Mar 2, 2009
It took discipline at McDonald’s yesterday to only supply my tray with two napkins.
Does anyone else feel compelled to grab napkins by the handful at fast food joints despite only ever using one or two?
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good work, only 2.
i try to grab a few, then go back if i need to. i figure the extra walking will offset biggie sizing the fries…
Matt
Christian2.0
It is a dad thing. I went to a restaurant alone and grabbed extras then laughed at myself and put them back. You just know you’re going to need them for the kids!
Yeah, I’m with Tim on this one. I’m so used to grabbing a whole handful for the kids that when it’s just me it takes a serious mental effort to grab only two or three.
maybe it’s the kid thing, but I tend to have serious ketchup issues when I’m at McDonald’s. It finds it’s way onto my sleeve no matter how precise I try to be with that little dipping cup and my fries.
Our kid’s not old enough to eat on his own yet so I don’t know yet if that’s a parent thing to do but *I* need a bunch of napkins. I’m not a sloppy eater but I do like to wipe my fingers clean A LOT. (Chipotle, anyone?)
My sister only needs one napkin EVER. But then again she can take iron pills on an empty stomach so clearly she’s got some kind of superpowers there or something. ;o)
I can’t believe you go to Maccy Dee’s.
In Subway they give you one napkin. There’s no temptation therefore to take more. Plus it tastes so much better!
I have no kids and still feel compelled to grab a handful of napkins. I used to grab a bunch to keep in my car, but then I thought that might be stealing. Is it stealing to grab a handful of napkins, only use 1 or 2, and take the rest with you? I mean, they don’t charge for napkins, so does it matter how many you take? I really want to know.
My grandfather would always grab a ton of napkins from McDonalds (and, if I remember right, most other fast food places). He was a child of the Depression, so was very frugal . . . plus, he’d take more if he thought they were ripping him off! I remember it taking us months to get through one of his napkin piles, which he had taken because McDonalds had charged him too much for milkshakes.
Yep, plus a few straws even though i only use 1.
Yes. Expect at Jimmy John’s. They seem to always keep the napkins right behind the counter where you pick up your sandwich, and there’s usually someone standing there.
Not only do I feel compelled to grab a handful, I usually need to use that many!
Mike has renamed the “Big and Tasty” the “Big and Messy”.
Our daughter, Tabitha, renamed it the “Big and Nasty”.
The stealing issue gets rather gray — how many extra is too many? -The highest ethic in our times tends to be environmental. So if you take them, use them. Don’t throw out the extras.
My roommate and I grab a whole bunch when we take our food to go and use them as a napkin supply at home. That often leads to me grabbing a couple too many if we are eating there, but I am messy, so I use a good amount
I take a bunch, but then I use them. Sometimes I have a few left over, but 1 or 2 doesn’t do it for me. I even have to ask for extras at Subway since a meatball sub cannot be eaten without at least 3-4 napkins, usually more.
Thanks, Paul. I agree, my biggest issue is being wasteful. As long as I use them at some point, I feel free to take a handful.
With the way those dispensers are designed, I usually end up with a dozen when I only wanted four or five.
So I blame McDonald’s. ;)
It’s a parent thing. With a six-year-old boy and a two-month-old girl, those extra napkins get used up really quickly! Plus they’re handy in the car. And when a messy sneeze strikes–you know, the kind that demolish your average, wimpy Kleenex–they stand up to the abuse without shredding your skin like paper towels do.
BTW: Laurie Lynn, my daughter’s name is Tabitha too! Cool!
–Denita
I’m not a parent and I still usually grab a bunch out of habit. I guess I figure it’s better to have too many napkins than not enough, as long as the extras get used at some point.
Orison ate his yogurt at our house after your McD outing, right?
Judging by the yogurt blogs that walked away from the table on his mouth, on his shirt, on his jeans, I’d say you may USE only 2 napkins, but you NEED more.
Trees are a renewable resource so grab as many as you want.
I have the same struggle.
But it seems like regardless of how many napkins I get I do my best not to use more than one or two – to conserve. But then the others end up getting trashed regardless.
But if I only get one or two napkins to begin with – something always seems to happen where I need 20. And then I’m left with the messy walk of shame to get more napkins while my face/clothes etc are covered with soda/ketchup or whatever.
:-)
Seems like a good insight into our culture or maybe human nature- taking what we don’t need and rationalizing that we may need it later.
I wonder what would happen if we applied the same principal to our giving? Telling someone “here take a little more, you may need it later.”
i WISH i only needed two napkins
You might as well stock up while the stockin’s good, before napkin prices spike and your job goes south!
I always grab a handful, and stuff it in my pocket. With a 3 year old, you know he’s bound to spill something soon or need his nose wiped etc. As I read this blog I reached into my coat pocket and found 4 napkins in it!
I’ve heard that Subway actually saves hundreds of thousands of dollars each year by only giving one napkin per sandwich, and keeping extras behind the counter. It keeps people from taking some for their own “stash.”
First of all, those napkins are in my opinion too small.
Second, those dispensers make it hard to take just one or two at a time. Especially if they are full.
and Third, I always need a few anyway, because I order my burgers with everything on them! :D
Depends on how many kids are with me. Or a husband :)
I used to, but I got over it.
I have this problem with hot sauce packets from Taco Bell. I don’t throw the extras away though, I put them in the glove box. It’s a funny situation when I get pulled over and can’t find my insurance card in all my hot sauce.
4 kids=lots of napkins.
If I go without them I forget and still grab alot.
Leslie
Usually the napkins are so tightly packed in there, trying to get one or two becomes awkward. And a bunch are left hanging out of the box in disarray. I usually keep extras in the glove-box.
I had a similar experience this morning while eating there for breakfast– between my friend and I- 4 napkins!
When I read this post I wondered how long it would take someone to say: “I can’t believe you go to McDonald’s.”
I was guessing it would take 3 comments.
It took 6.
:)
I always use 4 napkins. Just for myself. Esp. @ McDonald’s.
NB: There is a serious qualitative difference when comparing McDo and Subway napkins. I think one thick Subway napkin = three flimsy McDo’s.
I’m pretty sure my husband has a disorder in this regard.
Last week, we were on vacation in California. He kept grabbing a few extra napkins at every breakfast, lunch and dinner. After three days, I had a stack of the extras in my diaper bag that stood almost 6 inches tall.
Ummm, honey? We’re not THAT messy.
I always take a handful. A big handful. I use one or two in the restaurant, and take the rest home. It saves money on napkins.
And I just realized my roommate Kyle Clark posted a comment about that already.
Yes — taking more napkins than I need (in case I need more than I thought I was going to!) is one of MANY things that changed after I had kids. The more kids — the more napkins — the numeric need grows exponentially, not proportionally. Bummer is — this habit is REALLY hard to break as the number of kids you’re feeding diminishes!
So true! I need to stop doing that!
After working at Chick-fil-a and being annoyed at patrons leaving 20+ napkins on the table, I’d like to think I am more careful about it. I’m not.
sometimes i grab two handfuls. it’s bad. my friends laugh at me. i try to use them. usually at least one person spills a beverage…then they come in handy!
[...] It took discipline at McDonald’s yesterday to only supply my tray with two napkins. « 22 Words (tags: cjh_comment) [...]
Deliberately taking napkins not needed at the place of business, intending them to supplement home supplies isn’t honest.
Yesterday’s thread had comments about simple life being radical.
This is not complicated. I don’t question the “grabbing extra” habit some may have because of children. Several posters acknowledged their motive. That’s just wrong.
Take the same motive, same scenario and apply it at your home: your guests automatically check out the kleenex and toilet paper supply in your bathroom and stuff their purses/jackets/whathaveyou–to supplement their home supplies. Same thing, folks.
I’m very conscious of how many napkins I take, but always end up with extras anyway.
A word about McDonald’s – they are a major supporter, in both dollars and personnel, of the homosexual agenda. As a result, I no longer go to Micky D’s.
so so so so true!!
Funny! I never have that kind of paper napkins problem and am single without kids. Really, I never was a paper napkin person, but I prefer cloth napkins only! I grew up with cloth napkin, but I used paper napkins at the private broading school.
I used to take my own cloth napkin with me as much as I can and use them and wash them. If I had a bad cold or sinus, then I will use paper napkins there. I do use wet ones or hand sanitizer. Of course, they do cost but better than that yucky paper napkins.
I need to start taking my cloth napkin again.
Plus, I am not that a bad messy eater but do eat something messy though.
I almost never go out to fast food place also.
Hungry to eat His Word,
‘Guerite ~ BoldLion
Don’t you people have shirts? Why ruin perfectly good napkins?
I love McD’s…and McD napkins. I always grab a handful for the meal and for the glove box. McD napkins have aided me in many coffee spills whilst driving.
Here’s a question, say you take a handful and leave what you don’t use on the table for the next person. A very nice thing to do. As the next person, would you ever use the napkins left there by someone else, or is that to questionable for you?
Philthecarl:
I will use unused napkins left by the previous occupants of my table.
I will also leave napkins we didn’t use at the table so the next person can use them.
I don’t take a stash for home. (I just buy a big pack at the grocery store for home – they’re not that expensive.)
I agree with Sharon up there that taking a stash just to stock up your supplies is wrong. They might not be charging you for it outright but come on, the restaurant doesn’t get those napkins for free. They’re passing that cost down through their prices.
Actually this thread of comments reminds me of the conversation here months back about wait staff not wanting to work Sunday after church shifts.
I’m wondering if Christians are being stereotyped as the water drinkers, low tippers and napkin-stash takers that nobody wants to serve on Sundays after they have been worshiping?
Hmm…I need to think on this one.
Great inspiration for some thoughts, Abraham!
Gotta admit – I take whatever comes out of the dispenser easily. If it’s too many, I throw the extras away. If it’s not enough, I grab a tissue from my purse. Unless I really need the exercise. I don’t sweat the small stuff.
Yeah…I feel bad about it sometimes, but oh well.