Comments for Crazy Ideas

Comment on The Dangerous Kit by Obesity Solutions

Obesity Solutions — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 13:22:45 +0000

For those kids struggling with obesity there are a few worth while solutions to obesity out there.

Comment on Don’t Tip by Samantha

Samantha — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 07:31:57 +0000

Oh and another thing, we don’t tip doctor’s and other such professionals because theirs is a field where we really hope they are always doing their best because there is a little more at stake than whether or not you are enjoying your steak.

Comment on Don’t Tip by Samantha

Samantha — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 07:00:42 +0000

As someone who has worked in the food service industry for 20 years now I have to put my two cents in here. But first, I am very curious what prompted you to post this in the first place. Have you ever worked in the food service industry? Have you ever even worked in a customer service field? If you have you will know that people in general are sometimes very hard to please, especially when it comes to their dining out experience. Being a server in a nice establishment is a very stressful job if you care about your performance and your customers experience. There is so much more involved than carrying food a few meters to your customers table. In the restaurant where I work everything is made from scratch and the menu is very eclectic. The wine list has about 150 different kinds of wine and we carry at least 50 different beers. Then there are several different liquors as well. We not only have to be knowledgeable about all of these products, we have to be able to discern our customers likes and dislikes, allergies, and preferences and be able to recommend foods, wines, beers and liquors that they will enjoy and that will complement each other. There are also many “rules” involved in the proper way to serve food, clear dishes, serve wine and basically care for the table. When a customer has a problem we have to know how to handle it efficiently and make that customer happy as quickly as possible. We also have to put up with people talking down to us, treating us like we are idiots or looking down their noses at us as “just the help”. It is not a glorious job nor is it an easy one. We usually have to put up with not only bad attitudes from guests but also bad attitudes from the kitchen and other staff as well, and we have to do it with a smile on our face and a friendly demeanor. I would challenge anyone who thinks it is an easy job to try it for a bit and see for yourself.
Now having said that, yes it is true servers only make $2.13 an hour. We depend on tips to bring our pay up to at least minimum wage. While it is the case that it is generally a business owners responsibility to pay his employees, we are there for our customers and to do everything within our power to ensure they have a wonderful experience. Why should it not be partly their responsibility to make sure that we are compensated for everything that we do for them? I have gone above and beyond my job description several times to make a customer happy. Would I do that if I came to work that day knowing I was only going to be paid $8.00 an hour no matter what I did? Would I have gone in the back and made fresh squeezed lemonade for that customer or would I have told them “I’m sorry we don’t have lemonade”. I honestly would not want to go and eat at a restaurant where the servers weren’t working for tips. And believe me, as a server I am a good tipper and I reap the rewards of being such when I go to my favorite places. At the same time, I have left very crappy tips for very crappy service but I also left a note explaining to that server exactly why they got a crappy tip.
Now to address the comment about Switzerland, and other European countries and Canada do it as well, tipping a lower percentage, it is solely because the servers there are paid a higher hourly wage. If you seek to implement that here, I have no problem with servers making a higher hourly and being tipped less. But one thing you have not taken into account on the business owners part, not only do they not have to pay that hourly wage, if the servers income depends on how high their check average is they are going to have more incentive to try to up sell their customers. If I am making in tips 15 to 20 percent of the customers check then of course I want to try to make their check as high as possible. I am going to try harder to talk them into the more expensive bottle of wine, or talk them into getting the salad or appetizer that they may not have wanted initially. When I do my dessert presentation I am going to try my hardest to describe them in a way that is irresistible. The bottom line is we live in a capitalist society. A restaurant is a business and profit is the goal. What would be your alternative to tipping and how would it affect not only the quality of service received but the restaurants profit margin?

Comment on Love story by someone

someone — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 01:52:23 +0000

. . .okayyyyy. . .

Comment on Pleasing Everybody by Machiavelli

Machiavelli — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 19:06:38 +0000

In Thailand it is offensive to show the sole of your foot to someone, or to point your foot at someone. This idea has changed the way Thais traditionally sit.

Interesting that the Arab/foot thing could be an urban legend that only survives in the west. I’ve never heard it from a proper source.

Comment on Pleasing Everybody by Mark

Mark — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 17:34:28 +0000

“Some Arabs can be offended by body language involving hands and feet.”

I’ve lived in Egypt and Saudi Arabia for 17 years. I’ve no idea where the hands thing comes from and have never heard this before. The foot story, though, is as mythic as it is common.

And the Libyan flag is gorgeous!

Comment on Love story by shuu

shuu — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 02:45:48 +0000

I’ve lived in cities all my life. Whats worse then the apparent need for girls to do anything for anyone if they have enough booze in their hands is the idea that circulate the “boys” of our species that the more “girl friends” you can possibly attain in x amount of years equate to the pinnacle of human achievement, never once thinking that 2 people who understand love together is better then ten thousand who pretend.

Comment on Citrus History by shaun

shaun — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 01:25:07 +0000

Sooo cool. I too have learned so much from this. I have a total renewed respect for something we so take for granted. Time and time again I am amazed how people from so long ago had such important visions for the future and put things in motion that now the whole world enjoys today.

Comment on Citrus History by Sharon Baxter

Sharon Baxter — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 03:39:45 +0000

Wow! That is SO cool! This citrus lover has learned something today, thank you for the education!!