Really Right Editor does the Drive-thru

Thanks to the Governor’s fear of the Covid, most of us covered by collective bargaining contracts and funded by the few essential taxpayers left in the state are being forced to hide at home for four days of every week; however, once per week we are compelled to trek to the office to work in our Dilbert cubicles. This is supposed to be the “new normal;” at least until the election next week is decided.

Anyway, yesterday was my usual day to show-up in person to the office. On the way, part of my routine is to hit the drive-thru at a local fast-food place that is open at 6 AM. Today I pulled up and was greeted by the usual employee on duty at that time of the morning. I like this employee. He knows exactly which condiments that I want without ever having to ask me. Since I only go there once a week, color me impressed.

Today, I really wish that I had filmed the activity that I observed. The employee was equipped with a face mask and plastic or latex gloves. Typical Covid gear these days.

Anyway, he takes my credit card so he can swipe it in their reader. Then he goes to the shelf with pre-measured bags of coffee. He puts a filter in the removable part of the coffee maker, tears open the coffee, pours it, and walks back to the coffee maker. On the way he drops the empty foil pouch that seconds ago had been full of ground coffee beans. With one hand, he picks up the foil wrapper off of the floor and with the other, he inserts the fully loaded coffee assembly into the maker and hits the switch. Several seconds later, he arrives with a bucket labeled ice only and starts to pour it into the ice freezer next to the drive thru window. In order to pour out the ice, he places the fingers of both hands inside of the ice bucket so he can get the right grip angle to pour the ice into the freezer. Next, he arrived at the bagging station with my order. He places my food in the appropriately sized bag, adds napkins and condiments and then walks to the drive thru window. He hands me my food and then returns my credit card with the register receipt.

I then drove away from the drive thru just marveling. It never occurred to this guy to wash his hands at any point in this process. Why should he? After all he’s wearing gloves. Trust me, the next customer will get the same treatment. Working the register and handling the cash and credit cards of a myriad of people, preparing drinks, bagging cooked food, touching the freight, the floor, and the food, no issues here. Oh, I should add that his duty on Friday mornings when not working the drive thru is unloading the supplies from the Sysco truck in the parking lot.

Remember a few months ago when people were worried that Covid could live on surfaces for weeks at a time? Clearly no application in this context.

Folks part of me would like to flame on the guy but his sanitation habits are just as ineffective as wearing a mask and how many idiots are wearing them just as worthlessly?

I have given up on counting the number of people wearing a mask when driving a car; especially, with no passengers. Ditto for people walking their dogs or bike riding by themselves. Heck, I even see people jogging with a mask on. What’s the point?

If the employee is “safe” and all the customers at risk, what sort of corporate policy is wearing a mask and gloves? Truthfully, washing with soap and water is superior to all this other unnecessary and useless stuff. Only people that believe in global warming or socialism would be stupid enough to think that a mask or other symbol of oppression helps anything. The only reason many places require a mask is not based on science but a fear of the tyranny of tort lawyers and activist judges.

I’ll probably go to this fast-food place again. I’m not that worried. I ask God to bless my food before I eat it and I think trusting in His protection and providence is much better than putting my faith in Gavin Newsom’s ego, his random color codes and all that follows from them.

Johnnie Does Sabor A Mexico

Sabor a Mexico is a family owned restaurant that changed ownership from one family to another a few years ago. They offer classic Mexican food such as tacos, burritos, salads, fajitas etc. It’s a small location in a not so easy to access shopping center, here is my review.

Ambiance: This place is not very big. It has a nice old school authentic almost hole in the wall feel. (Considering the original tenant was a New York themed specialty sandwich shop, the remodel to a Mexican themed place was pretty good–Editor) This business has adapted nicely to Covid by having ample outdoor seating which is pet friendly. There is nice artwork on the walls and windows to make you feel in an authentic Mexican food joint. Since reopening under Covid rules, the manger has furnished authentic music for outside diners. You get full service at your table, like a typical sit down place, in addition to a small bar area, and they have a brisk take out business. Small, comfortable, and homey. 4.3/5

Food: Again, typical Mexican fare on full display, tacos, burritos, salads, fajitas, etc. They had ample meat selection including ground beef, shredded beef, chicken, pork, etc. I went with a 2 item lunch special and ordered 2 shredded beef burritos which came with beans and rice on the side. $10. The food was great, not greasy at all, and I felt this was a great bang for the buck. Only gripe is the chips were over salted, but that’s ok, and the salsa was lacking in the heat department, but again that’s ok since I tend to prefer hotter things than most. 4.7/5

Overall: The food was great, the service even better. It is family owned and it appears family does it all at this place. It was refreshing to hear the words “my pleasure, or absolutely” after speaking to the wait staff. It felt like Chic-Fil-A in many ways, like we were welcomed not a bother. The owner was very engaging, and you could tell he is worried about the Covid lockdowns and the toll it will have in the future. Uncertainty is not your friend in the food business right now. 4.9/5 I definitely recommend this place.

Johnnie Does

Blogger note: The order included a $2 upcharge for the burritos I hadn’t encountered before, that being said $14.55 after tip didn’t seem like a bad price, certainly better than $18 plus for a salad and soda at a certain other place.

Harris-Biden Newsom Steinberg Economy on Full Display

Folks, during my lunch hour on Tuesday, I visited a part of Sacramento County that is basically claimed by no one as their own. I had a chicken bowl at Ariana’s upon the recommendation of fellow food blogger Johnnie Does and decided to eat it in the parking lot. Bloggers note: In CA the ‘rona can get you if you dine inside, but if you eat outside it skips over you. I erred on the side of caution, upon finishing my meal, I walked over to a movie theatre called United Artists.

United Artist Cinema

The parking lot was empty, upon closer inspection the place almost looked abandoned. The trash cans had been pulled out, and the box office looked bare. This place obviously had not seen a customer since I would say 3/19 AKA 1 ASD (After Shut Down). The employees are likely sitting at home making more now than they did while working. Worse yet, can anyone name a movie coming out any time soon? I am not even joking here. The photos I am attaching were taken at 1pm on a normal workday. For contrast, this lot would usually be fairly busy as this is one of 2 theatres in the south part of the county.

At my local gym, they have erected large outdoor tents covering almost the length of a half a football field, and in essence moved the gym entirely outside. Ditto for several local diners, additionally most have erected additional outdoor dining tents, equipped with side plastic barriers, and heat lamps. William and I are of the opinion that this is because indoor work outs and dining are subject to change at any moment. In fact, just this past Tuesday, Comrade Newsom made a remark that the Covid cases in our home county were experiencing an uptick. If you own a business, or one that can modify its business model, you must be vigilant, and innovative.

Lest you think I am joking, consider this, after working out Tuesday night, I swung by the Safeway on my way home. 3 employees who used to sell gym memberships or be personal trainers I recognized as now working there. Yes, Cal-Fit may not be a career, but the sales staff and personal trainers typically are there for quite a few years, so there is something. I stopped and chatted with all 3 and they said they were all laid off, memberships are all in cancellation as opposed to people buying, folks are buying home gym equipment such as a Peloton, and finally gym memberships are not a requirement during a pandemic. These 3 had worked at Cal-Fit a combined 12 years, now they are stacking shelves and working the till. No offense to those jobs, but all 3 seemed miserable.

Peloton–(swimsuit model accessory not included)

Fear not though, Harris-Biden will shut the economy and Newsom seems happy to order shutdowns, so your fears of getting Covid should be put at ease. In addition, the government seems eager to hire on more folks here in CA and if you act quickly you can get a job at EDD (unemployment office) here and be rewarded for your incompetence.

Be careful what you vote for,

The Chief