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The Clean Section

June 12th, 2013 · 42 comments

The attack:

And the riposte:

FILED UNDER: dishes · London · meta · rebuttals · roommates

42 responses so far ↓

#1 JK

The second person took ‘life’s a picnic’ both literally and figuratively.

Jun 12, 2013 at 9:54 pm rating: 90

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#2 Jaylemieux

No, notes are not more annoying than unsanitary eating conditions. Clean or move to the street.

Jun 12, 2013 at 9:54 pm rating: 90

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- #2.1 The Elf
  
  Are we talking really unsanitary or what a germaphobe would call unsanitary. Because those plates look pretty clean to me.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 6:50 am rating: 90
- #2.2 The Elf
  
  Wait, I see the yellow blotch on one now. That’s minor enough to be a common not-quite-paying-attention unloading dishwasher error. Two swipes with a sponge and problem is resolved.
  
  I’m still going with this isn’t that big of a deal.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 6:52 am rating: 90
- #2.3 kermit
  
  If your dishwasher is a fetching your Spaniard named Antonio, I can understand being upset at this oversight and giving him a stern and vigorous tongue lashing.
  
  However if your dishwasher is a metal box named Maytag, forgive a little.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 11:14 am rating: 90
- #2.4 it's naptime
  
  It’s more likely that it’s a fetching young spaniel.
  
  And normally they’re for “rinsing” the dishes before they go in the dishwasher.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 2:04 pm rating: 90
- #2.5 kermit
  
  Why must you mercilessly trample upon my fantasy of having Antonio Banderas come to wash my dishes? Does your cruelty know no bounds?
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 4:08 pm rating: 90
- #2.6 it's naptime
  
  So sorry. I did not intend any trampling.
  Antonio was fetching back in his Desperado days. Now I prefer to see him in his talking bee commercials and shrek movies.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 9:56 pm rating: 90
- #2.7 Raichu
  
  Seriously? Germaphobe? If dishes haven’t been washed after use they’re dirty. Doesn’t matter if they look like they’ve been bathed in mud or just have one bit of food. They need to be washed all the way. It doesn’t take that long.
  
  Jun 15, 2013 at 8:34 pm rating: 90
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#3 Sir Puke

Being a former dishwasher, this is splitting hairs.
The volume of dishes moving through the kitchen is tremendous. If there is a problem with the dishes coming out dirty, it was the result of faulty equipment. This was my experience in that realm.

Jun 12, 2013 at 10:05 pm rating: 90

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- #3.1 Jessica
  
  You realize that by “equipment” you likely mean “people,” right? If this had to do with a dishwasher (appliance), the note would be about the dishwasher. “Please wash the dishes properly” wasn’t a request to an appliance, it was a request to a person.
  
  Jun 12, 2013 at 11:52 pm rating: 90
- #3.2 Sir Puke
  
  No.
  I am talking about the equipment the dishwashers use.
  The only time I had this problem due to the machines = Service calls.
  The first note writer is way off base.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 12:36 am rating: 90
- #3.3 Hedera
  
  Well, I have a friend who packs her fancy, high-end dishwasher haphazardly and over capacity, leaving very little space for water to flow through — most items nestled together, trapping food.
  
  It’s rare that find any plate, bowl, glass, or utensil without at least a little food stuck to it. Finding a dish that is completely disgusting is common.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 1:52 am rating: 90
- #3.4 FeRD
  
  So, “If the equipment is in good working order, it will not be possible for a dishwasher to improperly clean a plate”? That’s your argument, Sir Puke? Seems like kind of a reach, to me.
  
  Then again, I feel like I’m missing a lot of the background here. Like how we know this is even a commercial setting. Or an environment where “the volume of dishes moving through the kitchen is tremendous.”
  
  As with our gay airtraveler in the luggage tag post, people sure do glean an awful lot about the situations and participants in these, based on the no data provided.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 3:53 am rating: 90
- #3.5 Tesselara
  
  Word, FeRD.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 8:29 am rating: 90
- #3.6 Raichu
  
  I’ve been a dishwasher too. All the dishes are sanitized and rarely does a spot of food get through. At home, washing a low volume of dishes in the sink, there’s no excuse for putting dirty dishes where the clean ones belong.
  
  Jun 15, 2013 at 8:41 pm rating: 90
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#4 Guy Paul

I agree with the responder. This isn’t the kind of thing to leave a note about. Nobody puts dirty dishes away intentionally, so a verbal is a gentler way of asking them to pay attention to what they’re doing/not doing.
Now, there’s hurt feelings, and – quite possibly – dirty dishes put away on purpose.

Jun 13, 2013 at 4:02 am rating: 90

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- #4.1 H for Toy
  
  I have to agree with you. Sure, dirty dishes in the cupboard need to be addressed, but a quick, “Hey, did you realize a couple plates you put away weren’t completely clean?” would work much better than a nasty note. Of course, without snarky, passive-aggressive roommates, we wouldn’t have any fun
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 6:45 am rating: 90
- #4.2 The Elf
  
  Exactly. Or a little bit about how the dishwasher just doesn’t perform up to snuff and you need to check before you put them away. But you do it in person rather than with a note.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 6:51 am rating: 90
- #4.3 Tom
  
  Well, we don’t know if “A” knows who did it to go talk to them. Could be an office I suppose. Would you call a meeting to try and single out the person who doesn’t wash the plates well? I probably would not.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 11:57 am rating: 90
- #4.4 Maria
  
  My boyfriend washes the dishes at the sink and sometimes he leaves stains on them. At first I didn’t mind at all but at some point it became annoying. Just take a look at the damn thing before you put it away. If this is the case here, I understand the note although I prefer yelling and name-calling.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 2:40 pm rating: 90
- #4.5 Lil'
  
  Maria, approach that problem carefully. You don’t realize how fortunate you are to have a man who washes the dishes. My birthday was this week, and my husband was kind enough to give me the night off from washing the dishes…Yeah, he was completely OK with me leaving them until the next day. In his defense, he does work two jobs and he’s beat, but man, I would love a night off from kitchen duty once in a while.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 3:00 pm rating: 90
- #4.6 rushgirl2112
  
  It used to be my ex’s job to wash the dishes, and I sure as hell didn’t consider myself “fortunate.” It was only fair, considering that I was cooking all the meals. I’m a good cook, he can’t cook, I hate washing dishes, he was cool with washing dishes. Seemed logical.
  
  Men OR women who do their fair share of chores are only doing what ought to be expected. Just because it’s a man doing it doesn’t mean he deserves any extra appreciation or coddling. Why would it?
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 8:30 pm rating: 90
- #4.7 Lil'
  
  Glad that worked out for you. Oh, wait…never mind.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 9:15 pm rating: 90
- #4.8 Lil'
  
  rush, I apologize for that snarky remark. It wasn’t fair to say. I should have said that everyone deserves appreciation for what they do to keep the house together. It’s nice if it’s divided evenly, but more often than not, the housework is the on the woman’s shoulders. With that said, when your husband/boyfriend steps up and shares the responsibility with you, I think it is worthy of a little extra appreciation and a little less criticism if he doesn’t do it perfectly.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 10:37 pm rating: 90
- #4.9 pooham
  
  I’m on rushgirl’s team on this one. My family was always telling me what a great guy my ex was and how I lucky I was to have him b/c he helped with the dishes, cooking, shopping and laundry and helped out with the kids. They acted like he deserved a big gold star. I always thought, “What’s the big deal? Why are they gushing about him doing things to help his family?”
  
  Jun 14, 2013 at 10:57 am rating: 90
- #4.10 L
  
  Disagree a bit. My mother is no longer allowed to do dishes because she used to do them drunk and then I’d find food chunks all over them. It was disgusting. And she has put dirty dishes back in the cupboard because, “they were barely used,” never mind that they have grease and crumbs on them.
  
  Jun 14, 2013 at 2:41 pm rating: 90
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#5 Littlest Hobo

I’d get a dirty dish, place it next to the clean dish and leave another PAN saying “Now THAT is dirty, compare and contrast. Then STFU!”

Jun 13, 2013 at 6:07 am rating: 90

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#6 Riposter

Hello. This was me, I left the second set of notes. To be honest, I thought it would make note-leaver no.1 laugh about the ridiculousness of leaving notes. No one leaves dirty dishes on purpose. There were the tiniest specks on there. I had to hold one up to my face to find what was wrong. It’s utterly insane. We’re clean housemates and this happens all the time. To the person who says ‘be clean and move to the street’ I would say ‘be mentally stable or piss off’.

Jun 13, 2013 at 6:15 am rating: 90

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#7 Riposter

I also love that people assume this was a commercial setting. No. I LIVE IN THIS HELL.

Jun 13, 2013 at 6:16 am rating: 90

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- #7.1 H for Toy
  
  Maybe the red checked tablecloth made everyone assume this was a cozy little bistro.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 6:48 am rating: 90
- #7.2 Tom
  
  Well, if you know they’re picky about the plates, and it grinds your gears when they mention it…
  
  Just wash the plates really well. They’re happy, you don’t hear a word from them about it, and everything’s fine and dandy.
  
  Jun 13, 2013 at 11:59 am rating: 90
- #7.3 Tom
  
  Also, I might mention that it’s a lot easier to clean dishes while the residue is still “fresh”, so to speak. Wait a day and the food bits are all crusty? Enjoy scrubbing each dish for 3 whole minutes and a higher probability of specks left behind.
  
  Jun 14, 2013 at 10:35 am rating: 90
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#8 Riposter

Alas, we are just big fans of kitsch tableware in our peaceful home.

Jun 13, 2013 at 6:50 am rating: 90

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#9 Lil'

It’s hard to take a side on this one without more information. Pulling a dirty plate out of the cabinet occasionally is no big deal, but it would bother me if this was a frequent occurrence. However, when you share a house with roommates, you still have to to learn to handle things in a less abrasive manner. A “by the way” when you’re all hanging out is far less abrasive than a pissy note. Even if you are the roommate who does the dishes perfectly, there are still things about you that the other roommates have to deal with. Living with another person is always work.

Jun 13, 2013 at 7:27 am rating: 90

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- #9.1 FeRD
  
  What, are you saying it’s not work writing all of those little passive-aggressive Post-Its? That’s clearly someone putting in the effort! [/sarcasm]
  
  Jun 14, 2013 at 2:59 pm rating: 90
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#10 pooham

I’m happy when the dishes get done AND put away!

Jun 13, 2013 at 10:49 am rating: 90

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#11 redheadwglasses

I never get a dish or glass from my cabinets and find that it is dirty. I wash my dishes properly. It’s a very easy household task.

Jun 13, 2013 at 7:46 pm rating: 90

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#12 LI

I leave notes like this for a co-worker in our log book at work frequently because he does not seem to understand that the machine in our kitchen is a sanitizer, not a dishwasher. It rinses and sanitizes. It does not actually do any work remotely close to a household dishwasher. The dishes need to be washed by hand and then run through the machine. Because it is for commercial food prep or service, the dishes really do have to be spotless.
At home, if I find a dish that isn’t clean, I just sigh, put it over in the “dirty” pile, and remind myself that at least my husband is trying.

Jun 15, 2013 at 3:36 am rating: 90

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#13 Raichu

They’re both being dumb. Dirty dishes are a really bad reason to write a note unless you’ve already tried talking about it face-to-face (doubtful in this case). However, PA notes are NOT more annoying than dirty dishes being where clean dishes should. Stop blame-shifting and clean up after yourself.

Jun 15, 2013 at 8:43 pm rating: 90

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- #13.1 Riposter
  
  Dishes having specks on them (NOT dirty) happens incredibly rarely. The notes are being left all the time about anal stuff. Try living with someone like this and then tell me I’m being dumb.
  
  Jun 19, 2013 at 5:50 am rating: 90
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#14 kacky

If you’re checking plates, you’ll check them no matter what, so who cares if you’re right once in a while. Control freaks

Jun 23, 2013 at 11:58 am rating: 90

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