Daring the Gods!!

Well, it's Monday, and you all know what that means! I'll tell you, nothing gets me more excited on a Monday than my trip to Little Tokyo. To be honest folks, my fascination with this fine establishment began when I would get to work Monday morning, act all down and depressed about my lot in life, and ultimately decide that nothing could cheer me up more than a plate of steaming sesame chicken and some yakisoba noodles. Before I knew it, a tradition was born, and I was using Little Tokyo to lift my spirits each dark and dreary Monday!

Today I had a surprise waiting for me when, just as I was about to clock out for lunch, my next cube neighbor, Joe, asked if I was headed off to Little Tokyo. Am I that transparent? I thought. Unable to hide my intentions, I admitted to Joe that Little Tokyo was indeed my destination. To my utter astonishment, Joe told me that he was feeling a craving for some fried rice and had been planning all morning to hit up the Toke (this being my affectionate slang term for Little Tokyo). He even offered to drive! And when we found a primo parking spot near the Eden Prairie Center, I began to think my day's luck was beginning to change.

We marched into the Eden Prairie Center's food court discussing the drudge of our day's work, when suddenly Joe made the brash move of stepping into line at LeeAnn Chin, Little Tokyo's main competitor for asian cuisine. I barely had time to process Joe's contemptuous maneuver before I found myself standing before a banner at Little Tokyo, presumably written by those same angels that had brought me my previous day's good fortune: 'Any Two Entrees for $5.99'. (!!!)

What had I done to deserve this? I began to think of situations where I might have helped an old lady cross a road, or saved a kitten from certain despair. Being unable to think of any such situation, I thought maybe this was some sort of future investment or an incentive to become a better person, to give back to a society that has done so much for me. As I pondered these loaded thoughts, I saw George piling a shit-ton of fried rice onto a plate.

'Um--actually, I was taking it to-go today...' I uttered. You see, on almost every occasion, I eat at the food court, away from the desk, in order to remind myself to make sure I relish each opportunity away from the cube. Today, however, was an exception -- Joe does not relish these opportunities, and unfortunately I was at his mercy.

So George dumped the rice into a to-go box, and started naming off the entrees I was going to get. It was almost cute how he said 'spicy teriyaki' instead of 'original teriyaki', which I was sure he knew I always ordered, but being that I already corrected him today, I took the spicy teriyaki and some sesame chicken. Just as I was about to tell him I'd also be going without a soda today, I found there was already a cup overflowing with delicious Cherry Coke sitting beside my to-go box. Once again, being that I'd dared the gods enough today despite their investment in me, I happily paid for my meal and soda and left.

As Joe and I departed, he with his LeeAnn Chin and I with my 'spicy' teriyaki, I told Joe he'd better be careful, since I thought I'd seen George glaring over at him in the LeeAnn Chin order line. Joe laughed it off, declaring 'It's a free country!'

And somewhere off in the distance, I heard a distant rumbling of thunder. The gods were angry...