“Kuripot” is a virtue

One of the few things I hate about America is the fairly widespread practice of tipping. Such a practice represents a bit of culture shock for me. It bothers me even to this day.

Having grown up on Saipan, where nonresident service workers are invariably afforded free housing, transportation and complete medical expenses, the practice of tipping never seemed to fully take hold. Growing up, I never observed any of my family members (or any of the local people in general) leave money for the waiters, waitresses, or other service people.

Tipping only hit home for me when I first came to the United States and noted a series of peculiar incidents. The first major incident occurred when I checked into a hotel in Seattle.

Well, there I was getting ready to go to my hotel room when an elderly-looking bellboy insisted on showing me up to the suite. I was a bit irritated, of course, since I was perfectly sure I could find everything well on my own–and was certainly more than capable of handling my own luggage. But I didn’t want to appear rude, so along he came.

Naturally, when it came time for him to take his leave, there was the awkward long pause, and I thought: “Well, what the hell are you still standing around here for? Get lost.” Eventually, he left, and he didn’t appear too happy.

On yet another occasion, I took a cab from the Honolulu International Airport to Waikiki (only because it was raining hard the evening I arrived and I didn’t want to get soaked, otherwise I would have taken the bus for $1). When I got to my destination, the meter charges totaled exactly $18.75. I handed the driver a $20 bill and asked for $1 back, generously letting him keep the 25 cents.

Well, you would think he would be grateful for my extreme generosity. No, sir. As soon as I crossed the street, I noticed him cussing up a furious storm. I stared him down and yelled, “What’s your &*%$ problem?”

Some people these days.

Happily, such unpleasant encounters would never happen on Saipan, where our service workers generally treat their customers and guests with the utmost respect, never minding terribly whether there is a tip coming to them or not. Unlike spoiled America, it is generally not expected.

Americans make such a fuss over tipping. In at least two instances, I have had service people actually come right out and ask me for a tip, which I consider to be both rude and shameless. (I declined the first request and granted the other, only because it came from a rather attractive young woman and because I decided that, from now on, I would be purchasing my own beer directly from the bar, thus circumventing the pressure to tip the waitresses.)

In any event, tipping is supposed to be optional, not a constitutional right. And besides, the customary 10 to 15 percent (in addition to the prevailing state sales tax) is quite unreasonable.

Heck, I don’t even expect consistent 15 percent returns on my conservative investments.