by Tom Lassiter, Membership Secretary
Remember all the times your grade school teachers admonished you that – “NEATNESS COUNTS”? And remember the book a few years back about how the author learned all he needed to know about life in kindergarten? Well it’s true! Most of life’s lessons are learned early in our development. We were all taught the importance of keeping things neat, clean, and tidy.
There is no doubt that we continue to this day to make value judgements based on those adages. We could take the worst criminals in the world and present them in neat clean clothing and people will accept them at face value (ask any attorney who practices criminal law). We could put the Pope in dirty smelly tattered clothing and people would cross the street to avoid him.
The same reactions are generated by clean versus dirty desks, houses, or offices. Clean and neat is good – and dirty and messy is bad.
So, you’re saying, “What is the point Tom?” Well my fine feathered HAL-PC member – the point is this. Have you been in the HAL-PC offices lately? Were you proud of the way YOUR offices looked. Were you impressed by the stains on the carpet from the slobs who spilled their drinks or pizza then, worse, didn’t even attempt to clean it up properly? Did you have to move the pizza box or other food residue in order to use a computer in one of the classrooms?
Wake up people! HAL-PC has no janitorial service to come in and clean up the messes left by thoughtless members. It has to be done by other members, and that isn’t fair. I don’t care to pick up my own stuff at my own house – but I do. I dang sure don’t enjoy picking up somebody else’s trash and clutter at the HAL-PC offices. I’m sure you don’t either; but, like the rest of us, you probably have (and thank you very much).
Attempts have been made to ban food and drink from the suite but that really isn’t practical as members have to spend long hours there. So how about this – if you consume food or drink there please dispose of it properly and clean up after yourself so others won’t have to. We’re not your maids.
If you see others appear to be leaving a mess or not cleaning up after themselves, kindly suggest they do so before departing. If they don’t respond, then you may think, but not say, what a lowlife they are –deserving of each and every foul and despicable act you can imagine upon them. Then go ahead and help clean up their mess, knowing someday they will get their just reward (and I hear it is HOT down there).
We should be able to invite our friends to come there and play, and join, without embarrassment at its appearance. It is “our little backyard clubhouse,” children – lets keep it cleaned up so we can play in it again tomorrow.
Tom Lassiter may be reached at jamesl@hal-pc.org.
E-mail me at webmaster@hal-pc.org with any comments you have and tell me what you want to see here.