Salad Ingredients…

When I was much, much younger, before I attended Kindergarten, I watched Sesame Street. At that time, it was a new show. It was pretty unique in the way the ‘puppet’ people interacted with the real people. I loved all the little scenes, the singing and getting to know Maria. I found it fascinating to watch her get married, and have a little girl of her own. All the while, the Muppets a part of that world.

So, when my husband and I went out to eat this past Saturday night, this scene from Sesame Street kept running through my head:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1C8nl8eBoq0

To watch more classic Sesame Street, please go to this link: http://www.sesamestreet.org

I had ordered a salad. At one time, I always ordered salads when we ate out. Not just because they are healthy, but because I really do love them, and I do not like to make them at home. On Saturday night, I even ordered blue cheese dressing, which I also love, but generally I try to stick with oil and vinegar. So, with great anticipation, I took that first bite of romaine lettuce and a chunk of steak, blue cheese crumbles and dressing mingled enticingly.

And there was a hair in it!

This was not a tiny hair, but a long hair. I had to deposit the entire bite in a napkin. Needless to say, I lost my appetite. The once delicious-looking salad wasn’t so beckoning any longer.

Yes, I did eat the salad. Very cautiously, examining each bite. But the enjoyment was gone.

No, I did not complain to the waitress. I probably should have. But we were the only patrons, and our waitress was very nice, checking on us regularly and giving us big smiles. One of the times she asked how everything was tasting, was right after I had emptied my mouthful into my napkin. I could not think of a way to smile back and graciously say, “There was a long hair in my salad, I almost gagged, and now I want to leave.” After all, it wasn’t her hair. (I know this because she had beautiful blonde hair in a ponytail, almost to the middle of her back. The hair was shorter, and brown. Rather like the hair on the cook we saw behind the counter.)

And while this was going on, I thought of the Sesame Street skit about the fly in the soup. I do not know why this came to mind from under the pile of other memories, many years of memories, but it did.

I still love salads, and I will order them again. But I probably won’t go to that particular restaurant for some time. It has always been clean, the staff very friendly, so I will just chalk it up to a bad experience and go on. I don’t think you always have to set a situation right. Sometimes you just walk away.

Maybe I will be making my own salads again for awhile. Or just have a large plate of something like this. All the right, delicious ingredients for a salad. Doesn’t it look yummy, summery, and fresh?