Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 9th May 2024 Issue no. 1113
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I’ve never been one for Valentine’s Day; my view is that if someone loves you, they should be inclined to demonstrate their affection every day. Having them push the boat out just because it’s 14th February, feels akin to the insistence that seats on the Board should be fairly equally distributed between men and women along with the different ethnic groups and gender representations. If you’re a member of the board, surely you should be there on merit and for no other reason. Imagine being anything other than a straight white man and being offered a seat on the Board! I won’t say you’d be forever wondering if you’re there as the ‘token representative’ but the thought’s likely to cross your mind and make you feel you need to prove yourself, isn’t it?
Another thing that frustrates me about Valentine’s Day is that in conventional couples, one partner feels pressured into buying red roses and taking their other half out to dinner. That’s regardless of whether their partner likes red roses over all other flowers… we’ve been conditioned to think that it has to be red roses. The prices rocket and dinner is eaten (or used to be, prior to Covid) in a restaurant crowded with other couples, which is anything but romantic. What do you do though?
John and I had a chuckle this week over a press release sent in from divert.co.uk, (a UK-wide, on-demand rubbish collection service) pushing the ‘ultimate Valentine’s gift’ – the chance to become a refuse collector and ride in a refuse truck. “The bonus is that we will also teach your partner the importance of taking the bins out!” it promised... “Experience the ultimate driving thrill with this bin truck driving blast. Is your partner bored with their normal car? Or perhaps they simply want to live out that childhood fantasy of being a refuse collector? Then this experience is the perfect chance to go for a ride - along with one of our drivers, and experience the life of a refuse collector in one of our famous purple trucks. After the tough decision of what to pack in your lunch box, you can buckle up and enjoy the thrilling miles. Sit back and help co-pilot the lorry and take on the challenging straights and turns - and if you're lucky, your driver may let you use the hydraulics and tip the rubbish out!"
Now that’s a Valentine’s gift with a difference, don't you think?
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Yours,
18th February 2021