Michelle "de-Elited but Not Deleted" C.'s Profile

A few things you should know about my husband:

1.  Once nominated to be on What Not To Wear.
2.  Wore Birkenstocks to our wedding.  With a tux.
3.  Claimed shirts could not be found to fit his "Italian neck."

So it was with some trepidation that I shadowed him to Men's Wearhouse on a quest for new dress clothes. We were quickly greeted by David Peerson, who jumped to our rescue upon a rapid assessment of the "deer in the headlights" look I'm sure we both had.

Before long, David had ferreted out our needs and had my husband in the dressing room as he efficiently snagged shirts, suits, sport coats, and pants for my patient husband to model.  A couple hours later, we emerged exhausted but exhilarated, with two suits, a sport coat, a variety of shirts in a muted rainbow of colors, several pairs of pants, and even a pair of shoes that - miraculously - make my husband look neither like a duck nor a 90-year-old (which is more than can be said for the rest of his shoe wardrobe).  Our wallets were significantly lighter, but much heavier than they could've been, thanks to a promotion they were running that offered 50% off in exchange for charitable donations of gently-used business wear.

If David would just practice saying, "Shut the front door!" he might have a career on TLC.

I am frugal and I love the popcorn I make at home, so I don't typically frequent ready-made popcorn places.  But I tried some samples of Cornucopia's wares at an event not long ago, and loved it so much that I popped in (ahem) to take a gander yesterday.

Flavors of every imaginable variety lined the walls (Dill pickle! Madras curry! S'mores! Birthday cake!), and you could serve yourself samples to your heart's content. I sampled like mad, and finally settled on a bag of pesto and a bag of their veggie corn which, despite its rather unexpected dark green color, tastes AMAZING. I actually think it is my favorite of all, despite the many other delightful flavors vying for the #1 spot in my heart.

I agree with the other reviewers that the prices here are a bit on the spendy side - $2.25 for basically a sandwich bag full of corn.  However, they occasionally run coupon deals with Groupon, Scoutmob, etc., and you can also garner yourself some discounts with a GoLocal card, or by buying a tin from them, which entitles you to 50% off refills.

Service was very nice, although they probably could have used a second employee on a game day Saturday.  It was worth the wait, though; I left with enough fluffy, crunchy, flavorful goodness to keep me snack-happy for days.  Colonel Sanders, move over - there's a new kernel in town.

We could not have been more pleased with our wonderful and comfortable accommodations at the Fuchsia Door. They were spacious, clean, and nicely decorated, with interesting tchotchkes and original artwork. Our friends paid nearly 50% more than we did for the largest trailer at El Cosmico, and DIDN'T HAVE AIR CONDITIONING; with the August temps in the 90s, we were so glad we did! We loved having access to a kitchen, too, for snacking or quick meals - an amenity we wouldn't have had at a regular hotel. Having wi-fi was also a huge plus for us, as we tend to be a little internet-addicted (I know you're surprised to hear this).

The location was a perfect jumping-off point for everything - literally across the street from the Get Go Grocery and the Marfa Ballroom, and easy walking distance to the Pizza Foundation, Cochineal, the farmer's market, the bookstore, etc.

Next time we are in Marfa, we will absolutely stay here again.

Another positive experience for which I can thank Yelp!

Patrick Moran was the most responsive contractor I think I've ever worked with.  He always answered my (many) questions promptly.  He always returned my calls immediately.  If I needed another color sample, it was at our house within a day.  He made it clear from day one that he would never be the cause of any delay in our roofing project, and he stood by that promise consistently.  He also did not require us to put ANY money down on our roof, not even a materials draw - we paid in full after it was completed.  That gave me supreme confidence that the project would be done to our complete satisfaction.  And it was.  

The roofers were fast, professional, and did a fantastic job.  They laid our shingles with incredible precision, and the finished result is obviously an example of fine craftsmanship.  The lines where the shingles meet at the corners are all perfectly straight, and surprisingly beautiful.

The only tiny complaints I might lodge about my experience with them would be ones of missed expectations, but I honestly don't think either of these are really Acura's fault.  First, our final total ended up being $1000 more than originally quoted.  This was because we ended up having a fair amount of rot under our old roof, so they had to spend a bunch of time (and buy a bunch of materials) to repair that wood.  I understand that they couldn't really have known that before they got into the project, but it was a little bit of a shock, as you can imagine.  The other thing that disappointed me slightly was that I hired Acura because I was SO impressed with Patrick, but as it turned out, I don't think he ever set foot on our property.  In retrospect, though, perhaps that's just a good example of a savvy division of labor.  The guy who's good at sales and management does just that; the guys who are good at laying shingles handle that end of the job.

On balance, I was pleased enough with our experience with Acura to give them five stars.  We have a beautiful new roof that should last us a long time, with a 30-year materials guarantee and a 5-year workmanship/labor warranty.  Peace of mind and a beautiful roof over our heads - what more can you really ask?

I could've sworn I looked for reviews of this place before I booked.  Guess I must not have...

It took an HOUR AND A HALF on a Sunday morning to pick up a freakin' car here that I'd reserved ahead of time.  45 minutes to wait through the line, then another 45 minutes to get my car after I'd checked in.  Unbelievably, inexcusably inefficient.

If you're looking for a reason to spend some time cooling your heels, then by all means, rent from this Avis.

If buying pretty trinkets is your drug of choice, then Tarrytown Pharmacy is your drugstore.  I found the following list of surprising items there during my last visit:

$111 earrings
The Uchi Cookbook
Kate Spade notecards
Pet towelettes (for when you want to clean your dog's ears with lavender essential oil)
Wind-up tin robots
Cocktail rings with more sparkle than Mr. Clean's head
Chutes & Ladders games

Sure, you can get deodorant, toothpaste, and Wet Ones here, too - but at least if you are counting in square feet, Tarrytown Pharmacy is more gift shop than drugstore.  Stop in here on your way to your next birthday party for a lovely present and a fun greeting card; grab a bottle of aspirin for the after-party while you're there.

I made a reservation at this hotel a month before attending a meeting at the convention center.  Two days before I was supposed to arrive, they called and told me they had overbooked and that they were moving me to another Hyatt location which, according to the woman who called, was "still within walking distance of the convention center." Sorry, but five blocks in 105 degree heat wearing a suit and heels is not "walking distance."

Needless to say, I made a reservation at the Marriott - but I was stuck with a last-minute rate.

Not so Grand.

I was devastated to learn that Stephanie had left Mecca when I called to book a massage last week. The person who answered the phone said that Stephanie had referred many of her clients to Stacy or Randy, so I booked a massage with Stacy.

I'm thrilled to report that it was wonnnnnnderful.  Stacy did a great job of gently ferreting out my needs when we discussed the massage beforehand, asking about the type of pressure I wanted (DEEP) and where my problem areas were.  Then she proved that she had actually listened to what I'd said by digging in and really working at breaking up the rock-like knots that were plaguing my upper back, while still leaving time to ensure that the rest of my massage-needing parts did not feel neglected.  She made me feel totally comfortable telling her what I needed - a little "more there," "deeper there," "just a little higher," ensured that all my needs were met, just the way I wanted them to be.  Afterwards, I was like Jello, and wished I could hang out in Mecca's lounge in a catatonic state all day.  The cherry on the top of the experience was a visit to Mecca's wonderful eucalyptus steam room, which helped deepen my state of relaxation and made my lips tingle.

When I want to get naked and have all my (platonic) massage needs fulfilled, Stacy will be the first person I call.

Eh.

I placed what I thought was a pretty substantial order (over $700) on behalf of a professional organization I belong to.  It felt like pulling teeth to get information I wanted to assure myself that the order was going to get done the way I needed it, and communication was very bare-bones and not exactly warm.  They kept telling me they'd get me info by a certain time (invoice, proofs, confirmation that payment had been received, etc.), and it was invariably late - and I frequently had to ask for things more than once, which made me feel naggy and annoying. I'll admit that I was a little type A about this project because I had a short turnaround time and didn't have any room for error, but still. I did not feel like anyone here was enthusiastic about having my business at all.

In short, the end product turned out very nice, but it took more effort than I wanted to get there.

So, I now have an adorable niece and 1,343,267 friends with babies (at last count), and I find myself in baby stores on a fairly regular basis.  Whereas Babies R KillMeNow makes me want to violently stab my eyeballs out, Buy Buy Baby merely makes me want to gently remove a fingernail, perhaps even with the assistance of a soothing local anesthetic.  It's more cheery, stocked with a much larger selection of cute things, and they take Bed Bath & Beyond coupons (because they're owned by Bed Bath & Beyond).  Yes, it is still next to impossible to find anybody to assist you, but once you do, the employees are actually able to assist you (unlike Babies R KillMeNow, where the employees themselves haven't the faintest clue where anything is, nor does it generally occur to them to care).

Best solution: order your baby stuff online or buy from a small, local store.  But if you need a superstore, Buy Buy Baby is The One.