I bought a cup of lemonade and a bag of popcorn for forty cents from a little girl and her mum who had a stall in their driveway.
They had gone to a LOT of trouble for the forty-cent lemonade and popcorn combination deal. They had a proper little stall, and had even cut fabric up into flags to make bunting.
I made my purchase and stood passing the time, drinking my lemonade and waiting for my change (what do you think is the etiquette on this? I had a buck, and dithered between just-give-her-a-buck-because-she’s-making-some-pocket-money-and-it’s-only-a-buck, and mum-is-trying-to-teach-her-maths-so-you-should-let-her-figure-out-change). Anyway, at this point their second customer of the day approached, and you can believe me that this dude wasn’t necessarily in absolute command of all his faculties. He had either been very drunk last night, or was drunk right now. Or both.
And mum, without missing a beat, said ‘Now. This lady needs her change, because she gave us a dollar, and this gentleman needs a cup of lemonade. Because he has a hangover.’
4 comments:
Tricky etiquette indeed. Most people would walk away, I think, but I'd wait for my change so she would have to do the math, then give it back as a tip.
I love how you've paced this entry.
Thanks! And, good idea. If only you'd been there for guidance.
I think having the girl make change was an importnat part of the project... but the change as a tip of more than 100% doesn't teach the reality of business.
Solution: buy another round and leave the 20c as a more realistic tip.
I may be taking this too far....
G
I love that. 'Buy another round'. "I say, Landlord, popcorn and lemonade for everyone!"
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