Do your part

So the first week of my new job has come to an end. It is a lot of work and also a lot of fun. I have met some wonderful people, and like in all jobs, I have wondered about the scheduling. Once school starts in a week, I expect the level of work will increase exponentially, which will be fun too.

Some may not know, but I am a dishwasher at the dorm dining hall at Montana State University. I thought it might be a better food job because I’m surrounded by college students, but, there was one thing I forgot. College kids have been living with their parents all their life which means there are certain life skills they haven’t learned.

I don’t think any college kids are reading my blog (shout out if you are), but many of us may have control over a child and can teach them useful life skills.

I have a favor to ask.

Please teach all the children in your life to scrape their plates when they put them in the kitchen. We have three compost bins directly below where the students are supposed to place their dishes. It clearly states that they should deposit food and napkins in these bins. It is amazing the number of plates that come to the dish room with food piled high and the napkin perched on top like they are hiding everything they didn’t eat.

My job is to clean dishes, but my job is also to clean about 800 dishes in a very short amount of time. Having to deal with piles of food slows everything down. I can only assume that these students were never taught how to scrape their plates at home, so they don’t do it now that they are on their own.

If everyone learned this simple task, my job would be that much more fun, and I could become an even faster dishwasher.

Let’s all do our part—many thanks.