Reader declares me a true commoner for attacking $7 orange juice glasses: Snob that!

One of my best friends in the world - a woman I went to college with and have known for almost 15 years - often jokingly refers to me as snob. OK, sometimes it’s not so jokingly. My friend is a big lover of diners (she’s spent a little too much time in New Jersey) and I would rather eat just about anywhere but.

It’s not that I’m opposed to runny scrambled eggs that might have spent 10 minutes on the floor. It’s just, I can do that at home.

When I go out, I would prefer that the menu doesn’t have pictures of the food. This kind of thing can get you branded a snob.

But no longer … A TravelGolf.com reader has rolled in and saved the day. Bill Giering, TG reader and occasional writer, sent in a long letter declaring that I’m essentially just too much of a trailer park commoner to see the genius strategy in the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess grossly overcharging its guests $7 for a tiny glass of orange juice.

Giering wrote, “Perhaps the executive minds (suits) behind one of the premier and most successful resorts in Scottsdale know what their clientele want. One of the things that their customers want for sure is “Not” to have riff raff come in off the street and sit next to them at the bar.

“How do they keep the Riff Raff out? Ahhh, The Perfect $7 Glass of O.J.”

And here I was just thinking that an otherwise great resort had lost its mind - not to mention guest courtesy - by gouging on a little thing. If only Bill Giering had been there to enlighten. Fairmont Scottsdale Princess apparently has a whole Marie Antoinette thing going on. (They really should tell the pool guy who so nicely stooped to giving towels to riff raff like me or the waiter who special ordered me a muscat desert wine from another restaurant on property during my stay there).

That’s not the point now though. Nor is the fact that reader Royce Aube - who’s much better at math than me - came up with the rough estimate that the Fairmont Scottsdale is making a $52 profit on a $4 investment under this pricing.

Aube wrote, “Should there not be a law against 4 ounce/glass at $7.00 , 32 ounces/jug, $56.00 for a $4.00 investment. Drug dealers your in the wrong buisness. People don’t let this greed happen to you stand up like a man ,have a $10.00 shot of scotch and complain.”

But that’s not important. What matters is that Giering’s declared me snob free.

In fact, I’m the kind of guy who’s so unnerved by walking into a resort like the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess that in Giering’s words “the hair on the back of your neck stands up.”

Damn right. Forget that I’ve spent several months waxing poetic over Cabo - one of the most decadent and pricey golf destinations in the world. Or that Scottsdale, a place that’s been branded Snottsdale is where I’ve chosen to spend a large portion of time. (You can bet that didn’t go unnoticed by the New Jersey diner lover). But now … No one can say anything.

I’m a fighting for the common man champion, a real taste-the-dirt kind of warrior.

As Giering wrote, “There is a theme that runs through Baldwin’s travel ramblings: If you have the resources and the time to enjoy them with family and friends, then you must be Stupid!!”

What? He couldn’t find room to also declare me a communist? More insights from Giering: You’re not stupid if you use tiny $7 orange juice glasses as your shaving lotion.

I love this Bill Giering. Sure, he sounds like Rebel Blogger and Bangkok Al - two other winners that have graced this space - but he’s the one who’s recognized my riff raff spirit.

I’m sure my Castle Baron Boss will greenlight a series of $500 dinners on my expense reports now. After all, I’m just trying to better my KFed ways, to elevate myself to Bill Giering’s sophisticated level.

Now, if I can only convince Starbucks to raise its average cost per coffee drink to $25. There are a few soccer moms in my local store that are looking a little shady. I don’t even think one of them has a Prada bag. We really need to elevate this clientele.