The Tip

I was well into my teens before I heard about tipping.  At first, the idea seemed ludicrous: why should I pay a waitress extra for doing her job?

I finally asked a girl about this.  Once she stopped chuckling at my naïveté she explained that waitresses don't get paid more than a couple of bucks an hour, so they depend on tips.  (Can you say Performance-based Compensation?)

Then there was the matter of how much to tip.  Ten percent of the bill?  Fifteen during the day, I was told; twenty for supper.  What if the food was subpar, or the meal came late or the service was lousy?

There are guidelines.  Here is one:

http://money.cnn.com/pf/features/lists/tipping/

I've never waited tables and wouldn't want to; I've witnessed far too many pain-in-the-ass customers.  For that reason alone, appropriate (nay, generous) tipping is warranted.

What do you think?

One

One of my best friends died unexpectedly.  We both had been in radio for more than forty years.  I retired in November, and he in December.  He died the following March.

Someone asked me to define "one of my best friends."

I like people, but few I consider friends.  He was one of my best.  Another was a doctor, who died by his own hand in his forties.  Another I had known since high school died of a heart attack, also in his forties.

Terry and I would go months without talking to each other, but that didn't matter to us.  We had a bond that withstood time.

He and I had been in radio for more than forty years.  The last 33 were in the Dallas market.  He became one of the nation's most celebrated country music DJs.  In the 80s, I was his news guy.  Then the competition across town hired him away.

I guess a best friend is a friend who knows all about you -- everything -- and still likes you.  In his case, I just plain loved Terry.  And while I pray that God will comfort Claudia and the family, I also ask Him to tell Terry for me, "Hi, Dorsey!"