I made an appointment yesterday to get a haircut at my local barbershop. One of the reasons I switched from my old barbershop to this one was because I grew tired of having to wait 30 or more minutes for my turn despite my making an apppointment. Since making the switch about 8 months ago, I never had to wait more than 5 minutes to be attended. That all changed last night. Whether it was the fact that Valentine's Day is a couple of days away, or it just so happens that many people showed up at the same time on the same night, I had to wait close to an hour to be tended to. (Another woman made an appointment to get her hair dyed at 6:30, the same time I scheduled my appointment for.) I'm willing to look past this annoying incident given that, up until now, the place has never disappointed me. However, if this begins to happen more frequently, I won't be a happy camper. I spend so much time stuck in traffic each day (an hour to work and another hour going hom...

Have you noticed the latest trend in the world of shopping and commerce? A few years ago, companies were encouraging us to like them on Facebook or follow them on Twitter. (They still do today, though not as often given that avid internet users know by now that virtually every business has jumped on the social media bandwagon.) Now, they're pushing us to review them on sites like Yelp. But, as the saying goes, they ought to be careful what they wish for. I have had unpleasant experiences at various restaurants and retail establishments in the past year, and I've had no qualms about airing these sentiments on said websites. In fact, many consumers are more inclined to rate and review a company following a bad experience than a favorable one. A preponderance of either negative or positive reviews, however, should raise red flags. For example, a disproportionate number of 5-star reviews coming from accounts with only one or two reviews to their name means something i...

Everyone knows that getting wasted on Cinco de Mayo (May 5) is an enduring tradition for many in the United States. But most people don't know the stats -- specifically,  how much people actually drink. Here are a few fun facts that put this in perspective: Tequila sales typically double in bars and restaurants on Cinco de Mayo, making it one of their most profitable days of the year. In 2014, Americans bought over 12 million cases of tequila. That's a lot of booze! Margaritas accounted for nearly half of all cocktails sold on Cinco de Mayo in 2011 and 2012. Consumers spend over $2.9 billion on margaritas annually, which accounts for roughly 14 percent of all cocktail sales! 30 percent of the margaritas sold are flavored. The United States sells twice as much tequila as Mexico, the country where it originated. On another note, more than 81 million avocados are consumed by Americans on Cinco de Mayo, which are used in guacamole. Tortillas are also widely consumed i...

Can you guess what the single biggest complaint people have at restaurants is? I'll give you a hint: it's not the food . What diners grumble about more than anything else, per a recent study, is bad service . And this comes as no surprise, at least not to me. Bad food -- whether it's soggy fries or a steak that's a tad rare -- is more forgivable in that the waiter or waitress can simply bring you another item. Restaurants get busy, especially on Fridays and Saturday nights. No harm, no foul.   But poor service leaves an indelible impression -- a bitter taste in our mouth. I recently went to an Outback restaurant and had one of the worst dining experiences of my life. The waitress never came around for refills and forgot to bring me ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise for my burger. My friend complained that this soup was cold and he requested that she heat it up for him, to no avail. Needless to say, we asked to speak to the manager, after which we received wh...

I've noticed a trend when poring over my Facebook Wall posts: It's usually women who love submitting posts about anything and everything in their lives, from pictures of the foods they eat at restaurants to videos of their newborns. Yet, most men don't seem to share this inclination to publicize everything. Sure, they post pictures and other content here and there, but not to the same degree as their female counterparts. Is it that women are simply trying to outdo other women? It's a well-known fact that women size each other up all the time. Women keenly observe how other women dress, their bodies, their hair, and even their mannerisms. Whether in the workplace or at the club, they are always in competition with each other. Now, that's not to say that men aren't competitive with one another, but I've seen it happen more often with the fairer sex -- and the latter tend to be less subtle about it. I've noted in earlier posts that Facebook is becom...

We all know at least one person (and it could be ourselves) who is prone to frivolous spending. He or she forks over hundreds of dollars during each visit to a mall or restaurant, adding to an already massive heap of credit card debt. What's worse, the person makes a habit of asking friends or relatives for money. What, then, causes this seemingly uncontrollable compulsion to spend? For a lot of us, it's tied to our self-image and self-esteem. Many people depend on shopping and consumer products for a "pick-me-up" -- much like getting their afternoon coffee fix. Consumers use material possessions to enhance their image -- walking around with that Coach purse or in those Jimmy Choos can greatly boost feelings of self-worth and self-confidence. There's nothing wrong with this if done in moderation -- we all deserve to spoil ourselves every once in a while. But once wasteful spending becomes a weekly -- let alone daily -- occurrence, it creates the potential fo...