There is an old rap song by Whodini called “Friends”, basically asking (How many of us have them)? Some of this may seem trivial, but you can decide.
I was on a road to a Great Weekend, I was determined not to let my weekend be ruined. All I wanted to do was get my oil changed, get me some good food and go home to relax. As I’m sitting at the dealership waiting on my oil change to be completed, I decided to check on a “friend” that I hadn’t talked to in a while. We chatted for a while and she informed me she was on her way to lunch with a friend, at the same time the guy was coming out to talk to me about my vehicle. We ended the call and I learned (well I knew), that I needed new brakes. Since I was already there, I told them to go ahead and change my brakes.
After about 30 – 45 minutes of waiting on my car to be completed, my so called “friend” called me back said her friend cancelled and asked if I would like to go out to eat with her? Reluctantly, I said okay (big mistake on my part). Side note –> she’s the kind of person that complains and makes it very uncomfortable for everyone. I personally do NOT like to give anyone a hard time, especially people who are preparing my food.
After the place and time was set to meet up, she decide on Olive Garden. As soon as we were seated, “my friend” told the host and server that she would like to be moved because there were kids around and they were making too much noise. Immediately the server’s attitude changed. Mind you, there were kids around, but they were not that noisy. Both of us are not parents, but I have a bundle of family members that I had to babysit, so noise from kids do not bother me. Anyhow, we were moved to another location in the restaurant,
We were now ready to order, OMG, now “my friend” needed to talk to the manger because she wanted the lunch price, but wanted everything on the plate substituted. At this point I wanted to get up and walk out. Instead, I ordered something simple and prayed that there were no extra ingredient(s) in my food. So we chatted, ate salads and the main dish finally came out. Her food was perfect, brought out by the manager. I actually had to wait on my plate and once it came out, it looked like it was meant for a child, severed in the smallest bowl in the restaurant. (That is a whole other issue, will explain next time).
When it was time for the bill, which was only $34 “my friend” looked at me and said this is wrong, they need to split this. I was taken aback, she invited me to eat and told me that she will take care of the bill. Keep in mind that she had a $25 gift card, but okay. Once the bill was split, my portion of the bill was much higher than “my friend’s” bill. As I was questioning the manager, about the bill “my friend” jumped in and took the manager’s side, stating the bill was correct. She would not let me get a word in, she was going on and on, I guess so she can continue to pay the lower portion. I said okay and suggested that she take her $25 gift card, pay that on the bill and I’ll pay the $9 and we split the tip. “My friend” said she did not want to do that because that gift card can be used at other restaurants. So I was left paying a $20 bill with any complaints and/or problems and she paid $14.00, complained, rearranged her plate, etc.
This is the same “friend” that has constantly asked me to go in, on a $200K – $300K real estate investment with her. WHY IN THE WORLD WOULD I DO THAT, IF WE CAN’T EVEN AGREE ON A $34 RESTAUARANT BILL?
So back to my original question “Friends, How many of us have them?”
Urban Outcome 