Random Act of Kindness

I can be a creature of habit at lunchtime. There aren't that many good restaurants near the college that have reasonable prices and can be relied on to get me in and out during the tight time frame I've got. One of them is a chain called Pomodoro, and since I am particularly fond of Italian food I go there often.

They have a lunch menu which includes some items which are ready quickly and include soup or salad, and really great lunch salad which comes with either grilled salmon on tuna. I am partial to that one and most of the waitpersons recognize me and are ready with my iced tea with extra lemon when I sit down. I really appreciate that kind of service a lot. It also gives some indication of how often I frequent the place.

Usually, I eat there by myself. I like the selections at lunch more than I like the dinner menu (the above referenced salad is not available at dinner and neither is the eggplant panini, which is my other frequent choice.) I either read or work on Sudoku puzzels at lunch, which often leads to conversations with the waitstaff. Some love to do them, others can't figure them out. Yesterday, after I finished eating, my waiter stopped at the table with a package. It was "a belated Christmas present" for me. It was an electronic Sudoku player. He knew I liked doing Sudoku and asked if I still did them before giving me the package (I was reading yesterday.)

I thought this was incredibly sweet. He did tell me that it had been given to him by one of his co-workers, but I guess he thought I'd actually use it. That's fine by me.

His name is Sean and I'm sure he's one of the thousands of waitpersons here in Los Angeles to break into acting. If there's a casting agent present, he's tall, thin, and looks a bit like Hugh Jackman's younger brother, with dark, wavy hair. He works at the Pomodoro in Woodland Hills at Victory and Owensmouth, across from the big Westfield Mall at lunchtime. He's got a great smile. Tell him I sent you.