Tired of the disrespect

So I've been working at Gino's East since early February, so it's been almost four months now. I gave them five days a week for seven weeks, before needing to cut back to 3-4 days a week when I started at COD. So typically, I was working Thursday and Friday night, followed by Saturday and Sunday mornings. I didn't mind working an occasional Sunday morning, but I didn't realize they were going to give me every single Sunday shift. So I have not been able to go to church or go to my small group in around three months. That's tough on my social life and tougher on my soul.

Now it was about two weeks ago when they posted the upcoming schedule. The way these geniuses do it is they post the next week's schedule on Sunday morning. So you have one day's notice if you're working Monday. It's terrible. So I noticed that I was given Thursday and Friday night off, but was still working the Saturday and Sunday shifts. I was confused, but decided to not say anything. We have some new servers and if they're trying to get them on the floor, I get it. So then that week passes by and I get the next schedule and it's the same thing. I was the only server not working Friday night who did not request it off. So I was past being mad at this point.

When I asked the GM, who makes these schedules, about the schedules, she said I do better in the daytime so this would work best for me. She apparently thinks I get too intense when I'm rushed. And apparently some servers think I've yelled at them when I believe I'm just raising my voice in the kitchen so they can hear me. I said if someone had an issue with me, then they should have talked to me about it. How am I supposed to solve a problem if I don't know that one exists? She said it wasn't about anyone having an issue with me, it's that they were concerned about me. At that point, I knew that it was me against the restaurant. If you are concerned with someone, you talk to them directly and respectfully, you don't backbite and gossip. As a result, I've lost all of my night shifts and I don't know if this is temporary or permanent.  Even worse, they didn't even have the balls to tell me until I confronted them about it myself.

Also, I mentioned the 11 hour shift I worked the previous Saturday when I stayed late, took a party of 18, and it went perfectly. the bill was $200 and I made a $70 tip. The GM said she wasn't there, so she doesn't know. So this person works with me one day maybe every two weeks and apparently what I do when she's not around is irrelevant.

I show up on time, I'm reliable, I bust my ass, I'm polite, I'm courteous, and my customers like me. But apparently, I'm not their type. Maybe if I went out during a shift to smoke a disgusting cigarette, I'd be more accepted.

The bottom line is this. I'm going to a 4-day work week at COD for June and July. So I have an extra day shift to work with. I'm sure they'll schedule me Friday through Sunday in the morning for the next two months. After that's over, I don't want to work Sundays anymore. Between church, small group, and football, I'm tired of it. And for heaven's sake, I think I deserve a day off during the week. So if they're only going to give me Saturday afternoon shifts, when I'm not going to make tons of money, why the hell would I want to still stay there? What I would ideally like is to work two weeknights and a Saturday every week. If they will not accommodate that, then I'm going to quit. And the truth is as soon as COD promotes me to full time, I'm probably going to just quit anyway. It might be hoping for a lot, but I hope it happens by August.

Here we go...

1) Eleven wins down, five to go. Tonight, the New York Rangers have the chance to reach their second consecutive Stanley Cup Final when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning. I will be live blogging the game later, something I have not done since last year's Eastern Conference Finals. Maybe it will work again.

2) This is undoubtedly the hardest class of the 14. It's a capstone project, so it's one long research assignment and each week adds a new layer onto the previous six. the thing is the level of research is so deep and the professor is really tough for details, so it's challenging to find the right direction. I think I'm doing okay with it. I'm on Week 3 of 6 and my assignment is to find scientific journal studies that relate to my topic of choice. My topic is American Airlines and keeping employee morale and customer service strong as they go through this large merger with U.S. Airways. We'll see what happens.

3) I've run two miles in each of the last three weeks. What's enocuraging now is that I'm not experiencing the sharp leg pains that I was after I ran the previous two weeks. It feels like I'm slowly getting back into running shape again. I just wish we had more than four months a year in Chicago that was suitable for running outside. for the record, any temperature under 55 degrees is brutal for running!

4) Maggie just cannot get enough food. Steak, turkey, cheese, toast, fruit salad, even romaine lettuce, it doesn't matter. If Mom and I eat it, it's fair game. I don't know if she's capable of having a full stomach.

5) I've been taking so many more naps lately.

6) I'd seen Die Hards 1, 3, 4, and 5. I finally just saw #2. It was good, but there's nothing like the first. And anytime a John Amos character dies, I can't help but think about "Good Times."

7) I need to go to Craft in Chicago and try their pizza. And bagels. I hear they boil them, which if you don't know, is the only acceptable way to prepare a bagel.

8) Why can't breakfast restaurants realize there are other syrups besides maple?!

9) As bad as weather continues to be all over the country, you almost start appreciating any day where you get sunshine, 80 degrees, and no rain

10) I cannot wait to quit my second job. Just as soon as I can go full time at COD...that's worth another blog post.

Bonus: Let's Go Rangers!!!!

72 hours of kaos

Wow. Who knew that a weekend excursion would turn into one of the more emotional, unpredictable, adventurous times I've had in quite a while? Let's just make this one a timeline.
Friday
12:00 Left work, when mom picked me up.
12:30 Arrived at O’Hare
2:30 Scheduled flight to Chicago.
2:40 Bumped off the plane, the next one doesn't leave until 8 pm.
3:15 Ate a burger and margherita pizza at the Hilton. Very impressive pizza, I must say. San Marzano tomatoes make all the difference.
6:00 Watched the Rangers-Capitals Game 5 in an airport bar. Oh, I chatted with a beautiful blonde girl for about a half hour. Somehow, I managed to focus on her and not the game. No, I did not ask for her number. I just didn’t have that feeling.
6:45 I left the bar because they switched the only TV to Bulls vs Cavs.
8:00 The flight gets delayed two hours due to weather issues. Bummer, but not totally unexpected.
8:20 I got a text that the Rangers keep their season alive, when Chris Kreider ties the game with 1:41 left on the clock. I am stunned, but I refrained from going too crazy.
8:40 I gave in and walked over to the Wolfgang Puck bar to watch the Rangers and Capitals start overtime. My heart started pounding immediately, especially with two Washington fans standing nearby.
9:00 Rangers won and stay alive in the series. I screamed “YES! YES!” and pumped my fists. All 75 people in the bar were staring at me. I marched proudly back to the gate.
10:00 There was no first officer for the flight so we can't leave.
11:30 We finally board and took off.
Saturday

2:30 Landed in Austin

2:45 Grabbed the rental car from Budget, we actually get an SUV.

3:15 Arrived at the Residence Inn hotel in South Austin. Unfortunately, it was the wrong hotel. I was past being mad at this point as I was tired and hungry and just wanted to sleep.

3:30 Arrived at the Fairfield Inn. Maybe the darkest hotel I have ever seen.

3:45 Attempted to fall asleep, I don’t think that happened for at least an hour.

6:30 Woke up and wanted to fall right back asleep. After the last fight, I was happy to get out of there.

6:45 Gym and eat a barely edible breakfast of scrambled eggs and fruit. Their gym was a treadmill and an elliptical. Lame.

7:15 Drove around Austin, including Zilker Park, where I took a picture of the Stevie Ray Vaughan statue

9:00 I visited the Texas State Capitol building. It’s taller than the one in DC, at over 200 feet. I photographed many local memorials, such as WW1 WW2, Statue of Liberty replica, and the 10 Commandments stone.

10:30 We visited the flagship Whole Foods in downtown Austin. Underground parking was packed, as was the store. They had amazing samples, like green chile shrimp, BBQ sausage, and pizelles. Their homemade chicken and waffles, smoothie bar, and desserts were to die for. Any Whole Foods fan needs to go to this place.

12:00 Drove to the West Side of Austin to Hula Hut, a tropical/Mexican joint right on the Colorado River. Met up with my cousin, her husband, their two sons (who I guess are my second cousins), who came in from outside Dallas, and the husband’s parents, who came from San Antonio. We had a tremendous time as I loaded up on queso dip with sirloin steak, pork tacos, beans and rice, guacamole, and a huge drink called the Fishbowl. I have no idea what was in it, but it was pink and it was huge. Didn’t affect me in the least.

1:30 We walked next door to Mozart’s which is a dessert and coffee bar. I had a “mini” pecan pie which was about the size of a small dinner plate. I got halfway through it. Bottom line, pecan pie needs whipped cream. I played air hockey with Ian and it looks like I may take Gavin to Wrestlemania next year.

3:30 We all said our goodbyes and Mom and I went back to the ugly hotel to rest up. I took a dip in the pool for about two minutes. We had planned to have dinner with my cousin’s family, but the boys wanted to take a swim and recover, so we decided to let them do their own thing. Of course, they were staying in the JW Marriott, so they had a pretty good deal going on. At my hotel, it was old people, little kids. Definitely didn’t see people my own age.

4:30 We headed to Saxon, a club for some live music. I couldn’t go to Austin and not hear a few tunes. It was a small, dark place with a bar and stage. It’s all about the music, as it should be. I got a local brew and listened to this husband and wife combo play for about 30 minutes. The guy was older and sounded a lot like Michael McDonald. Turns out it was Bobby Whitlock, one of the founders of Derek & the Dominoes. They closed the show with a piano and saxophone rendition of Layla, which was simply awesome. The demographic was mostly people in their 40s and 50s.

6:00 We had dinner at the Roaring Fork, a nice Southern-style restaurant located in a hotel in downtown Austin. It felt very classy without being snooty. We started with an appetizer special, a deep fried avocado topped with manchengo cheese, BBQ pulled pork, pico de gallo and sriracha ranch. It was a nice idea, but I didn't care for the combination of flavors. BBQ sauce and salsa just don't work well together. And for $14...not at all worth it. I ordered the blackened redfish and had much better success. It came with a whole grain pilaf, smoked tomatoes, and Chipotle Tabasco lemon butter. I honestly could have done without the tomato. The pilaf was marvelous, it tasted really earthy with a nice texture. It was a different side but I liked it a lot. The butter worked great with the fish and I even put some of it on my asparagus. The fish itself was cooked perfectly. The service was very good and the waiters were great at making recommendations and keeping our glasses filled. $76 for two iced teas, and app, and two entrees is a little steep, but it was a fair experience overall.

7:30 We walked down Sixth St, the heart of the Austin bar scene. They’re actually opening a Gino’s East over there pretty soon, which was pretty cool. Maybe they can transfer me there for a few weeks. It had the feel of Bourbon St, just a little more laid back and less dangerous. I’d watch my step there, in terms of my cash, but it seemed like a cool place to go with a group.

8:45 We headed back to Saxon for about another hour, before deciding to leave. We knew we were getting up early, so we got back around 10:00 at night.

Sunday

6:00 Pack up and check out

7:00 Drove north to Round Rock for Round Rock glazed donuts. Excellent sugar. It’s right next to a Baptist church and I don’t know if people tend to  go to the church with the donuts as a bonus or to the donut place as an excuse to go to church!

7:45 We walked up Mt. Bonnell for a nice view of the Colorado river and Texas Hill Country.

9:00 Visited the LBJ Presidential Library on the University of Texas campus. Very interactive museum, lots of archived letters and materials. A great place for anyone to visit.

11:00 Headed south to the airport and checked in the rental car. When we went through security, we noticed the line to check in seemed pretty long. We had a 2:30 listing for the third of four non-stop flights to Chicago. But the flights looked tight so we had additional listings to connect through Charlotte or Los Angeles. We walked over to the Charlotte gate and an earlier flight was actually delayed an hour so we could still get it. We tried to get on it. With about 20 minutes to spare, I headed down the terminal to Salt Lick BBQ. I got a three-meat platter of brisket, pulled pork, and turkey with potato salad, beans, cole slaw, and bread with a sweet tea to drink. The sauce was yellow in color, so it didn’t have tomatoes. All the meats were really tender and I could cut them with a plastic fork. The beans needed tomatoes. The slaw and salad were both mayo free, thank goodness. And the seeded bread was very soft, I could have used another three or four pieces.

12:00 Oh, let’s get back to the flights. On my way to Salt Lick, I saw a ton of people sitting all over the terminal, like it was a homeless shelter. The 9:00 flight to Chicago was delayed, because the plane was over three hours late. We also found out two flights to Dallas were cancelled. At that point, we knew we were in trouble. Apparently, the latest round of storms was causing a lot of problems in North Texas as well as Oklahoma. We looked at every airport within driving distance, Houston, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Tulsa, you name it. Nothing looked good. This was the first time in over 30 years when my mother seemed at a loss for ideas when it came to travel.  

1:00 We finally threw in the towel, rented a silver Nissan, and took off north. Yep, I had to get back to work, so we decided to drive 16+ hours back to Chicago. I knew if I was going to make it to work on time, we’d have to leave quickly. So we took off north on Route 35 through Waco, Dallas, and Oklahoma City. We had a pretty big argument about directions, since she wanted to use her instincts and I wanted to us Google Maps. Generational gap, I guess.

2:30 We stopped into Walk-Mart around Waco for an atlas, phone charger, and snacks.

3:30 Around Temple, Texas, which is a little ways south of Dallas, we hit our only traffic jam. We came to a total stop for 15 minutes, but I could see a lot of empty road up ahead. So I knew something was weird. We were approaching a river, and the water was running really high after the recent floods, so I figured it was water causing a lane closure. That wasn’t the whole problem. I saw one police car. There were no damaged cars and no one was being arrested. I looked to my right, trying to figure this out. I saw four dudes in their twenties throwing something into the river with a cop watching. Then I saw two cows in the river with water up to the tops of their legs. The guys were throwing ropes just to rescue the cows. It was funny and sad at the same time!

8:00 On the drive, we stopped in for some good grease at Tucker’s Onion burgers in OKC. I really wanted something that we couldn’t get back home and this fit the bill. Onion burgers are an Oklahoma tradition, as the mixed fried onions into the beef in order to reduce the meat and save money. I had a double onion burger with cheese and topped it with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, grilled jalapenos, and mustard. The roll in particular was great. It tasted really fresh and held up well with so many ingredients inside of it. The tough part of an onion burger is the onions can overwhelm the beef, but they still had a great flavor.  Excellent fries, fresh and crispy and a ton of drink options. I don't know when I'll be back in OKC, but I would definitely come back.

8:45 From OKC, we headed east on Rt 44 towards Tulsa, which would take us all the way to St. Louis. For the first half of the ride, the weather alternated between beautiful and stormy. We’d get 15 minutes of rain, followed by a lot of sun and 75 degrees. The weather was perfect in OKC, so we ate outside. But once we hit Tulsa, it was all over. The lowest clouds I’d ever seen descended upon us and the heavens opened up. It rained the rest of the trip. I drove from OKC all the way to just west of St. Louis, which was about 7 or so hours without a break. But I was driving in a rented car, in the rain, on a poorly lit highway, while getting sprayed by trucks, and going on no sleep. That’s pretty damn hard to do! I tried to drink a lemon-lime 5-hour energy to keep me awake, but I really felt my heart racing and it really tasted lousy. It was the third time I tried to drink one of those, and I will not do it again. Thanks to mom for letting me listen to the Rangers win Game 6 by the way! But the other cool part was I found a couple of classic country radio stations. I loved hearing that country music from the 70s, 80s, and 90s before, it turned into the crap it is now.

4:00 Mom took over the driving and we took 55 all the way into Chicagoland. We stopped to take two 15-minute power naps; we just couldn’t stop in a hotel because of time and money. We probably had to fill the gas tank five times, which was crazy! We had no change of clothes or grooming supplies either since we had already checked our luggage to the airport. So we were pretty gross, in addition to tired and ornery.

9:10 We arrived at College of DuPage, where I had left my car. Since I had a spare house key in my wallet, I drove my car home and cleaned up before heading right back to work. My boss was gracious enough to let me work 11-4 that day instead of 9-3. I still do not know how I stayed awake driving; it was harder for me in Illinois than it was in Oklahoma and Missouri.

Flawed communication

For much of my childhood, I was an outcast. And having no siblings and coming from a divorced family, I'm used to isolation. Because of that, I've always lived my life on my terms and adjusting to other people's interests or social tendencies takes a little time. And when someone only knows someone through social media, let' be real, they can only know them to a point. I am learning more and more that social media can allow people to be acquaintances, but they can rarely, if ever, be real friends if they keep the relationship exclusive to social media.

I bring this up because I find it interesting what I've been getting from other people in terms of their opinion of me. I don't care as much as I used to, but I have a problem if people are insulting me without my knowledge. Within the span of two hours, one person who I have met once in my life but have communicated with for five years told me how much I was loved. Then another person who knows me only through Facebook accused me of being increasingly rude and negative.

I know I'm putting myself on the line by listing those two words. So I feel the need to say a couple of things. I think some people confuse certain things. For instance, what some call positive, some may perceive as delusional. On a parallel level, what some call negative, another may call honest. I'm honest. And when it comes to the topic that was being discussed, the New York Jets, it has been a lot of negativity over the 25 years that I have been rooting for them. And this past season was a tremendous disappointment that resulted in the clueless general manager and the talented head coach losing their jobs. Apparently, I was supposed to be positive by their standards, but delusional by my standards, and talk about how great things were and how they're definitely going to be great next season. Well, you know what, as many times as I have been heartbroken, I'm not going to get myself all worked up thinking that every year is the year that they will be great. And if I offer an alternative viewpoint or ask a question requesting that a person explain their viewpoint,  that is not being rude. That is called engaging someone in conversation. And if they get defensive and accuse me of being rude as a result, they are the one with the problem.

It is comforting to know that they people who actually do know me from more than social media do like me. Those are the people that are worth spending my time with. Even though social media has made communication far more convenient, it is apparently making the process of knowing people far more difficult. And that's really unfortunate.