Lunch date fail

Once upon a time, like last Thursday (this was supposed to be my May 1 post but I never got around to writing it. Oops), Eric took me out to lunch at our local Elk's club restaurant. If you remember how we had this exact same date last year (um, it's okay if you don't 'cause I barely do. Well, I'm old), then you'll know that I dissed the place hard and then was utterly amazed by the artisan bun on my cheeseburger.

So this time, I kept my mouth shut and just went along with it. Besides, Eric had two $10 coupons, which meant lunch was free, so really, what was the downside?

Doesn't this look delicious? Yeah, not what we ate.

Like last time, we were the youngest in the joint by a good 40 years. Well, except for the bartender / waiter dude, who was a total hipster and who had two speeds: Slow and stop. We chose a table in the corner with the best view of the river, and then proceeded to chat. And place our order for two cheeseburgers. And then chat some more.

We'd been chatting for a full 35 minutes, still sans cheeseburgers, which was a little odd because all those old dudes at the bar who had come in after us were all eating their meals. Eric stands up to talk to Hipster Waiter Guy, and before Eric can even get a word out, he's all, I'll go check.

So at this point it's been 40 minutes and we've kind of run out of things to say to each other because we've been married 19.5 years and we'd just seen each other that morning and hadn't had enough time to come up with any new stories. Hipster Waiter Guy slowly makes his way to our table and is all like, the cook is just putting the toppings on your burger, won't be much longer, and then after he slinks away I'm all, uh, that's code for, 'oh shit, we forgot.' That made Eric laugh, so I felt pretty good about myself.

So at 12:55, we finally get our two cheeseburgers, which are just okay. No artisan bun, that's for sure, and frozen fries, not that there's anything wrong with frozen fries, just wasn't what we were expecting after last year's extravaganza. Eric is determined to get back to the office ASAP and is pounding his cheeseburger like he's going for the gold at a food eating contest, and I'm just trying to keep up, plus I was pretty sure all signs were pointing to food poisoning or, at the very least, one of my fun stomach attacks because I had my doubts about the naturalness of my meal.

Whatever, pound pound pound, now we're done, it's 1:05, and Eric is ready to go. Hipster Waiter Guy isn't even trying to make eye contact, and Eric is like, do we actually have to tip for this?, and I'm like, oh hell no, 55 minutes, yo!, and he agrees. He pulls out his two $10 coupons -- our burgers were $9.50 yeah -- and puts them on the table, takes my hand and we're out of there.

I'm like, uh, we can't just leave, because I knew Hipster Waiter Guy was going to stop us for apparent dining and dashing, but that dude gave zero craps and didn't even bother to turn around to watch us leave, let alone yell at us about being delinquents. 

That was probably the coolest thing I did all week.

You'd think our sad tale would be over, but alas, not yet. Eric is on a mission to get up the hill and back to work -- we'd walked to lunch -- and he's practically running and dragging me along behind him. Finally he looks at me and is all, are you okay?, and I'm like, dude, I just pounded a cheeseburger in like 8 minutes and this is all uphill. Been better, and he just laughs because he thinks I'm a riot.

I'm a riot, all right. I can't believe I didn't puke on his shoes.

Anyway, I am happy to report that I did not get food poisoning or have any sort of reaction to my meal, so yay, calling it a win! Also, doesn't this make a much better story than if we'd gone to eat and had a delicious meal served in a timely manner?

Well, whatever. I think it's going to take more than a couple of coupons to get us back to that place.

Wednesday "Art," look at my cat edition

Project 333: Spring update

My favorites!

I didn't think I'd have much to update so soon, but then Abby stole my new black t-shirt (well, it is pretty awesome) and I decided that my grey pants need to go away.

So I'm down two items is what I'm saying.

Somehow Abby lost my denim jacket in her bedroom -- or maybe I lost it in my bedroom -- so if we ever find that thing, I'll have room for it now. ;)

Here's my updated list, in case anyone cares:

Grey: Cardigan, striped pullover sweater (2)
Black: Dress, pants, capris, long sleeve tee, turtleneck sweater, cardigan, floral scarf and four pairs of shoes/boots (11)
Black/white: Top, tank (2)
Beige: Jacket, skirt, long sleeve tee, capris (4)
Beige/orange: Top, tank, scarf (3)
Maroon: Pullover sweater (1)
Purple: Skirt (1)
Navy: Cardigan, long sleeve tee, tank, striped scarf, patterned tank (5)
Navy/beige or orange: Top, gauzy top (2)
Blue/other: Recycled t-shirt skirt (1)
Denim: Skirt, jeans (2)

This is probably the best wardrobe I've ever managed to create, and I'm so excited that, after six tries, I've finally learned enough to make this happen.

You guys, P333 is my favorite subject, so indulge me here because I rarely get to talk about it in real life and I feel a list coming on:

What I've learned with P333:

1. I finally figured out that my 33 (um, or 34) isn't a place for clothes I'm on the fence about. This time, if I had any hesitation at all, that item didn't make it in. And as we've already established, my closet is now the best it's ever been. I don't think this is a coincidence.
2. Once upon a time, I thought I really liked dress shirts. Turns out, I don't. P333 has helped me hone in on the items that I actually wear as opposed to what I think I wear. And knowledge is power: My last shopping trip was fantastic because I could just make a beeline for the items I knew I'd wear (like pretty t-shirts!).
3. Which reminds me: I know what my personal style is now! Such a little thing, yet so huge.
4. Pick a core color. (Mine is black.) Makes it much easier to coordinate.
5. It seems counterintuitive that less would equal more, but it's a strange world, my friends, and that is exactly what I'm telling you. When you have 34 items (3 of which are scarves and 4 of which are shoes), you can really see your options. I used to have an overwhelming number of items, but nothing to wear. (Probably because it was all stuff I thought I liked but didn't. See #1.) I don't have that problem now. 
6. Knowing that my closet is awesome and that whatever I pull out of it is going to make me feel like a rock star means I have one less thing to worry about each morning; it simply depends on the weather and what's clean. 
7. Those lists of "50 Wardrobe Essentials Every Woman Needs"? Yeah, ignore 'em.
8. That one magic item that will make your entire wardrobe "click" doesn't actually exist.
9. P333 isn't about the number 33. It's about figuring out your individual "right" number. Mine seems to fluctuate between 28 and 37, depending on the season. I don't really worry about it.
10. Never underestimate the power of a really great fitted jacket. :)

Anyone else out there do P333? I'd love to hear about other people's experiences...