One week down at the new job

Let’s be honest, when I first accepted this job I was a little concerned that I’d be working with a bunch of dirty hippies (I know, I know, denying my Berkeley roots). I mean, of course I care about the environment as much as anyone, but when I hear the word “environmentalists,” my mind conjures up images of hairy-armpitted tree-huggers squatting in their Birkenstocks to pick up pieces of garbage off the road and replace it with a tree seed.

Perhaps I was being narrow-minded.

Now I realize that there are a lot of sustainable things I already do that help me to fit right in. Riding my bike to work every morning, for example. At past companies, I’d lock my bike away in the parking lot and unroll my right pant leg as soon as I got in the elevator. Here I take my bike right into the office and hang it on the wall next to the 20 other bikes that carry my coworkers to work everyday. At past jobs, I’d be “that girl with the metal water bottle” as I carried it back and forth to the water cooler to try and get in my 2-3 daily liters. Here, I have to label my SIGG with my name because everyone else has one too.

On the other hand, there are some policies here that will take some getting used to.

Take the bathroom, for example. Two of the stalls are labeled “No mellow yellow – pee flushing mandatory.” And the last is labeled “Hippy stall – pee flushing optional.” Other oddities include the company-wide “sit in bliss meditation every Thursday at noon. I’m not going into details about that one because I don’t quite get it yet myself. Then there is the issue that I’m terrified to head to the corner Starbucks to get my afternoon chai latte. Not because of the evil corporateness that Starbucks represents, but because I’m scared of the sneers I’ll get if I bring a disposable paper cup into the office.

Yes, this job's gonna take some getting used to. Must buy unbranded reusable metal coffee mug ASAP.