Seth the Waiter — A Farewell of Sorts

Last Friday, before the chamber music concert, I went as usual to the Scollay Square restaurant for dinner. After I was seated, Seth informed me that he now has a full time job. He is working in constituent service for his state representative, and will rarely, if ever, work on Fridays at the restaurant. He may work on Mondays and Saturdays. Since I'm very unlikely to be in Boston for dinner on either of those evenings, it could well be that I won't see him again.

This probably final encounter seems to have meant something to him as well. At one point late in the meal he came to my table and said, "Well," and then couldn't think of something appropriate to say. Later he said he'd like to know what books I was reading, and gave me a slip of paper on which he had written his work e-mail address (which gives his last name).

He did his work as a waiter very well. Perhaps he became "too friendly" for purists, who think that a good waiter never has a personal conversation with a patron. But his service was so good that after a couple of times there, I had to tell the manager how good he was, and I'm sure my satisfaction at having him for a waiter showed when he came to my table. I was very pleased when he showed an interest in what I was reading, and talking briefly about the books was something I was happy to be able to do.

So, no more encounters with Seth, although I'll probably send him an e-mail once in a while. But there are good memories.