Kindness…

I am experiencing a setback in my pneumonia recovery. I started getting sick again yesterday, sliding backward quickly by the evening. 

Without getting into it, the dosage was wrong for one of my medications. It took all day today to get more of the medication since all the pharmacies didn’t have it in stock. 

Finally, The Pharmacy, a small town, privately owned business, had it in stock. This is why it is essential to support local small businesses.

Marty is on his way home with the antibiotic as I type at 7:15 pm. He’s such a good friend, not just a husband. I am very lucky indeed.

On Saturday, at The Troy Farmers Market, one of our weekly customers gave Marty a carved wooden healing bird to help with my recovery. This touched my heart so deeply that I wept when I held it. 

This customer is an older gentleman and a retired chef. I feel so humble and honored by how many people love our spätzle. We are currently on the menu in most high-end restaurants in Manchester and Dorset. 

The interesting thing about the carved healing bird is its shape. It is shaped like a sparrow. The direct translation of the German word spätzle is sparrow. The shape of the noodles resembles little sparrows. Is that cool or what? I’ll have to ask him when I thank him if he knows that.

We have the kindest, most wonderful customers who truly care about us. The feeling is mutual as we get worried when we don’t see someone for a long time or hear someone is ill.

Our customers are from all walks of life, not only from our country but also people who are visiting from other countries. Our spätzle has even traveled on airplanes as far away as India!

We have met thousands of wonderfully interesting people. We love hearing their stories and memories of their grandmothers, making them spätzle as children. 

Spätzle is also made in many Eastern European countries with different names and served with things like Chicken Paprikash or Goulash.

In the six years we’ve had our business, only a tiny handful of assholes have existed. I’m good with faces and names, so I remember them. I can also remember people’s names. Everyone loves when someone remembers their name. Like on Cheers.

I can recall what the asshole people looked like and why they were jerks. One extremely rude couple dared to come back and complain about their spätzle the following Sunday. 

This was after tricking us, paying for their bag of spätzle with expired food stamps. They wanted another bag to make up for our lousy spätzle. 

Before you assume, we love that many customers use their food stamp money at the market. After all, that is what it is for. 

The market gives those customers twice the amount in market tokens to shop with. Even if a customer doesn’t have enough tokens or money, we still provide them with spätzle. We have given away a lot of spätzle to those in need.

Healthy food has always been our priority in feeding people, especially when we were both school lunch food service directors and cooks. Poverty is a real problem. Unfortunately, being dishonest is another one.

So back to the scammers that stole from us on purpose and then demanded more. Their rudeness and lying ignited my “Jersey,” and I lost my shit. 

I told them I remembered them and the expired coupons they gave us. The spätzle they got for free couldn’t be what they claimed because it was made the day before and has a 16-day shelf life.

I said if they needed food, they should have been honest with us and not treated us like we were idiots. Then I told them to get the fuck out and never come back.

The surrounding vendors almost applauded me because this often happens at the Schenectady Farmers Market. We loved doing that market but stopped because we couldn’t keep working 7 days a week, and it’s the furthest away from home.

Schenectady, NY, has a wonderful farmers market on Sundays and is the home of Proctors Theater; the city is up and coming. However, most of Schenectady is a rough shady place with lots of crime.

The look of shock and how red the couple’s faces got spoke volumes. That, my dear readers, is what happens when you piss off a Jersey girl.

Marty just got home, and I started taking the correct antibiotic for seven more days. I will be better about resting and not overdoing it. I was shocked at how quickly I relapsed after returning to my old self.

Like our spätzle customers, you guys are also kind and wonderful people. I am honored and grateful to have all of you in my life.  

Thank you for taking the time to read my posts and, better yet, commenting on them. Have a great week. ♥️