Delivery Drama

I have discovered an inconsistency that needs to be brought to the surface. Now before I get comments posted back about how you have never done this, save it because I don't believe you. Everyone reading this article right now, especially if you live in Manhattan, is guilty of this behavior as well as myself. That being said, I don't expect anything to change, nor will I change what I do.

When I go to a restaurant, I generally leave what I consider the average tipping range. That would fall somewhere between 15% and 20%. The better I consider the service and food, the more I lean towards the 20% tip. Now as a Manhattan resident, I'd say that I order in food 3 meals a week on average (that is below average to most New Yorkers if you're wondering). Why do I order in so much? It comes down to a few simple reasons: Laziness, less expensive than going out, and the most crucial reason, Weather. When it's cold, raining, snowing, a slight chance of rain or snow, icy, too hot...there are so many weather possibilities as to why you order in food.

So lets break this down logically. The delivery guy, whose total wages is probably the tips he receives, has to walk/run/bike for miles around Manhattan carrying my food. The weather is probably awful, he's sweating bullets trying to keep my food warm and get it to me as fast as possible as to receive a higher tip from me. He dodges the traffic in NY, gets to my building, waits on our long apartment elevator lines, finally finds my apartment and rings the bell triumphantly. I go to get the door and there is my food, still warm and ready to eat, and for the last 20 minutes, I didn't have to leave my couch to miss the same Seinfeld episode I've seen 37 times. Now after this hard working, minimum wage receiving employee went through all this trouble to get my food, you would expect that logically, I would lean towards the 20% tipping range. However, lets see what really happens...

"Thanks, how much is it?"
"18.47 please"
"Great, here's a 20, keep the change"

Now don't lie and say you've never done that. A waiter in a restaurant carries my food from the kitchen to my talbe, probably 50 feet tops and he gets 20%. However, my fat ass was too lazy to go outside to get food and the delivery guyjust went through bad weather and a hell of a trip and all I gave him was an 8% tip? Now I can preach how wrong this is but I know that I'll probably still give the same tip. Why?? I don't know. It just seems like the right thing to do.