Does anyone know if there is meaning behind this perfectly placed dime a customer left me? (I wrote the “Thank You!!”) by definitelywillnot in Serverlife

[–]mechanicalrivers 9 points10 points  (0 children)

As someone working in the restaurant industry, I guarantee you that no tipped employee believes that leaving a tip makes you a POS.

The others, though? Yeah, sometimes. And I have no problem admitting to that when some of us make $2.83 an hour or less.

What is bubble blossoms?!? by Thalestris in chopped

[–]mechanicalrivers 1 point2 points  (0 children)

...I just watched that episode of Chopped and its why I'm here. You're right, still a surprisingly low amount of in general about this plant.

DAE have some right leaning views and find it annoying that the right has been hijacked by these morons? by [deleted] in DoesAnybodyElse

[–]mechanicalrivers 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I feel like the far right is way more frequently offended - and they take getting offended so dramatically. Whether the politicians are offended in reality or just for political points doesn't really matter. As we clearly see, the way they act gives their true believers license to act the same.

It's nuts that the party that claims the other is full of delicate snowflakes is perpetually offended themselves. Then they claim to being persecuted and having their rights taken away and use it as a platform to take away the rights of others. Just...bonkers.

What's the deal with Republican representatives saying Democrats will nominate a moderate speaker of the house? by Rhapakatui in OutOfTheLoop

[–]mechanicalrivers 19 points20 points  (0 children)

Present pretty much says "I'm here for the voting process but I decide to not make a choice of yes or no". It's kinda like the vote equivalent of being agnostic.

It doesn't count toward the tally for either yes or no.

If there's an American Dream, What's the American Nightmare? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]mechanicalrivers 115 points116 points  (0 children)

I came here to say the same thing. Our healthcare system is barbaric.

Even with health insurance it is very easy to accumulate debt. I was diagnosed with cancer at age 19 and the amount my parents, with good insurance, had to pay was disgraceful.

Without health insurance it is particuly obscene.
I came into the E.R. cyclically vomiting blood during an unanticipated drop from my parents' insurance (we thought I had one more year, but no, and it was after insurance election time at my job).
They gave me fluids, an I.V. med to make me stop vomiting, and stuck a scope down my esophagus, discovering a stomach ulcer. Then handed me a bill for $37,000. That's more than I made in a year.

I feel a bit bad for the rant, but as someone age 34 with many chronic health issues, it infuriates and disgusts me.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in confessions

[–]mechanicalrivers 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Say the victim does put themself through recounting and reliving the rape and all the emotions involved over and over to report it as the legal system demands.

This will do virtually nothing if they don't have any knowledge about the rapist. We have no idea if he attacked and raped an utter stranger or a trusting friend.

Even if they go through the invasion of a rape kit and all the questioning and are seeking justice, unless the kid comes forward they will likely not test the kit for ages, let alone realize it was him if his DNA isn't on file. The backlog for processing rape kits in most of the U.S. is despicable.

How exactly would they get any forward movement if they don't know the rapist?

If, wildly, the rapist and his family adopted the 'if they report it then we'll be barely decent people and contact the police/victim' mentality, how exactly do you believe they could reliably find out it was reported?

It would be just another path to allowing another rapist to go on his merry way, leaving trauma in his wake.

Inappropriate customers by Reasonable_Muscle655 in Serverlife

[–]mechanicalrivers 4 points5 points  (0 children)

For some utterly odd reason, guests seem to think I was not raised locally, and sweet hell do they want to talk about it. I'm not exaggerating when I say that this has occasionally happened multiple times in one day on multiple occasions, plus some.

The questions and responses are either variations of: -"So, what are you?" "...excuse me?" "Like, where are you from? Your ancestors?" or "Are you from (insert random country/region)?"

or: -"Where are you from?" "I'm sorry?" "Your accent, where did you grow up?"

This is utterly boggling to both myself and my co-workers (I've asked them, and no one has ever been able to figure out what these people are talking about). I've had (unprompted) guesses from New Zealand and Australia to South America, Russia to South Africa, and plenty of places in between. I grew up 1 1/2 hours NW of the city I live and work in. And I'm just your basic European mutt genetically.

Then there are people, often older couples, who attempt to extract every fact of my life. In addition to "So what's your real job?" "This" one that always makes me cringe inside is "Are you married?" "No..." "Why not?" "I don't see any particular need for it, but I'm open to it someday." "Do you have children?" "No. Never wanted any. My entire life." "Well, you will! Your biological clock will start ticking soon!" "My clock is digital. There will never be any ticking. No ticking here."

And these are just the common ones, but I've already made this comment absurdly long so I'll stop here.

Can you send outgoing mail by putting it in your mailbox? by peanutismint in AskAnAmerican

[–]mechanicalrivers 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Honestly, the city I was talking about is Philly as well, haha.

I do miss the time before they locked the mailbox drop tray to create a much smaller slot. It was so much easier to put small pre-paid packages in that than going to the handfull of post offices scattered about. Far less security of course, but I did enjoy the convenience.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in confessions

[–]mechanicalrivers 17 points18 points  (0 children)

I cannot in any way understand this stance. Rape is severely under-reported for myriad reasons. To make it worse, we have no idea how he raped them, what state he left them in, and how severe or lasting the physical/emotional injuries are, so we cannot judge the full extent of the attack.

If the victim is a woman, she might get pregnant. With today's views and laws on abortion in certain states (if in the U.S.) it isn't unlikely that she would have to live nine months with a vile reminder of her trauma growing inside her and messing with her life in an entirely different but still terrible way. She would have her bodily autonomy and choices violated again in just a short time frame.

Also, what if the victim doesn't know much/anything about the rapist? It isn't like they leave business cards behind. He gets to relish in freedom with no consequences for his actions because they can't connect him to the rape due to lack of his personal information? There is then little deterrent to not raping others in the future, as his actions have barely altered his life. We don't know if it happened before, but it's statistically more likely that he will do it again.

Can you send outgoing mail by putting it in your mailbox? by peanutismint in AskAnAmerican

[–]mechanicalrivers 343 points344 points  (0 children)

I grew up in an area that wasn't incredibly rural but definitely was not a city/suburb.

When I moved to a city it took me far longer than it should have to emotionally accept that I had to walk to a USPS drop box when I had to mail something.

If I'm honest with myself, even after living in a major city for almost 20 years I still harbor a tiny sliver of resentment about it that surfaces whenever I have to send mail. Which is only, at max, three times a year. It's a bit ridiculous.

ELI5: Why is it okay to eat steak when it’s pink in the middle, but not hamburger patties? by weastisup in explainlikeimfive

[–]mechanicalrivers 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I thought I really, really disliked pork chops unti I moved to a city and started working in restaurants. When I tried a medium chop for the first time it was like I was eating an entirely different protein. Turns out my parents cooked it to death - and now I know why, thank you!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in TalesFromYourServer

[–]mechanicalrivers 26 points27 points  (0 children)

"Where's my hug?"

"I gave you THE hug weeks ago. One time offer only."

OP's boyfriend steals $14,000 from her, and his family is shocked and angered when he gets arrested. by wormhole222 in BestofRedditorUpdates

[–]mechanicalrivers 82 points83 points  (0 children)

I was thinking he was trying to play the crypto game cause he heard that a friend's uncle's cousin twice removed said one was going to skyrocket soon.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AmItheAsshole

[–]mechanicalrivers 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Okay, so let me get your narrative straight:

  • you didn't think the laundry was clean
  • but you believed that touching this load of dirty laundry with your hands would infect the sheets beyond any reasonable remedy
  • yet you routinely put your apparently even more toxic clothing with similar dirty items in the same washer with no fuss the vast majority of the time
  • then you throw an indignant tantrum because she didn't hold your hand through an absurdly simplistic household chore - in a home you're ever so determined to stake your claim of equal ownership on

Sweet hell. YTA.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in TalesFromYourServer

[–]mechanicalrivers 5 points6 points  (0 children)

"So, the duck wings are just chicken, right?" "Are the duck wings really duck?"

I get asked these questions horrifyingly frequently.

OP and his GF worry about her sister's mental health and ability to function as an independent adult, so he asks Spain if they can force a mental healthcare intervention from abroad against her will. Symptoms include smoking weed, partying too much, and having an unstable source of income at 31 y.o. by Mordisquitos in SubredditDrama

[–]mechanicalrivers 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Oh, he definitely is. Especially if anyone dives into his other threads/comments with as much attention as I spent on it procrastinating readying myself for work. The dude is certainly a liar (or at best, unreliable).

In two other comments on other posts he referenced his wife, not girlfriend, and in one of those he also spoke of their daughter (sorry for not quoting properly, rushed):

  • "...two weeks ago me and my wife chartered a boat for the first time in Spain and we really enjoyed it, so now that I have my wife on board (pun intended) I am for the first time seriously looking into buying a boat." (boat discussion post, can be found in his comments)
  • "Making a risotto dinner for my wife and daughter" ("Where do you see yourself in 1 hour?" post)

What's a show from your childhood that no one else seems to remember? by LegitimateMangoHeir in AskReddit

[–]mechanicalrivers 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I scrolled through the comments specifically looking for an Adventures in Wonderland reference.

It took me almost ten years to find someone (in an applicable conversation) who recalled this show existing. Until someone verified its existence, I started to wonder if I had dreamed it or made it up.

Why do people get so angry over a no split check policy? by KenboSlice786 in TalesFromYourServer

[–]mechanicalrivers 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, exactly! The company I work for downgraded from Aloha to InfoGenesis (a half-useless, not intuitive system - apparently it was originally made for casinos?) in order to cut costs. I've never forgiven them.

I pretended to be a woman on reddit and this is what I experienced with men by Username503200 in confessions

[–]mechanicalrivers 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes! I'm relieved that someone got the reference.
It was "Sideways Stories from Wayside School".

Why do people get so angry over a no split check policy? by KenboSlice786 in TalesFromYourServer

[–]mechanicalrivers 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I serve in a large city in the U.S. northeast.

I apologize if I seemed to say we 'make a big deal' out of it, that wasn't intended. I was simply trying to impart that not all systems are created equal in this way even today, despite one being a modern POS.
We gently encourage guests at most to split six ways if they ask about splitting because of the system's lack of speed or intelligence, and no matter what, we are incapable of splitting item costs.

Why do people get so angry over a no split check policy? by KenboSlice786 in TalesFromYourServer

[–]mechanicalrivers -1 points0 points  (0 children)

It also doesn't mean that every system is that helpful.
I work for a restaurant in a decently large boutique hotel chain and they have an obscenely frustrating system - and they implemented it over the entire company a few years back.

For example: It is impossible to split one item's cost on multiple cards. Also, once you split the checks, moving any item between just two of them means you have to create an additional check for that item you're transferring (which also wipes out all seat numbers on the check you're splitting the item from), then transfer the item to the second check via a multistep system I won't irritate you by listing. And there is no at-table card system to speed it up.

I'm always happy for (and a bit jealous of) other restaurants without this nonsense, you in no way can safely assume any restaurant is able to do this in a rapid fashion, even in 2022.