Home, Sweet, Home

Saturday, 3 September 2016

Well, I had a most interesting evening Friday night. After spending the day with my friend Matt yesterday, before picking up our friend Sheryl (whom I shared a house with in Canton) for dinner last night, Matt came back Friday evening before he left on his solo road trip west to a new job and a new future.

He and I headed out for a late dinner, making tracks for the local Denny's. We arrived by 2330, and were seated immediately, though no one took drink orders or even paid us any attention for 20 minutes or so!
We finally got one of the servers to take our drink and meal orders, and then sat again for almost another 20 minutes with lots of activity around us, but being totally ignored by the staff.

Several parties (large and small) that arrived after us were served drinks and food, and so at 0010, we stood and left, heading across the parking lot to the 24 hour Eat'n Park, where Nicole gave us the royal treatment and flooded our bladders with constant drink refills and excellent service!



Now I have been patronizing Denny's across the country since I was a kid out west in the early 1960's, and even spent many productive hours after my stroke, working on a couple of my books at the Independence Denny's, sometimes for 12-24 hours at a time.

I always had great service, and even when they were busy on a weekend night, the staff always reserved booth #1 for me (right next to the men's room, and in direct view of both the front door and the kitchen door).

But this was the second time I ever had poor/no service at a Denny's. And the last time was at this same location for breakfast last week. 1681 Howe Avenue, Akron.

I have written a negative review on Google Maps where I read other reviews after our visit tonight, and found many other negative comments about this store.

I also checked out Denny's website, and left a complaint on their complaint template.

Somehow, this whole Denny's thing has triggered a flashback to how I was treated by the staff at the Cuyahoga County Social Services Center at Southgate while applying for food stamps and to get my Medicaid card. I was both ignored, and forced to leave several times when I failed to accept the fact that they refused to serve me as a white male with a work history, no criminal record, or alcohol or substance abuse.

And now that I think about, I also received the same treatment at 3 McDonald's locations, Broadway at about E65^th, the E82nd & Euclid, and the E30^th & Carnegie stores, all in Cleveland. Now I am not bringing race into this at all, but whenever my orders were screwed up at any of these locations, I was basically told to “take a hike” as they weren't gonna do anything for me. I haven't returned to any one of those locations in years, even though they were the most convenient for projects I was working nearby. (The CSU Dorms, New Cleveland Convention Center, NCB Bank Building HQ Renovations, and other high profile, high $$$ projects in town!)



Enough bitching for now, as my friend Joe is now headed over with a load of my stuff he has had stored in his basement, and Sheryl's sister might be available this afternoon to deliver the couch with her truck.

Boy I sure miss having my own pickup truck and not having to rely on someone else to move stuff around! But I don't miss the crazy Ohio drivers and the gas and other expenses related to vehicle ownership.

I have been scoping out bicycle trailer designs, and have encountered some industrial cargo trailers that can be used to move furniture with just pedal power, but I don't think that I am quite ready for a physical challenge like that yet! (Besides, I could buy a used Chevy Pickup for what one of those trailers costs!)

Good news continues, as I did set up the mattress last night and moved the bed after installing the mattress cover and making the bed with the new sheets and a blanket, and I slept very well from about 0900-1400 today, only interrupted by steady text messages from Matt, who was giving a travelogue (Yay, he just announced he has crossed the Mighty Mississippi!), and Sheryl, who is trying to coordinate with her sister to deliver the couch!



My back is not hurting, my neck isn't stiff, and I actually have some energy! I am liking this! I moved the bed so that the head is against the back wall of the bedroom, and I pushed one of the bureaus against the foot of the bed to act as a media console to hold my little 24” flat screen at a good angle and height for viewing TV in bed.



I have the game console next to it, and am using that to access the Internet for my Amazon Prime and Funimation accounts. Not a bad experience! (I fell asleep watching “Desert Punk”, a Japanese anime series in 24 episodes released in 2004 on my Funimation. I was out like a light before one episode was even complete!)

'Tis a shame that I am not in a relationship, so that I would have someone to share this with! (I hope to set up another TV in the Blue Room for Movie Nights with friends, and save the bedroom just for sleeping.)

Actually, I will probably set up the sewing machine from the basement in the bedroom, once I get it cleaned up and running. There is plenty of room for a work table and maybe that sewing machine table that is also still in the basement! (Now I just need to learn how to sew with a machine!)

And I titled this Home, Sweet, Home, because I finally do feel at home, as I had a nice lunch, have all of the doors and windows open, and am watching the countdown on a vintage Penn casting rod on ebay!


If I didn't have people headed over with stuff to unload here, I would be taking the trike out for a spin to enjoy this fine Fall Ohio weather today!

So until the next installment: Keep the faith; find humor in your everyday life; and be nice to all you meet!