"OY!" I called, gesturing for him to come over. He started my way, and I started his, and when we got close enough, he said, "How are you doing?"
"Just fine," I answered. "How are you?"
"Good," he said, extending his hand, then pulling it back quickly. "I can't shake your hand."
"That's kind of what I wanted to speak to you about," I replied. "We've got this whole global pandemic thing going on, and I was wondering, in the light of that, could we possible get some soap dispensers in the bathrooms?"
"Some what?"
"Soap dispensers," I repeated.
He kind of did a double take, and asked, "What do you have in there now?"
"A sort of rack, with a baggie of soap tied into place with a garbage bag."
He looked a bit befuddled, so I said, "Come on, I'll show you," and I carried him to the bathroom.
That's an old Southern expression. I didn't literally pick the man up and tote him. Which is another old Southern expression. I think. Maybe folks up North also tote things. I don't really know. Any of my Northern friends want to chime in on that?
Anyway, however I got him there, I took New Boss to the bathroom, and after checking to see that no one was in there doing her business, I took him inside and gestured to the --- whatever they are, "That's what we have."
As he stood there looking flabbergasted, I casually mentioned, "Oh, and the toilet paper holders are all broken, too."
He said, "I'll get to the toilet paper holders, but first, I'm going to get you some soap dispensers. This is unacceptable."
So, maybe, just maybe, we might have functional bathrooms sometime in the near future. That's something we haven't had in ages.
As I left the bathroom, I was greeted with hoards of cheering workers who hoisted me onto their shoulders, and paraded me through the plant while other workers tossed roses to me.
FYI, if you're going to toss roses, please, please, please pick the thorns off of them first.
OK, OK, that didn't really happen, but I did have several coworkers come and thank me for bringing that to his attention.
Sometime later, I was being nosy and found a memo on Group Leader Shark's desk regarding the company response to coronavirus. It appears they don't intend to shut us down -- at least, not at this time. The memo simply outlined procedures to follow if you do get sick. Stay home, be sure to call in, blah blah blah. Oh, and if you want to collect any form of sick pay, they're going to require proof of a positive test. Which means, even if you have mild symptoms and don't really need medical attention, you still have to go to the doctor -- exposing every one in the office, then bring the paper to the H.R. department -- exposing everyone at work.
Yeah, that's going to help a lot.
Oh, and it also said if you think you've been exposed and want to self - quarantine, you won't get paid, and you are responsible for arranging your leave of absence beforehand. Which means you need to come in to H.R. and fill out your paperwork -- exposing everyone in the plant...and so on and so forth. Sometimes, I just don't understand their logic.
I told a coworker about what I'd seen, and added, "I wouldn't mind a 2 week vacation if I was getting paid for it." I doubt they will do that, though. That would show they care about their work force.
If it comes down to it, I've still got some vacation days left. Plus, I've got plenty of toilet paper, and food. I'm not stockpiling food. I just buy stuff, thinking I'm going to make something, then don't get around to it. For instance, I bought some gizzards to make gizzards and rice. They're still in the freezer. I bought liver to make liver and onions. It's still in the freezer. I bought imitation crab meat to make a big old pasta salad. It's still in the freezer. I bought some clam chowder, because I had a hankering. It's still in the cabinet...And so on, and so forth...
The only thing I'd be missing is fresh produce and milk. It'd be tough, but I can live without those for a couple of weeks.
Plus, I've got HULU and Prime, my piano, plenty of books, and my knitting. I'll be fine.
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