coffee

[a non-amos]

This afternoon I had to spend some "quality time" at work.  As long as I was there anyway, I used my down time to clean out the coffee equipment (this would have been easier with power tools, yes it was that bad).  I am tired of drinking bad coffee.  Even the Kona is only a shadow of what it could have been.

One of our new hires came up behind me while I was cleaning the coffee equipment.  He commented on the deplorable condition of his cubicle, and requested that I immediately attend to it.

Oh, I am most sorry, sir. You have my abject apologies.  ON WHAT PLANET DO YOU IMAGINE THAT I AM NOT A SENIOR ENGINEER?

Long story made short, I am bringing an interesting variety of coffee to work on Monday.  Good coffee made with incredibly filthy equipment will taste like the worst of all batches before it.  This afternoon the equipment was gleaming.  You had to wear sunglasses when you stepped into the room. 

On Monday I will bring in some Jamaican Blue Mountain from my private stock.

[pat]

It sounds as if he made a simple mistake. Quite an understandable one, too, given that you were cleaning the coffee machine. I hope your response wasn't as sarcastic as you made it sound.

[a non-amos]

Not really.  That was more along the lines of what I was thinking.

[birdy]

Think of how embarrassed the guy will be when he realizes his mistake.  Or did you already let him know?

[a non-amos]

As my previous post indicated, my first reaction was outrage.  I caught myself in time not to make a complete fool of myself.

I explained that I wanted to bring in some good coffee, but no matter how good the coffee is, it will taste terrible if it is made with filthy equipment.  This is not my job, I am just doing it because it needs to be done.

A few minutes later he came by to verify that I would clean his cubicle when I was finished.  I repeated that no, I am not the cleaning crew and I will not be doing this.

He came back a few minutes later, once again requesting a cubicle cleaning, and I politely mentioned that I am really a senior engineer of some 25 years, and that we are all expected to clean our own cubicles.

Later he came up behind me while I was doing "real" work.  He had intended to stress the importance of me cleaning his cubicle, but he was sidetracked.  He wanted to know how the cleaning crew got access to these systems.

Maybe I should have been less polite?  This afternoon he came around to complain about the state of his cubicle, threatening to tell my supervisor.

All of that is beside the point.  The coffee was really good.  The first batch was too strong (killed some of the flavor, still very good) but the second batch was spot on.  Many engineers had smiles, inside and out.

- A

[birdy]

Your next step:  find a few rags, fill a bottle of water at the tap, put them in a box, and leave them in his cubicle, with a note: "Sorry we forgot to give you your cubicle-cleaning supplies during your orientation."

Maybe he'll get the point - or maybe not - he seems to be pretty bad at hearing what others are saying.

[bobbi]

You have to love it when they threaten to tell the supervisor  - I got a pasting from one of my Meals on Wheels recipients because I was a little late one lunchtime. She rang the coordinator and demanded that my pay be docked to "teach me a lesson." My long-suffering 'supervisor' is used to dealing with those who have a touch of dementia. She replied that she would be happy to dock my pay by whatever percentage was suggested. Even 100% of nothing is not much of a sacrifice

[pat]

As my previous post indicated, my first reaction was outrage. 

Why were you outraged? There's nothing in appearance to distinguish an engineer, even a 'senior' one, so his mistake was understandable. I think I'd have been amused rather than outraged.

I'd like to have been a fly on the wall, though, to hear exactly how the conversation went if he actually asked you three times to clean his cubicle, two of them after being told what you really are (in no uncertain terms, I would imagine).

[Tom44]

You missed a chance here.  You should have replied "Sorry, sir, but [name of supervisor] told me to take you off the list.  You'll have to see him about this."

[Gaye Christine]

You missed a chance here.  You should have replied "Sorry, sir, but [name of supervisor] told me to take you off the list.  You'll have to see him about this."

Heh heh, good one