We have an office coffee pot that gets used by just about everyone in the area. Donate a quarter and you can have a cup of Jo.

In the past, the state provided Styrofoam cups for the coffee, but with the budget crunch these are no longer available. So, to compensate for the lack of Styrofoam cups, some of our vendors have provided us with ceramic cups bearing their logos. Plus, individual staff members have donate old cups from their home. The up shot of this is that we now have a variety of coffee cups sitting by the coffee pot.

In theory, if you want a cup of coffee, you just grab one of the cups and help your self. However, since no one has been designated as the cleaner of the cups, you are best off taking your selected cup down to the bathroom and washing it yourself.

This system seems to work OK except when someone accidentally sets their favorite personal coffee cup down by the coffee pot while they are waiting for the pot to brew. They might return to the pot to fill their cup only to discover that it is gone.

And if they are lucky, they will find their cup right away. But, in all likelihood, they spend the rest of the day trying to find their coffee cup. Sometimes, cups have disappeared for over a week.

So, if you are really attached to a particular coffee cup, it is best to take a digital picture of it so that you can print in on a ‘missing cup’ poster should it become lost.