I Am a Ranting Boob

Editors note: I wrote this originally a couple of years ago.  I decided not to publish it back then.  However, in light of my family's recent experience with cancer, I am publishing it now.  So there.

What is it about teenagers today that causes them to completely ignore anything their parents say?

I know I wasn't like that when I was a teenager. I was a very humble, compliant young man. I listened to and heeded all the advice of my wise, loving, parents on account of their vast wealth of knowledge and experience. (Come on, Mom, back me up here!)

I am very much opposed to cancer. All kinds of cancer - including, of course, breast cancer. I, like most people, have known women who have had breast cancer. Some have died. Some have survived.

I want someone to find a cure. I want people to be aware of the issue and support the find for a cure. I want people to wear pink ribbons and pink t-shirts and run in marathons and 5ks to help raise the awareness, as well as funds that supports research of a cure for breast cancer.

I am NOT a fan of bracelets and bumper stickers and shirts that express a love for "boobies."

Call me what you will. I think it is just a little bit...well, stupid. How is using a slang term for a female anatomy going to raise cancer awareness? It raises awareness, sure..of the sexualization of said anatomy.

Don't get me wrong. I don't disagree with the sentiment the bracelet is conveying. But, I don't think that is the way to express my love and appreciation for them.  Nor do I believe it raises appropriate awareness of cancer.

If that is the case, then I would like to start a bracelet and t-shirt campaign raising awareness for testicular cancer. Can you guess what they are going to say, Richard? Not the same, you say? I beg to differ. It's exactly the same.

Wear the pink ribbon. Run (or walk) in the 5k. Donate when a cousin (or friend) whose mother died of breast cancer asks you - even if it is just $5. But let's all be respectful, please. Speak like an educated adult.

This is all I am trying to teach my 13-year-old daughter. Yet, what was on her wrist when I came home from work yesterday?

French La La La La La La La

The family went out to eat last night in celebration of 3 years together as an eternal family.

The following story did not detract from that celebration.  No, I left that for today.

Nicki and I eat in restaurants occasionally - if your definition of occasionally is more than once a week.

Many times, this is for the benefit of feeding the children, since schedules were such that providing a meal from items within the home was not going to happen.

Other times, my wife and I actually like to get away from the children and have a meal together without having to worry about constantly threatening our children with death if they don't stop jumping on the bench, climbing over (or under) the table, staring at the group in the next booth, or flicking food (or some other substance) at each other.  Most of those times, we end up in default mode - creatures of habit and we just know what we like - and go to Mimi's Cafe.

Usually, there are 5 or 6 entrees and salads that we rotate between.  We are there often enough that the servers know what drinks we are ordering and can make a decent guess as to the food we will order.  Ultimately, I think that's what we all want.  A place to go where everybody knows your name.  And they're always glad you came.

You want to go where you can see the food is always the same!

We sat down to new menus.  I'm not talking about menus without dried and crusty food stuck to the menu.  Or no frayed edges.  (Although, this was also the case.)  There were only 3 items, I think, on the menu that had been on the menu previously.

At least the kids menu was the same - aside from the French word search.

There were items misspelled on the menu, such as "Soupes," "Salade," "Herbes," and "Boeuf."  And then there were words like "Nouveau," "Coq," and "Meuniere."

The server explained that the restaurant was under new corporate ownership and they are striving to "upgrade" (code word for "We want to charge you more for your meal") the menu and be more traditionally French.  Because, after all, look at all of the highly successful national chains with a traditional French menu. There's...um...L'Roi de Hamburger and...uh...Pommeabeilles, ummm...L'Panda Expres, or even...ahhhh...L'Maison International des Crepes.

I think you get my point.

Don't get me wrong.  I love French food.  I really love their toast and their fries.  But I can get that at any American restaurant.  I really don't care to order any other French food, generally speaking.

Mimi's had this kind of New Orleans French Cajun thing going.  I liked it.  I ESPECIALLY loved the Tomato Basil Bisque.  It was the only Tomato Basil Bisque I would eat anywhere.  I liked it more than Lobster Bisque.

Oh, I've tried it at other places, but it leaves so much to be desired compared to Mimi's.  I crave the taste even now.  Forgive me.  But I didn't get it last night.

This item was still on the menu.  Oh, thank heavens.  I will at least have my body and soul warmed by the goodness that is Mimi's Tomato Basil Bisque.

Nope.  It has been upgraded to be just like every other restaurant I have been to.  Yay.  So wonderful.  I want more.  Honestly, if it had been just Nicki and me, we would have left to find someplace else to eat. But, alas, the children were hungry and we needed to feed them at that moment.

Nicki's favorite dish was no longer on the menu, so she tried ordering something new.

Our family is not really big on mushrooms.  Apparently, the French are.  Nicki ordered the "Coke Ow Veen." And asked that the mushrooms be withheld from the plate.  The server, who had just told our daughter they could not remove the mushrooms from her Chicken Pot Pie (very French), because they come premade - in an upgraded manner, said that would be fine.

Aaaand then he came back while I was eating my Tomato Basil Bisque from Cafe Zupas to tell her that the entree comes premade and the mushrooms cannot be removed.

Wow.  Way to upgrade the menu Mimi's.  To an all premade, prepackaged, frozen meal shipped from a Costco in France.