The Starby's Freebie

Every so often I allow myself to skip a "healthy" breakfast and have a skinny vanilla or soy latte instead.  Today I ran 3miles in the rain and I figured I earned it.  I am very glad I did because it was the most entertaining Starbucks visit ever.  There was a girl about 5'8 or 5'9 standing in front of me in all her lanky glory.  As I stepped behind her I had to take a step back.  She was moving around and I couldn't figure out what she was doing.  Turns out she was posing.  She had her hand running through her hair with her long legs spread, then she flung her hair to one side and started to eye sex the guy at the counter.  Then she changed her pose to cross one leg over the other and both hands behind her back.  No one was really sure what the heck she was doing and instead of flirting the barista gave a quizzical look back.  The guy behind me leaned down and whispered "Do you think she's a model?" I said "I think that she thinks she is a model."



She then turned around and I could see what was causing a commotion from the baristas.  Her purple silky shirt was buttoned only up to her red bra, and her white unlined skirt was hiked up.  She also had some tacky blotchy green granny panties on that killed the vixen vibe she was looking to achieve.  While waiting in line she turned around and set her doe eyes on tall guy behind me who I was snickering with earlier.  The way she was flirting you would have thought we were at a bar.  "So do you normally come here around this time?" followed by "I love your tie, its sexy, [long pause] do you work in the Accenture building?"  Then she winked.  I was SO confused.  Where exactly did she think we were?  The sexy tie tall guy behind me mumbled some responses but I could sense his discomfort.  I glanced around to meet his equally baffled face which looked like there was a question mark imprinted on it.  Was she trying to score a free drink?

I'm cannot lie I have flirted to get a free drink but normally it is a $12 beverage that includes a shot of vodka not a shot of sugar free vanilla syrup.  And no one asks someone to buy them a drink guys generally offer.  She kept glancing back to try and get sexy tie guys attention.  He put his hand on my shoulder leaned down again and asked me some questions about the muffins to avoid eye contact with the model.  She became irritated and gave me a nasty squinty glare that revealed exactly where she had her botox injections. 

What happened next was exasperating.  The Starbucks on the corner of La Salle and Lake always has a huge line so there is someone who runs through the line and takes your order then you just pay when you get to the register.  Today one of the two registers was broken so it was especially slow.  When she walked up to the register Ricky Martin's less buff but equally gay twin was waiting for her.  She leaned forward and said something that sounded like "the special."  Ricky had no idea what she was talking about and asked for a clarification of the order and method of payment "credit or cash."  She definitely got the wrong guy this time because he wanted nothing to do with her flirty eyes and sultry looks.  So sensing she was not going to get her way she said "Just call the manager, I don't normally pay for my latte."  Then the posing started up again.  Hand on the hip, one leg crossed over the other and scrunching of the hair.  Quick switch to tapping of the finger on the counter one shoulder lowered and the left leg pointed in front.

If there is one thing I know about 8 to 9am in a busy Starbucks it is never to hold up the line and keep addicts people from their caffeine.  There were about 10+ people behind me that were no longer amused by her antics.  I thought there were only two things that made normally calm Chicagoans yell and scream obscenities 1. Sports Teams, 2. Cab Drivers.  As it turns out there is a Number 3. Models who think they can get stuff for free. 


Three people behind me a woman opened up the sea of expletives by shouting "LADY PAY AH-READY! NUTHIN IS FREE DUMBASS!" Then the ball got rolling.  She looked over at sexy tie guy who was whispering with me and she pointed at her latte then smiled coyly.  He wasn't saying a word and I could feel his eyes on the back of my neck.  I turned around and saw he was contemplating paying to get the shouting to stop and so we could all get back to work.  Right when sexy tie guy was about to pull out his credit card a man somewhere in the line stepped forward to pay for the model and as every single woman glared viciously at him he stepped right back in line. 

Ricky Martin came back and his manager told her in a professional manner that they were not in the practice of giving away free drinks.  About five minutes had passed since she made it to the register and at this point no one was going to reward her ridiculous behavior.  She then started to argue that she knew someone named Matt who never made her pay.  When this did not work either and the yelling became more unified she whipped her head around like it was a dance move and turned to sexy tie guy behind me, Marc.  By this point he and I had become friends. He had his hand on my shoulder and was using me as some sort of imagined security shield.  Before she could open her mouth again Ricky Martin's manager said in a loud irritated voice "He is NOT paying for your latte.  Please get out of line."  She got out her wallet, handed him a $20 with gasps in the background.  Once she paid the applause started. 

I stepped up to the register and let out one of my "woo" gasps and made some ridiculous comment.  As I was gabbing and handing my debit card over Marc stepped right behind me and said "I'm paying for her Latte." 

I guess a girl can get a free drink at 9am.  What a way to start a day...

To my Daddy Gary

This is a special Tribute to my Daddy Gary...

My dad is a pretty special guy.  I say this because he did not have to be my dad.  He could have just been a guy who married my mom and had nothing to do with my upbringing.  Thank goodness he got involved because my strong personality didn't just come along at the age of 28 and I'm not sure if my mom could have handled me without a heart attack.  I have been hard headed, stubborn, passionate, and vocal since the moment I could voice my opinion.  Where did I get all this from?  Only God knows.  My mom is sometimes this way but generally she just wants to have a great time.

My step-dad was an active part of my life and made sure I learned lessons not just had experiences.  He was usually very busy during onion season but other than that he tried to make my basketball games, baseball games, ballet recitals, swim meets, and karate matches when he could.  When I did not do well he wouldn't blame the other team or opponent he would tell me I need to practice harder or get better but he never forgot to congratulate what effort I had made.  So as I result I never thought to blame anyone but myself for failures, setbacks, or unfavorable outcomes.  This is probably why even when things out of my control go wrong I usually think "What could I have done better?" 

I can remember vividly the first time I lied to him and it consequently was also my last.  He said "I am so disappointed in you.  I can't trust you anymore because you just ruined your credibility."  At that age I had no idea what credibility meant but the context clues put it together.  I was devastated. It is amazing what effect words have on a child when you mean so much to them.  I punished myself and did as best as I could to regain that trust but he did not make it easy.

I can also remember when he taught me about being a "do it yourself" person.  I thought owning a car would be really fun.  I pictured driving around in a red convertible with the wind blowing in my hair.  Instead I received an awesome crown victoria with white wall tires and an 8-Track.  I also got a lesson in insurance, changing oil, changing tires, and checking gauges.  When I told my friends what I learned they were baffled, but each of them learned how to check their oil.  When I was deemed responsible enough only then was I upgraded.

My Dad also taught me about owning your own business.  I watched as he went to work at 5am even in the SUMMER!  Shocking for a kid in elementary school.  He never gave us money we had to "earn" it.  As a kid I really liked this concept of earning things.  I would file in his office and I even worked there over portions of my spring break so I could earn my trips to the beach.  I liked working for myself more so in the 5th grade I assembled several "companies" with the help of kids in my neighborhood.  There was the car wash group, the babysitter club, and the cookie/lemonade/kool-aid business.  In exchange for $0.25 a car wash the neighborhood kids and my brothers agreed to work for me.  This was big money because you could get a bunch of chips, soda, or candy for $1.00 at the convenience store.  I in turn would make a profit of $3.50 + any tips.  The kool-aid business consisted of the babysitter club group cooking and making lemon-aid, cookies, cupcakes, etc. in my kitchen with our housekeeper Margarita.  My dad was very proud of me but I think he was concerned I was underpaying my staff.  

When I was older I learned about integrity and more importantly my "innocence."  This was the most uncomfortable and embarrassing conversation that happened somewhere in the middle of Nebraska on a road trip up North.  I was usually co-pilot or navigator on these trips and I loved just chatting and learning about whatever he felt like teaching me.  It was an important (but awkward) conversation that I think every dad should have with their daughters.  It also made me realize the importance of having a Dad in your life during that part of growing up.  If you have a good dad you don't really care what any other guy thinks about you and you sure as heck aren't going to do anything for another guys acceptance.  Bonding was easy for my Dad, he realized early on he had a girly-girl on his hands.  We had our father daughter time in the food court after shopping sessions, and sometimes my friends came along too.  Everyone was comfortable sharing with Daddy Gary.

When it was time for me to choose a University I asked him what school he wanted me to go to, and I still hear his response every time I have to make a tough decision.  He said "Clara I have taught you as much as I could through the years.  You are 18 and on your own to make the decisions for your life."  If that doesn't freak you out at 18 I don't know what will.  I still ask for advice, but the decisions are all mine. There are thousands more stories I could tell about the lessons I learned in the Palmer Household but that would turn into a book.  These lessons were valuable and they didn't always come easy or at convenient times but they have stuck with me years later. 

The most important thing to me was that I was able to be independent and felt special.  He was my guide when I was younger, and now he has evolved into my best friend.  I know that I can tell him anything free of judgment or lectures.  I'm sure he doesn't always want to hear "everything" but he does and when the story/situation/predicament is explained he always asks in his calming voice "Would you like my opinion?" 

Always, Dad, Always!

Birthday Thanks

My 28th (gasp) Birthday has passed!  Or I should say it has side swiped me.  Honestly I have not had the best of birthdays since I first got here.

Here is a rundown of my past few birthdays...

I was all alone for my 23rd except for a random neighbor/guy, Saihib,  I met in my elevator who took me out for a drink.  I'm sure I'm spelling his name incorrectly.  Coming from a pretty small town in Texas I'm going to label this my most unique birthday.  He was Sikh and wore a turban and I asked him about a million questions about his upbringing and transfer to Chicago.  I got to learn all about Sikhism on my birthday and the teachings which was pretty interesting and cool but I did miss my family.

On my 24th my ex boyfriend invited his roommate to combine parties and his trader friends ordered $700 worth of food compared to my friends $200 then they generously offered to split the bill.  I wouldn't have minded if we had been able to partake in the crustacean castle they ordered.  His roommate also got the plate that said "Happy Birthday" in chocolate.  (I do know now that was a ridiculous reason to be upset.)  The night got a bit better but I was really fortunate to have had a great time prior to dinner with my girlfriends. 
My 25th I found out my ex boyfriend cheated on me after his CFA exam 1hr before my family surprised me at a White Sox game (the tears were flowing for multiple reasons).
On my 26th I had a major melt down because I thought my ex was flirting with someone else.  He was hard of hearing and being in a loud bar he had to lean down to talk to people.  My friend had her back against a wall so he had his hand over her and was leaning down to speak with her.  I should not have made a big deal but I obviously had not gotten over the past and was being ridiculous (again).
And finally my 27th I watched the same guy dip my friend J-Dubb in front of my dad then later threaten to break my younger brother's arm for playing a joke on him.

I don't want to sound ungrateful at all for the last birthdays I enjoyed that my friends and family made such a huge effort for me.  These birthdays were 90% fun and 10% "did that just happen?" I have been to Medieval Times, surprised at a White Sox Game, I've been Sweet Mandy B'd & Champagned (Dom! if you want to know), Mani/Pedi'd, and SATC'd for my birthdays and I have loved them all.  I mostly loved the effort each person put in each year it's so wild to me that people would want to do such awesome things for me.  I'm not a good gift receiver mostly because I never really feel that I deserve the presents given to me, and I just feel more comfortable as a giver.  I think I got that from my Dad Gary.  But needless to say I did not really want to plan anything for #28 and relaxing at home was what I had planned.  My friends had other plans.

So that brings me to this year.  The Friday night before my birthday we went out to Big Star and I have not laughed that hard in a long time, it seemed like everything was funny and we were all in the zone.  Tacos, and Tequila seemed to be the theme of the night.  Then the night led us around town.  Following that party I was taken to sushi by J-Dubb and we had a sparkler in our volcano roll!  On Monday the volleyball team that I am a part of celebrated a win and my birthday at Five Guys.  Then I was taken to Hub 51 for a reunion with Ami and some amazing Chocolate cream pie that we did get S'Mored.  After that I flew out to Nashville with two fantastic girlfriends for country music and brewskies.  Then I was taken to sushi by Lindsay and Beth followed by a hilarious sleep over!  I learned that you are never too old to have a girlfriend sleep over.  Talking about life and dreams into the late hours of the night is refreshing and helps you bond.  My last birthday celebration will be this Saturday at a Cubs game my tickets were gifted to me by my friend Dave who I met a year ago when he put up a request on "FREE" on Craig's list.  I was looking for free cardboard boxes to move out of my apartment and I thought "Why not."  Despite the fact that he didn't know me from a random on the subway we had a great time and we kept in touch after. 

In addition to all those amazing gifts I have received a bunches of mail.  I am so thankful for all the letters, and dinner gifts.  Out of all of these one caught me by surprise.  It was an envelope from Japonais.  For those who don't have a clue about Japonais it is one of the top rated restaurants in Chicago that is frequented by whatever celebrities are in town filming or happen to be shooting with Oprah.  I have been there on two occasions and each time it's been amazing.  If you go do not miss out on the Hot Rock or the Orchid Martini.  Now back to the envelope.  As soon as I saw it I opened it in .05 seconds.  When I opened it there was no message just a gift card with $100 put on it.  I started to wonder who would have sent me this gift, so I went into Magnum P.I. mode.  I checked the post mark and it was mailed from Chicago a few days prior to my birthday.  I tried to see if I could decipher the handwriting.  No luck. So I called the restaurant saying that I was so excited about my gift and needed to know who to thank and they informed me that the sender would like to remain anonymous.  Seriously?!  I might have even called back a second time and pulled another scheme.  After a while I decided that obviously this individual would like to remain anonymous and I should respect their wishes.  Well my Dad came to this conclusion and I just agreed.  So to whom ever sent me this fabulous gift card I send you MANY THANKS!  You added a nice sha-bang to one of the most memorable birthday celebrations yet and I am grateful!  Thanks to everyone who took me out to lunch, brunch, dinner or breakfast I had an amazing couple of weeks.

Update:  I found out that the sender of the Japonais gift card was indeed Kris my travel partner from Costa Rica!  :)    Muchas Gracias Senor!

Dodgeball Efforts

I'm pretty athletic.  However, I am also a girly girl.  Growing up I picked sports based on benefits.  I'm not talking about speed, muscle, or agility those to me were just the side effects.  I picked karate because I wanted to be able to beat my brothers up, swimming because I would have a reason for my Step Dad to buy me multiple swim suits and basketball because I had a crush on a member of the guy's team. 

So when I was asked this summer to join Katz and his friends to join their dodgeball team I was undecided.  What pushed me over the edge?  You might have guessed it, I would get to make more friends!  Like most things I didn't think about the actual event of playing I just envisioned this amazing group of people chatting, drinking cocktails after games, and getting snazzy team t-shirts.  It wasn't until game day that I reality started to swoop in.  Aside from the movie Dodgeball I didn't really know anything about the actual "sport".  So I decided to google "Dodgeball Strategy" to give me a a leg up and not seem like an idiot when I met my new team.  I mean I was only picked because they were short girls who would deliberately choose to get hit with a big rubber ball.

After my strategy session with some male co-workers I decided I was ready to join Lefebvre's Beavers!  Yes that's our team name, courtesy of Ryan Lefebvre our fearless Team Captain.  When I showed up I was pleased to see that my team was awesome.  Maria, Kim, Michelle, and Erin all welcomed me in and we had a great time chit-chatting and talking about other teams before our game started.  When they called our team I got really nervous and started to sweat.  As I was walking onto the court I recognized a familiar face.  When I went home for Christmas I hung out with my friend Mary who introduced me to Barry.  He and I had a great time and I knew he lived in Chicago but we never exchanged numbers so I just figured that was the end of that.  So now I was double nervous and off my A-Game because I ran into this really handsome guy that I never thought I would see again.  

My first game was a learning curve, along with our team.  We were smoked by the red team and were not really gelling that well. So bad that some barefoot hippie kid offered to join our team.  I think they are probably the best team in the league and the guys were all flanked with gold chains and pretty saucy attitudes.  I did have one accomplishment during our first game.  I got someone out!  I ran up to a guy who was charging another player and not really paying attention to his surroundings so I threw it at his shins (Thank you strategy website) and got him out.  I was SO shocked and excited to get their player out I fist pumped, jumped, and shouted "Yeah!" as soon as I did that I was pummeled with two balls to the body.  Lesson learned:  As in life you should never celebrate too early. 

The next few games were better and Ryan's coaching helped too.  We got into the play offs but lost to the yellow team.  Even though we did not win, the best part of Dodge Ball was going to the Duffy's after party for burgers and brewskies. 

See you next Thursday Beavers!