Tipping

Knowing that the US economy is heading into what will probably be a not so happy spill (thought I will be buying heavily in a while), and having Esther Dyson tell me that we may be on the tail side of global social and economic domination, I have to think about what effects this might have on our country and what can be done about it.

It's very easy to take news of stock market woes or loss of status emotionally and cry "the sky is falling." Some people I know have fled to countries like Fiji, Costa Rica, the UK and Canada, but I'm not ready to do something like that. I enjoy it here too much at the moment.

I used to like Jay Leno and Dennis Miller and some other comics who were really funny. Then they became political and Republican rah-rah boys which totally turned me off. And, no, this isn't a "I hate Bush" moment so everyone who speaks highly of him in light of what actually happened is crap -- I find Arianna Huffington equally disturbing on the other side, but maybe her unending drawl has something to do with it.

But though I might not agree with the way they attack, I do think there is some validity in their message. Basically, what Leno and Miller (now that's an act) profess, along with others, is that we are a nation of brats who sit on the sideline (or move out of the country) and complain about what is going on instead of actually doing something about it. There is a sense of entitlement and lax acceptance -- a priviliged passivity.

But how does this affect me? I am an active guy. I like to do things to change my world. I take notice.

My new morning ritual (after exercise, a moment of quiet, playing with my son and scooting to work)involves getting a cup of coffee at my new favorite hangout around the corner from my office. It is quiet before the 3rd Street Promenade crowd works in and I can catch up with some other people who have offices nearby.

Now I have been going there for 2 weeks or so, and, even though I only go in and get a cup of coffee, I always leave a nice tip in the jar at the register. And there's a sign on the jar that says "Thanks! We Really Appreciate It!"

But everyday I throw my change in there for a person who pulls a lever on an urn, I don't get any indication from the people who work there that they really do appreciate it.

And this place is not alone. It seems that the tip jar has been popping up everywhere recently, for such crazy things as dry cleaning and hardware. Now I understand that these people don't make a lot and it's natural to move the money around in a tax free way, but the idea of a "Bonus" for job well done is completely out of the window when nobody actually says thank you.

So this morning, after the woman got my coffee and gave me my change, I stood there, and without losing contact with her eyes, I dropped the change in the jar, making sure that it made a nice clank (quarters work best and pennys suck). She stood there, looking at me and then looking away, like I was some sort of werido -- which I am, but she didn't get it, She finally managed a smile, the kind of smile that goes along with a "Have a Nice Day"" nametag, and I walked away with my cup o' Joe.

Maybe Esther and Leno and Miller are right (still a good duo!). Maybe we are on the other side.

Thanks for reading.