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I’ve stayed at the DoubleTree in Aurora, Colorado twice now and I’d have to say that I’m a little less than enthusiastic.
The first stay must have been during some sort of convention or something...
I’ve stayed at the DoubleTree in Aurora, Colorado twice now and I’d have to say that I’m a little less than enthusiastic.
The first stay must have been during some sort of convention or something and the handicap room I received was said to be the last non-smoking room they had available. (The cost was double that of the second visit.) It was a ground floor room that appeared to have fallen off the maintenance schedule some time ago. The bathroom lighting fixture didn’t work at all and had to be completely replaced after we checked in. The room just had an overall “forgotten” feel to it.
The beds were very comfortable with a down cover and down pillows, however, there were *filthy* pillows on the bed for the first visit. They have throw pillows leaning against the bed pillows and these pillows are not changed out from one customer to the next, nor do they have a removable, cleanable covers! My pillows were COVERED with all kinds of disgusting hair and multi-colored smudges! I left a note for the maid not to put them back on the bed and they then remained on the floor of my room with my note for the rest of my stay. (And I feel sure they simply went BACK on the bed for the next unfortunate guest.)
The rooms have an old-style heating/cooling unit that is noisy and often non-functional. I couldn’t get the second room to cool at all and the unit kept turning on and off all night. Both rooms had bathrooms too small to operate in and stingy housekeeping that didn’t replace things like tissues and toilet paper. (I had to call the front desk on both visits.)
The lobby is, barring water stains on the carpet, attractive. The restaurant seemed adequate. The wait staff there appeared to be friendly enough.
Their website advertises free tickets to various things depending on when you book your stay. After two visits, I’ve never received any tickets. I asked after them once and, after having been left waiting by a rude woman at the front desk for ten minutes, was told that they had only received 5 tickets and they had all been distributed! Ughh…
The best thing about the visit was the chocolate chip cookie that was issued at check-in.
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Mimi’s Café on the outskirts of the attractive Aurora Mall is a great place to catch a bite. The site is so fresh and new, and carries on the Mimi’s Parisian flare.
There is a beautiful stone...
Mimi’s Café on the outskirts of the attractive Aurora Mall is a great place to catch a bite. The site is so fresh and new, and carries on the Mimi’s Parisian flare.
There is a beautiful stone fireplace in the entryway. Should you need to wait for a table, this is your view. You can attain an intimate table for two, a single seat at the counter, or a table for a large group. The wait staff there was friendly, courteous and efficient as has been my experience with every Mimi's Cafe I've had the good fortune to dine at.
The food at Mimi’s Café’s has always been great, in my experience, as well as abundant. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. While I’ve never tried them for breakfast, their lunches and dinners have always been exceptional. Along with “standards” done uniquely, Mimi’s offers things like pot roast (done *deliciously*), which you don’t find on every menu.
Check out all they have to offer here (along with a location near you): http://www.mimiscafe.com/
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I think the Made in Washington store offers an interesting variety of things for gift giving. Many of their products are food-related (like delicious MarketSpice tea and Sleepless in Seattle...
I think the Made in Washington store offers an interesting variety of things for gift giving. Many of their products are food-related (like delicious MarketSpice tea and Sleepless in Seattle Cocoa!), but they also have a nice selection of art glass, ceramics, etc, along with Seattle photos, postcards and books.
It’s a nice idea to be able to buy gifts that have been made locally. If you’re a Washingtonian, you’ll definitely want to check out this store (or web site: http://www.madeinwashington.com/ ).
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Washington Mutual offers a "Relationship Rate" when you have two or more accounts of a minimum balance. This bumps the interest offered by .25%.
I met that requirement and went into the bank...
Washington Mutual offers a "Relationship Rate" when you have two or more accounts of a minimum balance. This bumps the interest offered by .25%.
I met that requirement and went into the bank to ask for that rate (they require you to come into the bank to initiate it for some reason). The bank never initiated the rate and I had to make subsequent trips into the bank to ask after it. The reps there said they'd check into it and call me back, but never did.
I finally got two different managers involved, both of whom were incredibly rude not to mention unhelpful! I was asking not only for the rate to be applied, but for the back interest due me. (I had opened a CD the same day I asked for the Relationship Rate, so that firmly marked the date of my request.) The bank manager scoffed at me, saying that it was "only $20-some dollars!" Whether or not it was "ONLY" $20-some dollars, it was MY money and THEIR mistake. Furthermore, it was NOT only $20-some dollars. It was well over $100.
The bank manager was supposed to call me back after she “handled it”, which, of course, she didn't. The back interest was finally added into my account with no notice (or apology) to me other than seeing the numbers on my statement.
I’ve been a WAMU customer for more than two decades. I've since discovered Key Bank offers a better interest rate and am moving my accounts to their bank. Hopefully they have a stronger appreciation for their customers.
http://www.wamu.com/personal/default.asp
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We try to buy all of our celebratory cakes at our local QFC. Their bakery always does a great job, the cakes are always tasty and ready on time, and their prices are competitive. The bakery staff...
We try to buy all of our celebratory cakes at our local QFC. Their bakery always does a great job, the cakes are always tasty and ready on time, and their prices are competitive. The bakery staff is more than helpful and will work with you to get your cake just right. They have a book with countless choices for cake design and they’re excellent at doing photo cakes!
http://www.qfconline.com/homepage/index.htm
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Shipwreck Beads is a HUGE store (like the commercial says, “80K square feet of ideas…”) that is packed with every kind of bead imaginable! AND they have EXCELLENT prices! They don’t have an...
Shipwreck Beads is a HUGE store (like the commercial says, “80K square feet of ideas…”) that is packed with every kind of bead imaginable! AND they have EXCELLENT prices! They don’t have an abundance of stores, but they DO have a web site http://www.shipwreckbeads.com/ that is as chock-full as their physical store!
No matter if you purchase from the physical store, buy from their web site or do a combination of the two, they actually keep track of your order history. This could prove to be very helpful for anyone into crafting with beads. You might have so many different beads that you’re working with and they can be so similar in color and style. It’s great to know that the store will keep all of that specific information for you to help you out with any reorder needs.
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A trek to Bainbridge Island on the ferry is a fun idea any day when you’re looking for something to do. I took my fiancé over for his birthday in August and we enjoyed the trip.
You can take...
A trek to Bainbridge Island on the ferry is a fun idea any day when you’re looking for something to do. I took my fiancé over for his birthday in August and we enjoyed the trip.
You can take your car or bike, or simply park near the ferry downtown (parking cost us $15) and walk on the ferry. It’s windy, so take a jacket and hold on to your hat! You can get some great pictures of the city both coming and going and the ride is smooth and enjoyable, lasting about 30 minutes each way.
The ferry sells snacks and has an abundance of indoor seating for anyone who isn’t keen on the elements, or if it happens to be raining. They have different schedules and pricing throughout the year and the information is always posted on their web site http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries/schedules/current/index.cfm?route=sea-bi .
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I went to Dr. Sims after moving to Washington. Prior to the move, I had excruciating pain in one molar, and the tooth was even pushing down a bit out of my gum on occasion! I couldn’t bite down. ...
I went to Dr. Sims after moving to Washington. Prior to the move, I had excruciating pain in one molar, and the tooth was even pushing down a bit out of my gum on occasion! I couldn’t bite down. I was so busy and in the midst of such turmoil, I had no time to get to the dentist before my move. I was in this condition for weeks.
Dr. Sims was my fiancé’s dentist and he said he was a little bit of a fumbler (having nearly choked him by dropping part of a crown into his mouth and yelling at him, “DON’T SWALLOW!”, etc) but he liked the guy – so I went. By the time I got in to see him, the pain had actually abated quite a bit to the point of being manageable. Dr. Sims said he didn’t see anything on the x-ray, or by visual inspection, to indicate a problem with my tooth. He suggested maybe the pain was radiating from some other tooth.
He went on to deal with other issues that the x-rays brought forward and began a mission to replace all of my metal fillings. Many months passed; I continued to ask him about this tooth that still bothered me, to varying degrees, but he insisted it was OK.
The pain in this particular tooth got so bad that I started getting dizzy, having blinding headaches and felt sick. I made an emergency appointment to get in to his office. Dr. Sims then said that “maybe” he could see a crack in the tooth and that he’d have to fix it with a root canal. He could not get me numb (not for lack of Novocain injections—Dr. Sims is notorious for emptying several vials into your gums, mangling your face beyond belief--both by man-handling and by the shot’s results). On the umpteenth shot, and after waiting about ten minutes after each round of shots, he began pushing the needle through something so horrifically painful that I thought I would die! (And at that moment, I would have preferred to.) Instead of stopping with the needle, he physically held me down in the chair while doing this as I was rising up out of it in reflex to the intense pain. I had a “cry” come from my absolute toes; it was a horrific, visceral experience I never wish to repeat. I shook and was so embarrassed because I was crying uncontrollably (I NEVER cry in public.) I have a high threshold for pain (otherwise I would have made time for the dentist before the move!), but this pain was so raw and severe that it completely disabled me from “keeping a grip”.
Dr. Sims chose this moment, rather than at the beginning of the appointment, to take an x-ray of my tooth. He came back into the room to tell me, “Well now I see why you suffered so much pain, you have an abscess.” My tooth had an abscess (no "crack") that I had been suffering with for more than a year and this Neanderthal of a “dentist” not only didn’t identify that, didn’t treat it, but physically held me down in the chair while he jammed a needle THROUGH THE ABSCESS!
They made light of it as I stood at the office counter waaaaaaaiting to PAY for my visit, feeling like I was going to be sick as I now had all this poison released into my system! I had to drive to the drugstore afterward for Percoset. I turned in the prescription and lay in my car crying for the 30 minutes it took to fill it. They wanted me to get in to see a specialist that day for a root canal, but I had to wait. Not only did I have to deal with insurance, but I couldn’t have gotten myself anywhere but HOME after that ordeal, and even that was just about beyond my ability.
Unfortunately, I have had absolutely horrible experiences with doctors, but this beats anything I’ve *ever* encountered. Dr. Sims’ dental “expertise” is akin to something out of the stone age. My experience was so traumatic that I’m feeling physically and emotionally sick just recounting it now.
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I have been addicted to Michael’s craft supply store since I used to visit family each year in Colorado decades ago, and my sister would take me to the after Christmas clearance there. I’d take a...
I have been addicted to Michael’s craft supply store since I used to visit family each year in Colorado decades ago, and my sister would take me to the after Christmas clearance there. I’d take a trunk full of gifts on the flight from southern California to Denver and fill it with my Michael’s craft finds for the return trip! Thank goodness they’ve branched out and now have locations all over the place.
If anything can inspire you to get into the holiday mood, it’s a trip to Michael’s. If you have a crafty bone in your body, you’ll be coming out with bags in your hands. If you aren’t crafty, you can buy pre-made items, and if you’d like to learn to be crafty, you can sign up for one of the many classes they offer.
What I also love is that their online store http://www.michaels.com/art/online/home will allow you to view your local sale paper and even allow you to choose to receive them in your email. Among the two tons of sale papers I get, I often don’t get one from Michael’s so this is especially handy for me. Their site enables you to build a printable shopping list, too. If I know I’m going to the store, I can go online to see what’s on sale and end up saving a TON of dough for a tiny effort.
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Cute name and dang tasty food! Finagle-A-Bagel is the tastiest bagel shop since Noah’s Bagels!
They have several locations around the Boston area; we had two lunches at the Boylston Street...
Cute name and dang tasty food! Finagle-A-Bagel is the tastiest bagel shop since Noah’s Bagels!
They have several locations around the Boston area; we had two lunches at the Boylston Street location. They have a nicely sized patio area there with several tables and two big umbrellas. The word must be out on the quality of their food because the line can be pretty long around the lunch hour—plan accordingly.
We tried two sandwiches: the smoked turkey on an onion bagel and the tuna melt on an onion bagel. While both were delectable, my favorite was the smoked turkey. It was absolutely perfect! The avocados and the generous portion of cheese really made for a delicious sandwich, MMMM! They have the standard bagged chips and sodas, etc, to go with your meals.
Now if only we could get them to open up a restaurant in Seattle…
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