this has been a while

i think i've done this from time to time, but i know i haven't done it recently. prolly since the great cheesecake fiasco (nearly 2 years ago, how i've not missed that dump).

anyways, yesterday M&i decided that we wanted to have lunch at Finz in Salem. to our surprise, there wasn't much of a wait (none) as the last time we tried, it was pretty busy. so i'll list the good things (you may see a pattern developing)

the good:

• there was no wait to be seated
  
• they moved a table out of the sun under the awning so we could sit in the shade
  
• lunch was free

we arrived around 1pm, and were promptly seated (outside on the deck, see above, they moved a table for us). so far so good. we are given water with lemon, ordered ice tea (after considering the peach mojito). that was promptly delivered.

without a way to sweeten it.

110pm
our waitress (i believe her name was Michelle, but she never tells us her name, we find this out later on) takes our order. nothing fancy, fairly simple, all appetizers.

• Watermelon Salad (entree size)
  
• Scallop Ceviche Mini Tacos
  
• Guacamole Topped with Crabmeat (added at the last moment)
  

after taking our order, our waitress gives us the sugar packet thing so we can finally sweeten our ice tea. at this time, 3 women arrive and are seated, and another couple arrive and are seated (they opt for a sunny seat). a few minutes later, a party of 6 (and infant) arrive.

M&i chat about this and that, the usual lunchtime conversation. M wonders if we are getting rolls (as she arrived pretty hungry). our waitress is nowhere to be found.

during this time, all 3 of the afore mentioned tables have placed their orders and had drinks served.

120pm
ditz of a greeter shows up, sucking down her dunkin' iced coffee. my water glass facing traffic with passing waitresses, a ditzy greeter and sluggish bus boy, is empty.

125pm
M wonders aloud how long it takes to put together 3 cold appetizers. we managed to flag ditzy greeter over (after she blatently avoids eye contact with us for several minutes) to ask about our waitress. my water glass is still empty.

130pm
the party of 3 women now have a hot appetizer. we finally manage to flag down our waitress (thanks to sluggish bus boy) and ask if we are getting rolls. she informs us that they don't serve rolls at lunch, but she can have some put in to warm for us. the only thing is our meal would be out before we received the rolls. we pass on the rolls. we ask what the problem with our order is and she informs us that everything but the tacos are ready. we send her off to the kitchen to bring out the salad and guacamole. running theory is that she never placed our order. my water glass continues to be empty.

135pm
the couple sitting in the sun receive their lunch. (not appetizer, LUNCH) M is boiling. we receive a basket of rolls. just like several OTHER tables. after a 2nd trip, all of the seated tables around us have baskets of rolls. we flag ditzy greeter over and ask her why it is taking so long to assemble 3 appetizers. she stumbles over her words and heads off to talk with someone. hot appetizers are delivered to party of 6 (and infant). and like my water glass, my ice tea is now empty (i could only nurse it for so long).

140pm
one of the several managers comes out to speak with us. she apologizes for the delay, that things will be taken are of. couple sitting in the sun receive their bill. my water and ice tea glasses are empty.

145pm
couple sitting in sun depart after paying their bill. M tries a roll. water glass: empty. ice tea glass: empty.

149pm
lunch is served.

150pm
M&i receive ice tea refills. ditzy greeter neglects to remove empty glasses from now overcrowded table. oh yeah, water glass is still empty.

at this point, M&i finally have an opportunity to eat. it was hard to really enjoy lunch, and we can't say we were really wowed by the food (most reviews we have read imply that the food & service is pretty good). as we sat there, we looked at what we had ordered and wondered how it could take so long to make what we had ordered.

the watermelon salad was nothing fancy, it isn't hard to place guacamole in a large bowl, add some crab meat, surround with chips. and the tacos aren't that complicated either - as an appetizer, they are pretty small, so while we were eating, we were boggled at how it could take so long (unless the order hadn't been placed until we complained).

206pm
we finish eating. waitress comes over to clear the table and ask if we want anything else. M orders another ice tea which is prompty delivered.

215pm
we couldn't leave the place fast enough.

never once did our waitress apologize to us. the manager did, but by the time she did, we were both boiling. we never received an explanation as to what the delay was, or why there was such a delay.

so, M&i will say this: don't eat at Finz in salem.

i realize that there have been plenty of people who have had really good meals there, but based on our experience, i cannot, nor will i suggest anyone go there to eat.

so, like the burlington cheesecake factory location, finz in salem is now blacklisted. i will not eat there again.

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fun fun fun

had a good weekend all things considered. actually, looking back, it wasn't bad at all.

i was able to get my haircut (snuck in an appt w/my usual stylist...yes, molius has a hair stylist)

closed out my safe deposit box in my former town of residence (prompted by FLAB's decision to charge me money for it)

didn't get paged this weekend by Train Wreck, altho apparently some nurse paged the pager and never received any response. funny that, the pager never went off for me, so what pager were they paging? besides, i bought a brand new battery for our pager when i saw that it was running low, just to make sure that i didn't miss a page. but i have got to love DH's attitude.

D: did you get paged?

Mol: nope. bought a new battery, but no pages.

D: ok, thanks.

and talk about your timing - i started writing about not being paged and DH comes over to ask me about it. heh.

so, after getting my haircut, i meandered back, but never stayed any place where i couldn't get back home pretty quickly if i did get paged. fortunately, we have 60 mins to respond to a page, so if it takes even longer to actually deal with the issue, that's fine, but as long as we respond in an hour, we are good. no page, no response by me :-)

just submitted my hours for having the pager last week. the next time i get it, i'll get the entire weeks worth of pager money rather than broken into 2 separate payments.

went out to dinner with M & F. we F wanted steak, but Outback had a 60-70 min wait, so we ended up trying a place in Bedford called Lemon Tree. wasnt' bad, altho M & i grossly misjudged portions on the sushi we ordered. we thought it was going to be sushi (fish on rice balls) but instead it was sashimi (just pieces of fish). now, the fish was pretty good, and it was the best octopus we've had (not overcooked and rubbery like most places seem to do it). plus the fish was fresh, and M didn't find the mackerel as strong as it usually it. she doesn't care for it too much, but found this to be better than most. (mackerel has a strong fishy flavor, and is stronger the less fresh it is, but this time it wasn't as strong)

stopped by Marshall's afterwards. i was suprised to see they had suits in my size (43R) as i rarely see my size. in the past i've generally gone with a 42L or 44R, but when i got a new jacket a little while ago, we found the 43R was the best fit for me. both suits weren't bad, but a little pricey. plus i don't really need one at this very moment, so i passed.

it was a nice evening all around.

sunday i slept later than i have in a long time which was nice, moreso because i didn't get paged by Train Wreck. got the paper. M & i went to lunch at Joe's, which was a rather lackluster experience. we split the burger, and wanted a salad rather than fries (trying to address
that sticky-outy-tummy syndrome) and waitress looked at us as tho we had 5 heads. our soda was pretty much flat, and we weren't even offered a basket of bread to nibble on while we waited. after 20 or so minutes, both of us are starting to be more than mildly annoyed, watching the tip percentage drop like a stone. finally, after 25-30 minutes, our waitress comes over with our buffalo tenders and asks if it is alright if she brings our burgers out at the same time. (yes as
we were hungry and very annoyed at this point) the saving grace of the meal (not much of one given our entire experience there) was that our burger was cut in half and we each had the requested salad on our plates. so, that was nice. we had been figuring that we'd get everything on a plate and we'd have to divide it up, plus ask for a second plate, but they did it for us. so that was the only real saving grace of the meal.

the burger was ok, the salad was heavy on the iceberg, and the buffalo tenders were lacking any real flavor. they were also pretty cool, but that was more because we ate our burger first, so they sat for a little while, but even so, there was next to no zing, no flavor. most disapointing.

bought some maple syrup at TJMaxx afterwards (i only buy the real stuff, none of this corn syrup based maple syrup.) cost me nothing as i used a gift card i got a long time ago, so that made it even better. and it was produced in vermont too, so i won't be disowned by a friend of the family were she to find out i bought canadian based maple syrup.

spun thru chez target, picked up exciting napkins and magnetic picture frames for the few pictures on my fridge which have started to curl (which has been driving me nuts of late) so they are all now flat and i am happy.

simple dinner of tomato spinach soup (homemade - trader joe's veggie stock works wonderfully for this) and grilled cheese w/tomato.

new simpsons was above average i thought, altho the ending was rather weak and abrupt. that unfortunately seems to be the trend of late. i liked the beginning when they got back home after taking a drive and bart had lisa open the envelope he gave her at the beinning which had a drawing of homer stuck under the garage door, and of course that's exactly what was going on. pretty funny.

not much else going on these days. my car is no longer rejected as i got that taken care of this morning on the way into work. it failed the emissions test, so i had that fixed last month. that only took a few mins and it came out with a spiffy '2' sticker. fortunately, the re-inspection only take a few mins as they are just checking to make sure whatever failed was fixed. all the safety stuff passed with flying colors (colours?) last month which is why i have a '2' rather than a '3', but that's ok. i got it done inside the 60 days required and now i can forget about it for a year. or until the next problem arises that will cause it to fail. i'm shooting for an in/out/pass next year. this is 2 years in a row it failed, so it might be nice if it passes next time.

oh well. things are quiet at work right now, but that will change pretty quickly, so i should get back to work.

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