When I was a kid, my mom worked weekends as a banquet waitress at some of the big hotels in our city, Newark, N.J. It was back-breaking work, but mom and her sister-in-law, Lena (official name: Martha), would do it on many a Friday and Saturday night. Those gals would do anything for their kids.

Portland's own Bill McDonald, of Portland Freelancer fame, has had a side gig as a banquet waiter (and captain) in downtown Portland for years, but the physical rigors of the gig have gotten to him and he's now officially given it up. Which is good news for the blogosphere, because he can now tell some of the inside stories he's got from the many swanky hotel gigs that he's worked. The first installment -- his brush with President Carter -- is here. It's good, but I've got a hunch Bill's just getting warmed up.