Embar-jack-assing - A couple of weeks ago, after our get up and go got up and went, we decided to eat at a diner around the corner from us and let someone else do the cooking. A few minutes after we were seated, a woman sat down at the table next to us and told the server that she was waiting for a friend to arrive. Not long after that a white man who appeared to be in his 20's arrived.

The two greeted each other fondly, sat down and began the process of catching up. The two, particularly the man, were loud to the point where I kept loosing my train of thought while talking to my partner. However, I chalked it up to the fact that they hadn't seen each other in a while but were excited.

Then, when the server came over to take their order, it began... "I'll have a rootbeer," the man declared. "We only have it in bottles and not as a fountain drink and it's a dollar more. Is that ok?"

"No it's not. Why can't I get it as a fountain drink?"

"Well, because we only get rootbeer in bottles."

"So do I at least get free refills."

"Uhhhh, no sir. There are no free refills on bottled drinks or actually any drinks here."

"Well, I'm from the States and we get rootbeer as a fountain drink and we get free refills. This is not acceptable. I want to speak to the manager."

At this point, I'm shaking my head. This guy is like the poster-child for "The Ugly American." Shit, I mean really this not the restaurant at the top of the CN tower with $50+ bottles of wine. This is a burger joint where, even if you tried, you couldn't find a meal for over $8 CND.

So then it continues.

The manager, who knows me well since I eat lunch at this place just about every Tuesday, comes over.

"Is there a problem, sir."

"Yes, I'm from the U.S. and in the U.S. we don't have pay extra for rootbeer out of a bottle and we get free refills."

"Well, sir, Coca Cola, who distributes this kind of rootbeer does not distrubute it in syrup form to hook up to a fountain. It only comes to Canada in bottles. And I'm not sure if there are other places in Toronto that offer free refills but we don't offer them for any of our drinks here."

"This would never be acceptable in the U.S., NEVER!"

By now the man is almost shouting and everyone has stopped whatever they're doing and are staring over to our corner. My head is burried in my burger so as to make sure no one thinks I'm with this asshole. My God, we're talking about a beverage that, for all purposes, has absolutely no nutritional value!!! This guy was acting like he was being denied a life-saving blood transfusion.

The manager, who maintained his calm and his sense of hospitality to the end, finally stated, "I'll tell you what, sir, if it will making your dining experience here better, I will give you free refills on your bottle of rootbeer. Will that be acceptable?" The triumphant asshole agreed and my partner and I ate as fast as we could to escape the bad vibes that had filled our corner.

Before I left, I went up the manager. "Hey, it's not Tuesday! How are you?" he exclaimed.

"I'm fine. Look, I'm from the U.S. and I just want to say, we're not all like that. He's just an ass but some of us are polite and grateful for the service we receive."

"I know. No worries. Some folks think that everything should be just like it is in the States and can't set aside their ways to appreciate someone elses. But I know not all of you are like that."