It is difficult to believe the neighbors are not as fond of Pudding-Tat as can be. Here’s the details. I spotted the lady next door to be a busy-body on day one. I’ve said hello but kept my social distance. Wallace arrives and mixes up with her right away. I don’t know what was said, but she doesn’t like the cat. I asked Wallace if he knew what she said about Millie-Belle when he wasn’t around. Ha! That’s rehetorical, like asking somebody, “Where did you lose it?”As mentioned, there was a tiny glitch in the electricity application, a wrong digit at the end of the zip code. A series of letters have arrived demanding positive ID, although the bill has been paid on time for years. True, I’m a naturally reticent person, but even the most trusting will have to agree the information they want goes far beyond what is needed to provide service. This is clearly a database used for tracking people for extra-legal purposes. Even those with nothing to hide should be wary of such things.
Wallace must be talked into taking the Lake Okeechobee tour. This requires an entire day to do it right because it takes two hours just to drive to the south shore of the lake. He wants to go but logisitics take up more time when you live here. I know every coffee spot and side road in the Okeechobee area and all the sights that need seeing. It is a part of Florida most people never see, including those that live here. There are no hotels or resorts around the entire 75-mile circumference. Nor are there likely to be, as the lake is surrounded by a huge levee that must be climbed before you can see anything. This structure is documented elsewhere but good luck finding it. This blog has no index or glossary.
All day at the shop again, and I cannot get ZoneAlarm to install without blocking all Internet traffic. It won’t even let me go online. I dropped all the available menus and options, finally uninstalling the thing. This does not mean it doesn’t work, it means the application does strange things and there is no apparent menu option to turn those strange things off.
The timing system is producing results, but it is also more demanding on resources. I have to be there more often. I have a huge sign saying the printer is not included but customers will complain if it doesn’t. I tell them to go to Kinko’s and pay a dollar a page. That usually shuts them up because I won’t put a printer again until I figure out a way to charge at least half that per page without hiring somebody to watch the thing for me. A quarter-page ad in the Hollywood Gazette costs $900 per month. I’ll price out an exterior sign and let you know.
A man came in the shop today inviting all local business people to his new club. We couldn’t place it at first, but it is the old Club X north of Legion 92 on the northbound lane of Dixie. It was a black yuppie club that had huge lineups on Friday but seemed dead otherwise. They are having a special soiree in the lounge this Saturday so we may go take a look. There is a large restaurant and ballroom disco inside (from what I hear). They hire bands so I’ll be there.
On the way home, I biked downtown and stopped at the Chocolada. This is a sidewalk bistro with live entertainment, usually of top quality. I found their prices to be very high (and unmarked), the service very slow and the attitude fussy. They try to come across as elegant but they fail to project a European atmosphere. It can take up to a half hour to be served. The place is a serious bad joke for service and their equipment blocks the sidewalk. The entertainment takes incredibly long breaks and the layout is just not right for singles.
The menu is obviously designed to target $25 to $30 per table for coffee and cookies, even more if you have a drink. (One domestic beer with taxes costs $4.93.) At such prices, I would expect instant service, non-stop live music and a huge singles draw. The way the tables are designed, couples would quickly fill the few two-seaters and a single would have to occupy a large table by themselves, which would be conspicuous. I give the place an overall grade of C minus (Flannigan’s grade). If they lose the phony attitude and drop the prices a dollar, they may survive this recession. The young waitresses are too snooty for women that already have hip-bulge and bra-bite.
