Agreed. I had more empathy for tipping workers at self-service / carryout settings during the height of the pandemic (which is not over BTW). Now… Given that management has programmed these registers I find myself grudgingly tipping since I have to wonder if management has started paying them even more inadequately in anticipation of tipping.

I have somewhat magically decided I tip 10% at these things as there is no real guidance anymore. 20% for table service. Delivery… 15-20%?

Of course someone will come along saying to tip 0% to hold the line and force fair wages. I have some understanding of that argument too.

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This is definitely an after-COVID thing. Pick hours and stick to them. Case-in-point – local Pho noodle place that advertises closing at 10pm, usually closes by 9pm, but they really want you to come by 8:30pm to pick-up your carryout.

If you are tired – post new hours. If you found new meaning in life – post new hours. If you are having trouble finding staff – post new hours.

Instead, I have to play this guessing game of when they close. My wife gets home at 9:30pm, so I’d rather not be picking up at 8:30pm (or being called back to please rush over to grab the food fast).

This is but one example. It’s getting to the point when – anytime I need to log into an account on a major site – I must disable VPN, disable Pihole and tracking blockers, and maybe make sure I’m on a home Internet service. If they actually cared about security, the 2FA and long passwords would be enough.

Got told “thank you for your service” AGAIN today. I think maybe Disney employees are under command of The Mouse to say it.

Exactly. There are 3 to 10 solutions to every problem – all of which worked for someone, 0 to 4 of which will work for you. Spend two hours, then role the dice and see if you got lucky.

If it did NOT work, was it stupid user error, wrong or incomplete directions, malfunctional software, or randomness in your particular unique machine configuration?

Or – if you use Oracle’s free VPS – was it an undocumented incompatibility between the code and the unusual chipset they sometimes offer?

My operating assumption here is that Reddit can collect more data to sell if people are logged in and use their app.

Does not matter if you destroy 75% of the usefulness of the system if the remaining 25% can be more effectively monetized.