Don't Be Cheap

I'm sick and tired of people being cheap. Hostel guests tend to be some of the cheapest people I've met. "I'm so broke", "I'll get you back next week", and "Can I have a bite of that", are like annoying broken-english mantras ringing in my ears on a daily basis. This week I finally fucking had it. I had to lay down the law. Let me explain.

There's a young German who works* in the hostel at nights, as kind of like a night manager, in exchange for free rent. He's got another volunteer job during the day, and overall is a nice guy. The problem is that he's incredibly cheap, and tricky about it. Basically, he doesn't get paid for either job, and therefore has to be careful with how he spends. I get that. What I don't get is how brash and downright inconsiderate his cheapness is.

If you're eating something, drinking something, smoking something, or doing something, he wants in, wants some, and pouts if he doesn't get it. Sharing is fucking caring, right? But when does coerced sharing become mooching? Here's when. When someone asks you if you'd like to order food, tells you what they want, makes you order, and then tells you he has no money when the food comes.

I told him the price when I got off the phone, he said cool. Then the doorbell rings, I ask him for cash, and he looks at me like his cat just died and tells me that he has no money. After a "what the fuck" response from me, he blankly stares some more and says he has no cash for a few days except for 10 Brazilian Reais. That would be lovely dovely, except for the fact that we're not in Brazil.

So I paid for the food, tossed it on the table, and gave him another "what the fuck" look. He ultimately got someone to change his Brazilian cash into Argentine pesos, and he paid me. But it's the principle of this that kills me. I work, but make a limited income. I'm in no position to be sugar daddy for anyone, let alone a 20-year-old German I live with. To me, it's the equivalent of walking out on your tab at a restaurant. Plus, this shit adds up.

That's all. Just needed to vent. It's cold today, and I'm thinking of checking out some monkeys at the zoo. Peace out cubscouts.