Cracked faux-leather seats are in the booth area and our table was remincient of the old formica countertops used in the 60's and 70's.
Apparently the Golden West thinks the people of the west all have access to gold mines -at least based on the prices. Lunch, a hamburger, BLT, a diet Coke and an order of guacamole, was $40 sans tip.
Part of the expense is that the restaurant is located on The Avenue, a hot little part of town also called the Hampdens (to be corrected if I don't have the name quite right).
The Avenue is a quirky place with a lot of restaurants, a couple of used book stores, antique shops, resale stores, and a number of banks (helps the stores since a number of them do not use credit card machines). The area has a New Age/Hippie sort of feel for it without the smell of burning weed, the "ya, mans," or the bell bottoms.
The part of Baltimore that I'm visiting is filled with row houses. The stuff you see about old New York or Boston - ya, like that. I
never suspected that Hollywood actually got something right when it came to location. There is a lot that is walkable if you are in reasonable shape. Expect hills, and little parking. Parking is so coveted people visiting residents of the more densely populated areas place authorized parking signs in their cars stating they are temporary visitors.
One of the more amazing things about being on the east coast is how close everything is. Washington D.C. is just to the south. New York City isn't far, that is if you are measuring distance. Time is another subject entirely and is dependent on the heaviness and congestion of the traffic.
Late April appears to be an ideal time to visit. The weather is wonderful - 60-70's, with a fair amount of sunshine and a slight breeze.
In other news, Optum has once again shown how they value integrity and performance. The company had two very specific meetings with their H.R. department to tell us how things would be and what to expect in the coming weeks.
One of the things we were a little sad to hear was that Optum would be overnighting our last pay check and that it would be a paper check rather than a direct deposit. We were also told it would be paid out when we would normally get paid.
Nope. The paycheck was automatically deposited four days early, before the regular pay date. Date wrong. Method wrong. Overnighting? Questionable.
Makes this disgruntled employee wonder what else will be wrong. We were told two different things about when PTO would be paid out. I don't have a check stub, so I can't really answer if it was with this check or not. We were told the severance would be taxed at 25%. Have absolutely no idea if this is accurate or not.
It also makes me wonder what else has been done incorrectly since Optum took over. How many miscalculations have there been? How many times have charges been taken from our checks when they shouldn't have been? How many former employees were robbed when they were let go?
The rumor mill is rife with ideas of what is going to happen to other offices now that ours, Phoenix and Jefferonville IN had been shut. Many of our counterparts in FL are looking outside Optum for job security.
I feel for them, I really do. At least they won't be 100% blindsided. A number of them are being pro-active - jumping ship before it sinks.
Maybe when my former manager gave his two weeks notice in the fall he saw something he didn't like. Maybe he read the handwriting on the wall and took the hint.
Thinking about that company makes me angry. Best not to give it any more of my energy.
So, will concentrate on what tomorrow will bring. The Baltimore Museum of Art is supposed to be open tomorrow and the blessing is that it is free to the public. Yea! There are a couple of other museums to check out as well.
Also have a tour of Under Armour coming up which I am really looking forward to. Not often you get a private tour of an amazing place with an insider.