Ned: Mike, I did a terrible thing at the hotel in NY. I was checking out the desert buffet, where everything was served up in individual servings. I saw a really tasty looking creme brulee, and brought it back to my table. It was a really big serving. I soon found out why. It was a deep serving dish, with enough for a dozen people to enjoy. The waiter came by and I fessed up. He laughed. Later I saw him telling the other waiters, and they laughed. Then every time he looked at me he laughed. I shared what I could with Nick, Eric and Anna, but I had to eat most of it and couldn't waste it since I took the whole thing.


Mike: Ned, reading this anecdote I could not help but recall a classic episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, in which Mary hosted a dinner party and served Veal Prince Orloff, and Lou Grant helped himself to half of the dish and Mary had to make him put back two of the servings because there were only six people and Lou, being a big man, had a fit because the individual portions weren’t big enough to satisfy the appetite of a common field mouse. But Mary stared him down and he was forced to concede, growling to the other guests, “I guess I’m not as hungry as I thought.”


Ned: Who was Prince Orloff?


Mike: The former Russian ambassador to France. The dish was created by Chef Urbain Dubois in his honor. This classic dish consists of a braised loin of veal, thinly sliced, filled with a thin layer of pureed mushrooms and onions between each slice, and stacked back and topped with béchamel sauce and cheese and browned in an oven. [Wikipedia]


Ned: Have you ever had Veal Prince Orloff?


Mike: I have it about once a week. It’s a staple dish of the Sorohan family, along with hot dogs/Tater Tots and tuna noodle casserole with potato chips crumbled on top.


Ned: Did you notice there was virtually nowhere to sit in the lobby of the New York Hilton?


Mike: That’s because people don’t have time to sit in New York. It’s a city in constant motion and if you rest, you lose. Also, it keeps the homeless people from loitering.


Ned: What was the most important thing for you about this IABC Conference?


Mike: I have no idea.


Ned: Really? Nothing?


Mike: I know what you’re doing, and stop it. You senior communicators are all about “measurement” and “measureable results.” I’ve never done measureable results for anything in my life except for baseball stats, and my life has been fine so far. Of course, I’ve never won a Gold Quill, either—but that’s because the Gold Quill is all about “measureable results.” Isn’t it enough that I communicate without having to quantify anything?


Ned: Well, that would certainly explain this blog…hey, wait a minute—did I just get a punch line?


Mike: Love ya, baby.