Sometimes I feel like this journal should be used to benefit my readership through public service announcements, kind of like NBC's "Now You Know..." campaign. So I've decided to finally benefit my loyal readers with important information:

When driving on I-85 N/S, do NOT stop at the Ashland Taco Bell (in VA). Being a big fan of Taco Bell, I've come to expect a certain quality to Taco Bells. Or maybe I'm asking too much.

Being the road-wearied warrior (haha, talk about melodrama!), I wanted to recharge my batteries by stopping at Taco Bell. What a horrible experience.

#1: The pricing. At our local Durham Taco Bell, you can get a combo #9 with 3 crunchy tacos and a drink for under $4. But not at the Ashland Taco Bell! NOPE! They have another combo ... a combo with 2 crunchy tacos, a drink, and fries for MORE THAN $4! What the HECK. Talk about jacking up the price. I remember back in the day when tacos were $0.59! (Or even less, I forget)

#2: No sauce. At this Taco Bell, you have to request the sauces. And of course, when I asked for "Hot" sauce and "Fire" sauce, the idiot behind the counter gave me 2 hot sauce and 2 mildare, but I cannot eat 4 crunchy tacos with only 4 sauces.

#3: No ice. There was no ice in the drink machine. Which wasn't so horrible, except my Pepsi went warm after about 2 minutes. I need a cold drink to wash down my tacos, not warm soda.

#4: No napkins. Yes, there were *no* napkins. Amazing. Eating tacos is a messy business, and I *need* napkins.

#5: Broken tacos. Of the 4 crunchy tacos I ordered, 3 of them had broken shells. Couple this with the fact that I had no napkins, and this created a really messy situation. You know, you would think that these guys could learn how to prepare tacos without breaking the shells.

I was about to write an angry letter to Taco Bell management, but my lazy side got the better of me, so instead I present to you this public service announcement. Enjoy.