Two Doughnut Shop Visits

My sister, niece, and grandniece leave for Rapid City, South Dakota this morning - they're driving up to collect Jim and bring him home, as well as making a quick visit to see Kent, Jim's brother.  Kent is still recovering from his second brain tumor surgery at the Mayo Clinic - he traveled home in a stretcher in an ambulance, and Jim drove the family behind the carrier.  This is certainly taking a toll on the Snow family, and I feel for all of them.
   In any event, that means that I'm staying with Rosie, but am taking care of Boo, also.  Once I leave my kits this morning, I'll pick Boo up and take her to Rosie's for the rest of the weekend.  Lovey and Nedi are running in and out this morning - I've been returning home early in the morning, and letting the kits go out and play well before our neighbors' normal rising hours.  We've been having afternoon and evening thunderstorms each night, and have had plenty of tornadoes in the state, but none near us.
   The big sports question today is whether California Chrome will become the twelfth Triple Crown champion in America.  I hope that he will, but the odds are against it.  He faces ten rivals, and each trainer will give their jockey individual riding instructions.  Luckily, Belmont Park has that huge one-and-a-half-mile oval, so there won't be a bumpy sprint for the lead before the first turn, as there would be at either Churchill Downs or Pimlico.  But California Chrome is breaking from the second spot in the gate, and might be crowded toward the inside.  Then, too, this is the first, and probably only time these horses will race at this distance - American horses are bred more for speed than for stamina.  The jockeys' experience will play a large role in the race - and the horses' own breeding and training.
  And, with today's running of the Belmont Stakes, England will be watching their Epsom Derby, run at a mile-and-a-half on turf, at Epsom Downs.  There are 16 horses entered in the Derby, and the early betting favorite is a colt named Australia.
   Yesterday was National Doughnut Day.  After doing some shopping with my friend Beatrice, she suggested we stop at a doughnut shop she adores - Lamarr's.  I'd never heard of, or eaten at, a Lamarr's before, so I said OK...  We stepped into the store at 2:19 in the afternoon.  There was only one person visible behind the counter, and there were no doughnuts or food-stuffs visible.  A group of four had stepped into the shop ahead of us, two adults and two children - and I was amazed (actually, appalled) by the way the woman snarled at the people in front of us and pretty much threw a bag of doughnuts at them.  As we stepped up to the counter, the lady (?) looked at us and said, "How many of ya?"  Before we could say anything in response, such as, "We'd like to buy a dozen doughnuts," she grabbed two things that looked like apple fritters and threw them in a bag, which she tossed over the counter at us.  Be said, "We'd like to buy..." and the woman cut her off, saying, "Can't you see I'm out of everything?"  And then she started muttering about "National Doughnut Day" under her breath... She followed us to the front door and locked it behind us.  (The shop hours were posted as 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.)  Needless to say, I was reeling from my huge dose of customer appreciation at Lamarr's.  We drove back to Boulder, and I parked at Dunkin' Doughnuts...  It was like walking into a stirred up anthill - but, even though were were a lot of customers in line at the counter, and lots of folks arriving and departing at the "Pick Up" counter, the 6 ladies working behind the counter were smiling and laughing, and were extremely courteous.  The shift leader's name was Sarah, and I complimented her on her service and smiles, even though it was so incredibly busy.  She was very happy with our comments....