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Trying New Scotches

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Recently I’ve been trying new scotches when I go out with friends. Some of my friends have pretty good taste so I’ve been getting great recommendations. One new scotch I am liking is Lagavulin 16. I had it several times when we were out and liked it. I liked it so much that I ended up buying a bottle. It was reasonably priced compared to some of the other stuff I bought.

Previously I purchased some Highland Park 12 year old. I tried the 15 when I was out and liked a lot. The liquor store near my house didn’t have 15 and at the time I didn’t remember if it was the 15 of the 12 that I liked so I just picked up a 12. It was good but the 15 was definitely better. I need to find somewhere nearby that sells it. The meantime I’m happy to drink it when I’m out.

Another scotch I found interesting was Bowmore. I can’t remember the age. I like the Highland Park better however I could see myself picking up a bottle of Bowmore in the future as well.

I hope to continue my exploration of different scotches into 2016.

Please Take My Money Macy’s

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There was a time a few years ago that I wanted to start a blog titled “ please take my money”. It was going to highlight all the instances where companies for some weird reason made it difficult for you to actually give them your money to buy something. My first case was a situation I had with AT&T regarding canceled contract and number porting. In the end it was cheaper and easier for me to actually not do business with them. Shortly after that there was another situation that I today can remember but it got me thinking about writing about this stuff.

Flash forward to today I am at the mall trying to buy holiday gifts. I don’t normally go to stores and this was a last-minute situation so general I wasn’t pleased however in all but one instance the experience was surprisingly stress-free. Before all the stress-free parts of the day came Macy’s.

I was in Macy’s to pick up a gift for a babysitter and someone else. I was luckily able to find what I needed rather quickly and got online to pay.I was a bit concerned since the line was pretty long. It was one of the last shopping days before Christmas so I expected lines. I didn’t expect was such a long line to be served by one person when there was at least two registers. To add insult to injury several store clerks came and went to the unused registers to do who knows what and to have quick conversations with the one clerk working. None of those people decided to help customers waiting in line. Instead I waited 30 to 45 minutes for transaction that should take most maybe 10 to 15 minutes. I understand corporations need to cut costs however situations like going to physical stores. It also emphasizes why I shouldn’t. I thought the argument of brick-and-mortar store is you get personalized service? In this instance the service was substantially less than if I would’ve ordered something online ship to me.

 

Waiting in line

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Waiting in an enormous line at Macy’s.  If stores wonder why people don’t like going to them a ten person deep line with one register open is the reason.  Add to that some other checkout person came by and started another register only to do one thing and leave.

Free Babysitting

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MC’s parents came to visit this weekend.  They arrived late morning Saturday.  MC and Teagan had a birthday party to goto so they had already left however Amelia and I got to have lunch with them.  Right after lunch when I got Amelia out of her chair she put her head on my shoulder.  It was as sure of a sign as I was going to get that she was tired and wanted a nap.

My mother in law went for a walk while my father in law and I got to relax with Amelia sleeping.  I tinkered, but I already wrote about that in a post yesterday.

With MC’s parents visiting MC and I had an opportunity to go out for a date night with free baby sitting.  We took her parents up on the offer and went out for dinner after the girls were in bed.

The girls were not quite sleeping when we left however we gave strict instructions to MC’s folks on how not to get scammed by Teagan into going into the room and giving her stuff.

We trekked out in the rain to Jade for some dinner.  We haven’t been there in a  while and we liked the food before.  It didn’t disappoint.  We had a few good cocktails and the meal was good.  I tried some mojito’s and MC tried a specialty drink that was pretty good but I cannot remember the name of.After dinner we headed out in now pouring rain to Martha’s Bakery for some tasty desert to bring home.  We all split some cheese cake, chocolate cake and red velvet.  It was a really good selection.

Today was pretty laid back.  We had breakfast at home and then everyone except me went for a walk and on the way back brought home lunch.  My in laws headed home after lunch thankfully taking a bunch of boxes we are donating with them.  I am all for more free space in the apartment.

After that the girls got in a great long nap.  For dinner MC and I tried to introduce the girls to sushi.  It didn’t go over as planned meaning MC and I ate a lot of such and the girls ended up eating garden burgers since they really didn’t want anything to do with the sushi.

Overall a pretty relaxing weekend at home.

Best Sushi I Ever Had

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MC & I meet up with one of her cousins and his girlfriend and went to Sushi Nakazawa.  I have wanted to go since MC pointed out an article about the place was opening.  She knew I liked the Jiro Dreams of Sushi documentary and highlighted the connection.  The problem was we never got reservations, until today.

Reservations were late so MC and I went back  to Employees Only for a drink first.  It was nearby so we figured we would try it again.  We were lucky and it wasn’t too crowded.  We got seats at the bar.  I had two delicious Whiskey Smash’s.  I would drink more of them if they weren’t as time intensive to make myself.  MC was more adventurous and picked something interesting off the menu.  For round two she let our awesome bartender pick something out for her.  Both drinks were good however I still loved the Whiskey Smash.  After drinks we walked over to Sushi Nakazawa.

Dinner was better than expected and that is saying a lot since we had high hopes.  By far the best sushi experience I have ever had.  I opted for the Sake pairing to go along with the dinner.  It was a good choice.  MC opted for wine however there was enough Sake tasting to go around.  Dinner was a big splurge however totally worth it.

I will try not to discuss the piece of cake and two cup cakes I may or may not have had at Magnolia bakery afterwards.

Overall a fantastic evening.  The only downside would be the Uber fail.  I tried Uber for the first time and the driver canceled on me before they could pick us up.  Ended up being less of an issue since the Subway showed up quick.  I will give Uber another try at some point.  Hoping they are more reliable than one Friday late night instance cancelation.