“When I first moved to Chicago,” says Mike, “my grandfather told me about parking in the winter. One would dig out a spot and insert a chair, reserving the spot for your trouble.” One of his neighbors, it seems, didn’t get the benefit of such grandfatherly wisdom.

Neither, apparently, did Chris…who made the mistake of parking [...]

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“Our department head thought we should be be bringing in doughnuts more often,” says our anonymous submitter in Illinois. One of the department’s “severely underpaid” underlings, meanwhile, thought otherwise.

UPDATE: For those of you asking “But where’s the ridiculous clip art?!” I bring you this rather dashing toreador/sheriff (as spotted by Mel in the break room [...]

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“I live in a condominium building that is popular with the elderly,” writes our submitter from the Chicagoland area. Recently, he says, the building’s board of managers put copies of this note in everyone’s mailboxes and posted it in the lobby (so guests wouldn’t be spared the details, either.)
Adds our submitter: “I don’t know what’s [...]

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Our anonymous submitter from Chicago says she and her four siblings recently received this somewhat cryptic e-mail from dear old dad.
Explains A: “The initials refer to our names (and spouses’ names, where applicable). Dad lives in West Bloomfield. I’m pretty sure it means he wants us to visit?”

related: love, Dad

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Writes Michael in Chicago: “Apparently, some of our neighbors had a problem with us being naked in our apartment.” Without knowing any other details of this situation, I’d have to say:
a) “Be more private with yourself” is a phrase I am going to try to work into future conversations whenever possible.
b) Michael, while I 100% [...]

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Writes Katrina in Illinois: “I work in furniture, and due to the economy/the real estate crash, the company has been struggling and a lot of employees have been making a lot less money.  This little morale booster was found on the break room bulletin board — right beside the letter notifying us that the company [...]

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This note — spotted by Erik in a break room at Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism — takes me back to my days as a bright-eyed young reporter cheerfully slaving away at my college daily, where the grizzled old alumni “mentors” working at the Times or the Globe always seemed to have the same advice:  [...]

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“One morning last summer,” writes Stephanie in Illinois, “my brother and I arrived at the company where we worked to find these notes posted to the candy vending machine. (Mind you, it was 8:45 a.m.) Apparently, the man who fills the vending machines — a.k.a ‘Mr. Candyman’ — had failed to restock the machine for [...]

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jen says this liquor store in chicago’s lincoln square is completely plastered with notes like these, but — vexingly enough — the guy at the register was such a hawk she was only able to snap a few photos. happily, i’d say jen scored a hat trick for insolence with these three.

related: free markets, free [...]

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i’d say this whiteboard notice — from a student at northwestern university in evanston, illinois — is neck-and-neck with this for “most unnecessary and inappropriate analogy ever.”

‘plex, by the way, refers to (in the words of our anonymous submitter, the note’s recipient) a northwestern residence hall, foster walker complex, “that’s full of disinterested seniors and [...]

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“As a college student used to her freedom, I’m sometimes gone for days at a time when I’m home for the summer,” explains Jesse from Gurnee, Illinois, admitting that during this time, her betta fish, Freddie Mercury, tends to go unfed.
“My 14-year old-sister has shown him mercy a a few times,” Jesse says, and admirably, [...]

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our anonymous submitter sneakily snapped a photo of the whiteboard at a friend’s house in urbana, illinois.

related: oh sweetie, i love it when you talk dirty!

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given the highly intellectual discussions this site’s commenters have become known for, it seems safe to assume that the question “how are we to judge poetry?” is one that you, dear reader, have no doubt pondered on many an occasion, along with other more academic concerns such as the proper resting state of the toilet [...]

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kendall was waiting for her peach perfection at the jamba juice in elmhurst, illinois when she spotted this note on the napkin-holder. writes kendall: “i guess it’s their passive-aggressive way of saying, ‘take fewer napkins, a**hole!’”

UPDATE 10/12/09: a copycat is on the loose in milwaukee, wisconsin! (as spotted by paul in nebraska)

a tip for would-be [...]

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ashley in chicago says her roommates are the king and queen of passive-aggressive notes. (“if they ever found this site, they’d think it was a self help group,” she says.) the latest example:

ashley’s still fuming over this one. “i mean, come on just throw it away yourself! you’re probably exerting more energy writing the email [...]

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Thanks to Sarah for capturing this delicious little slice of life from her Christian college in Illinois. (Delicious like a quart of Starbucks Coffee Almond Fudge, not one measly little low-fat Frappucino bar.)

related: but He took the wheel

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one loverly lady in illinois found this note on the door of her dorm room after a long day of classes. (the identity of the note-leaver is still a mystery, as is the meaning of the phrase “dollar sign flower slams easily.”)

adds our submitter: “when we had our next floor meeting, i did the not-so-passive [...]

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attention: corporate emergency in the chicagoland area!

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says kristi in chicago: “this was from our receptionist to the ENTIRE office except, for some reason, me (thanks to my other co-worker for forwarding it and including me in the fun). it’s her job to order supplies and put away deliveries. someone signed for a delivery of paper and apparently the receptionist doesn’t like [...]

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Our anonymous submitter lives in a 30-story condo building in Chicago. Her father works in the same building, and received this note in the suggestion box.
“I found the letter slipped under my door one day,” she says. “My dad had put it there after reading it with his boss. I’m sure he’s damn proud of [...]

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Thanks to Sarah at Greenville College (a Christian school in Illinois) and  James in Beaumont, Texas.

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