Allow me to illustrate a peaceful afternoon at your local neighborhood grill. People come here everyday to grab a bite to eat. It's 72 degrees outside with a delicate breeze, and you are content with the way your day has gone thus far. Today you've brought a friend with you whom you havn't talked to in a while...needless to say you have some catching up to do. You've been sat in a very inviting and comfortable booth by the window overlooking nice scenery, and after a few minutes a young waiter takes your drink order. At this point you're praying that everything goes okay, because the last few times you've been at this particular restaurant...things didn't go so smooth.
After a few minutes the waiter brings the drinks to your table. One Diet Pepsi and an ice water...WITHOUT lemon. You ordered an ice water WITH lemon, so what's the problem? How hard is it to remember to put a lemon in your ice water? You clearly expressed your infatuation with a lemon wedge on the rim of your ice water the FIRST time the waiter came by. With frusteration in the tone of your voice, you remind the waiter about the lemon and the situation is remedied after a few brief moments. No big deal. So you're talking with your friend about family and old friends while munching on some quesodillas when you both agree that it's time to order entrees. You flag down the waiter and begin to explain what you want for lunch. You hear a relaxing and crisp CLICK of the pen he's using to write down the order. As your friend is ordering, you briefly admire the appearance of the pen as it swiftly glides across the server's notepad. After the both of you are done ordering, the server stuffs his notepad and fancy pen in his apron, and heads for the kitchen. By the way, your favorite Green Day song just started playing. The waiter overheard your excitement, and turned up the music.
About 20 minutes go by before you start wondering why the food has been taking so long. The waiter had returned twice with refills, but didn't mention the food. You talk with your friend about rough restaurant experiences, and how you hope that this quick stop wouldn't turn out half as bad. You see the waiter flirting with the young hostess, and start to get angry. Doesn't he have anything better to do? Isn't he at work? But you're not thinking logically about what he does. He waits on the tables that he has been assigned. It's not his fault that your food is taking so long...or is it? In your semi-emotional state spawned from an afternoon hunger, you're looking for any reason to blame for this dining catastrophe. As it turns out, the waiter soon brings lunch to the table, and with your greedy eyes locked on to the hot and tasty french fries, you forget to say "Thank you."
Much to your dismay, your temporary but unspoken battle with "The Man" is not over. There are a few things wrong with your meal. Your french fries are not hot nor tasty by any means. From the hands on information you've gathered, you've determined that they're extremely old fries. Your friend had a more premium appetite and ordered a steak. However, the steak came out undercooked. Fortunately, the waiter soon came back to the table to ask how everything was going. You decide to open the flood gates. You list everything that has been wrong up to this point to the waiter, along with a few negative past experiences. He responds with an appropriate, yet sincere apology. Your friends steak is escorted to the kitchen on a new plate, and you are relieved when the waiter promised fresh hot and tasty french fries to come along with the well done steak. You decide to calm down, and continue talking with your friend about the past few years apart from one another.
It didn't take long for the steak and new fries to come out, and fortunately everything was worked out just fine. You and your friend were soon brought back to good spirits after the restaurant manager offered free dessert in exchange for the past inconveniences. The seductive thought of raspberry cheesecake sliding down your palate motivated you to apologize for your recent negative outburst, and after that point everything was fine and dandy. The day was getting late, and the sun was going down. The waiter adjusts the blinds when he sees that you're having a hard time seeing. You motion the waiter to the table and ask for your check, specifying that you would be taking care of the bill. Your rendezvous with the old college roomate was soon to be at an end. He soon returns and you exchange your credit card for the ticket. The prices weren't too bad, but no one likes looking at a receipt. In the back of your mind, you're still thinking about the undercooked steak, the lemon wedge, and the fries. You also have a misguided and negative attitude towards the waiter.
After a few moments you are presented with your credit card and a credit slip that is to be filled out by you and returned to the waiter for keeping. Along with your miniature paperwork is the good pen that you had noticed the waiter using. This was a very exceptional pen. It wasn't just any cheap pen you stole from the bully in grade school when he wasn't looking. This pen had a rubber grip with air holes, making for a non-sweaty writing experience. It also had a shiny clip with a plastic ball on the end of it, ensuring that the pen would have a hard time slipping out of your shirt pocket or even rolling off of your desk. With a swift CLICK, you were ready to sign the receipt. There were two lines that you had the responsability of writing in. One of which was the SIGNATURE: line which you preferred to fill out first. You enjoyed the few seconds you had writing with this pen so much that you were excited to move on to the next line. This was a very controversial line.
TIP: _____________________
For as long as you can remember, you were always taught to tip the waiter or waitress 15% of the total dollar amount on the receipt. It was simply good etiquette. . . and ensured that the waiter could afford rent at the end of the month. But the idea that your parents are still controlling you with lessons that you never understood almost angers you. Long ago, you subconciously decided to take matters into your own hands, and tip according to the way you felt about your dining experience. A good experience means that you should leave the waiter a good tip, but a bad one is equivilant to a poor tip. Seems fair, right? Well lets reflect on the dining experience I've presented to you today:
There were some things that went wrong while you were in the restaurant. But did you take a step back and notice everything that went right? Do you remember the lovely weather and nice scenery that you were blessed with? How about the comfortable booths that made a long overdue reunion pleasant? The Green Day song from high school that played right after the waiter took your order? What about the free cheesecake that you and your friend had for dessert? Are you starting to remember that the waiter actually treated you with care and respect, and most of all good service? He kept your drinks full, adjusted the blinds, and turned up the music at the slightest, if any request.
Now think about this. Would YOU be the one thinking about all of the nice things. . . or the bad things that happened? Would a medium-rare steak and some stale fries outweigh a nice afternoon with an old friend upon recollection? Does the lemon issue need to be taken to the supreme court? Sure, the waiter made some mistakes, but not everything was his fault. My last question to you. . . What does it take to make you think about the good things...to take the time to realize that things weren't so bad?
My theory: The Good Pen
The Good Pen represents everything that you overlooked. After the last dot on the second "I" in your name, you decide that things weren't so bad...and that the waiter deserves a good tip. It was really a combination of good company, good music, and good service that did it, but the Good Pen was a symbol of grace. The Good Pen helped pay the waiters rent.
Now that you've read my first blog, I ask you to honestly think about the way you would handle yourself in this situation. I am inviting anyone and everyone to send me an e-mail at bonesandjoints4@hotmail.com or IM me on AOL to talk about "The Good Pen" I believe that everyone needs to take a step back, get over themselves, and think of the good things in life. And if you ever acquire A Good Pen, dont take it for granted. It might just save someone's day.
