Driving away from the wreck of the day and it's finally quiet in my head. Driving alone, finally on my way home to the comfort of my bed. And if this is giving up, then I'm giving up. -- Anna Nalick, Wreck of the Day

ITCXXXVIII: Thank you for patronizing us

Years ago, when I was in High School, the paper covers we were required to put on our textbooks started featuring advertisements from various local businesses. On the inside cover, it said “These businesses have contributed to your local board of education. Please patronize them.” And so I did.
On a note not entirely unrelated, when I was young, there was a restaurant in my home town called “Golden Corral”. It was a normal family style restaurant, sort of similar to Sizzler. The things I recall the most were their very nice salad bar, and the incredibly delicious buttered toast slice you got with your meal.
Well, Golden Corral closed down at some point, after being robbed at gunpoint like three times in as many months, and the restaurant has since been converted into a sporting goods store.
So when, a few months ago, Leah and I went into a Golden Corral restaurant, I was surprised to find it was nothing like I remembered; it’s just a supergiant buffet now, which is awesome in its own way, though I do miss the toast.
But as a buffet, the rules are a bit different than a traditional restaurant: namely, you stand in a line at the door and when you get to the end of the line, you pay a rate based on the number of diners, and are led to a seat, and this is pretty much the end of the waitstaff’s involvement with you, other than to clean up your wreckage from time to time.
Here is a sign posted by the register, where you pay your bill before you have received any service:

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If on the other hand, you don’t want good service, make sure you tell your server and feel free not to tip.

ITCXXII: Tales from the Dollar Store

Leah digs dollar stores. A few months ago, we visited one, and I snapped a few pictures of interesting (and cheap) products. Today, we present the first in an IT miniseries, Tales From The Dollar Store

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For just a dollar, Janet Jackson could have avoided that huge Superbowl scandal of a few years back.

ITCXXX: Not dirty in the way that the roman numeral indicates

Part of an apartmentwarming package Leah found when she moved:

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Leaving aside for the moment the fact that this roll of toilet paper was a gift created especially for you, Bozzuto Management has apparently trademarked the phrase “A Gift Created Especially For You.”