Pride Parade Smackdown

June has, historically, meant a slow down at Half & Half. This year has not been the case. In fact, the week of the Rose Festival was one of our busiest. I certainly can't complain, but I can bitch that I am pissed at myself for being a poor manager, for never getting everything I need from a trip to Cash & Carry, and for being unprepared for the onslaught of Gay Pride Weekend. Amanda is in California and Jeff is taking the week off while his mother visits from South Dakota. Today, Sunday, was my only day off for the week and before we drove out to the coast I stopped by H&H to pick up my cellphone I had forgotten yesterday. I wished I hadn't stopped in, because Jacque was alone, drowning in coffee and food orders, and Brian was another hour from starting his shift. Oh hey, here's my friend Sean whom I never see, standing in line, but I can't talk to him because I'm not supposed to be here anyway, and if I am here, I should be working, not visiting. It's hard to walk in there when it's that busy, because even if I can jump over the counter and quell the line and help my staff, I am still disturbed by the chaos. I hate that inefficiency is winning the battle, and I have to fight my way back to order. And in today's case, I'm not even able to fight--I have to relinquish all control and get in a car and drive to Canon Beach. I cannot let go that I should have scheduled myself to work.

I wonder if our extra business this weekend had anything to do with the ad we placed in The Portland Mercury this week--A dancing unicorn exclaims, "We Are So Gay"

In other news: starting on Tuesday I will be running buttermilk pie for the rest of the week. I brought one in on Saturday and the first slice went to a kid from Buffalo Exchange, a native Texan and buttermilk pie aficionado. He was so excited about seeing it I was instantly hesitant to serve it to him, in case it was a poor rendering of his beloved dessert. He told me, ahem, it was as good as his mother's. It warmed me so, I almost want to revisit the "Pie Shop Idea."