Sept 17 - Bonus Post (MUST READ)

Below is a story that happened today to Mariah. This is written by her and I have been told it is all true.


Why do all of my embarrassing stories have to deal with garbage cans? On Friday, to celebrate having a car and the independence to go out to lunch with friends, some of my best friends and I went out to Taco Bell during our lunch hour. We ordered our food and sat down to eat, while talking about the upcoming football game, seminary classes and that boy who called Kim a Freshman and who would be spending most of his lunch hour looking at the inside of his locker(just kidding, she wished she could throw him in a locker, but he could'nt fit). Because I wear a retainer and cannot eat with it in my mouth without it becoming filled with disgusting food, I took the retainer out of my mouth and folded it up in a napkin.

After we finished our yummy meal of burritos and tacos, we threw our stuff away and started out the door. With a sickening jolt in my stomach that had nothing to do with my bean and cheese burrito, I felt the top of my mouth and realized that my retainer was not in its customary position of making it impossible to talk without accidentally shooting spit at everyone. Therefore, I had thrown it . . . right into the middle of the Taco Bell garbage can.

I turned and practically sprinted back to the garbage can, in hopes that maybe it was just sitting on the edge of the can, and that no digging would be necessary. No such luck. My friends who had no idea why I was staring desperately into the middle of the garbage can, asked me if I had thrown away an unfinished burrito or something. My only response was to say no and smile sadly before they realized the awful truth. My retainer was in the depths of a Taco Bell garbage can filled with half eaten burritos, tacos, and gorditos right after half the population of Hillcrest High School had eaten there. And the retainer was likely right at the bottom.

So they did the exact opposite of what "best friends" are supposed to do. They laughed and laughed and laughed. They were laughing so hard they could not stand up straight, and had to sit down on a bench to continue laughing. Meanwhile, I cautiously lifted the lid to the trash can and peered inside. What I saw shocked my mind, and my senses. A mountain of Taco Bell wrappers, napkins, hot sauce, cups, and, lucky for me, absolutely no retainer in sight. It was most definitely right at the bottom of one of the grossest sights I have ever seen.

So, because a new retainer costs about one hundred and fifty dollars, and I would have to pay for it, I bravely plunged my hand into the garbage can, hoping against hope that the retainer was right on top. No such luck. Instead, I got a fistful of something disgusting, and I lost my nerve. My now ex-best friends laughed harder than ever, and asked me what I was going to do now. I calmly replied that if they wanted a ride back to school, they were going to help me. So we walked over to the lady at the cashier, who had seen me plunge my hand into the great depths of unwanted tacos, and explained that I had accidentally thrown my retainer away, and if she would please bring the trash can out of it's container so that I could peruse it to get the retainer back. Holding back laughter, she calmly got me some latex gloves (thank heavens for those things) and unlocked the container so that I could freely gain access to the Taco Bell garbage can.

As this whole scene was going on, people in the restaurant had noticed, first my shocked expression while staring at a garbage can, my ex-best friends laughing long and loud, my hand reaching into the garbage can, and the lady bringing out the garbage can. Now they really got a show. With my friends trying to not laugh (so they could get back to school on time) but failing miserably, I miserably thrust both hands into the garbage can, moving half-eaten tacos and used napkins out of my way to try and find the retainer. A fourth of the football team chose Taco Bell that day, and with their lunch they got a show. To add insult to embarrassment, an older man, (at least my father's age) someone I did not even know, came up to me to say "You know, if you are really that hungry, I could buy you lunch. You don't have to dig through the trash to find something to eat." As I tried to explain that I was just trying to find a retainer, the comment had sent both ex-friends over the edge again, and peals of laughter issued from their mouths. As he sat back down again, chuckling at his own joke, which was not funny at all, I grasped the retainer.

It felt as if choirs of angels were singing as I held up the retainer, with lettuce, hot sauce and meat hanging on to it, and wrapped it in a clean napkin so that I could place it into my locker until I could sanitize it. The nice cashier lady put the trash can back as I threw the now disgusting latex gloves away. I sprinted for the door as fast as I could to get away from the football team, the still laughing middle-aged man, and my own embarrassment. My friends trying to keep up from fear of being left behind.

In the car, I told both of my friends that if they ever told anyone, I would be personally sticking them into the dumpster behind the Taco Bell because I now knew just how nasty it was. So naturally, they told everyone they knew, who told everyone they knew, who put it on Facebook. And I am pretty sure one of the employees asked another employee if they got it on camera, and if they could send it to America's Funniest Home Videos. So the moral of the story is . . Eat at Taco Bell only when it is empty, and or when they have just emptied the garbage cans.