Friday, September 2, 2011

Panera, Coldstone, The Mediator, & Coldfronts

Many thanks to my friend, Leah, for suggesting supper out tonight!  What a blessed notion -- to enjoy some sweet fellowship!  We began our evening out by hitting the gym, as any good girls would.  After a work-out which mostly included chit-chatting and laughing, we headed to Panera.

Panera has this fabulous rewards program.  You make a purchase and let them scan your My Panera Card...they keep track and you get free stuff.   My supper was free tonight...as in the girl with curly hair didn't have to pay a single dime for a bowl of tomato soup and Caesar salad. 


What I love about spending time with Leah is...that no matter how much time passes between our conversations, we are able to pick back up where we left off.  I am so thankful for the little moments we have now, because I know that they are fleeting.  And I want to appreciate each and every one of them.

After dinner, we walked down to Coldstone Creamery.  I say "walked down" because Coldstone is literally a couple storefronts away from Panera.  I feel kind of bad for the workers there...not in a Oh - they - are - surrounded - by - ice - cream - and - it - must - be - tempting sort of way.  It's not.  I know because while in college, I waitressed at a place that made their own ice cream..from scratch.  Let me just say -- you see so much of it that it becomes almost sickening to you.  Now the waffle cones...well, those were rather addictive and I remember many-a-time snacking on them.  Just the cone.  No ice cream.  It's my tragic flaw -- I love waffles and waffle cones.  I feel bad for the workers there because when they receive a tip in their tip bucket, they have to break into song about something quirky about ice cream.  It could be to the tune of the Flinstones theme or tonight they sang some ice cream song to the tune of Kokomo by the Beach Boys.  I'm soo thankful that I don't have to sing about the sewers and sewage when someone drops of money for their bill.  Can you imagine....Oh dear.  Let's not and say we did.

At Coldstone, we met up with Lauren.  I believe we covered every possible topic from the bad 1987-ish clothing that is at the mall to the good ol' days at Terracon.  Oh the things we've all survived.  Personally, I cannot believe that I survived riding my bicycle without a helmet.  (Gasp!) 

While at Coldstone, Lauren became our mediator when it came time to determine the last leg of our evening adventures.  It was determined (mostly by Lauren) that we should go to the mall...where we sniffed and sniffed gobs of yummy candles.  I think my new favorite is that marshmallow one...It was smelled but not purchased.  I have a bad feeling that if I burned that candle, the next step would be buying a jar of marshmallow fluff and making peanut butter & fluff sandwiches...  And that, my friends, is a very dangerous road.  Bumpy and one that I don't really want to go back down...  Plus I would more than likely leave the mini 12 - hour candle burning when I went to work, thus wasting the entire scent on Maggie.  Not that my cat doesn't appreciate a good smelling candle...well, let's be honest - she could care less.  And since I already left a burning candle a-flame (pretty sure that should be a fun word) the other day, well...I don't want to go there again.  On a side note - I wisely have renters insurance.  Mostly because I know my cooking quandaries and I know my limits. Renters insurance puts everyone's mind at ease.

So no candles for Fun Angie.  It's okay though.  While in Michigan, I found a fall-ish candle while hanging out with Bryan...so I have not only a candle but the fun memory of dragging Bryan into TJ Maxx where I sniffed and contemplated too many candles to count.  (I have the world's best brother!)

The mall.  Oh the mall on a Friday night.  I don't recall seeing gobs of 12 year olds waiting for their moms to pick them up.  There were a few teens.  I think we didn't notice the kiddos because we were focused on our conversation. 

My favorite-ist part of our mall adventure was our meandering through Barnes & Noble.  Who doesn't love a bookstore?  I mean seriously.  SHOW OF HANDS -- WHO LOVES BOOKSTORES?  Where else can you go and buy a coffee (made practically any way you like) and a good book?  Actually you could spend your lunch break there everyday and not really have to purchase the book.  When I worked at my former place of employment, I would escape to B & N and purchase a large green tea and peruse the magazines -- which in my opinion are over-priced.  Really - who needs to pay $6 - $15 for a magazine?  Ummm...not me.  Hello!  Jim and Nancy did not raise a fool....maybe a nutcase but not a fool.  :)

You aren't even going to believe this next statement...so please sit down.  I, Angela Good, walked through Barnes & Noble and did not purchase a single item.  Ummmm...there were plenty that I would've gladly purchased HOW-EVER...it just wasn't in the budget.  Sooo alas - I did not stimulate the economy at all...except for some sorbet.  I just cannot believe that my supper was free!  Thanks Panera!  :)  I appreciate a good rewards program.  And hello - free dinner = a good program!

Tomorrow...or maybe it's tonight during the overnight hours, they are predicting a coldfront is going to move in to the area.  I COULD NOT BE HAPPIER!  Technically I could be a smidge-bit happier if the pumpkin spice latte was available tomorrow for said cold front...but alas, it's not.  I shalln't complain. 

Soo this coldfront...it has me thinking about sweaters and all things fall.  The leaves are going to begin changing...  The days are going get that crispness in the air.  Bugs (particularly grasshoppers) are going to die.  Do you know some little grasshopper had the nerve to sit on my windshield tonight and stare at me as I departed from my place of employment?  It was the creepiest thing.  I snapped his picture with my phone and sent a text to my brother that read, "Poor little grasshopper right before he met Jesus!"  Oh yes - I sent him to his Maker.  Ick!  I don't appreciate those flying critters.  Yesterday I wore a super - cute headband complete with a large hot pink daisy (thank you, Sara)...and some fly-by-night, creepier-than-all-get-out grasshopper did a circus-stunt fly-by of my head.  THE NERVE!   I think he was soo enamored with my headband that he wanted a closer look.  I nearly screamed but held it inside when I noticed another co-worker departing for lunch.  Those wretched creatures from the dark really do scare me to death.  I cannot imagine a plague of them.  Aren't grasshoppers similar to locusts?  I cannot bring myself to Google this because I don't want anything resembling either of those evil things in my brain right before I go to bed.  GROSS!

How in the world did I go from my fun night out with Leah to grasshoppers/locusts?  Wow -- I need to go to bed.  It's late.

Happy looooong weekend!
~ Angie, the girl who is afraid of grasshoppers

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