^^^Yum! Sounds delicious!
Sad memory
In one of my college jobs, I worked in a clinic, where everyone took turns supplying the kitchen for the week.
We had a chalk board to fill in who was bringing filters, cream, tea, crackers, etc.
We had a large empty coffee can with a slit and a sign, “Please people, pitch in your $0.25 per cup”. Which people actually did or they added more.
When the Yuban was nearly empty, the office manager would then take the money out and buy a new container or two of coffee. I’m not a coffee drinker, and I didn’t have a big budget, so I would nibble on a cracker, now and then, and I’d try to bring in a coffee cake or something on occasion.
I noticed that one of the ladies seemed to always get stuck with refilling, cleaning, reorganizing the kitchen so, being new, I offered to help her one day. She told me not to bother because it was her “job”. I asked her how that was possible, since she was a busy nurses aide. She then told me that she always felt guilty about “sneaking” a cup of coffee without contributing any money. (She was the primary caretaker for her family. The husband was disabled, but had a part time job; her elderly parents lived with them as well as their 4 children. Her change was used for her bus money. ). So she kept the kitchen clean.
When she took a cup of coffee, she paid back by keeping the refrigerators and the counters clean and organized. She always restarted new pots and would announce when there were fresh pots of coffee. She pre-sliced the coffee and birthday cakes, set out the plastic ware and catering dishes for parties and took out the trash.
It kind of was an unwritten rule and the other employees seemed to know. People told me they intentionally added extra quarters for her. The office manager always seemed to have more than enough money to buy the Yuban containers.
So, I always try to remember her whenever I’ve had to change offices.
^^ poor dear. It sounds like she did a LOT more work than was needed to cover her 25 cent coffee drinks. After all, unless she was some kind of coffee crazy addict, how much was she drinking? 2 cups per day? Sounds like the other employees took advantage of her. At most her job should have been to make the coffee. The other chores seem like a crazy expectation.
I think she felt she was taking advantage of everyone else. She was a very nice lady and would maybe take a cup of coffee a day? I never saw her drinking anything, but I think she would have a twinkles or cinnamon roll. I think that’s why she felt so guilty. I don’t think she could afford those for her kids. I never really saw her take a lunch. She was such a proud lady, I don’t think you could get her to admit that.
I know she didn’t have the extra cash and the way people were always trying to share their lunches with her just kind of told me that something was up. “Maria, the deli made a really huge sandwich for me; I can only eat half, would you like the other half?” People would make bread and I would hear them say, “I made several banana loaves, please take some home to the kids.” These were very kind staff.
She did like my lasagna, and asked me for the recipe, so I made a pan for her with the recipe card. She cried when I put her name on it in the fridge and she found it.
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She did like my lasagna, and asked me for the recipe, so I made a pan for her with the recipe card. She cried when I put her name on it in the fridge and she found it.
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That brought tears to my eyes. what a sweet gesture you made.
My DH takes snacks into the office and they disappear before you blink an eye. We brought back a special treat from overseas and one person tool all but the one that was taken before they got their mitts on it Tacky!!
@jym626 Right! tacky!!! and selfish!
Why do some people mooch??
Some people do it because they can’t afford to buy these things for themselves or are trying to save money. I am not at all saying that makes it right, but that’s just what I’ve observed.
Stealing all the candy in a professional office doesn’t seem like a situation where the person cannot afford a meal.
I don’t mean they are poor or can’t afford a meal - I just mean that they are on a tight budget/trying to save and get excited for ‘free’ extras. Again, not talking about poverty here. That’s just what I’ve observed.
Well someone needs to teach them a lesson in manners. This was meant as a gift to share with THE OFFICE not ONE PERSON. They knew who it was from and who brought it in (and from where). Bad manners. The candy that was all taken by one person (except for the itty bit that was consumed before the office hog got their mits on it) was from overseas and not readily available in the US. Its not like taking some m&ms.
**eta-- another story, when DH was in another office he brought back filled chocolate truffles for the office. What he didn’t realize is that they were filled with alcohol!! It became readily apparent to the officemates who was eating all them up in one day!!
^^^ I agree. Even if someone is on a budget, he/she should assume that maybe others are as well, and only take a fair share.
I truly don’t understand chronic mooching.
There is that story going around on Facebook about the guy that kept stealing a coworker’s lunch, if I find the link, I’ll post it.
A woman had her lunches consistently being eaten by someone else, even with her name on her lunch. Her husband made the special lunches for her every day. When she’d go to get her lunch, however, she’d find an empty bag with her name.
She and her husband got fed up. It seems the husband was a really good cook and barbecue man. He was known around the woman’s office as making good barbecue, so he made some “special” wings one day, with some insanely hot ghost pepper accompanied by other hot spices. He tried a tiny bit of one, making sure it wouldn’t “kill” anyone, and put these in his wife’s “lunch”.
Before the lunch hour, the office was pierced with a scream followed by a loud series of noises coming from the bathroom. It seems someone had it coming out of both ends. The woman never had her lunch stolen again.
Honestly, it has to come to that to get some moochers to stop. I’ll try to find the link.
Here’s one link but I have to apologize for all of the ads. I’m not promoting anything, just the story
Aunt bea, that’s a good story. Now I know what to do with my peppers.
Ghost peppers are insanely hot. I think they register as the hottest pepper.
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the guy that kept stealing a coworker’s lunch,
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There you go! What is wrong with people! Who does this??
I think I would make two sandwiches and put them in a bag with a note:
One of these sandwiches is poisoned and only I know which one.
Good God. I can’t believe this is an issue. She used the last of a nearly empty carton (yuck) when a brand new carton was sitting there, and then she was honest about it. If she had opened your brand new carton I might say something but she didn’t. If it were me I’d just start bringing a bigger carton. Or say something like, “Oh, you like cream too? Maybe we can alternate bringing it in for ourselves. It’s all I can have on my special diet.” The way you tell the story it sounds like you just don’t like her for other reasons beyond the cream. Maybe you should figure that out and come to terms with it.
I don’t mind sharing IF people replace what they take, or don’t have the money.
BUT, Why do people find the need to take something that wouldn’t normally be there for them anyway?
When I go to all of the effort to prepare my lunches everyday and:
my salad is gone, my juice/soft drink is taken, and my leftover meatloaf and potatoes are gone, I get really angry.
Especially hard, when I can’t walk somewhere, within my lunch hour, to pick up a lunch. I don’t want to lose my parking place in the garage and have to pay to park somewhere far from the office. So I’m stuck buying a lunch and paying $10-$15 to park when I get back to the office. It sucks!
True story:
When I was in college, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, we had a new, shared kitchen on the hall (personal fridges weren’t allowed). Many hungry classmates had sticky fingers. So after a holiday my mom wanted to send me back to school with chicken soup.I told her it would get stolen. She smiled, put it in a plastic container and on the top she taped a piece of paper that said “urine sample”. No one touched it!! Gosh I miss my mom!