Sunday, February 7, 2021

Nobody tips the nurses

One of the times my wife and I disagree is at the end of a romantic dinner at a nice restaurant (something we haven't done much of lately).   My wife "demurs" when she sees the tip I leave.

"Darling, I always liked it when I drove a taxi and the customer left a nice tip."

"Nobody tips the nurses!"  

In four words, reminding me that from the Bridgeport ghetto to the Arizona reservations, running one our state's largest Medicaid health plans, caring for hundreds of thousands of babies, nobody ever tipped her.  When she was a candy stripper at 16, working in a nursing home, demented old veterans tried to grope her and threw loaded bedpans at her, but nobody ever tipped her.  

That's the point in a disagreement when a smart husband wouldn't say another word.   Who said I was smart.  Smart aleck, maybe.   I played my trump card.

"Did you have a job description that included 'people will try to kill you on a daily basis' and the recruiter wasn't lying'"

Next time you're vexed and think you're underpaid.   Remember:

Nobody tips the nurses.