Sights and sounds from Norman, Okla., at 10:08 p.m. Thursday:

A gray mustang driving down Lindsey with no headlights on. The lights going off at Chicken Express, just east of 12th Street. A countrified worker at KFC talking down to a man of Hispanic descent in the drive-thru. Me leaving that particular drive-thru because that guy was a prick.

I have got to quit eating out at night. However, there is nothing I am inspired to eat right now. Tonight, I wanted a salad, but Jason's Deli closes at 9. I don't want to buy the ingredients for a salad because it's more cost effective to get the salad at Jason's, and my ingredients would go to waste unless I ate a salad every night for the next week, which I would not do.

I settled on Taco Bell. Not good.

For lunch, I'm typically a Subway guy. However, my Subway in northwest Oklahoma City is the slowest sandwich shop on the planet. They'll have six people manning the line, and it still takes 45 minutes for me to get in and out.

Unfortunately, they're nice, and I like them. Or I've grown to like them. They appear to be moving efficiently as possible, but I would suggest that Subway as a whole is a concept that should be altered a bit.

First, the concept of a "sandwich artist" is a waste of time. Not only is it an extra set of dirty hands touching my food, it's unnecessary labor and a time-suck. I SAY put a vegetable bar in the middle of the restaurant and let folks have at it.

My concept of the way Subway 2.0 would be built is that folks would stand in line for the sole purpose of getting their bread, meat and cheese. The customer would get this and then take it to the dressing station to deal with themselves, and that includes toasting.

Quizno's was brilliant for introducing toasted sandwiches to the American landscape if for no other reason than it threw Subway off its game. Fact is that Subway is still the most healthful fast-food option in existence. However, Quizno's dictated to the market how these subs would be done, and frankly Quizno's has always been better with the toasted sub.

However, as Subway has grown in popularity, its game has thrown itself off. Lunchtime eaters walk into shops with 13 orders apiece because they're picking a 6-incher up for everybody in their office. And, those of us buying one have to wait in line while "sandwich artists" take forever making a sandwich we could dress ourselves.

This isn't even my biggest pet peeve with Subway right now. See, some franchises have spinach, while others don't, a product of the salmonella (or whatever) scare of a couple years ago. However, this was an excuse by some store owners to save a little cash.

Fact is that iceberg lettuce has no more nutritional value than toilet paper. While it does add a welcomed crunch to most any sandwich, it's actually kind of important for Subway's rep that spinach be available everywhere. Personally, I like to deck my sandwiches out with cucumbers, carrots, spinach and banana peppers.

Still, while I can't do a salad every night of the week, I can eat Subway pretty much everyday for lunch. And, I'd like to see the chain thrive and succeed. But it's time for an overhaul, Subway 2.0 if you will

Here's a random video of some guy making a Subway sandwich in 35 seconds. I can guarantee you first-hand that this didn't happen in NW OKC: