Do You Tip Fairly?

     Tipping the people who take care of us in the service industry is an important part of our everyday lives but some of us are a little foggy on whom, how much, and when we should be tipping. Now, as a former server and hairdresser as well as a frequent customer/client, I have experience with both sides of this first hand. Where I live, in Michigan and from what I've read about everywhere else in the U.S., the standard tipping rate for a server is 20% of your bill. If you are lucky you will occasionally get that really nice generous table who actually tips this much or more but more often than not, you're lucky to get 10%. Then there are the dreaded tables who will run you ragged meeting their every whim but they leave you zilch. I always loved those tables. Can you sense my sarcasm? :o)


     Of course you have to take into account the quality of service being provided by your server but you must also remember that servers make just over $2 an hour without tips as per the adjusted minimum wage for their industry and most of that is eaten up from having their tips taxed. So essentially, they live off of their tips exclusively. It amazes me that that is even legal but it is. I have also found myself wondering why servers have to rely on an establishments patrons to pay their wage for the most part but that's a whole other topic! (Here's an interesting article on the subject for those of you who may have an interest. http://yhoo.it/1akMRbI ) It occurs to me however that maybe not everyone is aware of the 20% rule. I know that 10 or 15 years ago, 10% was considered standard. Therefore, I have comprised a list of standard tipping rates for those situations where you are not quite sure of the appropriate amount to leave.

     I hope this little chart helps you along in your journey to feel confident in knowing what to tip to the deserving public servants out there who go out of their way to provide you exceptional service!

     What do you all think about the tipping standards? Do you think it is fair that you are expected to pay for not only the services and goods you receive but also be expected to tip the staff generously as well? Let me know your thoughts and feelings on this.

How To Make A Custom Signature

     

     So you know how when you are looking around at some of the bigger blogs and you notice how they have those fancy signatures after each of their posts? Well you can have one too and I'm going to show you how!

 MAKING THE SIGNATURE

     Okay, so first things first. You need to create your signature. I used MyLiveSignature to make mine. Click: START NOW>> SIGNATURE CREATION WIZARD>> type in your name then click: NEXT STEP>> You then can choose from 120 different fonts then click: NEXT STEP>> Choose the size you would like your signature then click NEXT STEP>> Choose your colors then click: NEXT STEP>> Choose if you would like a slope. If you don't want a slope, just choose the first option they have available and it will be straight. Click: NEXT STEP>>  Alright, from here you just hover over your finished signature, right-click and SAVE IMAGE AS. If you need the HTML code for any reason, just scroll down and click: WANT TO USE THIS SIGNATURE? This is what mine looked like when I finished this step.

Angel Strawberry Shortcake Recipe

     I love strawberry shortcake but as you can tell from the picture below, I have a little twist on my version. I use angel food cake instead of shortcake biscuits. I love my version because there is something about the sweet lightness and spongy texture of the angel food cake combined with the fresh sweetness of the strawberries that makes it just amazing! Add a little whipped cream on top (I use Cool Whip) and you have the perfect dessert for Summer. So good!

     The strawberry topping for this dessert is pretty straight forward. Stem and quarter approximately 2 quarts of fresh strawberries and combine with approximately 2/3 Cup of white sugar in a bowl. I say approximately because it really depends on how much topping you want to make and how sweet you like your strawberry mixture. I like a little sweeter taste so I add a little more sugar. Cover and chill in the fridge until you are ready to serve.

As I said I like to use angel food cake. Here is the recipe I used and really enjoyed!

Ingredients

• 1-1/4 cups egg whites (about 9)
• 1-1/2 cups sugar, divided
• 1 cup cake flour
• 1-1/4 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt