Please remember to place lids on all cups before leaving the pantry area
That’s how the sign above the sink (in the office where I worked this week) reads. I ended up being really thirsty all week because of that sign.
No way would it have been worth the effort to comply with the sign and put a cap on ALL of the cups in the pantry before leaving. I only want one drink – and it would take at least twenty minutes to put lids on all the cups. Plus, I was pretty sure that I’d end up annoying my co-workers who then would have to remove the lid before they could get a drink.
More proof that either most signs are made-up (to watch the ensuing fun) or someone really silly still has employment 😉
just a couple of thoughts….(i) I think that you would have saved your co-workers the hassle of having to individually select a cup and a lid. I like pre-packaged and not assembly required. Perhaps they should have the person stocking the cups to put lids with each rather than placing the burden on an unsuspecting office worker and (ii) I generally like the idea of lids on things. I do not want other people’s stuff getting in, on or near my stuff. Keep lids on everyone’s stuff and we are a happier and cleaner world…..maybe this belongs with another post.
I guess the sign wasn’t “Literal Man” Proof now was it.
I would tend to agree with Shefaly. I think there exist people who are paid to write such silly signs – for our amusement! It’s a global phenomenon. They are everywhere!
And Blogosphere is a more fun place thanks to them!
Cheers,
Quirky Indian
http://quirkyindian.wordpress.com
@ Shefaly and Quirky Indian
I agree, the sign is a little silly and I got a kick out of it. Always glad when I find one that I can share online. And let me say that if people got paid for the silly signs BECAUSE they were silly, I’d definitely want that job!
@ Mark
I also like the idea of lids on things, but in this particular instance the lids have two strikes against them…(1) they have no drinking spout / hole of any kind, so you have to remove the lid entirely when you want to drink and (2) the lids are all piles up in a plastic tray that certainly hasn’t been washed in years and the lids themselves are not separable without touching both your lid and several others….so I stay away from these lids and just carry my drink carefully!
@ Shane
Thanks for stopping by and for the comments. While I agree that reading this sign the way I did is definitely very literal, I tend to think “what’s the point of the sign if it doesn’t actually say what you mean to say?” In this case the sign was even professionally made (hard plastic sign, not just printed out), so I think it would have been worth someone’s time to think it out a little more.
@ Liam:
On “what’s the point of the sign if it doesn’t actually say what you mean to say?”:
You mean like those packets of cashew, that say “Contains nuts”? 😉
@ Shefaly
Yes! Like “Contains Nuts” on a cashew packet, there is an entire additional category of signs that are so obvious that you feel like your precious time has been wasted when you finish reading them. Although, I imagine some of the absurdly obvious verbiage on packaging materials can be blamed on the need to protect oneself from the frivolous litigation that western society is rife with.