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Tipping: Too much of a good thing
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Rants
- Hits: 1652
It's my livelihood, and professional courtesy means I rarely, if ever, tip under 20%. That's on the high end, there are favorite places and staff I happily tip a little more, but I'd rather err on the side of generosity, but I get it, it's gotten away from itself a bit much, I mean, a dollar on a cup of coffee to go? That's 30%. And the etiquette on tipping on to go orders, it annoys me, in part because I have to tip out the kitchen on the order, but in other part because no one should be expected to tip on a to-go order. I generally try to fast forward the customer past that screen, forgetting to only when I'm tipping the kitchen on a few hundred dollars of to-go orders that I've received nothing on...
But I was in the valley the other day, with the boy, and we hit a fashionable little cafe, like a lot of places out here it's counter service, order at the till, give them your money, they give you your drinks (twist tops, open yourself) and bring the food to your table when it's ready. Take this wooden spoon with a number with you so they can find it.
There's a tipping option on the debit pay machine, and I'm a little shocked to notice that the preset tipping options are 15%, 20%, and 25%. I'm more than shocked, it's laughable, absurd, this is counter service, on a good day it's worth 10%, tops, and yet here they're raising the bar, a "cheapskate" can leave you 15% and still feel cheap when they've not even given them 10% worth of service. And here your tipping them up front, before any service other than retail has been rendered. It's offensive. I have to wonder what staff here leave when they go to a restaurant and have food and drink and menu's brought to them, drinks made especially for them, et cetera, et cetera, but out here, there's a large and entirely clueless body of people that have suddenly on the recommendation of their accountants found themselves in possession of restaurants without the faintest clue as to how they should be run.
Tipping: There can be too much of a good thing.
Troll Bridge
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Film
- Hits: 1448
It looks a little too much like a kids film, yet somehow I'm curious:
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Grease
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Theatre
- Hits: 1324
Which, after all, was what it was, not a show I'd choose to attend, not my cup of tea, but the ole wingnut had expressed interest, wondered if Olivia Newton John would show up for the premier, he's awfully interested in the lives of celebrities, paying undue attention to The wedding in the Royal Family, ridiculous gossip, salacious, scandalous, it's as if he gets all his news from the tabloids, it's all part of his keeping himself well informed...
Anyways, with the wing-nut as my wingman we head on down, I'm sure I've become somewhat notorious for the company I keep, big black dirty cotton gloves on, a bright teal golf shirt over top a full length undershirt, people must think I'm his caregiver, and having to leap in, block him from grabbing the chocolates off the tray and pleading that he thought they were all samples (he does this merely to stir the pot), and enough about him. The audience, about 90% female, a few supportive male companions dragged along under threat of their relationship, it's a sold-out show, the cast, the show, well, there's a lot of applause, lots of singing, some good, some bad, some moments shine, others not so much. But chances are if you'd made it down, bought a ticket, it was your cup of tea and you loved it...
God & The Devil
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Ideas & Questions
- Hits: 1425
There is this recurring image, or motif, of the God and the Devil sitting down on friendly terms to bargain for souls.
Think "Spanish Train" by Chris de Burgh. Another, more popular version, is that of God and the Devil playing Chess, the stakes are the same.
Now this is a curious idea, as it somehow diminishes both the influence and omnipotence of God. Nowhere in the Christian tradition is this allowed. Other, more pagan traditions or religions offer a more balanced view of Good and Evil.
"That power I serve that wills forever evil and does forever good", by Mikhail Bulgakov, seems more in line with Christianity, the Devil is a necessary foil for God, indulged by him even, tolerated, one can imagine God sitting down to play Chess with him and gently tolerating his cheating in the understanding that he was maintaining the illusion of equals, whereas in fact by very definition he's superior.
...just some curious ideas wrapped up in that motif...
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