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elfsYesterday, after picking up Kouryou-chan from school (and she was so thrilled to have school again!) we stayed home for most of the afternoon. I gave her an hour of television (Dora the Explorer and Maisy) and we did much more of the kitten puzzle. That was a lot of fun, although there was also a bit of getting in each other's way. I managed to get two loads of laundry done and changed the bedsheets in the middle there somewhere. Then, after a while, it was time to go get Yamaarashi-chan from her mother's house for our weekly date.
I'm afraid I wimped out. I was tired of trying to keep the house running and I didn't want to cook anymore. Kouryou-chan had been so good through this whole episode that now that we could drive, I took the kids out to Sizzler (cheap, but reasonable, although now I think about it, that's Mad Cow city ain't it?) and then over to Kidopolis. Good. Let them run their arms off climbing around inside a child-sized hamster cage.
What do you tip at a Sizzler? I hate to ask, but because we pay up front for the meals, and because I only had two bucks in cash left on me, I only ended up leaving a 10% tip. I felt bad about that, but I didn't know what else to do. It's not like we were "served" in the traditional sense although the wait staff did keep the drinks refilled.
Not that that mattered. Although I've had no trouble eating, I haven't been hungry-- oh look, here's a half-drunk glass of Pepsi, and a half-finish cup of coffee, and a half-eaten sandwich. I just can't maintain any interest in food. And eating even that little bit of steak that I did was a bad idea; I feel like someone has transplanted a small brick in my transverse colon.
Yamaarashi-chan was pretty good the whole trip but, man, what is it with her and that damned Pokemon show? According to a friend of mine who's something of an expert on all thing Pokemon, the Pokemon universe is fundamentally evil: first, the rise of the Pokemon was the result of an ecological disaster created by humanity; second, the Pokemon universe is run by trial-by-violence, and third, even the "good guys" are essentially slavers. After hearing her chant the word "Pokemon!" for the ten thousandth time I'm ready to tear my hair out. And she doesn't even own any of the cards! Thank goddess for that.
Maybe that's just an extreme example of a bad habit of hers. She's so easily hypnotized by screens. As we passed by the arcade next to Kidopolis, A Marvel vs. Capcom video game in non-play mode was so attractive to her she stood there, glued to it, watching the words flicker by. The restaurant next to this place has a big-screen TV that can be seen through the window. While Kouryou-chan buckled herself into her car seat, Yamaarashi-chan stood there, staring through the window. I could have driven away and she would never have noticed. I had to drag her away. All she ever talks about is television; she tells me she doesn't have any real friends that are as interesting as her TV. I hope she outgrows this. It's driving me flaming crazy.
After a day of school, an afternoon of various indoor pursuits, and an evening of romping about in the coolest playset this side of Lake Washington, Kouryou-chan went to bed without a complaint. She was nice to me, put on her pyjamas and brushed her teeth (and I took care of her injured gums), picked her books (abridged versions of Disney bowdlerizations of Snow White and Peter Pan, and Elf sighs heavily) and dropped right off.
And I'm still dealing with the dregs of whatever's attacked me. My fever is 99.0 this morning, and it's hovered between 99 and 100 all day yesterday. This tells me that my immune system got most of it but there are still small insurgency battles going on inside my body. Unfortunately, the holdouts all seem to have barricaded themselves in my tonsils-- I've got nodes the size of ping-pong balls, making it painful but not difficult to swallow. Dayquil shall be my food of the gods today.
I'm afraid I wimped out. I was tired of trying to keep the house running and I didn't want to cook anymore. Kouryou-chan had been so good through this whole episode that now that we could drive, I took the kids out to Sizzler (cheap, but reasonable, although now I think about it, that's Mad Cow city ain't it?) and then over to Kidopolis. Good. Let them run their arms off climbing around inside a child-sized hamster cage.
What do you tip at a Sizzler? I hate to ask, but because we pay up front for the meals, and because I only had two bucks in cash left on me, I only ended up leaving a 10% tip. I felt bad about that, but I didn't know what else to do. It's not like we were "served" in the traditional sense although the wait staff did keep the drinks refilled.
Not that that mattered. Although I've had no trouble eating, I haven't been hungry-- oh look, here's a half-drunk glass of Pepsi, and a half-finish cup of coffee, and a half-eaten sandwich. I just can't maintain any interest in food. And eating even that little bit of steak that I did was a bad idea; I feel like someone has transplanted a small brick in my transverse colon.
Yamaarashi-chan was pretty good the whole trip but, man, what is it with her and that damned Pokemon show? According to a friend of mine who's something of an expert on all thing Pokemon, the Pokemon universe is fundamentally evil: first, the rise of the Pokemon was the result of an ecological disaster created by humanity; second, the Pokemon universe is run by trial-by-violence, and third, even the "good guys" are essentially slavers. After hearing her chant the word "Pokemon!" for the ten thousandth time I'm ready to tear my hair out. And she doesn't even own any of the cards! Thank goddess for that.
Maybe that's just an extreme example of a bad habit of hers. She's so easily hypnotized by screens. As we passed by the arcade next to Kidopolis, A Marvel vs. Capcom video game in non-play mode was so attractive to her she stood there, glued to it, watching the words flicker by. The restaurant next to this place has a big-screen TV that can be seen through the window. While Kouryou-chan buckled herself into her car seat, Yamaarashi-chan stood there, staring through the window. I could have driven away and she would never have noticed. I had to drag her away. All she ever talks about is television; she tells me she doesn't have any real friends that are as interesting as her TV. I hope she outgrows this. It's driving me flaming crazy.
After a day of school, an afternoon of various indoor pursuits, and an evening of romping about in the coolest playset this side of Lake Washington, Kouryou-chan went to bed without a complaint. She was nice to me, put on her pyjamas and brushed her teeth (and I took care of her injured gums), picked her books (abridged versions of Disney bowdlerizations of Snow White and Peter Pan, and Elf sighs heavily) and dropped right off.
And I'm still dealing with the dregs of whatever's attacked me. My fever is 99.0 this morning, and it's hovered between 99 and 100 all day yesterday. This tells me that my immune system got most of it but there are still small insurgency battles going on inside my body. Unfortunately, the holdouts all seem to have barricaded themselves in my tonsils-- I've got nodes the size of ping-pong balls, making it painful but not difficult to swallow. Dayquil shall be my food of the gods today.
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Date: 2004-01-09 04:08 pm (UTC)At a full service restaurant, I tip 15%. Perhaps 20% for outstanding service. The lowest I will tip is 10% -- and only for very poor service. If I feel like tipping less, I make a point of speaking to the manager and tip nothing -- and more often than not, my meal is "comped" (free) by management.
If you use a coupon or discount offer, you tip based on the original full cost of the meal, because processing the coupon actually uses more of the server's time. Cutting their tip would be unfair.
Now at Sizzler or other "self-service" restaurants, I will tip 10% to a server who is pouring drinks. If they don't keep up with drinks, I don't tip -- but I don't speak to the manager either.
At cafeteria-style places where only bussing service is provided (i.e. Hometown Buffet, Fresh Choice, SouPlantation / Sweet Tomatoes, etc.) I tip nothing. I have been known to leave a buck or two if I spill something on the table, but that's it.
Hope you're feeling well soon.