You should always check the bill. I was overcharged in a restaurant last Saturday. As the children finished their spaghetti bolognese, I glanced at the total as I reached for my wallet. I had been charged for four meals instead of three. I brought it to the attention of the waiter who didn’t seem to share my sense of surprise. I was polite though and didn’t make a fuss; anyway, it had been a nice lunch.
Earlier, as we waited for our meal, I broached the subject of Santa Claus. Patrick said he was still working on his letter. Deirbhile, aged 11, stayed remarkably quiet and kept her head down during the conversation, which can only mean one thing, but then I nearly choked when she excitedly pointed out the window: “Look, Dad, see that Fiat 500 at the traffic lights? I’m getting one of them.”
She wasn’t talking about this year but she was firmly putting me on notice, obviously banking on a somewhat quicker end to the downturn than what the fiscal advisory council suggested last week. Maybe subconsciously that is what made me check the lunch bill.
As Christmas approaches and as Patrick mulls over his letter to the North Pole, I will be the fella rushing around on December 22nd or 23rd grabbing a few bits and bobs for presents. And I will also be the fella huffing and puffing behind you if you are sloping. Yes, sloping. It’s the not-too-flattering description I have for people who don’t walk fast. We had John Moloney, the retiring CEO of Glanbia, on the programme last Saturday morning and he talked about how he is somewhat inpatient in airports. I can identify with that. The same goes for supermarkets or shopping centres. I don’t understand people who slope and wobble around slowly.
I am blessed with a pair of long legs, so I am at an advantage over people with much shorter pins, but that does not excuse people who don’t make best use of them, sloping along, standing in doorways texting, smoking, staring or chatting, nor those imbeciles who park their trolleys in the middle of a shopping aisle, or those numbskulls who think that once you stand on a moving flat escalator, you are meant to suddenly stop using your legs. Is there anything more stupid than people climbing onto a diagonal escalator, waiting to be ferried the few feet from bottom to top or top to bottom? Memo to those people this Christmas: move on, you lazy so-and-sos.
As you can see, slow-moving people who have no physical excuses not to move any faster apart from pure laziness and lack of respect for others really get on my goat. And don’t get me started on the slopers who drag their feet. Is there anything less edifying than seeing a person sloping along, dragging their feet?
A person who purposely walks dragging their feet is a good-for-nothing in my book. Think about it: have you ever seen Barack Obama dragging his feet? No. Have you ever seen Alex Ferguson dragging his feet? No. You have not. That’s because people who are successful in life don’t drag their feet. It’s like sweeping a floor with one hand. When I see people sweeping with one hand, I know he or she will never be up to much. It’s another classic sign of utter contempt for anything related to work.
So if you see me coming this Christmas, get out of the way fast, and make sure not to overcharge me. Gosh I’m turning into a grumpy old dad. Maybe I’ll ask Santa for a pipe and slippers. CL
You should always check the bill. I was overcharged in a restaurant last Saturday. As the children finished their spaghetti bolognese, I glanced at the total as I reached for my wallet. I had been charged for four meals instead of three. I brought it to the attention of the waiter who didn’t seem to share my sense of surprise. I was polite though and didn’t make a fuss; anyway, it had been a nice lunch.
Earlier, as we waited for our meal, I broached the subject of Santa Claus. Patrick said he was still working on his letter. Deirbhile, aged 11, stayed remarkably quiet and kept her head down during the conversation, which can only mean one thing, but then I nearly choked when she excitedly pointed out the window: “Look, Dad, see that Fiat 500 at the traffic lights? I’m getting one of them.”
She wasn’t talking about this year but she was firmly putting me on notice, obviously banking on a somewhat quicker end to the downturn than what the fiscal advisory council suggested last week. Maybe subconsciously that is what made me check the lunch bill.
As Christmas approaches and as Patrick mulls over his letter to the North Pole, I will be the fella rushing around on December 22nd or 23rd grabbing a few bits and bobs for presents. And I will also be the fella huffing and puffing behind you if you are sloping. Yes, sloping. It’s the not-too-flattering description I have for people who don’t walk fast. We had John Moloney, the retiring CEO of Glanbia, on the programme last Saturday morning and he talked about how he is somewhat inpatient in airports. I can identify with that. The same goes for supermarkets or shopping centres. I don’t understand people who slope and wobble around slowly.
I am blessed with a pair of long legs, so I am at an advantage over people with much shorter pins, but that does not excuse people who don’t make best use of them, sloping along, standing in doorways texting, smoking, staring or chatting, nor those imbeciles who park their trolleys in the middle of a shopping aisle, or those numbskulls who think that once you stand on a moving flat escalator, you are meant to suddenly stop using your legs. Is there anything more stupid than people climbing onto a diagonal escalator, waiting to be ferried the few feet from bottom to top or top to bottom? Memo to those people this Christmas: move on, you lazy so-and-sos.
As you can see, slow-moving people who have no physical excuses not to move any faster apart from pure laziness and lack of respect for others really get on my goat. And don’t get me started on the slopers who drag their feet. Is there anything less edifying than seeing a person sloping along, dragging their feet?
A person who purposely walks dragging their feet is a good-for-nothing in my book. Think about it: have you ever seen Barack Obama dragging his feet? No. Have you ever seen Alex Ferguson dragging his feet? No. You have not. That’s because people who are successful in life don’t drag their feet. It’s like sweeping a floor with one hand. When I see people sweeping with one hand, I know he or she will never be up to much. It’s another classic sign of utter contempt for anything related to work.
So if you see me coming this Christmas, get out of the way fast, and make sure not to overcharge me. Gosh I’m turning into a grumpy old dad. Maybe I’ll ask Santa for a pipe and slippers. CL
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