July 6, 2004
Worked hard on several vaquero scratchboards all day today. Finished three. Had numerous meetings and that slowed me down. Tweaked copy on “The Roots of Rodeo” and monkeyed with the rodeo timeline (which is what the scratchboards are for). Knocked off at 5:30. Still not done and I have several more illustrations to do for my Bat Masterson article.

This just in from True West Maniac #244:
“Having read your journal from day one till now I've come to the conclusion you're a mediocre tipper. Free, unsolicited advice, worth every penny: over tip. The waitress will appreciate it. The people you're with will think better of you, and you'll go away happy. A guy with your upbeat attitude and sense of humor should over tip. It was one of my New Year's resolutions, and it's made me feel better than I expected.”
—Curt Rich, TW Maniac #244

The irony is I feel like I overtip already. Ha. And I couldn’t feel much better about myself than I already do, but, as I’ve mentioned in here before, my daughter is a former waitress and she makes me over tip, at least when I’m with her. I believe I religiously tip 20%, but I must admit there is a running joke here at the magazine about “True West math,” which refers to my awful stabs at financial projections or anything with decimals or multiplication. When something is out of whack by about ten miles, someone, usually Mike Melrose, will quip, “Oh, True West math.”

Still, I try to tip 20%, which on a $50 meal is $10. Right?

On a more positive note, there is a quote that has been driving me lately. I think Carole Compton Glenn sent it to me. When I want to goof around, not work, take a nap, lounge, I think of this quote and I snap right to it. Here it is:

“If you want something you’ve never had, you’ve got to do something you’ve never done.”
—Sharedale Skeins