And...Scene!

Well, after a year at the Hut, I'm done. I spoke with my manager this afternoon and turned in my 2-week notice, which turned out to actually be 2-minute notice. She's got plenty of drivers, so I'm just done.

Of course I'm a little sad, because I became friends with many of the people at the Hut. On the other hand, I skipped down the hallway when I got home!

I've got a couple of ideas (actually, just one right now) of ways to generate some extra income that don't require me giving up my weekends. I'm looking forward to giving them a go.

I think my year at the Hut was good for me. It got us through a financial pinch, caused me to "get out of the house", introduced me to some cool new people, and taught me all the back streets. Cool.

Next time you order a stuffed crust, remember me!

One of My Favorites

Last weekend while I was delivering pizza for the Hut, I took this picture. That's my cool ride. This is one of my favorite places to park when I deliver to this area.

Mwahahaaa!

Yes, That Is A Plane In His Yard

I have a blog-friend who goes by the handle "Misfit in Paradise". She has a couple of blogs, one of which is a photo blog of the area around where she lives. I find it very cool and interesting. As I am driving around delivering pizza, I notice all the things I would like to take pictures of and share in the same way. Usually I don't have the time...pizzas to deliver and all!! Tonight, though, there was one photo op I couldn't pass up. Below is the story...

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I knocked on the door of the house. A gentlemen answered and asked for the total. I told him. We exchanged money for pizza. Then I asked the question.

"Did you know that your neighbor had a plane in his front yard?"

"Yeah...nice guy...a little eccentric...but nice."

Click on the photo for a larger view.

Life on the Hut Line Part IV

Being a delivery driver, I've had a few things to say about working at Pizza Hut. So, in my continued efforts to be generally informative and helpful, please consider the following things when placing a delivery order:

1. Give the correct address. Whether over the phone or via the Internet, the correct address is a must. Try to include the street name AND number. If you live in an apartment, a number or letter is helpful. Also, make sure that the number is actually on your house/mailbox and visible.

2. The correct phone number is important, too. A working phone number is not enough. It should actually be YOUR phone number.

3. After you place your order, don't leave. Or take a nap. Or a shower. Or go in the backyard and mow.

4. Answer your phone, even if you don't recognize the incoming number on caller ID. Unfortunately, we are not issued "Pizza Hut Cell Phones", so if the delivery driver needs to call you, you probably won't see "Pizza Hut" on the caller ID.

5. If you live somewhere weird, inaccessible, dangerous, or just plain stupid, give really good directions, or offer to meet them somewhere.

6. Tip. Almost without exception, if your order is late or wrong, it is not the driver's fault. However, if they forget your drink or Parmesan, that's a different story. Just remember they depend on tips.

Follow these simple guidelines, and everyone will be happy.

Life on the Hut Line Part III

Another of my favorite calls. Check out the rest of my Hut themed posts here. This one is almost word for word how it actually happened.

Me: Thanks for calling Pizza Hut/Wing Street. This is Aaron, will this be for delivery or carryout?

Caller: Yeah...uhh...what's your best special?

Me: We have our Pizza Mia Deal. That's 3 or more single topping medium hand-tossed pizzas with our special Old World sauce and two types of cheese for only $5 each.

Caller: That sounds good. I'll have two Pizza Mias...

Me: I'm sorry, sir...you have to order 3 or more to get the special rate. Otherwise they are $6.99 regular price.

Caller: Oh...in that case, give me 3 Pizza Mias.

Me: Okay, great! What would you like on the first one?

Caller: Uhh...make the first one pan crust...

Me: I apologize, sir...the Mia only comes on a hand-tossed crust.

Caller: Oh...yeah...okay.

Me: What topping would you like on the first one?

Caller: Uhh...pepperoni.

Me: And your second one?

Caller: Hamburger...can you make that one a large?

Me: Sorry sir...

Answer: T = 2Q * (P/12)

Question: How much should you tip a pizza delivery guy?

As most of you know, I deliver pizza part-time. In fact, it has been the subject of a few posts, so I made its own label in my blog: The Hut.

I've been asked several times what the appropriate tip for a pizza delivery driver is. The answer is simple. You just take the average price of the pizza, divide it by twelve, multiply by a factor of two, then multiple that result times the number of pizzas you ordered. Simple, right? You can even express it as a formula:

T = 2Q * (P/12)

Where T = tip, Q = quantity of pizzas, P = average price of pizzas.

For example, if you order 2 medium pizzas that cost an average of $11 dollars each the tip would be $3.67. The simple application of this formula will always result in the correct tip. I suggest you write this down on a post-it note and put it by the front door. There it will always be handy for the when the delivery man arrives.

Or, another option is...you could just tip 15%.

Life on the Hut Line Part II

Part I is available here if you want to catch up.


Me: Thanks for calling Pizza Hut/Wing Street. This is Aaron, will this be for delivery or carryout?

Caller: Delivery. I want a...

Me: Sir? (Attempting to interrupt)

Caller: ...large hand-tossed...

Me: Sir? (Attempting to interrupt again)

Caller: Yes?

Me: Can I get your phone number please?

Caller: Sure. It is 770-555-1793. And I want a...

Me: Sir?

Caller: Yes?

Me: Can I also get your address please?

Caller: Sure. It's 505...Ridge Lane...Mableton...30126. Now, I want a large...

Me: Sir?

Caller: ...hand-tossed...

Me: Sir?

Caller: ...pepperoni pizza with extra black-olives...

Me: Sir?

Caller: ...only on half. Can you do that, put extra olives on half?

Me: Sir, I'm sorry, but...

Caller: That's okay, I'll just get two mediums...

Me: Sir, I'm sorry, but...

Caller: ...one with extra olives, one without...

Me: Sir!!

Caller: Yes?

Me: Sir, I'm sorry, but we don't deliver to your area. Here' the number of our Mableton store...

Life on the Hut Line

As a delivery driver for the Hut, one of my duties is answering the phone. It never fails that at least one call every night goes thusly...

Me: Thanks for calling Pizza Hut/Wing Street. This is Aaron, will this be for delivery or carryout?

Caller: Yeah...uhhh...what specials do you have?

Me: We have our Pizza Mia deal. You can get 3 or more medium 1 topping hand-tossed pizzas for $5 each.

Caller: Any other specials?

Me: Well, you can get 2 medium, 1 topping pizzas and 10 wings for $21.99, or you can get 2 medium, 1 topping pizzas, breadsticks, and chocolate dunkers for $19.99.

Caller: Uhhh...

Me: How many people are you buying for?

Caller: Uhhh...just me.

Me: Okay. We also have our personal pan combo. It's a personal pan pizza, salad and a drink.

Caller: Umm...that's okay. I've got a coupon here for an $8.99 medium pizza...I'll just use it.

Opposite Ends of the Spectrum

As many of you may know, I deliver pizza as a second job. You can learn a lot about people by delivering them pizza.

• Some people answer the door while on the phone, never look you in the eye, say not one word, hand you the money, take the pizza, and close the door.
• A LOT of people don't turn their porch light on, then when they realize that they haven't they apologize.
• Most people don't seem to realize that if I stand there for 5 minutes waiting for them to find their money that they just A) potentially made someone else's pizza late and B) cost me money.
• Alert to customers: I usually don't carry change for $100...sorry. Especially when your order is $11.45.
• Teenagers don't tip. In fact, they usually want the exact change. To the penny.
• 1 out of 10 houses either have A) mailbox numbers you can't read, B) mailboxes with missing numbers, or C) have NO mailbox at all...and this fact does not seem noteworthy to people when they place their order.

So last night I had a couple of interesting experiences:

First:
I delivered a medium pizza to a woman. Her total was $14.30. When she opened the door, she handed me the coupon she had used, a $20 bill, and said "keep the change". Think about that for a second. She went through the trouble to use a coupon to lower the price a couple of bucks, and STILL gave me the entire twenty. Very thoughtful.

Second:
I was trying to deliver a pizza to a lady who lives in a particularly difficult apartment complex to deliver to. (I won't bore you with why it is difficult.) The instructions on the ticket said, "TELL DELIVERY DRIVER TO CALL WHEN HE ARRIVES." So I did...about 5 times. I then called the Hut, and asked them to call her.

She immediately answered and told the person them, "Oh...I saw his calls coming in, but I didn't recognize the number."

What? She must have thought every delivery driver was issued a special "Pizza Hut Cell Phone", so when we call customers it shows Pizza Hut on the caller ID. Sheesh!

They Raised the Minimum Wage!!

Effective July 24th, the minimum wage in the good ole U. S. of A. was raised from $5.85 an hour to $6.55 an hour. I, personally, am happy about that.

"Why?", you ask. (If you didn't ask, for the sake of this blog, let's pretend you did.)

"Because I now earn minimum wage!", I reply.

"Really? I thought you had a great paying tech job with a large, regional health care system!", you exlaim in surprise.

"I do", is my response, "but I also have lots of debt, so I picked up a second j0b to help dig ourselves out of the hole."

"Oh!! Now I understand", you state, with a nod of your head.


Apparently, at the pizza franchise that I work for (who shall remain nameless (just don't look at the picture)), the S.O.P. is to start all delivery drivers at minimum wage.

I am a delivery driver + I just started = I make minimum wage

My wife and I are on a fast track to try to destroy our debt. She is currently seeking employment and I have taken this second job. I no longer get a manicure every week, and I've also canceled my subscriptions to Teen Beat and O. More seriously, I am a Dave Ramsey fan, and I believe what the Bible says about debt and the problems that can go along with it, so we're trying to do everything we can.

Sidebar: I won't go into details about how we acquired our debt in this blog. Suffice it to say, if you need financial advice, call me and ask me if I have ever done whatever financial you are contemplating making. If I say, "Yes," then absolutely don't do it.

So...back to minimum wage. I'm making it! Plus $1.02 per delivery and whatever tips I can rake in.

Sidebar: The first time I worked at a pizza joint was 1989. Yes, that's almost 20 years ago. I'm aware of that fact. Back then, I started at minimum wage as well: $3.35 an hour.

The point of this is, that now that I am making $6.55 an hour at my second gig, I've suddenly have a different perspective on the money I spend. Allow me to elaborate.

• eating a combo meal at McDonald's: 1 hour of work
  
• going to the movies: 2.2 hours of work
  
• every tank of gas for my car: 9 hours of work
• buying a new pair (of relatively inexpensive) shoes: 10 hours of work
  
• watching UFC 90 on PPV: 11 hours of work
  

That makes me think before I buy that $1.49 drink at the gas station. (I still buy it, but it makes me think first.)