First, the positive stuff:
The lake house that SW Trigal found for us is awesome. It's on Rose lake, well away from all the madness, and includes 4 large bedrooms, and everything you need to live in the house except for food. There's a small dock on the lake, and a hot tub. I'd tell you more but I don't want to drive you crazy with jealousy. It's quite, peaceful, and fantastic and just what is needed for the taper. No internet, though. Probably just as well.
I had the best grilled cheese sandwitch EVAR at a place called Java on Sherman, after we did an hour-long ride on part of the bike course. The first part. The easy part.I know,I know, it's hard to screw up a grilled cheese, right? But this grilled cheese was on toasted thick slices of whole wheat, using real cheese - not the processed slices--and included much coveted tomatoes that are so hard to find these days. Great place! I recommend it.
Now, the stuff that is not to positive:
Yesterday we drove the IM-CDA bike course, and I would have thrown up except that my stomach was empty. I had flashbacks of IM-Kentucky: Steep, long, climbs; steep downhill corkscrew turns. Screaming downhills that ended abruptly in a sudden 90 degree turn that then immediately went uphill. And I'm going to average at least 14 mph on this?
After I pried my fingernails out of the dashboard, we found The Original Mongolian grill. We paid for "all you can eat." They were completely out of tofu, and when we asked for some, the waitress wandered off and forgot to tell anyone. After about ten minutes, I asked a 19-year-old who appeared to be in charge, he said they weren't going to refill it. I protested, and he said, well, we have some raw tofu. That's fine, I said, that's awesome. We'll take it. He stomped off to get some.
He brought us a small bowl. When I tried to explain that we would need more, he got all pissy and said that he'd already brought us a whole block of tofu and that it (the whole block) cost *Eight dollars, more than your whole meal," he said, with a broad sweep over the table.
"We're not eating any of the meat over there," I responded, "This is going to be our main source of protein. you're going to need to bring us another bowl." He flounced off and brought another bowl, setting down with a loud CLACK.
So what do we learn from this.
1.If your bottom line is threatened by a couple of vegetarian triathletes on a diet, you may want to rethink your business plan.
2. If you're paying $8 for a block of tofu, then your supplier is seriously screwing you. At most, retail, the stuff is $2.99. Trust me; I know this. I've been buying tofu a Loooooong time.
3. If I pay for all-you-can eat and I'm not a SUMO wrestler, you don't get to bitch about how much tofu I eat.
4. If you'd kept the tofu pan full in the first place, none of this would have been necessary, including my very public declaration of what a jerk you are, mr. Manager or manager wanna-be man.
I won't be going back there, ever. That's all I'm going to say about that.
Some other, random crankiness I've noticed on our travels:
- Breakfast is usually some permutation of eggs and/or flour, two of the cheapest ingredients you can find. So why is it so danged expensive?
- My computer abruptly decided that I no longer have a wireless card. Even though it's in there. It declares that it isn't. Bad Athena. No internet.
- Food suppliers don't seem to GET IT that when you process vegetables where you process meat, YOU WILL GIVE SALAD-EATERS FOOD POISONING. I'm pretty sick of not being able to have tomatoes one week, or brocolli another week, because they're recalled. Last week, we couldn't get a black bean burger. Recalled.
Okay, that's it I guess. Her Iron-Crankiness: OUT
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