About 15 years ago - I got fired for my first and only time in my life (that story is for a whole blog itself) and opened up the phone book the next day to the Restaurant section in the yellow pages. I decided the first place I pointed at I would go and apply. It was a country club. I went that day and applied. Two days later I got the job, a polyester monkey suit, a bow tie and a gold name plate.
My first day on the job I walked around the "mansion" and it was spectacular. Classic style with tons of wood and chandeliers. I had never seen this kind of wealth before - It was amazing. I felt I was working for the rich folk....it was all so luxurious. Remember I was a small town girl with blue collar parents and visited my grandparents farm on the weekends so I had never experienced the country club lifestyle..
After work that day - my first day - myself and the person that trained me went out and smoked grass.
Yes I said smoke grass.
It was probably the last time I did and was probably the first time I had in months back then. He asked and I said yes. why not I wanted to fit in. It was super funny and awkward. And after I did I got mega - paranoid that they were testing me and I was super afraid to go back into work the next day....but I digress....I got home and sat in the bathroom on the floor and laughed that I had just smoked pot with my trainer, in a tuxedo, after setting a table with 5 courses (silverware and glasses....)for a $200 wine dinner in the private dining room.
Anyway. This is where I learned about the finer things in life. I learned etiquette, great service, and how people needed and wanted to be treated when they had money....and even if they didnt have money.
I could read people and say what they needed to hear. I liked it.
I also liked the food. no - LOVED the food.....Chicken a la king, foleys haddock, cream soups, lobster, foie gras, luscious desserts, filets, scallops, bernaise, buerre blanc....you name it, i ate it. I made in good with the chefs, worked long hours, and that meant I ate pretty much every meal there.....and I ate! WOA!.
I learned that Crudite was a fancy word for raw vegetables, I learned how to drink coffee and smoke cigarettes in 2 minutes in the elevator shaft. And I smoked a LOT of them I may add.
I also owe the start of my wine career to here. I was a true saleman....not knowing anything about wine but picking the most expensive ones and trying to sell them. I learned the "cult" names and sold sold sold. Then I started taking a snip out of bottles - OMG I loved wine....I remember drinking red wine first, never white like most start with. Some of the member saw that I took a liking to wine and would let me try wines that I believed I could never afford or would be able to taste again. They would tell me of their stories traveling to wine country and I listened like a starving child. It was all so fancy and amazing and I wanted every part of it to be my life.
I loved the members there, some were like my family. And still to this day I am friends with some so many years later......And my dentist, my lawyer, my tire guy, my eye guy, my real estate guy and many others are still there for me....
Well -
I worked on mens night - which was Thursdays....I was one of the only women allowed in the place back then and the guys smoked stogies, drank and gambled a lil....nothing too extreme. As the hours passed, the sun set and the moon was high, these guys would talk shit and hang out after a day of golf. It was harmless and a ton of laughs...As the night progressed and guys headed home, there was a group that stayed later then most, and as they were shaking dice or playing cards, they would yell -
"THIS IS THE FINAL ONE"
3 later they would say
"this is the FINAL FINAL"
Final final became a phrase I would hear every Thursday for years - may it be a drink or the last shake of the dice. I loved when they said that and it always made me smile. Always. Or after an extremely long day it would bring me relief knowing they were leaving shortly. I havent heard those 2 words used together in years and I havent thought of it until this morning as I was brushing my teeth and staring at myself in the mirror.
I am done.
I had my final final.
My first day on the job I walked around the "mansion" and it was spectacular. Classic style with tons of wood and chandeliers. I had never seen this kind of wealth before - It was amazing. I felt I was working for the rich folk....it was all so luxurious. Remember I was a small town girl with blue collar parents and visited my grandparents farm on the weekends so I had never experienced the country club lifestyle..
After work that day - my first day - myself and the person that trained me went out and smoked grass.
Yes I said smoke grass.
It was probably the last time I did and was probably the first time I had in months back then. He asked and I said yes. why not I wanted to fit in. It was super funny and awkward. And after I did I got mega - paranoid that they were testing me and I was super afraid to go back into work the next day....but I digress....I got home and sat in the bathroom on the floor and laughed that I had just smoked pot with my trainer, in a tuxedo, after setting a table with 5 courses (silverware and glasses....)for a $200 wine dinner in the private dining room.
Anyway. This is where I learned about the finer things in life. I learned etiquette, great service, and how people needed and wanted to be treated when they had money....and even if they didnt have money.
I could read people and say what they needed to hear. I liked it.
I also liked the food. no - LOVED the food.....Chicken a la king, foleys haddock, cream soups, lobster, foie gras, luscious desserts, filets, scallops, bernaise, buerre blanc....you name it, i ate it. I made in good with the chefs, worked long hours, and that meant I ate pretty much every meal there.....and I ate! WOA!.
I learned that Crudite was a fancy word for raw vegetables, I learned how to drink coffee and smoke cigarettes in 2 minutes in the elevator shaft. And I smoked a LOT of them I may add.
I also owe the start of my wine career to here. I was a true saleman....not knowing anything about wine but picking the most expensive ones and trying to sell them. I learned the "cult" names and sold sold sold. Then I started taking a snip out of bottles - OMG I loved wine....I remember drinking red wine first, never white like most start with. Some of the member saw that I took a liking to wine and would let me try wines that I believed I could never afford or would be able to taste again. They would tell me of their stories traveling to wine country and I listened like a starving child. It was all so fancy and amazing and I wanted every part of it to be my life.
I loved the members there, some were like my family. And still to this day I am friends with some so many years later......And my dentist, my lawyer, my tire guy, my eye guy, my real estate guy and many others are still there for me....
Well -
I worked on mens night - which was Thursdays....I was one of the only women allowed in the place back then and the guys smoked stogies, drank and gambled a lil....nothing too extreme. As the hours passed, the sun set and the moon was high, these guys would talk shit and hang out after a day of golf. It was harmless and a ton of laughs...As the night progressed and guys headed home, there was a group that stayed later then most, and as they were shaking dice or playing cards, they would yell -
"THIS IS THE FINAL ONE"
3 later they would say
"this is the FINAL FINAL"
Final final became a phrase I would hear every Thursday for years - may it be a drink or the last shake of the dice. I loved when they said that and it always made me smile. Always. Or after an extremely long day it would bring me relief knowing they were leaving shortly. I havent heard those 2 words used together in years and I havent thought of it until this morning as I was brushing my teeth and staring at myself in the mirror.
I am done.
I had my final final.
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