Gratuities 101

Fast food: No sign of tip jars at McDonald's or Wendy's yet, but who knows: They may soon follow the Starbucks approach.

Hotels: At least $1 or $2 per bag for the bellhop when you arrive and when you leave, and $2 to $3 a night for the hotel maid (just leave the cash daily in your room). If the doorman braves rain and snow to hail a cab for you, a couple of bucks is fair.

Massage therapist: Going rate is 15 percent.

Parking: In daily parking garages, the standard is $1 for someone who retrieves your car. A valet should be tipped $2 to $3.

Reporters: Sadly, tips are limited to the non-monetary variety -- say, juicy gossip items. Have one? Send it to http://reliablesource@www.washpost.com/ .

Holiday Tipping

As the end of the year approaches, some services are traditionally rewarded with money or a gift. Many people don't consider these tips, but rather tokens of appreciation.

Gratitude doesn't have to be expressed in dollars. In fact, the U.S. Postal Service restricts holiday tips to non-cash gifts up to $20 in value (gift cards are fine). Stacie Krajchir recommends giving baked goods and handwritten cards to everyone from baby sitters to personal trainers to trash collectors. Here are some of the more common holiday tip recipients and suggested amounts, as excerpted and adapted from Krajchir's book, "The Itty Bitty Guide to Tipping":

Baby sitter: The tip should equal an average evening's pay, plus a small gift.

Building superintendent: $30 to $100.

Dog walker: One week's salary.

Doorman: $25 to $100.