Nacho Man

I believe I once mentioned in passing that one of the great things that I've gotten out of my friendship with Ambrosia is an appreciation of El Azteca nachos. The first time that we got them together, we'd each get our own. Back then, it rang up as $6 after tax. So that seemed like a pretty good deal for a meal.

But it didn't take us too long to figure out that neither of us could ever finish the nachos (I think that actually maybe she did once, which is incredible and means that she should enter herself into eating contests). So we started just sharing them. So suddenly, it was $3 for a meal. Even better.

Since marrying Murray, I've converted him, too. Today we met for a nacho lunch at El Azteca. Here's our meal. And no, between the two of us, we can't finish it.

(something funky happened with that picture...)

Simply Crap

So I'm sure that all of you are wondering why Murray and I went to Salt Lake to get our computer. Isn't there a perfectly good Apple products store in Orem called Simply Mac? Well, yes, there is a store called Simply Mac, but the words "perfectly good" don't apply. At all. This post is a little overdue, but since I remembered my rage and fury when we were purposely avoiding Simply Mac this time, I thought I'd share our story, if only to dissuade anyone else from ever shopping there. Ever.

In January, Murray and I went to Simply Mac to buy our 24-inch iMac. It was a big purchase for us. It's $2000. That's a big purchase. It's big enough to kind of make you sick thinking about it, no matter how excited you are to actually buy the product.

We went to the store. It was a pretty quiet day at Simply Mac. Despite that fact, no one offered to help us. We stood around the 24-inch iMac for a little while and then just decided to go to the cash register and let them know that we wanted to buy it. And then they happily rung us up. I guess they don't have to go out of their way to make $2000 sales.

We paid with our debit card because we're good, responsible people who don't put things on credit that don't have to be there. We like to make cash purchases.

That was the wrong decision. Four days later, $2000 was withdrawn from our account. And five days after that, another $2000 was withdrawn from our account.

In case you didn't get that, they double charged us. For a $2000 purchase. Straight from our bank account. I can understand that double charging for a $10 purchase is pretty annoying. But double charging for a $2000 purchase can be crippling.

Murray contacted the store as soon as he saw the second charge. They apologized and said the money would be back in our account the next day. We waited all the next day for the money to post. It didn't.

The next day, we went into the store to talk to them. They apologized again, and explained that this didn't just happen to us, it happened to everyone who made a purchase in their store that day. And that it wasn't their fault. It was their accounting company's fault. And there was nothing that they could do about it. They had to wait for their accounting company to reverse the charges to all their customers. They said that the money would be back in our account that day, the next day, or the day after that.

I really really wish that I'd told them that I wouldn't leave the store until they gave me another 24-inch iMac. And then I would bring it back when the money posted in my account. If they could take $2000 out of my account (without my permission, which is called stealing), then it stood to reason that I could take the equivalent value of their property (after all, I'd already paid for it) and return it once the money had been returned to me.

You know, I even suggested them processing the return of the iMac so that they could refund us the money. They said that they couldn't because it would mess up their inventory system. I wanted to say, "That is not at all my problem. I'm not walking out of this store without my $2000 that you stole." But the whole time, I was just worried that if I did get an instant refund from them, then the other $2000 would be put back in our account by their accountants, and then I'd still have to deal with the issue.

It took more time than they'd promised for the money to finally post back to our account. We waited for over a week for our money. When it finally did reappear in our account, we received no apology from Simply Crap. No attempt to make things better. No attempt to compensate us for the inconvenience or at least try to rebuild our trust in their ability to properly run a business. Nothing.

We did find out, however, that this was the third time that Simply Crap had double charged all their customers in one day. That's right. This had already happened to them twice by that point.

And so when it was time for us to make another major computer purchase, we decided to make the drive to Salt Lake instead of giving them more business. But, just to try and stick it to them at least a little, Murray and I decided to pop into the store and look at the Macbook Pro. Then, when someone came to talk to us about it, we'd say, "Oh, we just came in here to look at it and decide if this is the computer we want to buy. We were so extremely dissatisfied with our last Simply Mac experience that we have no intentions of ever making a purchase here again." And then they'd ask what happened and we'd explain. And best case scenario, they'd actually show good business sense and try to make up for their past mistakes.

But we're so stupid. We forgot that Simply Crap employees don't actually approach you to help you. Although the store was, once again, almost empty, no one ever approached us.

New Additions

So we have a new addition to our family. Already!

This weekend Murray and El Senor and I went to the Mac Store and got a Mac Powerbook. We decided that I should have the ability to be mobile, so hooray for new mobility! Of course, we'll be sharing the computer.
This week, we also received another special treat in the mail. Our new flash drives. We each got one. These are the smallest flash drives I have ever seen. And they hold 8 gigs. So Murray and I can put them in our wallets and keep our portfolios and any other important documents with us at all times. We rock.

Cicada Day!

In case you forgot how spoiled I am, how about this?

Sometime last year, I was working on a Hungarian calendar at work. I found out that in Hungary, they have name days, meaning that every day of the year is assigned a couple of names. When it's your name day, people are expected to treat you like it's your birthday all over again. Cards, flowers, treats, gifts, you name it. The article I read specifically stressed the employee-boss relationship. If it's your boss's name day, you'd better remember to bring a card.

Well, I found out that I had my very own Hungarian name day! Who knew that my name was used in Hungarian as well. (I know that it means Apple in Hungarian, so basically the Hungarians beat Gwyneth Paltrow to the punch). No one else in the office had a name day, so I happily gloated to them all that they'd have to bring me cards and treats and stuff (even though I wasn't actually their boss). I also programmed it into my cell phone to remind me.

A couple nights ago, my cell phone reminded me about my name day (at midnight, which made me really mad and means that I'm going to have to get Steve Jobs on the phone PRONTO to let him know how I feel about iPhones sending out reminders at MIDNIGHT). And then I forgot again.

When Murray asked me this morning if I knew what day it was, I had to think a bit before I remembered that it was my name day. He sat dramatically in front of our armoire, and opened a drawer, aaaaaaaaand....

it was empty.

But THEN he opened a second drawer, aaaaaaaaaaand...

he pulled out a bag of peanut butter lindor balls, aaaaaaaaaaand...

a really cute maternity skirt that is sparkley and comfy, aaaaaaaaaaaaaand...

a really cute maternity shirt. And they are just exactly what I would have picked out for myself.

And so now you had better be thinking that Murray is the sweetest man on the earth, because who else would do that?? I don't deserve his goodness or his spoilingness. I really can't believe he got me chocolate and a whole new outfit. The best thing about the outfit is that it's as comfy as sweats, but it actually looks professional, which comes in handy for today, when I'm meeting with my professional crush, Sarah Jane.


I am very sorry for the rest of you women out there who can't possibly be married to the sweetest man on earth because I already have him.

Two Hearts Beat As Two

I think the thing I appreciate most about my baby doctor's office is the complementary apple juice that they have sitting in the bathrooms. Not to look a gift horse in the mouth or anything, but unfortunately the stuff I drank today had gone bad. And was warm. And "Hillary" was written on the cup.

So this morning Murray and I heard our baby's heartbeat for the first time. Last time we went, we only got to hear mine, which was not as exciting. This time, we heard the heartbeat as soon as the probe touched my soft belly. And then it went away. And then the doctor found it again. And then it went away. And then the doctor found it again. Apparently we have a swimmer.

It was a relief to hear the heartbeat, especially considering that I apparently am really good at being pregnant. I really don't feel pregnant at all, and my pregnancy so far has been a breeze. I honestly half expected the doctor to tell me today that it was all a misunderstanding and that my body only thought it was pregnant. But nope. There's a little heartbeat in my belly.

Also, I have gained one pound in the past month. I am pretty proud of that. Daltongirl told me that this is the only time that I get to go to the doctor's office and be praised for gaining weight, so I should enjoy it. And let me tell you, I'm enjoying it. But I have a theory, and in five or so more months, I'll look back at this post and laugh at my stupidity, but here it is. First I have to start with my missionary theory.

I went on my mission (to Italy, land of pasta, pizza, and gelato on every street corner) and lost weight. Most of the sisters in my mission gained some weight. But before my mission, I exercised never and I ate anything I wanted. While on my mission, I walked everywhere I went and had the damning watch of a companion at all times who could judge me for what I was eating, so I was able to clean up my eating habits a little. (A very little.) And I lost weight. Meanwhile, sisters who were careful about exercise and diet before their missions gained weight because the daily walks were less than their regular routine, and the pasta and gelato and other such treats were more than their caloric intake pre-mission.

So. As an obese person (O! the shame!), I'm only supposed to gain about 15 pounds during my pregnancy. I am a person who hasn't exercised for a long time (O! the shame!) and eats whatever she wants, and indulges pretty much every craving she gets (why am I recording this for posterity?). So how will pregnancy change that? I haven't noticed an increase of food consumption, or a change in cravings. And NOW, I am feeding TWO with the same amount of calories. And those calories are being used making brains, guts, fingernails, and a heart. So I'm hoping to gain only the necessary 15 pounds of baby, fluid, placenta (is it gross that I just said that or is it okay to say placenta?), etc.

We'll see how true my theory holds. Maybe it's just wishful thinking. Or maybe, I will be queen of pregnant women everywhere, with minimal discomfort, minimal weight gain, and a painless delivery. It's at least a worthy goal.

[By the way, Switchback is always keenly interested in how much weight I'm gaining. She said that the most she's heard is 65 pounds. So recently at her sister's baby shower, she started asking all these women who she'd never met how much weight they gained while they were pregnant, and if anyone could beat the fattest pregnant girl ever with more than 65 pounds. After the shower, her sister told her that all her friends got offended. I'd love for you to participate in my new poll, in honor of Switchback.]