Just like home, you don't always get what you want...

That is the motto at the local diner...
During breakfast today (home of the "giant" pancake) at the local diner, a great mystery ensued.
It seems there was quite a sticky situation created by the mystery of the syrup that could not be located.  Apparently at this diner, which has all of about 6 tables + counter seats, each table should have one large bottle of maple syrup (the real stuff too).  We were sitting at the counter and I noticed one of the young waitresses whispering furtively to the owner (Larry).  Then Larry started eyeballing the tables and came out from behind the counter, bent down, and looked under a table, to the surprise of the customers.  Soon the story came out, a bottle of that syrup was missing and unaccounted for.
Had it been misplaced?  Had a sticky-fingered customer purposely walked off with it?  Seems like it would be awfully hard to conceal such a large syrup bottle unnoticed.

The mystery remains...after trying valiantly to finish off my strawberry rhubarb pancake, and settling our bill, the syrup still hadn't been located...

the mystery continues...

too much of a language nerd?

I noticed one of the ads on the bus has a mistake in it. It's actually an ad by the bus service itself. 
It has to do with directions for how you should exit the bus.  I should take a picture but I'm not sure if I've been back on that same bus again. 
On the sign, it tells you to exit through the back or something like that, unless you are "afraid of
a hoard of wild rabbits".  But if they are trying to describe a large group or crowd, then the word
should be "horde".  There is actually a noun form of the word "hoard" but it means something different.
Is it wrong that this bugs me a bit?

contrast...

Today in writing class I talked about the idea of doing comparisons/contrasts.
Here's an example:
Guy I saw at the bus stop:  Wearing jeans, flip-flops (no socks) and no hat, his toenails painted purple.
Me: When it's 26 deg. out and snowing: Winter coat, gloves, hat, wool socks
Possibly purple toes if I was not wearing shoes and socks!

first snow...

First snow of the season today...

Is winter already here?

Boo.

living in a phon(e)y world...

As is the case with many stories, today's begins on the bus.
If there is something strange happening or noteworthy, odds are good it is on the bus.
Today I witnessed the following:
As usual on the bus, many many people are immersed in their digital communication.  Mostly people just looking at stuff on the phones, which doesn't make any difference to me.  Because they are quiet.
Quiet is good.  Today a guy got on the bus and sat down.  The bus was not overwhelmingly crowded, no one standing in the aisles.  He saw a girl he knew sitting in the seat across from him & wiggled his arm, kind of a wave in her direction.  She did not notice him, as she was immersed in her phone.  Guy gets bright idea-- takes out his phone and calls her.  Several seconds later, girl's phone goes off & she looks up and around for a sec- then notices friend and laughs.
Actually that is a pretty benign story. 

Doe, a deer...

or six deer... Yesterday while inspecting the ruins/remains of the garden, I saw 6 deer, grazing and frolicking about in the grassy area adjacent to the garden. They were very pretty and cute looking, though probably the responsible parties for the decimation of the garden.  One deer did seem to be looking pretty intently in our direction, as if just waiting to come by, jump over the fence, scoff at us, and eat the tops of all the plants.
The mutant preemie cantaloupes don't taste too bad, but the stunted watermelons aren't good.

the caffeiNation

Apparently, at 11:00 EVERYONE gets coffee. 
This may be what happens at a place where morning classes mostly end at 10 til the hour.
So, at 11:00 a.m. there are NO short lines for coffee.  Unless there is some secret "espresso" line.
I chose overpriced option #2, after realizing both campus coffee spots were hopping.
But go me, for knowing my Minnesotan trivia and remembering that UM's mascot is of course,
the gopher!