comment: >
  
  i hate going out on my bday bc i have such anxiety that some jerk is going to tell the staff its my birthday.... then i gotta wonder if theyre going to charge me for some cake
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  Remember, /r/Showerthoughts is for showerthoughts, not "thoughts had in the shower!"
  (For an explanation of what a "showerthought" is, please read this page.)
  Rule-breaking posts may result in bans. >
  
  When I used to work at a restaurant I had a couple tell me it was one of their birthdays. They ordered alcohol and I asked for their ID to check if they were 21+. Their birthday was not even close and when they realized I knew it wasn’t their birthday and they started apologizing and felt embarrassed. 
  I didn’t confront them about it because you never want to accuse a guest of something like that. It is annoying though when one person has a “birthday” and all of the sudden it’s every tables birthday. >
  
  I work in a place that doesn't do a ton for birthdays, just a little sundae with a candle. No singing no fancy plates or anything. I honestly could not care less if people want to lie to me if it's their birthday, as long as they are polite and have their shit together go ahead. 
  In fact I have sent out birthday sundaes to tables that I just liked interacting with and said we just wanted to make their night memorable. >
  
  When I worked in a decent restaurant I would often give out a birthday dessert to a very well behaved child (with the parents permission) >
  
  Nice one. I’d say positive reinforcement is the glue that binds decent and reasonable behaviour. >
  
  You'd be eating out every day, which is ridiculously expensive, and a lot of places don't give you anything for your birthday. >
  
  My first thought. Eating out every day, in this economy? >
  
  What else do people not do in this economy? Genuine question. >
  
  Fuck >
  
  Thats a good one I wouldn’t expect. Way too expensive to have a kid/kids and condoms and pills add up. >
  
  Plants are the new pets.
  Pets are the new kids.
  Kids are the new exotic animals - only the rich can afford them. >
  
  But for some reason, the people who can’t afford them have like 5 kids. There was this one crack addicted lady who had 5 kids (all taken by CPS)… the baby my family helped take care of was born addicted to crack :( At what point do you make her get her tubes tied? >
  
  You don't. You make sure every school has the same high quality sex ed and you give out birth control for free. Society will benefit far more from this than forced sterilization programs which are fucked up. >
  
  
  You make sure every school has the same high quality sex ed and you give out birth control for free. Society will benefit far more from this
  
  Ah.. I like the idea of a society that would be willing to provide quality education and birth control. >
  
  My anxiety stops me from telling any restaurant its my birthday, even when it is. >
  
  Yup!
  We went out for dinner for my husband's birthday, on the actual DAY of his birthday, but there was a wave of like 3 tables that got sung the happy birthday song by the staff. Our 6yo REALLY wanted them to sing to my husband. 
  I literally had anxiety over telling them it was his birthday, partly because second-hand embarrassment over the singing, but mostly because I thought they'd think we were lying after so many other tables had been sung to already! >
  
  So did you tell em in the end or not? >
  
  The 6 year old did! >
  
  Did he get free cake is the real question >
  
  The cake was a lie >
  
  It was a triumph... >
  
  I mean, you can also just buy yourself cake, whenever you want, for probably a fair amount less money than you'd spend eating out every day >
  
  But… but… it’s not free 🥺 >
  
  It sounds like an awful lot of driving to find 365 restaurants for "free" cake. >
  
  One of the "dumb poor folks" things my wife and I used to do was drive all over to get the free slurrpies on 7-11 day.  One day I looked at the little shot cup of frozen water and compared it to the price of gas and just wanted to die for being so stupid. >
  
  I used to sell mattresses.  Generally the cheapest queen mattress we had was $200.  I can't count how many people came into the store with a bunch of ads from different places trying to find the best deal on a POS mattress.  You might be able to save $20, but you spent at least that much in gas and like 4-5 hours of your time to do it. >
  
  You mean there aren’t 20 mattress stores on the same street where you live? >
  
  There are plenty, it's really easy to maintain a mattress store on limited sales, but you still have to take the time and effort to go to a bunch for next to no benefit. >
  
  Until they card you. 
  Tangentially, when I was in my early 20s, a couple friends of mine (also early 20s)  got engaged. He asked her over dinner at some chain place like Red Lobster or Olive Garden, and when she said yes the other diners started clapping and the manager came out and gave them half off their check. 
  They got a bright idea. 
  For the next few months, whenever they went out, when they were just about done, it was out with the ring and down on one knee. 
  They finally cut it out when their waitress took them aside and said "didn't you guys get engaged at Sizzler last month?" >
  
  Sounds like they deserve each other. >
  
  Hugely underrated comment. >
  
  But then when that one restaurant doesn’t give you free cake you have to sit there and buy something you don’t even want >
  
  I can buy cake >
  
  Most places ask for ID to get the freebees for your birthday. Would carrying 365 fake IDs be worth it for daily free cake? >
  
  Now I'm picturing someone at a restaurant frantically sorting through IDs. >
  
  No fucking way I’m seeing a mummy reference in 2023. That’s awesome. >
  
  Pleasant surprise, indeed! I'm also realizing I haven't watched that movie in forever, and it might be worth it to do so. >
  
  Swear it’s been like 20 years >
  
  Watched for the thousandth time last week >
  
  Morality. People who lie frivolously will lie about anything. One day its lying about your birthday to get free cake next day cheating on your spouse and claiming domestic abuse to make them look bad. >
  
  well that escalated quickly >
  
  It’s scientifically proven. 90% of couples who lie for free dessert at restaurants will experience domestic abuse and cheating within a year of the free dessert. Even worse, studies show 100% of people who lie for free dessert will one day die. These stats should deter one from lying for free desserts, at least these are the specific reasons I don’t lie for dessert. >
  
  Always trying to take more and more. Nothing is stopping you from being honest and having some integrity. >
  
  Yeah but like think about how much most people suck I’m like surprised this doesn’t happen far more often. Thinking about how people are dishonest in their most personal relationships but hold up the honor system for a treat made me think a bit idk. >
  
  “Everyone else is shitty, why can’t I be shitty?”
  Sounds like
  “All the other kids are doing it, why can’t I?”
  This exact mentality is the reason why the world is the way it is now. >
  
  People see 1 other person being shitty and have a strong reaction to it. That makes them forget the 99 other people not being shitty. It's called the Crowd effect >
  
  And this is why I try to be the change I want to see in the world. I’ve seen what  simple act of kindness can do for people, especially since now everyone’s lonely and going through some sort of struggle. It pisses me off to see people make excuses to be bad people. You have to be stronger than your emotions. >
  
  Same man. >
  
  You’re right. And as a waiter, I have encountered many such peoples >
  
  When I was in high school and college, whoever the first person to leave the table to go to the bathroom was it was always suddenly their birthday. >
  
  What if two people went simultaneously?!?! >
  
  Well, we were all guys, so that never happened. >
  
  Where do you all live where they give free cake? I don’t have a single place in my area that does more than sing you happy birthday. >
  
  Save being an fat asshole. Even if it is my bday I don’t tell the staff.