Keeping alcohol in your office

Chris Pine.

Lol R1.

I don't know where that stupid rumor came from, but it keeps getting repeated here over and over again, for some reason.

Chris Pine is NOT an alcoholic.

Yes we did where I used to work.

Yes, in every office I worked in, it was obvious during the holidays. A copywriter who was a known lush was fired when they went though her desk the bottom draw was filled with empty liquor bottles.

Yes, me. But I work from home so ...

I don't find it scandalous and it's also not really much in the culture anymore. It's sad if it's secret drinking to get an alcoholic through the day. Until they can't do their jobs, what's it to me? Sometimes I will get a double shot of coffee or pop an adderall to get through a crunch.

We know who does.

At least with those who keep scotch, the booze is consumed effortlessly, sometimes even straight up. The lavish soaps with female bosses require a chilled and well-presented bottle of the best champagne, uncorked and served by a wine steward or butler with connoisseurship and a PhD

[Quote] Chris Pine is NOT an alcoholic.

And you're the dame to prove it!

When I was hitting my alcoholic bottom before entering AA I kept a bottle in the office desk.

[quote] I was hitting my alcoholic bottom

What did he do to deserve such punishment?

He started the "I want to get punched during sex" thread, R11.

I think it's one of these outdated stereotypes like going with clients to strip clubs, sports games or super fancy restaurants and declare it as business expense.

These days business meetings take place in the company meeting rooms and stay there. At least at my company. You can get fired for all sorts of things these days, including being / showing up drunk or high at your work place. The last big scandal we had was when a higher up had an affair with an underling and the underling filed a sexual harassment lawsuit when that relationship ended. Which led to new rules about office relationships and how they have to be reported to HQ.

Are teachers allowed to keep booze in their desks at school?

You'd be surprised how many people do this.

But the business executives or partners have the cool looking well stocked bar like OP"s pic of Mad Men, right? Or does that not happen anymore?

I don’t know if they keep it in their desk, but I used to work with a woman who would keep liquor bottles in her car, get plastered during lunch, and then when she got back, she would always go to the ladies restroom with a toothbrush and toothpaste to brush her teeth.

I'm pretty sure any assistant who worked for Faye Dunaway had it as an IV.

[quote] I used to work with a woman who would keep liquor bottles in her car, get plastered during lunch

Could you still smell the liquor, R18?

How did she function after lunch? That's usually when people get sleepy. I'm surprised she wasn't passed out at her desk.

Sorry, meant R17.

I think this was more so of an east coast thing....nothing like that happening on the west coast (with maybe the exceptions of real estate agents and the entertainment industry).

[quote]Or does that not happen anymore?

It went away along with the ashtrays. I keep a bottle of tequila in my office (well, used to -- haven't been in the office since March) so I could pregame and have a couple shots before going out to meet friends.

On the west coast, it's probably weed.

But can't you be fired in most offices, for keeping alcohol in your desk?

Isn't that a major rule violation?

How do offices determine if alcohol is allowed in the office or not?

I have always assumed that it's just a big NO NO in the workplace.

Oh balderdash. We drink just as much as we want in Cali.

[quote]But can't you be fired in most offices

Not my office. Our staff guidelines just say we can't be under the influence during work hours. In the beforetimes, it was common to congregate on the rooftop for happy hour about every other week. Guess where the booze was kept?

Yes, I keep rubbing alcohol and a hypothermic needle in my office. To keep the virus at bay.

In most office drinking on the premises is not allowed.

It is a liability issue. If anyone does anything wrong it looks bad if the company allows drinking in the office.

In the 80s, my coworker always had a bottle of wine in her desk, and she'd sip it throughout the day.

Why was she so bold? Well, she had a photo of the (married) boss in bed with her coworker. The company had wild office parties in those days, and the wine-loving lady was smart enough to bring her Polaroid camera.

I remember this from decades ago...A woman I worked with--someone I liked a lot--would--once a year--go out at lunch, get plastered, and come back to the office. Someone would find her slumped over her desk. It only happened once a year. No one made a big deal of it. I remember those days fondly. I am old.

[quote]Chris Pine is NOT an alcoholic.

Yes he is.

You're a filthy liar, R31!

Do dresshing roomsh count?

Malia ish a leshbian!!!

R19 No, you could not smell the liquor. She did a good job of covering up the smell. I think it was also because she was into wine, not hard alcohol (at least not during work hours).

She was one of those useless assholes that didn’t do shit at work so she didn’t really have to worry about being alert to the point of needing to concentrate. Professional drunks do a good job of keeping up appearances just enough to not bring suspicion to herself.

[quote]Oh balderdash.

Watch your filthy fucking mouth, cunt.

R36 is drunk at work.

Tell that to everybody who's encountered Chris Pine drunk on his ass around LA. And also the crews on his movies when he shows up hungover.

Every chef I ever met had a bottle in his file cabinet drawer

Yes, I worked at big bank and not uncommon. My father was a headmaster all his life and it’s also not uncommon at schools

Where I work, people act like you're committing murder if you drink on the job.

I'm clearly working at the wrong place.

We have a cabinet in the office pantry stocked with booze. We would occasionally have Friday afternoon happy hours and bring in cases of beer and a 5’ hero.

I have booze in my office. some bottles are of wine and champagne, gifts given to me. I also have vodka and rose and a snow cone machine to make adult slushees and frose in the summer (sadly, not this summer - the booze and snow cone maker are collecting dust).

A co-worker used to keep a bottle of scotch for the occasional "scotch o clock" at the end of a long Friday. That was fun.

I once had a "sherry in the afternoon" job. Big ticket "non-profit" cultural admin.

I had a boos who did. Old school - thought a scotch and cigars on Friday was a way of bonding. I assume that’s died off now. Things have changed a lot in 30 years.

What's a BOOS?

An obvious typo for boss r45. Are you stupid?

[quote] An obvious typo for boss R45. Are you stupid?

I'm not STOOPID. Are YOO?

Yeah, you're kind of dumb.

I've known people who keep the booze in their car and then go out and drink a bit during their breaks.

Smart, R50.

I like their style.

I keep a full bar of very good brands in my office - in decanters (glass so there's no lead hassles) so the place doesn't look like a rathskeller tavern. It's considered normal - expected, even - with my clients and colleagues. After noon except for special situations. People take a whiskey or whisky in the afternoon, older women find a sherry charming and excusable, and brandy and cognac are requested after 5. Occasionally people want a martini, so I have fixings. I don't drink, really, but pour myself something and have a sip for appearances.

In my work, alcohol has never gone away, but among younger people it increased with "Mad Men." Staff don't drink in the office unless it's part of a certain kind of meeting, and I'm there or they're representing me. It's meant for guests. And over time I've only had one over-imbiber, an alcoholic husband of a client who served himself before I asked. Not my embarrassment, and they have a driver.

TMI? Just responding to the question.

That's amazing R52.

What line of work are you in, may I ask? Not everyone's office is so .... liberal.

In the 1970s I worked for an insurance company in downtown LA. My department had the Mad Men vibe. Some in the back row drank in the office. Some went out to a bar for lunch.

The whole thing pissed me off. I was working my ass off and the drunks were passed out after lunch behind closed doors.

I never saw it. I imagine it’s a liability, from an insurance standpoint.

r52 are you American?

he's Moroccon

One of the people who works for me has a bottle of vodka in his desk. I work in the high-tech industry and as long as he gets his job done I don't give a shit.

"older women find a sherry charming and excusable"

What year are you writing from?

Women who entered the job market in the 70s and 80s have probably never tasted sherry in their lives. I think this was a thing for women who came of age in the 20s and 30s.

Smirnoff vodka’s old ad slogan was, “It leaves you breathless.” This was in reference to vodka’s tasteless, colorless and odorless properties. The smell of other spirits, such as whiskey, are harder to mask, but vodka leaves little trace on your breath. If you must day drink at work, nip on vodka.

"Vodka doesn't smell on your breath" is complete bullshit. It smells, and everybody around you knows you've been drinking.

We once had a receptionist who we were convinced was getting sloshed every day because her cube reeked of booze. Turns out she was a germaphobe who used really good quality hand sanitizer liberally every single time she moved around the office.

I always kept a bottle of champagne in the mini-fridge in my office for those times a special celebration was in order.

And we kept bottles of wine for our monthly wine & cheese functions.

I'm an American. I work in a variety of research, evaluation, planning and fundraising areas. Clients tend to be wealthy or from corporate settings, or political or community-development-oriented. I give people what they expect and my company follows suit. Plush and comfortable suits the context, and I ensure that everyone understands that the company does not provide amenities of drinks, lunches and dinners from client's pockets, but I do personally.

R59, your lack of experience obviously differs from my actual experience. That you don't understand the cohort with which I work is understandable. And you missed the import of "find it charming" in terms of an "excusable" drink, especially at 2 pm. Certain women in their 70s and 80s enjoy playing the part. By all means stay where you are and be happy in your omniscience.

I just can't with r65.

R65 sounds like a charming, urbane gentleman. I'd love it if you offered me a drink in your posh office. Alas, I am poor and cannot make a donation to your cause.

In 2006, my company acquired one of our biggest competitors, a rascally upstart staffed by a bunch of college chums. Those guys liked to party hard and for a minute there, we thought that their "Work Hard, Party Harder" culture would make our company a little less uptight. Nope--my company is as uptight and boring as ever. One by one, most of those college chums quit the company. I'd bet money that wherever those guys are, there are bottles in drawers.

A former employer would buy us a keg to enjoy in the afternoon on summer Fridays but that was a lifetime ago (mid 90s).

Everybody is so uptight and afraid of offending anyone, so no more booze in the office.

R65 is clearly works with what we call "make-believe foundations." A bunch of bored wealthy people, often trophy spouses, want to feel like they are contributing so they start a foundation or get involved in some community activity.

Their activity largely consists of "fund-raisers."

They expect the development staff to be a sort of sophisticated entertainment. So you do serve alcohol in a plush setting and count the minutes you can get back to the real world.

But when a grant deadline or an audit is looming, you do not let the staff drink. The alcohol only happens for entertainment--not actual work.

R60 that’s not true. I can smell vodka from a mile away. ALL alcohol smells.

Since I’m working from home, yes I do keep liquor at the office. I suspect lots of people are day drinking from home while “working”.

R52 funeral director?

Don't even get me started on rich twats who work non-profit or "foundations" because it gives them something to do. Useless, all of them.

[quote]I keep a full bar of very good brands in my office - in decanters (glass so there's no lead hassles) so the place doesn't look like a rathskeller tavern.

Well aren't you a Fancy Nancy!

What other laughably pretentious affectations do you indulge in around the office?

Yeah r52, I bet people are clamoring for your proffered spirits. No way would I accept booze in unmarked bottles from someone.

[quote]No way would I accept booze in unmarked bottles from someone.

What could happen?

R63 Nothing says !!LET'S CELEBRATE!! better than a mini-bottle of champagne.