These are my new friends, just having an awesome time with pancakes. Note the multicolored syrup. The most important reason this picture exists.
Anyway, before we even got to Ihop and the mall, we got to ride all cramped together inside a tiny car and get to know each other very well, right up to the moment we drove past the stoplight where we were supposed to turn to get to the mall. Nobody realized it until some time later, at which point we had to turn around and go back.
Once there, we were told we would have to wait, as Ihop was super packed, and so we had some time to kill. We wandered for a while, eventually coming upon this in an Icing store.
This and other 50 Shades of Grey merchandise were on display, front and center of the store. We spent quite a bit of time looking at all the things and being collectively horrified that it existed.
Then, it being a long car ride, the girls all went to the restroom in the obligatory pack. When we came out, we couldn't find Matt anywhere, and rejoiced in our being faster than the single man in the group, when he came around the corner and we realized that we didn't beat him.
Back to waiting in front of Ihop, and we overheard this conversation between two boys.
"You suck at getting the girls to Ihop, man!"
Matt, always quick on the upbeat, said his bit: "Another resume skill."
Which, I might add, Matt had, not only taking his wife, but also three other girls to Ihop. Exactly what al the employers are looking for.
Our conversation continued as we waited, and I enjoyed it throughly. There's always something to be certain of when meeting new people, and that is the opportunity to hear new stories you hadn't heard before. I love hearing stories about people and their lives. I love telling stories about my life and stuff. In the course of our stories, not only did we come up with a new way to get rid of dead people (hint: it involves eating them) but we revisited some of the stuff that went on last year, Kony 2012, the presidential election, so forth. We talked about almost everything, and seemed in danger of waiting forever in awkward silence until finally we were seated.
So there we were, all seated with menus, and faced with making a decision. What did we want to eat? Other than the free pancakes, of course. Our server, the dearest person, dealt with us with the utmost patience, which was even more rewarding, concerning the fact that they were severely understaffed, for whatever reason that was.
Which brings up the question, why wasn't it staffed enough on National Pancake Day? Poor people who had to work by themselves.
Anyway, we were completely unable to decide what we wanted, so we asked her if we could just get our pancakes and we could decide something else afterwards. She agreed, and our hunger was rapidly satiated as we devoured our sweet, sweet, pancakes.
After we finished eating our pancakes, we found ourselves craving salt. So we got bacon and french fries and ate them all. When we finally finished, we went to go pay our bill, and discovered our wonderful server didn't charge us anything. At all. It was amazing, and with the store in the condition it was, surprising. With this amazing act of kindness, we decided we would split what we were gonna pay in between her tip and the charity she asked us to donate to. It was nice to see her face light up when we handed her both the charity envelope and the tip. It's nice to make people feel nice for the kindness they give to others.
Then it was back into the little car for the long drive home at night. Once we got back, we were turning down the street, and we saw someone out in their yard in the dark, and they had a fireknife out, looking like they were about to practice.
"Is he gonna fireknife?" Sydney asked, astonishment in her voice.
"I think so," I said.
Matt quickly pulled over the car and we sat there in silence, watching his amazing performance. When he finally finished, we applauded and cheered, and then were on our way.
It was a good night, spent with great friends, food, and fun. As Sydney noted as we drove home,
"This is the life we lead. But it's a good life."
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