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The
past couple of years, Katie from UNFI has taken several of us from PCC out to the "Miracle on 2nd" pop-up at Rob Roy. There was even another year they did this before that (2021) but I wasn't invited to that one; I've been invited to all of them since.
Katie left UNFI for another job some time ago. She already knew last December that it was going to happen, and I suggested then that we keep the tradition going anyway. By the time the holiday season had come around this year, having not heard anything about going again with Katie—and kind of assuming it wasn't likely anyway—I suggested to Gabby and Amy that we go there ourselves this year, as our own holiday "team social" outing. They were all about it; we have long had it scheduled for Wednesday next week. It will be the last thing I do before my pre-Christmas PTO.
I got an email from Noah on Monday this week that Katie was coming back for this tradition to continue . . . after work on Tuesday. Only one day advance notice? Sheesh! I already had a movie scheduled with Laney! In retrospect, I should have asked her if we could shift the movie to Thursday, when I have no other plans. It's too late now.
So, I missed it with Katie (and, apparently, her boyfiend—and Noah, and a few other PCC people) this year. So what did I do instead? I met up with Laney at Pacific Place to see the movie
Y2K, which . . .
kind of sucked. C+ grade was almost generous. I did have a pretty good time for about half an hour. But the movie ran out of ideas and out of steam simultaneously, and the last two thirds of it were tedious, dull, and stupid.
And that's what I missed drinks with Katie for. But: oh well. What can you do? Time to move on!
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— पांच हजार सात सौ बीस —
The big news on Capitol Hill this week was the
opening of Seattle's first location of Voodoo Doughnut.
I had no idea that, counting this new Capitol Hill location, Voodoo Doughnut actually has
22 locations—soon to be 23—in 9 different states: Oregon (4 locations), Colorado (4 locations), Texas (7 locations), Washington (now 2 locations; one was already in Vancouver which is already the Portland area), Illinois (1 location), Arizona (1 location), Tennessee (1 location), Florida (1 location), and California (1 location, soon to be 2).
I did know that the company is headquartered in Portland, where it started, and where it still has the flagship store. I have long been stopping in there just about every time I visit Portland. The novelty disappeared overnight, though, when our local store opened on Capitol Hill yesterday.
Laney typically avoids sugar religiously. But, even she was interested in stopping there this one time, expecting she would never come back. She could not decide between two flavors so she did get two. The line was relatively long, but less than halfway up the block on Minor Avenue at Pine, when we got there on our walk home after the movie. We saw the length of the line and decided we'd go for it and wait.
Between the time stamp of when I took the photo of the line, and when I texted Shobhit that the purchase was done, it was between 7:17 p.m. and 7:54 p.m. So it took us 37 minutes between arrival and getting out of there. Not too terrible, honestly; I've waited longer than that in line in Portland when it wasn't even the store's opening day.
We could see a lady at one of the three registers through the windows on Minor Avenue, laughing it up and often dancing in place. She was clearly having a blast. When we got to the front of the line—a security guy would only let three groups in at a time, for each of the three registers—we happened to get that lady's register, which made us happy. She was a blond lady with glasses who could have anywhere between 50 and 60.
Shobhit had already looked at
the menu online and told me which flavors he wanted: Banana Cream Pie and Raspberry Romeo. I had to others I wanted to try, both with peanut butter: the Memphis Mafia and the School Daze PB & J. I saw a fifth that I decided I would add to the order for Shobhit, called the "Ring of Fire." It has a hot pepper in it.
Alas, after Laney went first at the register we went to together, the dancing lady with glasses told us they don't have that one. She was so fun, I knew I could get away with quipping, "Well this is bullshit, I'm leaving!" Everyone laughed.
And then the lady said, "Oh! I have this power." She handed me two coupons for a free doughnut, because I had already told her my husband likes spicy stuff. "Free doughnuts, for your trauma." She handed one to Laney. "And one for your friend, too!" Laney, with no plans to come back, gave me her coupon once we were outside. So Shobhit and I will have to come back soon for three more free doughnuts.
He ate both of his doughnuts last night. I had a bite of the Banana Cream Pie one and it was very tasty. I had half of my own Memphis Mafia doughnut and it was amazing. I later cut the PB & J one in half and honesty . . . could not quite take it. Instead of the peanut butter frosting I expected, the doughnut is covered on the top with straight up peanut butter, with a jelly filled center. Even I found it to be too much peanut butter. I took a few bites and actually threw out the rest. Note to self: School Daze PB & J, not a fave.
I still have half the Memphis Mafia doughnut to eat. Luckily for me, Shobhit hates peanut butter so I know he won't eat it.
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[posted 12:33 pm]
