I can be such a drama queen sometimes (all the time). We ended up spending my birthday at Salem Beer Works and had an awesome dinner. I love that place. The food and service are consistently good, the beer is awesome and the price is right. In all, my birthday wasn’t so bad. I don’t know why I let it stress me out. I’m an idiot.

Anyway, our waiter kicked ass – he was totally on the ball without being obnoxious and annoying. I just hope my sister tipped him well. Sometimes, it seems so hard to find decent services nowadays, especially since I left the profession, so it’s all that more enjoyable when you actually find someone who does the job well. In fact, they’re all nice in that place. With the sole exception being one rude, lazy waitress we had last fall, I’ve never had a bad time in there. That’s unusual.

Now that I think of it, isn’t it pathetic to get excited when someone is merely doing their job the right way? Serving isn’t a difficult job when you really get down to it. Even the worst customers are gone in 45 minutes and if you are overwhelmed, most people are understanding when you address the problem politely and apologetically.

If I screw up at work, my mistakes are not only highlighted, there’s the threat of them ending up on a national stage like Jay Leno’s “Headlines.” Once the paper is in print, I obviously can’t go back and correct the error. Not even all the white-out in the world can correct it. Advertisers don’t like that; they expect you to put every ounce of effort into their ad. They don’t realize that you have 25 more advertisers expecting the same thing. Now, that’s hard. Serving, on the other hand – you eff up, you can fix it instantly and sometimes, positively rectifying the situation and error can give you a better tip.

I don’t know how this post turned into a rant about restaurant service but whatever. I think I need to rejoin the ranks. I really miss the constant cash flow.