Money For Nothing

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I like Merica and I like many things Merican...but I could never live here.  The things that annoy me REALLY annoy me, and that leads me to the rant-de-jour.

Why is it that every other kind of business builds their staff costs into their product price but when it comes to food and drink I'm supposed to pay the staff costs instead?  I appreciate that tipping isn't a uniquely American issue but it has really got out of hand here.

A discretionary tip to show appreciation for exceptional service is one thing but what is now the norm in Merica is legitimised extortion.  At every transaction, even buying a TAKEAWAY coffee, one is presented with a demand for a tip.  You CAN decline but this is likely to lead to a sour response at best and a stand-up argument at worst.  The suggested tip is always calculated for a range of percentages and the LOWEST suggested percentage is now twenty. TWENTY.  F@#£ing TWENTY!!!

Also...in what world does it make sense to pay for service as a percentage of the purchase price?  Why does a waiter serving a bottle of champagne deserve 5 times the tip of one serving house wine?  Why does a waiter in a diner deserve to be paid less than one in fancy restaurant?  How is waiting on a table of 6 three times the work of waiting on a table of 2?

AMERICA - pay your staff properly, build the costs into your menu prices and let's get back to a world where a tip is accepted as a nice surprise and not tipping doesn't result in you being taken out back to have your legs broken.

I feel better for having got that off my chest.

Today we rode through the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area.  Being Merica this means lots of places trying to rent you a dune buggy, quadbike or anything else that turns fossil fuel into noise and greenhouse gasses.  Ideally you drive to the ATV rental place in your 40ft motor home, towing a V8 pickup truck with a jet ski in the back.  I feel happy that with my 18mpg Transit I'm doing my bit to preserve the Merican way of life.

Middle of the day we crossed another of what we now call 'bridges of death'.  Basically just bridges but, since they seldom have a shoulder, things pucker a bit as the traffic starts passing closer.  One of our riders clipped a pedal on the kerb and ricocheted out towards a passing car.  She got away with it but will need to wash her shorts extra thoroughly tonight!

It was a lumpy and showery day with a few punctures and quite a bit of US101 - so not one the best.  We are staying in Bandon where the obvious song would be Bandon The Run...but I used that one years ago.

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