As Georg mentioned, we had a really nice Valentine's dinner at Elaine's in Chapel Hill. It definitely ranked up there with Nana's and Four Square as one of the best meals I've had in the Triangle. The only blot on the evening was this chick at the next table. At the end of the meal when the waiter brought her a long-stemmed rose (which they were doing for all the women present) and she turned to her date and said "This is much nicer than the ones you gave me!" Georg and I had a tough time not laughing out loud, we were so amazed at her rudeness.
The worst part was, she wouldn't let it go! She kept going on about how, no offense, but his flowers were totally dead. The poor guy tried to defend himself and say that they weren't dead, they just hadn't come into bloom yet, but she insisted that yes, they were dead. She was laughing like it was funny, but he looked so crestfallen. I felt so bad for him. When they left he came back because she had forgotten her purse, and I so wanted to say "Dump her! You can do so much better!" But I restrained myself. It would have been even worse to add the humiliation of knowing that strangers were listening to his horrible girlfriend act so horribly. But I did make a point of telling Georg that my complimentary flower was no better than the ones he had given me.
(On a related note, if two women have dinner at Elaine's on Valentine's day, do they each get a rose? Do two men get nothing? I think if I were a lesbian I would still want my rose.)
Project Exercise Thirteen continued with a trip to Pet Smart yesterday, and to the Eno park today. In case you missed the ads, Pet Smart is the store where you can take your dogs inside. With all the smells and toys and treats, it's like crack for dogs. Needless to say Thirteen had a great time. She didn't even mind not getting any treats; just seeing everything was fun for her. I took her to see the birds and the kitties, but there was so much else to see and smell that she didn't even notice them. The cats could see her though: they were all arched up and wide-eyed, staring at her. They were behind glass but it must drive them nuts to have people staring at them and dogs walking past all day long.
Today was the Eno Park. She loves it there, but there's a steep hill down to the water that can't be avoided on the trails I know of. That's less than ideal & though we only walked for about 20-25 minutes, Thirteen was totally exhausted. Which is not entirely bad: we've been having problems with her pacing, I think because she's lonely, and tiring her out seems to help. But I don't want to overdo it. Next time I'll try another entrance to the park and see if we can find a trail without that steep hill.
the thing that slays me is, i think they have petsmart commercials where they show someone with thier *cat* in the store. right, like that would work out!
the rude flower girl story just floors me. that poor guy.
i always wonder whether the store is "Pet Smart" or "Pets Mart". The logo features differently-sized capital letters, which makes it hard to tell for sure... like PETsMART
see: http://www.petsmart.com/
i just think it's interesting how different people interpret it differently.
besides, if the store was really all that "sMART" they would figure out a method of instantly channelling away the dog pee that sometimes puddles in the aisles. ;-)
that is all.
Hey, Grace and I had Valentine's dinner next door to you at Tallula's! We should have knocked on the wall to say "hey". (At least I *think* they're right next door to each other.)
One thing in particular that we loved about Tallula's -- the restaurant noise levels and lighting were just right. It was also nice to have Turkish-speaking wait staff who could tongue that fascinating language.
Not really related: I used to be in love with a Turkish woman. She broke my heart, but that was six years ago and I think I'm getting over it now.
p.s. about the guy with the ungrateful woman. I could *so* completely connect him to a dozen worthy single women in the 30-40 age group. Alas.