Finding happiness admist total mayhem

It's amazing how friends can make your day a lot sweeter.

I recently went on a girl's weekend to Charlottesville.  It was part of a multi-process farewell tour for my dear friend Dawn, whose family is moving to England for three years.

During the car ride home our conversation turned towards "being happy" and what that means.  It was a very interesting conversation of how people seek happiness and may never achieve it because they don't realize happiness can be just living in the moment.  For me, happiness is being content.  As long as my basic needs are being met (I'm not hungry, I'm not tired, I'm not too cold, or too hot, or whatever) and I am surrounded among people I enjoy being with, I am content.  And, therefore, I am happy.  In fact, all hell can be breaking loose around me and I can still be happy.  Really.

We went to dinner the night before at this supposedly very trendy, very hip restaurant in Charlottesville.  It came highly rated and of course, needed reservations to get a table for their busy Saturday nights.  We were seated within an appropriate amount of time of showing up.  The menu looked promising and we had a great waitress.  I ordered this amazing Peanut Butter cocktail that was out of this world. 

Three of us ordered the spinach salad (I asked to have my bacon on the side), Dawn ordered the salad on their specials list for the evening, and Susanne didn't order any salad.  Susanne and I each ordered the acorn squash soup.  Since I didn't order an entrée, the waitress said she would make my salad the entrée and bring out the soups first with the other salads that were ordered. 

Our salads (minus Dawn's) and both soups arrived at the same time.  We knew it was meant to be my salad because it had the bacon on the side.  No worries, I can set my salad aside and eat the soup first before it gets cold.  However, Dawn's salad never came.  And when it finally did, it was the spinach salad, not the salad special she asked for.  I asked the table runner if the small container was the bacon from my salad (it was very dark and I couldn't see it very well) -- he said and I quote "We don't have bacon at this restaurant."  Um, yes, you do!! It's written on the menu. 

The three of us look at our spinach salad we had ordered and realize it is missing easily 3, maybe 4 of the ingredients listed on what is has in it.  It is missing the cheese, the almonds, dressing, etc.  We eat it anyway because we are so hungry.

Meanwhile the table runner takes Dawn's wrong salad away and after a very long time, finally arrives with the salad special.  As Dawn is saying 'Thank you', the table runner slams the salad down in front of Dawn. Yes!  You read right, the plate gets slammed down.  Instantly the five of us drop our mouths open in shock.  We couldn't believe what just happened.  Dawn asks to speak to the manager and when he arrives, he makes excuses for the rude service and says that he isn't to blame for how busy the restaurant is.  WHAT!?!?!?!

During this whole process the spinach salad with the bacon on the side keeps arriving at our table, again and again and again.  I keep turning it away saying I already received it.  However the 3rd time it came, I got curious and asked to see the salad the guy was holding in his hand. I saw it was made correctly!  This is what the Spinach Salad should've looked like!  I told my friends the 4th time the salad shows up, I am taking it.  Sure enough, the extra salad came a 4th time and I said, "yes, it was mine."  This one was tasty.

It had to have been a full hour from when the salads arrived to when the entrees came.  At this point I only had sweet potato fries left to eat.  I shared my fries with my friends.  The one fry Dawn picks up is frozen!  Crazy, right!!?!?   We call the waitress back over and tell her to hand this fry to the manager.  Almost immediately a new order of sweet potato fries arrive at the table. 

We lost count at the amount of mistakes that were made.  It was pretty hilarious.  It wasn't the waitresses fault and we made sure her tip reflected that.  As she put down the bill, she said "If it said salad, you won't see it on here."   More probably should've been done to compensate for the rudeness and all the other mistakes, but we survived. 

What a crazy, fun night.  It might not be most people's definition of happiness.  But for those 3 hours, it was mine. 

The peanut butter cocktail...they did get this drink right.
Yum!