October 15th, 2021Just sayin’…

WE GOT a tip! Nah, not one of those: “I know what you should do in The Local…” to which the reply is easy. “Well, great, when you have worked on other papers for about 30 years, take the plunge, open your own and then just do whatever you think we should be doing.”
Nah, it was a real tip, saying thanks for what do you. It came as a surprise. Kyle headed to the letterbox, on one of his three-monthly trips, armed with a plastic bag, a long-handled pincer sort of thing, and fly spray. You can take the Kiwi out of New Zealand but you can’t take the fear of spiders that can kill you out of a Kiwi.
Now, I bet you are thinking we are super lazy, not going to the letterbox every day, but in our defence it is across a road, one that is becoming very busy, and we just don’t get that much mail now. And any mail we do get is usually something we don’t want, like bank statements which we have asked for years to just be online, or election promotion materials when we already know who is standing and when, or random bits of paper asking to stop development in Glenlyon (sorry, but the horse has bolted on that one) and other bits saying we need more development (really?).
Anyway, Kyle came back with his bag half full, and offered me an enveloped card. Now, being an old-school journo, that threw me a little. The last time I opened a card at a former workplace, we had anthrax protocols in place. Luckily, being a pandemic, I had plenty of masks, gloves and sanitiser at the ready – and being a bit tired of the ennui I am currently experiencing decided it was time to just go for it. I choose life so I opened the envelope.
Whoa. Inside was a really nice Thank You card, with real handwriting about what we do at The Local and how we are appreciated. And also inside, a $100 Visa gift card! Yep, a tip. Talk about make my day, week and year.
Now, this is not the first time I have been tipped. Once when I was working in Cairns as a Japanese tour guide I was given a $20 tip by the father of a family I took out on a reef trip. And that’s back in the 80s so, you know, $20. It was a lovely gesture and the only downside was that he took so long to thank me that I missed my free ride home and the bus and had to pay for a taxi which was $22. Still, it’s the thought that counts, right?
But it is my first tip as a journo. Because of course journos can’t accept tips. It’s like taking a bribe. When I worked at a suburban newspaper group we were sent a memo from the general manager that any money changing hands was a sackable offence and any gifts we received had to be sent straight his way. Oddly, the only thing I received was some free incontinence underwear (I think I might have been the health reporter for a bit) so I quickly packaged them up and sent them on. Anonymously of course. Didn’t want it to look like I was buttering him up…
Now, I am the boss, well the managing editor, and I have made a rule that all tips are most welcome. Not that I want to start a trend, but you know, if you feel like it…
Anyway, thank you so much, tip giver. It was unnecessary but much appreciated. And I have decided I am going to use it towards something fun at our Christmas crew party. After all, this thing we do called The Local is a team effort. And our team has worked tirelessly over Covid, for pay and for nothing at times, to keep our readers reading and our advertisers getting their messages out. And tip or not, I do know we are appreciated by many.
It was funny timing actually. We had lunch with some good friends a few weeks back at a restaurant far, far away from the Central Highlands, with OK service and food. Nothing bad, nothing outstanding. At the end of the meal our friends wanted to leave a tip, we didn’t see the point. They asked why. We couldn’t really explain. But now I get it. Australian wages are not like America. A tip is not needed to make up a real wage. Yes, it is nice to tip, but I don’t think it should be expected.
Now, if you get amazing service and food, above and beyond, sure thing, tip away. But also think about all those other industries, not food, that also go above and beyond to serve you, make sure your experience is so fantastic that you walk away feeling like your money was well spent.
This is my first tip in the journalism game. But I think I have gone above and beyond many, many times, listened to people’s stories, told them honestly and truthfully and I hope that over the past eight years people have read The Local and thought: “I feel better for reading that.” And so many others do it as well in all sorts of businesses and organisations. And so many never expect a tip. Sometimes just a thank you will have people almost crying. Although, I must admit, a great meal with great friends is pretty priceless just now.
Oh, another shout-out to our crew. Being an essential service, we had to make sure everyone was vaccinated. So I sent out a quick email asking if everyone was and could we put a VV next to their name on page 2. Yes, they all replied, vaccinated ages ago. All done and dusted. No worries. I friggin’ love our people. Just sayin’…