

It is long past time for Miami Metrorail to fire these cretins and replace them with a reputable company that adheres to the actual law.  The citizens of Miami-Dade county deserve better than the clowns employed by 50 State Security.

Seen on The Internet

I think it's a part of a program to help tourists find what they're looking for.