WARMLY TREATED

Dear Wife was reading last night.
I was at our laptop.

And we heard it – the yip/howl of coyotes.

Now, folks up here in The North take such things for granted. We are in The North, but honestly, we are greenhorns really. Downstaters as the natives say around here.

And such a thing as the yip of a coyote is exciting to us.

So is stopping by the tasting room of a winery [there are lots of them up here] and whilst visiting with the server at the tasting bar being offered a free taste of premium wine reserved for paid tasting only and then being offered a small glass of premium imported Italian wine which is kept on hand for personal enjoyment.

That was/is a long sentence. Sorry.

This happened yesterday. We were reminded of the time a few years ago we were offered glasses of wine in a small-town grocery store by the owner as he sat talking to friends by the cash register, several open bottles standing ready.
He is the fellow I wrote about some time ago who, when asked by me if he had any fat-free half-and-half, replied that “No I do not. I only sell things I understand.”

I love it.

And then there was the incident of the anniversary benefit of a diners’ club we belong to.
We joined a diners’ club at a restaurant we love overlooking a beautiful bay on Lake Michigan.
The restaurant has branches downstate.
We tried to go to the downstate version a couple of weeks ago to claim the anniversary benefit of $20 off your anniversary dinner. Members are eligible any day of the anniversary month.

Well, I had temporarily lost the coupon.

We had never visited the downstate establishment.

I called to make a reservation and to explain that I had lost my benefit coupon but not my membership card.

The management informed me on the phone that we could not claim the benefit w/o the coupon and that I should contact some office or other by phone to get another.

He had the right, but I did not feel warmly treated. And this on the heels of a recorded message informing me that if we ate at this downstate branch of our membership, we would be in the foremost ‘bar crowd’ in the city.

Well, we resolved to utilize our coupon which I subsequently found when we got back to The North where we would not have to be a part of a ‘bar crowd’.

And then I forgot to take the coupon North with us.

With one day to go on our eligibility, we walked into the eatery, told the manager that we were going to enjoy a meal with him no matter what, but that I had forgotten the coupon, etc..

What did he say, this Northern manager??

He said no problem. Happy anniversary. You can have the benefit today. Send me the coupon when you get back ‘downstate’.

How sweet it is.

We felt warmly treated indeed.

And the dinner was perfect.