Check Expiration Dates
Google
     FREE Google 411 Service
     Google a Phone Number
Dial a Human
Stop Telemarketers with Do Not Call Registry
Mail Delivery Problem Tips
FREE Pfizer Medications for a Year
Time Zones Around the World

Dial a Human

Tired of talking to a voice robot or recording? Want to talk with a human? John Manion passes along a link to the Dial A Human website.

Subject: Super-Useful Website 
Access 350+ FREE radio stations anytime from anywhere on the web. Get the Radio Toolbar!

http://www.dialahuman.com/

This could be useful should you need to talk to someone in India. REALLY, THIS IS A KEEPER — I put it in my favorites.  JOHN M

AAA Dining Tip Calculator

Are you tip or gratuity challenged? Tired of mentally calculating how much of a tip you should leave? Joe Taibi passed along a link to a AAA Tip Calculator that you can print and keep in your wallet for quick reference.

Tipping Etiquette

The current guideline for tipping when dining out is:

• 10% for poor service
• 15% for average service
• 18% for good service
• 20% for very good service

Some restaurants automatically add the tip to the bill, especially when dining with a group. Better restaurants often add 15%, then leave room for you to tip over and above that amount for good or exceptional service. Other fine dining establishments have adopted a flat 18% of the total bill which, of course, you can increase. Always check your bill to see if a gratuity has already been added before you tip; better restaurants often have this practice so that more people than not end up double tipping without realizing it. Somewhere on the menu, usually in small print, it tells you if a gratuity will be added to your bill.

Remember that you are not just tipping your waiter. Especially in fine restaurants, all tips are pooled then divided among all employees that contribute to your dining experience, down to the bus boy, with some getting a higher percentage than others.

Also, poor service may not be the waiter's fault (e.g., the kitchen may be backed up, the waiter may have been given more tables if someone called in sick, etc.). Only tip 10% or less if you are sure that it is the waiter's fault.

Not sure who you should tip or how much for other services? Here are some articles that can help and provide additional information.

• Get Rich Slowly: Basic Tips on Tipping: How Much and to Whom?
• CNNMoney.com: How much to tip
  • In many instances, tips are not to reward a job well done.
• LifeScript: The Ultimate Tipping Guide
• The Original Tipping Page

Stop Telemarketers with Do Not Call Registry

For those of us who do not know about this service and protection, or if you've started getting more unsolicited telemarketer calls than usual, Nanci Strickland reminds us that we CAN fight back.

Been getting unsolicited phone calls from telemarketers? Well, if you didn't know it before, there is the national Do Not Call Registry that was established by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to protect consumers.

To stop these annoying calls, you can register your phone number with the National Do Not Call Registry. You may register up to three (personal or home, not business) numbers at a time. Once you register your phone number(s), telemarketing companies must stop calling you after 31 days of the phone being registered. Once registered, it is illegal for them to call you, and if they do, you can file a grievance that will result in them getting heavy fines.

Should you continue to receive calls from a telemarketer, tell the caller that you are registered on the Do Not Call list, then ask for their name and organization. You'd be amazed at how quickly they get off the phone.

Note: 
You used to have to reregister your phone number after 5 years, but you don't have to do that anymore.

To register your number, go to https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx or call 1-888-382-1222. You can also verify that your personal phone numbers are registered at the www.donotcall.gov website.

If you have a cell phone, click on http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2007/02/dnccellphones.shtm, but this shouldn't be necessary since cell phone numbers cannot be given or sold to telemarketers — no matter what you've read in circulating emails.
 

Return to Home Page