Recently, there was a partner that left the firm that I work at. In the process of moving out, there was a lot of trash to be thrown away, and thus came the need for a giant 50-gallon trash can. Since our office consisted of only small trash cans at the corner of every desk, we had to ask the management of our building to let us "borrow" one. It's been two weeks since my ex-boss officially moved out, and the trash can still remains.
It started off that we left the trash can in his old office, but after a week we realized that the maintenance people were not going into the empty office, hence not picking up the trash can. So then our receptionist decides to wheel the trash can out into the hallway so that when the maintenance staff comes at night, they would notice it and take it away. The next morning we came into work, and the trash can was in that hallway, staring us down.
Now I understand that a law firm has to keep a certain decor, it has to look presentable, and this trash can was quite an eye sore. Perhaps if it had been bedazzled and covered with luscious red silk instead of being giant, plastic and the color of a cloud during a torrential rainstorm, people would not have cared of its presence so much. Alas, it was hideous.
It did not bother me either way where the trash can was located. I sit in my office all day as it is. However, a partner of the firm walked by, saw the trash can, moved it back into the empty office, and decided to stop on his way back to his office and tell me about the trash can. He spent a good 5 minutes complaining about the positioning of the trash can and how it should be moved to the side and out of sight. I just looked back, smiled and nodded politely. In my head I was thinking, "Why the hell are you telling me about a damn trash can? I have work to do. You should be working and billing clients at your ridiculous $425 hourly rate. You wasted five minutes complaining about a trash can, that's like 35 dollars, I could have gotten a week's worth of Starbucks...Idiot."
As if that wasn't enough, this morning our receptionist noticed the trash can had not been taken away and it had been pushed back into the empty office. Again, she wheeled it out in the hallway for the maintenance people to notice and take away at the end of the day. An associate walks down the hallway, looks at the trash can, wheels it back into the empty office and decides to stop by my desk and complain about this trash can. Never in my life has an inanimate object caused me so much inconvenience. The guy went on for like 10 minutes about why the trash can should not be placed in the hallway, how it was an eye sore, how we should move it out at the end of the day, etc etc. Seriously people??? Do you not have anything better to do with your time than to complain to me about a freaking trash can? Ridiculous.
Clearly, this whole dilemma has created a need for me to vent. If this was a file I was sending around, I'm sure you Mac users would throw it in your...indeed...your trash. As for you psuedo-eco-friendly Windows users, you would drag this into your recycle bin.
I suppose that is all for now. I do have some sort of satisfaction knowing that you have wasted your time reading this.
It started off that we left the trash can in his old office, but after a week we realized that the maintenance people were not going into the empty office, hence not picking up the trash can. So then our receptionist decides to wheel the trash can out into the hallway so that when the maintenance staff comes at night, they would notice it and take it away. The next morning we came into work, and the trash can was in that hallway, staring us down.
Now I understand that a law firm has to keep a certain decor, it has to look presentable, and this trash can was quite an eye sore. Perhaps if it had been bedazzled and covered with luscious red silk instead of being giant, plastic and the color of a cloud during a torrential rainstorm, people would not have cared of its presence so much. Alas, it was hideous.
It did not bother me either way where the trash can was located. I sit in my office all day as it is. However, a partner of the firm walked by, saw the trash can, moved it back into the empty office, and decided to stop on his way back to his office and tell me about the trash can. He spent a good 5 minutes complaining about the positioning of the trash can and how it should be moved to the side and out of sight. I just looked back, smiled and nodded politely. In my head I was thinking, "Why the hell are you telling me about a damn trash can? I have work to do. You should be working and billing clients at your ridiculous $425 hourly rate. You wasted five minutes complaining about a trash can, that's like 35 dollars, I could have gotten a week's worth of Starbucks...Idiot."
As if that wasn't enough, this morning our receptionist noticed the trash can had not been taken away and it had been pushed back into the empty office. Again, she wheeled it out in the hallway for the maintenance people to notice and take away at the end of the day. An associate walks down the hallway, looks at the trash can, wheels it back into the empty office and decides to stop by my desk and complain about this trash can. Never in my life has an inanimate object caused me so much inconvenience. The guy went on for like 10 minutes about why the trash can should not be placed in the hallway, how it was an eye sore, how we should move it out at the end of the day, etc etc. Seriously people??? Do you not have anything better to do with your time than to complain to me about a freaking trash can? Ridiculous.
Clearly, this whole dilemma has created a need for me to vent. If this was a file I was sending around, I'm sure you Mac users would throw it in your...indeed...your trash. As for you psuedo-eco-friendly Windows users, you would drag this into your recycle bin.
I suppose that is all for now. I do have some sort of satisfaction knowing that you have wasted your time reading this.
The real question is why move it and THEN complain. Sholdn't the complain be proceeded by the movement, and not the other way around?
ReplyDeleteI wonder how the trash can feels about all this!
ReplyDeletethe trash can is indeed the victim here...its being neglected and pushed around too much...u might need to take it to therapy soon.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was clear that I was the victim in this story since it was insufferable to hear someone explain the science behind the placement of a trash can and I had to listen to it twice! The trash can is an inanimate object. It has no feelings, and if it does, then I'm sure it's having a blast being wheeled up and down the hallway. Maybe I'll go give it a spin before I leave today to cheer it up.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI think this would be a good social experiment to try out. Just have some random object obscuring the daily tasks of the people in your office and see how it affects them. Hehehe "You wasted five minutes complaining about a trash can, that's like 35 dollars, I could have gotten a week's worth of Starbucks...Idiot."
ReplyDeleteI don't think working in a law firm seems all that enjoyable...maybe people need something to talk about instead of lawfirming all the time...like a trash can
I'll send over a bedazzler for your birthday