OCD, yeah you know me

Wadsbone and I chose to eat at Perkins tonight after looking at bikes, and it reminded me of a recent Perkins faux pas.

So, I’m at Perkins a few weeks ago, because my good friends Angie and Chris were in town, and this was the brunch that sent them on their way. We’re wrapping up, and I go to the women’s room before we all leave.

My actual personal experience with the terlet was average, but what happened next left me embarrassed and giggling for a few hours. I didn’t want to miss Angie and Chris’ exit, so I was rushing. I went to the sink to wash my hands, where another woman was also performing ablution. As I finished, I went over to the paper towel dispenser. There was only one dispenser, and apparently the other woman had pushed the little lever to give herself a foot and a half of paper towel before she washed her hands. In my rush, I didn’t let the situation (excuse the pun) sink in, and in my rush, decided the best course of action was to rip off the amount of paper towel I needed (enough to not have soaking wet hands that leave prints on my friends’ backs) and leave the rest.

As I got back to the table, the situation became clear. This woman hand purposely chosen to dispense the paper towel length she needed before washing her hands so she wouldn’t have to touch the lever with her newly-clean hand. It makes perfect sense, especially if you’re a surgeon or fearful of germs, and I totally ruined her day. I left a soggy half of her desired amount of paper towel and fled the scene.

As I look back, I’m not sure what I could have done differently (other than wait for her to finish scrubbing her hands for the full 30 seconds) to avoid the situation. I didn’t want soppy hands for the farewell, and I believe I was wearing clothing that weren’t up for impromptu wicking.

Now, when I think about it I giggle and feel kind of bad.