I have five or six meetings in my office every day. The average number of people in those meetings is about four. And every day, someone leaves something in my office. And the interesting part – most never come back to look for the item they’ve left behind.

Here is a short list of some of the items left behind in the past few weeks.

Eyeglasses
You would think that someone would notice that they’ve left their glasses behind. I mean eventually you’ll have to read something. But that would be logical. The glasses have been in my office for about two weeks. I finally put them on a file cabinet outside my office – and someone did claim them. I can’t believe it took that long.

Clipboard
I carry this really nice metal clipboard. It holds a small pad and is very handy when going to internal meetings. The problem – the clipboard is not mine. Someone left it in my office. I’ve asked everyone. Nobody has claimed it. I carry it to meetings and nobody ever asks ‘is that mine?’ I know it’s a low cost item, but I would certainly want my clipboard back. But in three weeks, nobody has claimed this item. So now it’s officially mine.

Coffee Cups
This is the #1 item left behind. Empty. Full. Lipstick stained. Fresh. Every day I throw away at least 3 coffee cups. And many are full and brand new. I don’t care. If it’s in my office, and you leave, I throw it away. So you know all that money you’re spending at Starbucks? It’s ending up in my trashcan.

A Leather Glove
A woman left a single leather glove in my office. Black. Size small. I could have a Cinderella fitting – come by my office and you can try on the glove. Or if you have the mate, I’ll give you the match. But it’s been a few weeks, and I think it may be time to chuck it in the trash. I don’t think anyone is coming by to claim it. But if it’s yours, please raise your cold hand.

Notebooks
Another common item left behind is a notebook. Usually I can figure out whom it belongs to by looking inside. Luckily, I haven’t looked inside a notebook and read any mass murder manifesto or some plot to overthrow the government or even an I HATE RICH rant. So far it’s been pretty tame. Although someone is practicing his or her ‘star’ signature a little bit too much.

Hot Sauce
I think someone ate something in my office recently and left an entire bottle of hot sauce. I thought that was kind of strange, since I don’t remember anyone eating in my office. And if they did, do they carry their own bottle around with them? Who does that? And if you’re reading this – I threw the bottle away, sorry.

The other things that end up in my office, pencils, paperclips, lots and lots of paper, push pins, ring binders and even an extra chair are all a part of doing business in a big company. But if you’re looking for your MacBook Pro – I’ve locked it in my desk.

See you after my next meeting.

2.21.12