This post has actually been sitting in my drafts folder since November of last year. I started to write it, and then wasn’t sure if I wanted to post it or not. I am still not sure, so let’s see how this goes.

Through facebook re-connects, work friends, friends through different groups, I have had so many conversations about life, loves, loss, hardships. One thing I can say forsure, is that the saying of the “grass isn’t always greener” has never been so clear to me than after these conversations. I have always believed that, but it is clear as we are getting older and living our lives and different experiences.

I remember one year after I went on a med cruise with my aunt I was having dinner with a friend and showing her all the pictures. She was happy for me, and envious at the same time, commenting on how great it was that I could travel and see different parts of the world with no worries other than myself. I agreed, but commented, you are married, you are expecting a baby and you have just bought a house. I don’t have any of that. At that time, I wasn’t living in my condo at that time. She thought the grass was greener in my single yard, and I thought her grass was greener in her married with children yard. I am sure that either one of us was right or wrong. It all depends on what side of the fence you sit on.

I know I am very lucky in my life. I have good friends, I have a job, I have a great relationship with my parents and family, and being an aunt is truly the most rewarding part of my life. Not everyone I know has the chance to see their nieces and nephew on a weekly basis. I am lucky enough to have them close to me and now the girls are old enough to call me on their own and want to see me and their parents can drop them off. It is the great joy in my life.

I have had a job that has taken me around the world (literally) and back over the last 21 years. The industry hasn’t been as rewarding as it once was, but I am still fortunate to have been and seen as much as I have over the years, and will always have that. Wherever my life may take me, I will always have my travels. What I have seen and learned over the years has been invaluable. I will never forget any of it. I consider myself very wealthy in the life experiences I have been able to have because of my job.

Never judge a book by its cover….we all learned that, didn’t we?

Life changing….every day life is a roller coaster – some days we want to get off the ride and other days, we scream with excitement and want more. Tomorrow is another day – get back in the line to ride the ride again!

I am not a picky eater. I am not, but my mother thinks I am. Trust me, I am not. But…I do like what I like and if I am going to enjoy what I eat, just like the next person I want my food cooked a certain way. I don’t like my steak well done when I go to a steak house, I don’t like my yolks hard when I order eggs, and I don’t like my wing burned when I go to Swiss chalet. I don’t think that is too difficult, do you?

For some strange reason, when I go to What a bagel near my condo, there is almost always an issue with my food. I don’t know what it is, but it happens there all the time.

Bagel World (also near my condo) has ‘flagels’ which are flat bagels. They use their flagels to make bagelinis. It is basically like taking a bagel, putting tuna, cheese, onion and tomato and putting it in the panini press and pushing it down into a yummy gooey sandwich of goodness. They have three or four different options of bagelinis to choose from. If you haven’t tried one, the next time you are there, you should.

A few weeks ago, I made plans with friends to have lunch at Bagel World. Because the two bagel places are so close together, a mistake was made and we ended up at What a Bagel. I was VERY disappointed because I wanted my tuna bagelini from bagel world.

I look through the menu at What a bagel and see that they have a “tuna melt”. Here is how the conversation went down with the server:

Me: The tuna melt – how is it made?
Server: it is an open faced sandwich.
Me: Is it possible to have it in the sandwich press as a closed sandwich.
Server: sure, we can do that.
Me: Can you put red onion in it?
Server: sure, not a problem.
Me: Great. That is what I will have.

So, the runner brings the food for the table, and she brings my tuna melt – an OPEN FACE sandwich with the tuna and then the crispy melted cheese on top. I look at it and say, “this is not what I ordered”. She takes it away.

The server comes back with the same plate and I repeat, “this is not what I ordered, you said it wasn’t an issue to put it in the press. And as well, there is no onion.” She takes it away, and I look at my friends and say, “all they are going to do is close it and shove it in the press.

She brings it back and that is exactly what she did. and the raw onion in a bowl on the plate. I take one look at it and say, “that is not what I ordered and I don’t want it.” The reason why I didn’t want it is because when you make a sandwich in the panini press, the cheese gets soft and melted and if the onion was “in” the sandwich, it would have been cooked. This sandwich the cheese was crispy and hard from being stuffed in the broiler and the onion was raw.

I wasn’t trying to be difficult, but if I am going to pay $10.49 for a tuna sandwich, I want it the way I ordered it and the way you said it could be done. I hated sending it back, but I really didn’t want to eat it the way it was cooked.

In the end, I ended up with a rye bagel and creamed cheese. A far cry from the craving for a bagelini that I wanted. I still haven’t had my bagelini. If you want to meat for lunch and try it out, let me know, I would love it!

Have you sent back food at a restaurant, if so, let me know what is was and why, I am curious.