Tiki attire gets you over-charged.

In a decidedly unscientific personal survey I've noticed over the years that I get noticeably less respect (as a male) when wearing Hawaiian shirts and tiki attire than when wearing basically the opposite.

Namely, if I wear a dark shirt and khaki pants or some form of business attire I'm treated seriously by vendors and salespeople versus getting screwed by them because I'm wearing casual clothing and/or drinking.

The reason I bring this up after years of observation is it happened again today at a restaurant. I'm wearing a tapa shirt at a Mexican restaurant and had lunch and 2 Cadillac margaritas. I'm with with my wife and son, lively conversation, and was brought a bill with a charge for 4 people. Huh? "I don't know how this happened" is the usual refrain.

And this happens a lot, folks. I've even told my wife that we need to dress seriously if we're going to be be negotiating a bill or paying for merchandise or food. I've been charged up to 2 times our bill when in tiki attire and while drinking.

Beware, my friends. Vendors see touristy-clothed people as dupes. I have no doubt this is the case.