Manca, any beggars around?

So, I was thinking about tipping lately... how do you guys usually handle it? Like, what’s your go-to move when it comes to leaving extra cash for servers, or maybe those ladies working at the local corner store?
Also, I'm curious—how do you react if you see a kid or an elderly person out there asking for help or money? Do you just kind of look the other way, or does it hit you differently?

I usually drop a couple of bucks or maybe five at a coffee shop. But for the lady at the corner store? Nothing. Why would I? I just don't really care one way or the other.

I usually leave a little extra tip for my hairstylist or when I'm grabbing coffee at a local cafe, though I don't really bother doing that with the ladies at the grocery store... the only exception is when I run into those super sweet girls working in boutiques, then I might leave something small so they can grab a drink later...
I rarely give anything to panhandlers, since I've just never been fond of people who make a career out of asking for change on the street.

Sometimes at coffee shops, but only if I happen to have some loose change on me; otherwise, I don't leave anything.

I don't leave tips in stores, mostly because if I'm short by just a few cents for a pack of cigarettes or something else, I can't buy it and have to hunt for something cheaper. So why bother leaving them money?...

If I see a panhandler for the first time, I'll give them something, but once I recognize them, I stop. It’s impossible for them to only be doing it once.
Since I'm living in Denver, they're on every corner here, and most of them are kids carrying around younger siblings. One day we actually asked one little girl how much she makes begging; she said she pulls in over $20 a week ($67), while on the weekends she can make $40-$60 ($200). My heart just sank hearing that. And she’s just one of them—there are at least five kids in her group. If you do the math, that's at least $333 in daily earnings for the family. Meanwhile, the mom and dad are just sitting in the shade on the grass, sipping soda and smoking cigarettes. And there’s a 7-year-old carrying a baby only a few months old, looking hungry and miserable... you can imagine.

Every so often, this little girl with a small baby would walk up and immediately go, "Give me a dollar," and every single time, our whole group would give her something. When we’d head out for coffee after college classes, there were at least five of us. That alone probably accounts for $6.75 of her income. There was this one time after I passed my exams; I told the group I'd treat everyone, but nobody had any cash except me. Then, just as we reached the cafe, I somehow lost my money while pulling my phone out of my pocket xD
Anyway, she shows up and goes, "Give me a dollar." I told her straight up that we didn't even have enough to cover our own coffee and were trying to figure out how to scrape by. She just snapped back, "You're so rude." So I politely explained again that we didn't have the money, telling her she didn't need to breathe down my neck. She called me stupid. At that point, I just snapped and told her to get lost, only for her to mutter, "I'm not afraid of you just because you're big." I sent her off again, telling her I didn't want to see her anymore, and then she started insulting my character. Look, I just sat down at my table; I wasn't about to get into an argument with someone twelve or thirteen years younger than me. But then she walked up to my friend and slapped her across the head. That triggered a massive scene involving me, everyone at our table, the people sitting nearby, and eventually the waiter, who finally chased her away. She doesn't show up at that cafe anymore whenever she spots any of us.☕😳

On the other hand, I felt really good once when I ran into a little kid. I was buying myself a slice of pizza, and he asked me, "Mister, would you buy me a slice too?" I said sure, bought it for him, and he actually thanked me before walking off. Since he was so polite, I bought him a second slice and told him that whenever he sees me, he can feel free to ask; if I have the money, I'll help him out or buy him something.

That moved me way more than those "give me a dollar" types, or the ones who start reciting blessings like, "God bless you, son, may you pass your exams, may you be happy and all that," only to snatch the dollar from the box without even looking at you.

feralbadger2 I can't quite make sense of what was said there... it looks like you might have missed the actual text! I'm sitting here with my coffee, ready to dive in, but I don't see anything to respond to yet. Just let me know what's on your mind whenever you're ready.
I used to hit up the local coffee shops here and there, though honestly, that was only if I happened to have some spare change on me. If my pockets were empty, I just wouldn't leave a tip.

I don't really leave any tips at the stores. It's just that if I'm ever short by, say, ten cents when I'm trying to pick up a pack of cigarettes or something else, I can't actually buy it. Then I have to go hunting for something cheaper instead. So, honestly... why bother leaving them extra money?

I’ll give a beggar a hand if I run into them for the first time, you know? But honestly, once I've seen the same person around a few times, I usually just pass by. It just feels... I don't know, impossible that it's only one thing they're doing. It's hard to justify after a while.
I'm hanging out in Denver right now, and man, you see them on every single corner. It’s mostly kids, usually with their younger siblings trailing behind them. We actually ended up chatting with one little girl the other day—just asking how much she makes from panhandling—and she told us she pulls in over $7 or $8 a week.$67I mean, during the week it varies, but over the weekend you can actually pull in maybe $150 or even $200 if things go well... it’s not nothing, I guess.$200Honestly, my heart just sank when I heard. And he’s one of those guys with at least five kids... so once you actually sit down and add them all up, it's just... yeah. $333 Just a little slice of life from the family. You’ve got Mom and Dad just chilling out on the grass in the shade, sipping on some juice and having a smoke. Meanwhile, there's this seven-year-old carrying around a baby only a few months old... poor things look absolutely famished. I mean, you can just imagine the scene.

Every now and then, this young woman would pop in with her little baby, and it was always the same thing—"Hey, give some to Mark." And honestly? We always did. Every single time. It became this little ritual. After we’d wrap up classes at the university, we’d all head out for coffee—usually a group of at least five of us—and she'd show up. It had become such a regular thing... $6.75 If only she had just taken it from us... I mean, I wish things could have gone differently. There was this one time, right after I finally passed my big exam, and we all decided to head out for coffee to celebrate. It was my treat, obviously—I wanted to do something nice—but honestly, nobody else had a dime on them. I was the only one with cash. But then, just as we were pulling up to the cafe, I managed to lose it. Somewhere between walking and sitting down, my wallet just vanished right out of my pocket along with my phone. Typical me, really. xD
It was just... honestly, it was so ugly. She walks right up to us and goes, "Give Mark some money." And I’m being straight with her—I tell her we don't even have enough left over to cover our own coffee, let alone hand out cash. We're basically trying to figure out how to make ends meet ourselves here. And then she has the nerve to look me in the eye and call me rude. Just... rude. So, I tried to be firm, telling her again that we simply don't have the funds to just give it away, and that she needs to back off and stop breathing down my neck. Then she calls me stupid. That was it. My fuse just snapped. I lost it and told her to get lost—just, you know, sent her packing. She tries to play it tough, though, saying something like, "I'm not afraid of you, size doesn't matter." I told her again to leave, that I didn't want to see her face anymore, and then the finger-pointing started. She began listing everything wrong with me, making me out to be this monster. I just sat there. Honestly, I just sat there and thought, *fine, go ahead and count your pennies.* I really wasn't about to get into a shouting match with someone over a decade younger than me. But then things escalated. She actually went over to my friend and slapped her. That was the breaking point. Everything just exploded. It was a huge scene—me, her, everyone sitting at our table, all the people at the surrounding tables... it was a mess. It didn't stop until the waiter finally stepped in and kicked her out. She hasn't shown her face in that coffee shop since. Not once. Not when she sees any of us. ☕😳

I had this moment the other day that actually warmed my heart quite a bit. I was just picking up a pizza for myself, minding my own business, when this little kid wanders up to me. He looks up and asks, "Hey mister, would you maybe buy a pizza for me too?" I mean, I didn't hesitate—of course I said yes. So, I bought him a slice, and he was so incredibly polite about it when he thanked me before heading off. Honestly, he was such a well-mannered kid that I ended up buying him a second piece too. I told him that whenever he sees me around, he should feel free to come say hi; if I’m in a position to help, I'll make sure he has some money or something else he needs. It was just one of those small, quiet moments, you know?

It just hit me way harder in the feels than when they say, "Hey, give me some cash," or start going on one of those long rants like, "God bless you, honey, I hope you pass all your finals and just live a happy little life." You know how it goes. They barely even look at you—they just grab the twenty from the box and slide it right into their pocket before you can even blink.

Yeah, I’m with you on that. When they’re actually decent people, I find it hard to say no. It reminds me of this one time, years ago, back in my hometown. There was this group of kids always wandering around—they were basically one giant, messy family. The dad was a heavy drinker, and the mom just sat at home all day, constantly pushing the kids to work. A friend of mine used to work at a local juvenile detention center, and she told me how much trouble this family caused with the courts and social services, but for some reason, the kids could never quite get placed in the facility. Anyway, one day, one of those kids wandered up to our place and asked... well, he was looking for something small, something to eat. My cousin felt bad and offered to take him out to buy something real, but he just turned around and walked away. I don't know... I guess I just have a huge soft spot for kids. And for the elderly when they're really struggling. But if I just handed out five or ten dollars to every single person I saw on the street? Man, I'd be broke by noon. We'd hit the grocery store and be out thirty bucks before we even left the parking lot.$13 just for a week...

I’m basically leaving my entire tip jar at the local pub if I happen to have some spare change on me

I'm not leaving anything for anyone

Just at the barbershop

I usually just toss a couple of bucks to the server if I need to round up the bill—like if it hits $9.00, I’ll just make it an even 30. When I'm out for a proper dinner, though, I’ll leave the waitstaff, especially the 🙂, about 10-$5.00 depending on how much the meal actually cost me.
I almost never tip the clerks at the corner store, unless they have some loose change rattling around my wallet that I’d rather be rid of.

And who exactly is leaving me a tip?

I feel like you actually have to earn a "tip," if you will, and I rarely leave one unless someone truly goes above and beyond with a specific gesture; otherwise, I just don't see why a server deserves the extra cash.

I'm not giving up an inch

bluerider63 said:I usually leave a couple of bucks for the servers at the coffee shop when I need to round up the bill to a nice even number, like if the total comes out to... $9.00I think I'll just round that up to 30... especially when I head out for dinner and want to make sure the servers, particularly the waitresses, feel appreciated... 🙂 I’ll just leave 10 bucks on the table...$5.00 It all really just depends on how much that bill ends up being...
I rarely bother leaving any tips for the cashiers at the grocery store, though I might occasionally drop a few extra cents if they’re just cluttering up my wallet...

Yeah, I always make sure to leave a tip at restaurants, unless the service was just totally rude, then I'm definitely not leaving anything... 😬
I felt so bad yesterday morning because I picked up some new shoes and the lady working there was just incredibly sweet... since I was still half-asleep when I rushed downtown to grab them, I realized I didn't have a single cent of cash on me, and I honestly felt terrible that I couldn't leave her something for a coffee...