As the Tahoe trip is coming up, I have been doing a lot of calculations lately. Should I ask people to pay me back for the paypal fee they incurred (the extra $2 that I had mentioned in my email)? Should I chase people down?<\/p>\n
But then I remind myself that I am not a business. I shouldn’t say hey man, 10 dollar minimum for credit card<\/i>. Nor should I say I NO ACCEPT CREDIT CARD<\/i>. I am a friend and just a person…who is planning the trip who took the responsibility of putting her credit card and bank account to reserve the cabin and other things.<\/p>\n
So how much do I ask? Do I bite the bullet and eat some of the cost too?<\/p>\n
I don’t mind paying for dinner sometimes. For the entire dinner. As long as everything is within reasonable limits (I admit I was almost at my limit when a friend ordered a $60 steak + extras nearly triple the cost of what everyone else ate), I really don’t mind.<\/p>\n
Because I don’t drink, I get slightly ruffled when a dinner bill comes and I end up paying for someone’s 2 margaritas, other people’s shots, etc. But I didn’t want to say anything, appearing as the party pooper. Nowadays, I try to whisper to the bartender to make me a relatively moderate-priced drink so I don’t feel some kind of injustice slipping away.<\/p>\n
But for a dinner, to split it individually or collectively<\/a>? This post suggests that everyone pays what they think they owe and one person would be the bank to cover anything that wasn’t paid. But is that just and fair? I remember one dinner about a year ago, I found myself with a glass of white wine toasting the birthday boy. I ordered a relatively moderate-priced entree and shared the appetizers. It was an expensive dinner, but I felt ok about it (I forced myself to taste the wine as not to waste it).<\/p>\n I do want to proclaim myself as a collectivist. One day, it will balance out, but will it? Will I go out to dinner with the same 15 people? Or perhaps, it’s better in smaller groups…where you’re truly there for the experience rather than to have dinner with people you may never talk to again? I don’t penny-pinch right down to the penny, but if it’s more than $3 than I should be paying…then I just don’t feel right with myself. In this case, it’s more often than not that I probably didn’t have a good time and want to just get the exact value from it.<\/p>\n In the days of San Francisco, it’s hard to find a restaurant for groups that is intimate and quiet enough to have a conversation. And moreso, good food that prompts you to be happy and satisfied. And because of that, you sometimes frown at the bill when it comes. Do I have to feel the pain rip as the bills fall on to the tray?<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As the Tahoe trip is coming up, I have been doing a lot of calculations lately. Should I ask people to pay me back for the paypal fee they incurred (the extra $2 that I had mentioned in my email)? … Continue reading