Am I mellowing out or are they improving their service?

I am finding myself at all the places I've bitched about in the past. I don't know if they changed or if I changed. Am I getting mellow in my old age? Nah, they probably just cleaned up their act a bit.

I went down to the farmer's market with Paul today and got my usual coconut water. While it still reminds me of a chaotic overpriced Beirut market, I am willing to pay for the things I am addicted to, like the coconut water. Paul ended up with a great deal -- he's going to sell his sunglasses there on Saturday's at one of the little tables to the side, it's only $20 for the day. He'll still have his popular kiosk, but he'll have someone at the table at the farmer's market, too.

I have a cold, so I wanted some comfort food like matzo ball or chicken soup, so AnnaMaria, Jerry and I ended up at the Dirty Deli Coral Bagels, where surprisingly, the food was good -- loved the soup and my Reuben sandwich. The atmosphere still sucks, but I was there for the food, not the ambiance. They even took AnnaMaria's photo off the wall -- there used to be the front page of Community Newspapers hanging on the wall near the front door, with AnnaMaria's photo covering the whole front page.

I also was at the Fresh Market, the lady I don't like wasn't there, so it was a good trip and I didn't want to say anything, but I've been back at Milam's, too, and they seemed to have cleaned up the place big time. The food seems to be fresher and better. I have been getting a lot of hot lunches at the deli and even buying some good meat at the meat department and yes, fruit, too. So while I did call them the worst store on the planet, I may have to take that back. Things are improving.

Some celebrity was sneaking out of The Fresh Market, into a limo. I didn't see who it was but they were making such a thing of shielding her that they made it more obvious. But still, I didn't see who it was.