On using someone else’s coffee cup
I don't bring a coffee cup with me to work and I don't like to use the styrofoam cups. Next to the sink in the break room is a rack of coffee cups. Many of these look like halloween props with dust and cobwebs galore. One of them caught my eye. A purplish mug with a ceramic Eeyore hanging on to the handle. I washed it out and poured myself some coffee.
When I returned to the office, one of my coworkers asks me, "Is that your mug?"
"No," I replied, "it was hanging in the breakroom."
At this, his face crinkled up like one of the aforementioned styrofoam cups in a microwave. A noise indicating complete revulsion leapt from his lips and he says, "That's gross."
Not wishing to be seen as an unwashed heathen, I informed him that I had taken care to wash it with hot water and soap. Still, he was unwavering in his position that what I was doing was foul beyond reproach. So, I inquired as to his dining activities.
"Do you ever go out to eat?" says I.
"Of course. Every once in a while," says he.
I asked, "Do you bring your own water glass with you?"
September 4th, 2011 - 09:37
Sounds like your coworker is a little out of touch with reality lol.
September 4th, 2011 - 10:35
A little, but he’s really just more naive. I like opening his eyes by making him look at things from another perspective.
August 7th, 2011 - 10:23
I went to a call center in Canada once where they did this; community coffee mugs. They assigned someone to wash the dishes every week or so; had a washing machine built into the break room. The center was on an island so the pollution from using disposable cups would have been untenable. It was a neat culture; I didn’t see a single “that’s gross” reaction.