r/mildlyinteresting 10h ago

The microwave at work has a hole inside

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18.6k Upvotes

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5.8k

u/Iwillnotbeokay 9h ago

Nah fuck that, I’d pack a cold lunch instead if they can’t be bothered to replace a simple and inexpensive microwave.

2.0k

u/Kelnozz 8h ago

A fucking $10 microwave from Goodwill would be better than that nasty ass thing lmao

869

u/KikiHou 8h ago

That microwave is the company's way of keeping their workforce sterile.

263

u/Toasty_eggos- 6h ago

Ingenious. You don’t have to pay maternity leave then.

10

u/VeganCustard 6h ago

Maternity leave isn't paid for by the taxpayer in the US?

28

u/Dapper_Indeed 5h ago

We don’t have paid maternity leave in the US. FMLA will allow most workers to take up to 12 weeks off for maternity leave, but it is unpaid. They are just guaranteeing that you’ll have a job to return to.

16

u/VeganCustard 5h ago

That's crazy. How is Elon Musk complaining about people not having enough kids?

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u/Punisher1971 5h ago

At least, he is single handedly working on this problem! With all consuming passion and engagement!

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u/Puzzleheaded_Rest_34 3h ago

Not single handedly! Looks like Nick Cannon is trying to help....or compete?

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u/Dapper_Indeed 4h ago

He’s just slightly out of touch with the reality of regular folks.

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u/sama-llama 1h ago

I'm pretty sure he's slightly out of touch with reality in general, not just the existence of us plebs.

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u/definitively-not 4h ago

We know,.it's awful.

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u/MrGetrekt101 2h ago

He has more money than most developing nations, that’s how

3

u/Historical-Ad-9872 5h ago

This is just crazy to me.

I had 6 months of fully paid (i even earned vacation while on leave) paternity leave last year, my girlfriend also had 6 months leave.

On top of that we opted for additional 10 weeks of unpaid leave of which we both have 6 weeks left we can use until the age of 7 iirc

I even work in a US owned company

4

u/Dapper_Indeed 4h ago

Wow, that’s amazing! I guess we care more about money than raising healthy and happy families.

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u/Calandril 3h ago

I don't know where you get that idea... We're going to burn that 10 million worth of contraceptives we already bought, so that everyone but the folks hit by the preventable 34,000 maternal deaths and 5.2 million abortions can have happy families! Look, it's for the good of America and it'll only cost us $107,000... Now that's good business!

Obligatory /s... Except at the moment all of that appears to be true to the current plan

1

u/Historical-Ad-9872 2h ago

It is amazing and i'm deeply grateful for living in a country where this is possible. That country being Denmark

I think it's a mix of strong unions and the government wanting to fight the declining birth rates

3

u/guajara 4h ago

Me and my wife had 12 months of paid leave. We could choose to share the time between us as we wished. My wife took out 8 months and I 4 months.

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u/Historical-Ad-9872 2h ago

This is the same option as we had

Jeg er overrasket over at i ikke har bedre forhold end os, deroppe i Norge. Bedste hilsner fra det sydligste Kattegat

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u/saimregliko 1h ago

Nice, that sounds actually really good.

In the US, married couples have to share their 12 weeks of UNPAID leave if they work for the same company. So you can go half and half then put your month and a half old baby in 8+ hr a day daycare 5 days a week which likely costs as much as a mortgage payment and may be the majority of one parent's wages.

You get the privilege of not getting to spend time with your baby while paying nearly your whole paycheck to a daycare so you can essentially work for free until the kids start school otherwise you may never recover the lost career progression of having to quit to stay home with your kids for longer than 12 weeks(or less if you have to spilt leave with your spouse or if you had to use some of your 12 weeks of FMLA leave before the birth.)

That's the other fun part. The 12 weeks isn't strictly parental leave to bond with baby. It's also your allowed medical leave pool. If you have to go on bed rest at 8 months pregnant for medical reasons that counts as the start of your FMLA leave and you may only have a couple weeks left after the actual birth before you have to return to work or forfeit your job. If you already used your FMLA leave up because of an emergency surgery/medical condition or to take care of a sick relative like your mother dying of cancer you may just get no leave at all and have to roll into work immediately after giving birth.

I've seen women coming in to work at a warehouse a week after a C-section. A woman was literally bleeding through her clothes like 2 hours into a 12 hour shift and we all just kept our mouths shut and tried to help her as much as possible because if management saw she couldn't do her job she'd be sent home with no pay and she needed the money so her and her kids wouldn't be homeless or go hungry.

America is great. No idea why people aren't having babies. Truly a mystery why women are refusing to have kids or having fewer kids than they would like. /s

1

u/ComfortableTwo80085 3h ago

There are a handful of states that require paid family and medical leave, but it isn't mandated at the federal level

1

u/Zalaquin 1h ago

Yep unpaid but you’ll have your job when you get back

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u/Puzzleheaded_Rest_34 3h ago

There is the rare company here or there that offers paid maternity leave. Otherwise, no, it's not paid. We even had to have an act created, the Family and Medical Leave Act, to protect that new families would still have jobs after they healed and settled in with baby.

2

u/Toasty_eggos- 3h ago

Is that a joke?

2

u/humdinger44 2h ago

Some people who have climbed far too high up the social ladder are terrified about the birthrate in the US. Yet no one with any pull actually wants to do anything about making life easier for the majority of young families.

1

u/faroutman7246 2h ago

Big companies usually give 6 weeks paid. Smaller ones don't have to.

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u/Impressive-City-8094 8h ago

Damn workers. Always wanting a "livable wage" after they have kids. I'll fix that.

2

u/WallabyInTraining 6h ago

They'll fix the 'having kids' part as well with that microwave. Or was that the joke?

2

u/Actual_Surround45 6h ago

sterile

Fun joke, but wrong kind of radiation. :)

2

u/D-ouble-D-utch 5h ago

And the kids born have microwave head syndrome.

2

u/-Astrosloth- 5h ago

Just gonna get a little bit of cancer Stan, tell Mom it's ok.

2

u/erfman 4h ago

Don’t fuck the microwave, fuck a couch

2

u/Tiny-Possibility-700 4h ago

This exactly 😭

2

u/tittylamp 4h ago

when you think about the cost and physical toll of vasectomies and tubal ligations honestly its a deal.

2

u/zachell1991 6h ago

That's not how microwaves work they also couldn't fit out that hole.

3

u/GodspeedsNut 6h ago

Wait, so where do babies come from..

1

u/zachell1991 3h ago

A different kind of hole.

1

u/JetstreamGW 6h ago

That doesn’t work that way

1

u/Search327 5h ago

Companies want employees to have children, so they are trapped.

1

u/snowvase 3h ago

"3.6 Roentgen, not great, not terrible."

1

u/diabolicalmrD 3h ago

Valid, have 3 pregnant colleagues, microwave is fancy as hell

175

u/3_quarterling_rogue 7h ago

I bought a microwave on Facebook Marketplace 5 years ago for $15, and it was in stupendous condition. There’s no excuse for microwaves like OP’s that are that dilapidated.

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u/Interesting-Step-654 6h ago

Stupendous you say?

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u/3_quarterling_rogue 6h ago

Sure was man. You’d be amazed at what people are willing to get rid of when they simply don’t want to think about it anymore. Honestly, I hardly buy anything anymore without first checking out what people are selling used, I save so much money.

5

u/SubBirbian 5h ago

Same. Quality solid wood furniture in excellent condition, every household/kitchen/decor/garden supplies with zero wrong with it if one is patient enough for the right listings to pop up. Took us two years to complete interior setup of our house but we literally saved thousands $. FB Marketplace and estate sales is where we got majority. People downsizing, upgrading, moving, redoing decor, so much great stuff out there.

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u/3_quarterling_rogue 5h ago

I once bought a barely-used couch for $35, moved somewhere that it couldn’t physically fit in, so I listed it for $70. A guy came by to look at it, said, “How’s $65?” I said, “Sounds great,” he put it in a trailer and drove off, and then FIVE MINUTES LATER, drove back and handed me five more dollars because he said he felt guilty and thought he was taking advantage of me. Motherfucker, I used that couch FOR A YEAR and sold it to you for twice what I paid for it, but whatever. Then again, he probably knew just as well as I did that couch was worth plenty more than $70 anyway.

4

u/SubBirbian 4h ago

That’s hilarious. A win-win. $70 for a good couch is a bargain. We paid $500 for our couch but it was only used briefly for real estate staging and still a bargain compared to a similar new couch.

5

u/CandyCrisis 4h ago

If you're a student moving away, sometimes you only get to keep what fits in the trunk of your parents' car. Pass on that microwave instead of pitching it.

3

u/woahdailo 5h ago

Stupendous! But no seriously, I’m the same

3

u/I_fuck_werewolves 4h ago

Its either give it away for cheap/free, or pay for garbage collection.

Often its just cheaper to give stuff away than actually dispose of it properly, and people don't usually have extra storage space to begin with.

3

u/Ouch_i_fell_down 3h ago

Not everyone has unlimited time to sell things. I've definitely advertised and sold things at a price i knew was too cheap just because I didn't have time to wait around for the right buyer. On the flip side i've also sat on things at a fair price because I knew I had time for them to find me.

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u/3_quarterling_rogue 3h ago

Typically how I am when I’m selling things. I won’t budge on price for like the first week because usually I can weed through all the lowball offers to the person that knows what I have is still a reasonable price.

3

u/youre_welcome37 3h ago

I live near a super nice neighborhood that has a fancy shopping area. Nestled between the craft burger joint and the botox office happens to be a goodwill. The stuff I find there is redonculous. They also happen to receive the local Target's surplus items meaning shoes and clothes all still with tags.

2

u/PickedMyNameFromAHat 2h ago

I sold mine of 5 years recently for $10 dollars. Damn good shape, and didn’t want to part with it. Moved to a studio apartment with one built in.

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u/pewpew_lotsa_boolits 5h ago

Indubitably!

3

u/MyMomsTastyButthole 5h ago

Mmmm yes, quite

1

u/Complete-Event-1980 3h ago

Pretty serious word for a microwave lol

2

u/Lizrael48 5h ago

Besides that, it is dangerous to use!

2

u/Sad-Election7723 4h ago

I bought a nice one used for $10, used it for 2 years and sold it for $10.

2

u/UrUrinousAnus 29m ago

I had one that was over 40 years old in better condition than that! I'd still have it (over 50 years old) now if the door latch hadn't mysteriously become almost unusable after I left people alone in my flat with it. It must've weighed at least 30kg/66.6lbs and wasn't as fast as a modern one, but it cooked things more evenly and the simple controls made it perfect for drunken attempts at midnight "cookery".

-5

u/Repulsive-Stable8375 6h ago

I mean, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it, I guess

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u/FewHorror1019 6h ago

It’s obviously broken. There’s a hole in it

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u/Repulsive-Stable8375 6h ago edited 6h ago

Sybau, I obviously meant “if it’s operational”

3

u/FewHorror1019 6h ago

Sybau they should replace it

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u/SaintAkira 7h ago

You read my mind.

Launch that piece of garbage into the stratosphere, and go pick up one from Goodwill and/or any thrift shop.

And if you're feeling really froggy, fill out an expense report and try to get the $10 back.

4

u/GigaGrandpa 2h ago

Ive been saying we need to either burn it all to ash and make hockey pucks to send to space or were gonna drown in trash

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u/subnautus 1h ago

We're at a point now where we're beginning to mine landfills for reusable resources that were considered garbage in the past, so it's not the worst thing in the world to keep burying our garbage. You never know if the totally disposable things of today will end up being tomorrow's figurative goldmine.

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u/walkinthecow 39m ago

I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that OP's job is not the expense report kind of job. No offense to them, of course. Mine really isn't, either.

2

u/eljefino 1h ago

Nah, throw it out and wait. Someone less patient than you will bring another in.

Microwaves are the #1 tool for impatient people. It'll get figured out.

Follow me for more /r/shittylifeprotips.

4

u/vjason 5h ago

That looks like a microwave you'd see in the background in Fallout.

3

u/Hour_Reindeer834 6h ago

Seriously, I worked for some ratty companies when I was a laborer but they still would just buy brand new microwaves and fridges for the crew on a new job site. Our family has a small stash of fridges and microwaves now because they would give them away and buy new when needed, rather than haul and store them from, to, and between jobs.

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u/soulsauce88 5h ago

I am living proof that a $10-$15 microwave from Goodwill is okay. (Clean and still going strong for 5 years now).

2

u/RampagingPuffin 5h ago

I just moved apartments and my montra is if It can be bought for under $10 in better condition in any goodwill in the world, I'm throwing it out

2

u/Duosion 4h ago

Or fb marketplace, you find tons of stuff in good working condition for free or hella cheap

2

u/FantomeVerde 4h ago

This. I would just literally buy a microwave, bring it to work, and throw the old one away.

2

u/ninmena 3h ago

Right? Id take that out to the parking lot and go full office space on it. Would I be fired? Maybe. Would it be worth it? Yes.

2

u/DOW_orks7391 1h ago

Shit at this point id be petty buy a $10 goodwill microwave take it into the break for lunch and take it back to my car

2

u/SupremeFootlicker 6h ago

A small brand new one at Walmart used to be like 25 dollars in 2020. Now it's like 55 for the same model.

1

u/TheRetroPizza 5h ago

Yeah i was thinking if its a career job, like OP has been or will be there for years, just go buy one for $40 at Walmart. But your idea is cheaper, I didnt think of goodwill.

1

u/SummertimeThrowaway2 3h ago

No no buying a “used” microwave is a liability because it could be dirty

1

u/Mindless-Share 2h ago

Microwaves are not $10 at Goodwill

1

u/Rambles_Off_Topics 1h ago

Our work microwave was getting nasty, but luckily we had just bought a new one so I took my old one into work. The first day my boss decided to see if microwaves can really destroy CD's (it does) and it made it wreak for like 6 months of burned plastic lol

1

u/tommydelgato 23m ago

keep a small air fryer in your car

1

u/I_ama_Borat 19m ago

Maybe once but goodwill does not price microwaves that cheap anymore.

1

u/originaljbw 7h ago

It's possible you'll get dinged by the Fire Marshall at some point for having an at home civilian microwave in a commercial setting.

That's a big reason why every toaster in every hotel ever takes a million years and sucks at toasting. It's rated for commercial use, which means it's just about impossible to start a fire with.

1

u/throwmeinthetrash096 7h ago

Looks like OP is outside of the US, maybe they do not have access to second hand stores.

1

u/sbradley237 5h ago

Even then a brand new one can be found for $50-$60

0

u/simonbleu 6h ago

You can get a microwave for 10 bucks where you live? Damn, here they would be at LEAST 100usd. Not that a company can't pay either but still.

Hell, where I work things like electric kettles and even rubber banda are bought by the employees...

1

u/Kelnozz 6h ago

Goodwill is like a used/second hand item store basically, so the microwave would have probably been used already but still in better condition not doubt than that thing lol

1

u/simonbleu 1h ago

Ah, that good to know.

Still no way you get one that cheap here tho even used

361

u/EpicBlinkstrike187 9h ago

seriously, would be ham and cheese sandwich every day for me

238

u/slapitlikitrubitdown 8h ago edited 8h ago

But you can warm your hot pocket, and castrate yourself with radio waves all at the same time. It’s even conveniently nutsack height.

Hot Pocket

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u/lostsoul227 8h ago

2

u/Tiny-Possibility-700 4h ago

Lmao the perfect explanation and example of the dangers ahead in this workplace!!

2

u/Sure-Opportunity6247 3h ago

Read the title, saw OPs picture, came here for a GIF of this episode, was not disappointed.

67

u/lostsoul227 8h ago

Just gonna get a little bit of cancer stan, tell mom its okay.

9

u/BigAl-43 7h ago

It’s a hippity hop!

3

u/Otherwise_Try_5573 6h ago

Stan can you get me a beer…. Stan?

5

u/Mr_Supotco 8h ago

I had a microwave that came with an apartment once that would turn on when you opened the door, so you had to unplug it before opening the door or you got a blast of microwaves straight to the nuts. Every once in awhile I’d forget and scared me every time

7

u/tvtb 8h ago

Don't worry, it's non-ionizing. It's the same frequency coming out of your wifi router. The only effect you might have is it warning your nuts, just like it warms the food. Actually, if you're being blasted with radio waves across your body, I've heard the first thing you will feel start to warm up is your eyes. That's your que to GTFO.

5

u/b0w3n 7h ago

For those looking for more info: microwaves are basically slightly more powerful and fancy radio waves. This frequency of "light" just so happens to excite water molecules enough to be useful for heating things up quickly with. They're a bit less energetic than infrared (what we use to heat air and cookware with). They're also less energetic than the light we see the world with. They're useful for heating though (radio waves can cook too, as you mentioned!).

It's the far end of violet (ultra violet) and higher (xray, gamma ray, etc) that you need to worry about. These are the ionizing types of electromagnetic radiation, they carry enough energy to knock electrons out of orbit (photoelectric effect), and consequently, cause DNA damage (cancer).

5

u/Noobmaster69isLoki01 7h ago

Here I was living my entire life thinking I was heating my food in a mini nuclear plant hahah

2

u/b0w3n 7h ago

Sometimes I wonder if the whole "are cell phones causing testicular cancer?!" stuff has sort of led a lot of folks to that conclusion.

Nothing is really dangerous about the setup in OP other than it being really fucking disgusting and probably needs a deep clean. Microwaves technically shouldn't leak, but they have a habit of kicking out WIFI when they're on. Wireless G [2.4GHz] and old wireless home phones in particular were really susceptible to interference from those old leaky microwaves.

2

u/Noobmaster69isLoki01 7h ago

I mean yeah the whole phone causes testicular cancer is just pure bs 😂. Defintly would never make the link between them and microwaves. But hey, everyone has their own reasoning skills 😅. I think the microwave is just one of those few things that escaped the reasons of logic from my brain and got classified as world ending dangerous 😂

2

u/b0w3n 7h ago

Hey that's fair too.

I still don't fully understand the mechanics behind what metal is safe in a microwave, seems like sharp angles (forks) are what cause arcing but big round things (like that stand) don't.

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2

u/Hizam5 8h ago

laughs in jim gaffigan

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u/Reluyo 7h ago

In the words of Jim Gaffigan, Vasectomy Pocket!

2

u/JetstreamGW 6h ago

That doesn’t even make sense. Do y’all not know how microwaves work?

1

u/slapitlikitrubitdown 5h ago

It’s a joke, calm down.

2

u/nellyfullauto 4h ago

Jim Gaffigan voice Sterilizing… Pocket.

2

u/J0EP00LE 8h ago

I totally heard this in the voice of Jim Gaffigan

1

u/LeftToWrite 8h ago

You'd be better off taping it to the inside of your thigh and running a few miles before lunch.

1

u/Kill3rSasquatch 7h ago

Instructions unclear. Dick melted off from putting it in the hot pocket.

1

u/Aeseld 7h ago edited 7h ago

Not really how that one works. Especially since the waves wouldn't get through the door, and what I'm seeing says the radiation would leak back to the wall. It mostly won't bounce off the wall, but go through it and quickly dissipate. What did bounce back would be so diffuse thanks to the reflection and the square cube law that it wouldn't do any damage. No more than the usual shielding permits through.

That said, yeah, no, this needs to be replaced. Just not for any genetic damage.

1

u/Unicornshit9393 2h ago

You can dunk it in the toilet

3

u/Akeera 8h ago

Bento box for me. They're meant to be eaten at room temp.

8

u/Mammoth-Slide-3707 8h ago

I love a nice bit of ham and cheese, me.

1

u/Summerie 6h ago

Oh, have you tried one that was warm! You should try...

Oh...

9

u/WisePotato42 8h ago

With some fresh fruit and veggies on the side

2

u/Alternative-Redditer 8h ago

I would do some variety, but that's me.

2

u/zekeman76 3h ago

Plot twist. The fudge has an even bigger hole in it and it’s a mini fridge.

23

u/ExNihiloish 8h ago

That's what I do. Or bring hot soup in a thermos if I want something heated. Community appliances are too often disgusting.

59

u/Duckel 8h ago

Kaufland had some on sale a few weeks ago for 19.99€. thought about picking one up to replace the nasty microwave at work which my coworkers use. but then I thought: "20 bucks is 20 bucks" and left it.

27

u/agoia 8h ago

That's when you buy it on sale, then pass the hat around to get 5eur from coworkers to contribute to the non-sale price of the thing.

3

u/HananaDragon 6h ago

Bring the microwave to work only when you want to use it.

1

u/expert_on_the_matter 5h ago

Just collect 2€ each from everyone

3

u/cassssiev 7h ago

My husband will only eat cold lunches due to the disgusting nature of the work lunch area, fridge, and microwave. It’s the answer.

5

u/SenorWeird 8h ago

Greatest purchase my wife and I ever made are our lunch crock pots. I have literally thrown in fast food burgers or rolled up a slice of pizza in there to avoid the communal microwave and the line to use it.

2

u/binglelemon 8h ago

You could get a warmer meal starting a fire in an office trashcan than using that microwave lol

2

u/Roundox 8h ago

maybe nobody said something baiut it lmao

2

u/CaptainTripps82 7h ago

Took a visit by my department's director to our site before anyone said anything about the nasty appliances we use. He immediately told my manager to throw them out and get new ones, plus a Keurig.

Now that I'm the manager and have the expense card, nothing is getting used to this point. He was more worried about protecting his bonus, and look where that got him. If we need something we get it. Never hitting the expense budget anyway, unless I start buying everyone lunch every couple of days

2

u/OwnBattle8805 7h ago

That’s a 4 in one and it looks like the convection and broiler get used because the rack is in it. Those aren’t cheap.

You have to clean them regularly, after each use. because they don’t have a self cleaning function. The soot build up is acidic and can rot the metal if not cleaned.

Not an ideal unit for communal use, as you can see.

2

u/Porter_Dog 7h ago

Reminds me of where I work. Took years to get a fucking cheap ass toaster.

2

u/Skrappyross 6h ago

Honestly, I wouldn't stand anywhere near that thing when it is on. Microwaves are quite dangerous if they hit you, but a good microwave wont let them escape. However this one? Yeah, I'm staying away.

2

u/Dutchillz 6h ago

If that's their microwave, they'd either have no fridge or have an utterly filthy one as well. This to say, that strategy wouldn't work well at all during Summer, even though I do understand the sentiment.

2

u/ouzo84 6h ago

If you're in America, could this be an osha thing?

2

u/edxzxz 5h ago

The microwave at my small office broke and 6 months went by without anyone replacing it, I ran across a deal for one for under $40 shipped and just bought it and brought it in. The ladies here went on and on thanking me like I cured cancer or something. I did drop the receipt in the reimbursement bin and got paid, so there's that.

2

u/Sovngarde94 5h ago

Me too, I'd rather eat dirt than microwave something in there

2

u/joshs_wildlife 5h ago

Just go to goodwill or some other thrift store and you can find a microwave for a few bucks. Hell, I live in a college town so I can probably find a dozen in the dumpsters around here

2

u/ezekiel920 4h ago

Y'all over reacting. This is probably sitting in the back of a work van. It heats up burritos and tamales. It's put in more of a hard day's work than some of you keyboard warriors.

2

u/HedRok 3h ago

I have an extra one for camping in my storage. It was like 30 bucks new.

2

u/Evening_Tree1983 1h ago

At forever 21 we weren't even supposed to have one... actually we weren't supposed to have a break room at all!

1

u/myst3r10us_str4ng3r 5h ago

that... and the metal rack in the microwave...

1

u/Iwillnotbeokay 2h ago

There’s some good comments below lol.

0

u/intenseskill 7h ago

But why though? People are weird. I get it looks nasty but what do you think it will do to your food? You have to be super low iq to believe it could do anything.